蜜芽传媒

The smartly dressed man was pacing back and forth in the lobby, visibly distressed. Those who saw him were concerned for his welfare. Perhaps he had been upset by the incident that had just occurred on the street outside. Sirens were still sounding, officers were cordoning off an area, there had been gunshots. People rallied round to offer the poor man what help they could - a friendly smile, a glass of water. It was a beautiful image of strangers coming together to offer simple human kindness to someone in need.

But that moment of tenderness did not last long. Suddenly armed police officers ran in and arrested the man for murdering two Israeli embassy staff. Sarah and Yaron were a young couple on their way home from attending a humanitarian relief event. They had been planning to get engaged in a few weeks, before their lives had been so cruelly cut short.

It鈥檚 a disturbing contradiction. On one side a spontaneous act of compassion, in the form of a simple glass of water, offered to a stranger, irrespective of who he was, what he believed, which side he was on. On the other side a premeditated act of violence against two strangers who had unwittingly become political pawns in someone else鈥檚 narrative.

For me, hospitality is at the heart of compassion, the hallmark of those who want to relieve suffering, who refuse to become like those who dehumanise.
Nowhere is this distinction seen more acutely in our world at the moment than in Gaza. An 11-week-aid blockade is very slowly easing. World leaders are speaking up to end the suffering of Palestinian people who have been without food for so long but not everyone recognises their humanity. Where some see victims, others see terrorists.

You may have seen news reports about Shaimaa, a mother in Gaza. Her husband scavenges through rubble each morning in search of food, often returning empty-handed. Their baby daughter, Sham, was delivered by caesarean in January without anaesthetic. All Shaimaa has to offer her is water, with salt added to trick the baby鈥檚 stomach into feeling full when it isn鈥檛.

The response on social media is divided - between those who are outraged and want to offer help - and those who are outraged at those who want to help.
It鈥檚 not a new problem. Thousands of years ago Jesus divided people by their willingness to offer a simple glass of water to a stranger. 鈥淐ome鈥�, you who are blessed by my Father, take your inheritance鈥�, he tells those who respond with compassion. Any of us who do not show such compassion receive a warning 鈥� the risk of being cursed and cast out.

Jesus reminds us that a glass of water given to any stranger speaks volumes. It declares a common thread in our shared humanity, and a commitment to respond to suffering and hatred with compassion. We can鈥檛 always stop violence, but we can choose not to dehumanise. I want to be like those this week whose instinct was to offer water to someone in need.

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