From the pulpit: Good deeds have no price sticker

The parable of the Good Samaritan is one of the best-known in the Bible. But how easy is it to be a Good Samaritan in today's society? Our guest preachers this week say a little

bit of time and effort are a wise investment

MARTIN HILL has been a captain in the Salvation Army for 10 years. He runs a church and community centres in Belfast.

I HAVE drawn up a 10-point guide on how not to be a Good Samaritan. I've used the well-known scenario of trying to dodge collectors on the street.

1. Smile smugly and say: "Sorry, I've no money on me."

2. Mingle with a crowd and rush on.

3. Wait until the collector is preoccupied before sneaking by.

4. Walk faster, eyes fixed ahead.

5. Dive into a shop.

6. Creep behind the collector while he or she is looking ahead.

7. Start an animated conversation with the person beside you.

8. Give a token amount, say 10p, to obtain a sticker.

9. Put your foreign coins in - you've outwitted the collector.

10. Cross the road.

If you get a little bored today, try compiling your own list of 10 ways of avoiding something.

Popular topics include how not to help a homeless person, how not to listen to a neighbour's troubles and how not to visit the in- laws.

People have plenty of excuses to avoid doing something they don't want to do, but the two main reasons are that they don't think it will make a difference.

Jesus knew the art of telling a good story to convey his message. One of his best-known is that of the Good Samaritan.

It tells of a man travelling on the Jerusalem to Jericho road. He was attacked, robbed and injured. His assailants even took his clothes.

The next two travellers passing that way were both respectable men in the community. They saw the man and his desperate plight, but both crossed to the other side of the road to avoid him.

Soon after, a Samaritan stopped to help and ignored the threat to his own safety.

He administered first aid and took the injured man to the next guesthouse on the route. And, what is more, he paid the bill.

He followed this up with a visit to see how the man was when he was next passing that way.

Being a Good Samaritan is about seeing the need and doing something. He could also have said he did not want to get involved. But he did get involved.

Mick came to the Salvation Army's night shelter in Dublin, feeling worthless.

He was well-known to the psychiatric services and was addicted to alcohol. He stopped taking his medication.

He collected his weekly allowance from the post office but his regular drinking pals were usually waiting.

But Mick found a friend, a Good Samaritan, who now helps him. She even visited him in prison when things went badly for him. She helped Mick cope with life and gain a sense of his own worth.

Louise and her husband came to a homeless families unit in Belfast because of intimidation.

They brought their young child to the unit as well as many problems.

Within a short time, Louise discovered she was pregnant again and her husband left her.

She was so distressed she tried to take her own life, so it was fortunate there were people to give her support.

They helped her get her life back together and move into a new home.

William Booth, who founded the Salvation Army more than a century ago, was once told by his son Bramwell that there were people sleeping rough under bridges.

His father told him to go and do something - which he did. Deeds often speak louder than creeds.

I admire the Salvation Army's motto: "Heart to God and hand to man." It strikes a good balance. If our hearts are towards God, our hands are often used in compassion towards others.

METHODIST minister the Rev Des Bain is superintendent of the Dublin Central Mission which runs homes and sheltered housing for the elderly in the city.

THE STORY of the Good Samaritan is one of Jesus's best-known parables. It outlines the call of God to help those in need, regardless of religion or race.

It's just as easy to be a Good Samaritan today, and the work of the Methodist Church in Ireland is a good example of how it can be done.

The Church, since its beginnings in the 18th century, has stressed that every individual needs to experience a personal friendship with God.

This love for God can only be truly expressed through love for our neighbour.

Our Church founder, the Rev John Wesley, travelled to every part of Ireland preaching and setting up charitable causes. These included an orphanage and school as well as a widows home.

Thirty Methodist businessmen set up the Strangers Friend Society at the end of the 18th century to combat poverty in Dublin.

They started a fund which helped the sick and the poor from all religions. Records from the 1790s show a variety of people were helped.

The Society helped thousands of people for nearly 200 years until it was amalgamated with the Dublin Central Mission in 1978.

The Mission opened its first holiday home for poor city children and old people in 1908.

Having been the Good Samaritan for so many years, a new role in the Mission began to emerge in the 1960s - that of innkeeper.

In Jesus's story, the Samaritan took the victim to an inn where he looked after him for the next day, then left him in the care of the proprietor.

The innkeeper was like a second Samaritan who had a different, but very crucial, role.

The Dublin Central Mission's innkeeping ministry began in 1965 when the first of two housing centres opened, with accommodation for 40 elderly people.

It was thought to be the first of its kind in Ireland to offer accommodation to men, women and married couples from all religious backgrounds.

The Mission has just opened a care centre and nursing home for 45 people. It includes a 15-bed special care unit for men and women suffering from Alzheimer's Disease.

These last two projects have cost the Mission nearly IRpounds 7 million, most of which has to be raised by the Methodist community in Dublin.

Gifts from individuals and trusts, as well as generous support from around Ireland, ensured these projects were completed.

We still have to find around IRpounds 600,000, but we are confident we will be able to complete the task.

The Mission also ran a Halfway House in Dublin from 1976 to 1996 with help from the Eastern Health Board, the Department of Justice and Dublin Corporation.

This was another aspect of the innkeeping ministry, as men and women who had just been released from prison or psychiatric hospital came to stay.

The centre cared for more than 500 people until it became a homeless hostel run by the Salvation Army.

But the heartbeat is the congregation who still meet in the Abbey Street Church.

There is an "open table" in the church which means that all those who want to seek the Lord are invited to communicate regardless of their denominational background.

The congregation's support is vital to all the work that has been undertaken. They have watched and prayed through the good times and the bad.

The Church sanctuary is always open so people can come in to pray.

More than 2,500 people come and go from the Mission Centre each week. Many of these people come because of the anonymity the centre offers while maintaining a presence for guidance and advice.

We believe that when God's people come together to pray for the benefit of others, then God's blessing is clearly seen.

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