How Well Do We Practice Being The Good S.....

Repost:American Chronicle

What Has Happened to Being a "Good Samaritan?"
Carlos Estrella July 03,2007 Two tragic yet increasingly common incidents have happened recently. Both involve the death of a person obviously in need while bystanders take pictures and step over the person while they lay dying. The lack of compassion is astounding, yet while the law is unclear in the two states the incicents happened in, the greater moral issue is left for us to ponder; When is is "our job" to help our fellow human being?

As reported by most mainstream media outlets, a woman in a Los Angeles hospital suffering from a gastrointestinal emergency went repeatedly to a hospital emergency room. Her last visit proved fatal, since not only was she allegedly denied treatment, but on hospital surveillance video people are seen to be walking past her without trying to help, hospital personnel are said to have told police "she has to go elsewhere," and bystanders are watching while hospital janitors mop up the bodily fluids she leaves behind as she lay dying. In another case in Kansas, a woman is lying on the ground stabbed and dying, yet people literally walk OVER her and a person takes her photo with a cell phone rather than help, all while surveillance video records the incident. In both cases, more care was taken to either ignore or "play reporter" by recording the incident rather than assist a person in need.

California and Kansas, like most places in the US have something called a "Good Samaritan Act." The wording varies from place to place but in essence, they state that when you attempt to help someone in good faith when they are sick or injured, you are not held liable if something happens to them while you are trying to help them or because you helped them. Conversely, in many states it is illegal to deny a person help if they are in need, though those laws typically refer to motor vehicle incidents vs. crimes or medical emergencies. In all cases though, something lacking in the legal codes and evidentally in the "moral fiber" of America in these times...American Chronicle

In our 'Worlds' today, we are so quick to see all the injustices of others, but when it comes down to us, individuals, we have this mind set, "I didn't want to get involved". Why do we continue to close our eyes or pull down our blinds when someone is in dire need?
One of the biggest excuses tody is this response to not helping someone whose in extreme need. "I didn't offer because I didn't know how they would take it, or I felt like they would be offended"!
How sad, that in "Our Worlds" we do not have enough room for COMPASSION!.
How sad, that we can imply: Better them, than me!
Our declined moral fabric is played out on the nightly news every single night.
May be that, we need to reprogram our hearts with the Word of God, so that we can be capable of becoming Good Samaritians!
How sad it is, that we even have to remember to refocus ourselves into performing 'Good' or 'Humanitrian' deeds to one another, when they should be Spontaneous Acts of Compassion Ready to be poured out!
Written By: Dr. D.L.Gaitors D.D.

Good Samaritan law

For the associated New Testament story, see Parable of the Good Samaritan.

A statue by François-Léon Sicard representing the Good Samaritan's rescue of an injured travelerGood Samaritan laws in the United States are laws or acts protecting from liability those who choose to aid others who are injured or ill. They are intended to reduce bystanders' hesitation to assist, for fear of being sued or prosecuted for unintentional injury or wrongful death. Similarly, in Canada, a good Samaritan doctrine is a legal principle that prevents a rescuer who has voluntarily helped a victim in distress from being successfully sued for 'wrongdoing'. Its purpose is to keep people from being reluctant to help a stranger in need for fear of legal repercussions if they were to make some mistake in treatment.[1] Good Samaritan laws vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, as will their interactions with various other legal principles, such as consent, parental rights and the right to refuse treatment. Such laws generally do not apply to medical professionals' or career emergency responders' on-the-job conduct, but some extend protection to professional rescuers when they are acting in a volunteer capacity.

The principles contained in good Samaritan laws more typically operate in countries in which the foundation of the legal system is English Common Law, such as Australia[2]. In many countries that use civil law as the foundation for their legal systems, the same legal effect is more typically achieved using a principle of duty to rescue.

Good Samaritan laws take their name from a story told by Jesus as contained in Luke 10:25-37, which recounts the aid given by a traveller to a person in need who had been beaten and robbed by bandits. While this traveller (a Samaritan) had no national, cultural, or religious affiliation to the injured man (in the story, assumed to be a Jew, with whom the Samaritans had had a long history of enmity), in compassion he aided the injured man, and did all in his power to ensure his welfare and recovery.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Good Samaritan Law)
Posted By: Dr. D.L.Gaitors,D.D.

The Good Samaritan

What is a good samaritan?
A person who voluntarily offers help or sympathy in times of trouble.

The Parable of the Good Samaritan is a New Testament parable appearing only in the Gospel of Luke.[1] (Also known as The Good Neighbour). The majority view indicates this parable is told by Jesus in order to illustrate that human kindness and fellow feeling must be available to all, and that fulfilling the spirit of the Law is just as important as fulfilling the letter of the Law,
Luke 10:25-37.
Background:
[the preceding context of the parable here]

On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to say to Jesus. "Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?". "What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do you read it?" asked Jesus. The man answered: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind' and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'" "You have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live." But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, "and who is my neighbor teacher?"
[the parable starts here]
In reply Jesus said:
"A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead with no clothes. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, and he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, he too passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and looked after him. The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. 'Look after him,' he said, 'and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.' "Which of these three do you think was a neighbour to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?" The expert in the law replied, "The one who had mercy on him." Jesus told him, "Go and do likewise." NIV

The priest therefore decided that being ritually clean and "priestly" was more important than saving someone else's life. Jesus' unspoken challenge to all seems to be: would we help only if it is convenient, or are we willing to go out of our way to show compassion to a stranger?Wikipedia, - posted by Dr.D.Gaitors