A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.

And by chance there came down a certain woke priest that way; and when he saw the man he returned to Jerusalem and launched a campaign for travel control, so only licensed travelers with adequate provision to defend themselves against robbers would be allowed out on the road. Those he met were impressed with his compassion and wealthy caravanners donated to his campaign. #CareforTravelers

But a social justice Levite, hearing the plight of the wounded traveler, set out to rescue him. He went naked—because, he said to himself, how can I justify wearing clothing myself when my neighbor has been stripped by thieves—and he went without eating or drinking—because, he reflected, any food or drink he consumed would be as if taken from the mouth of the poor traveler. Along the way, burnt by the sun and famished and thirsty, he fainted and never arrived. [In an alternate version of the story, at the point of collapse, he ate all the food, drank all the water, and rolled himself up to sleep in the bundle of clothes he’d brought.]

A Samaritan heard the plans for shutting down travel and decided to leave Jerusalem while he could. He was thrifty and prudent and took along supplies for the journey with extras for emergencies. And as he journeyed, he came where the traveler was, and when he saw him, had compassion on him, and bound his wounds, and shared his surplus provisions, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.