Lovely reflective piece, Kimberly.

There are several passages in the Law that forbid touching a dead body, no matter the cause of death. E.g. "Whoever touches a human corpse will be unclean for seven days" (Numbers 19:11 NIV). It is a common interpretation of the choices of the priest and Levite that they did not want to be unclean and chose not to examine the traveler, assuming he was dead.

I find this interpretation freeing, in a way. I always thought the priest and Levite were "bad" people for passing the traveler by. This reading suggests that their reasons were religious, not moral. They preferred to maintain their relationship with God "pure and undefiled," and they felt no relationship with the body by the road. And the Law supported that emphasis.

Jesus turned the emphasis on its head. He suggested, instead, that by "loving our neighbor," we are serving God. Rather than focusing on the vertical axis of a "me and Jesus" faith, this parable encourages a more horizontal focus on a community of faith, attentive to healing and helping and binding of wounds.

All best to you.