Friday of the Second Week of Easter (Acts 5:34-42; John 6:1-15)
A Jewish immigrant doctor in San Antonio took care of
many Mexican, African, and white Americans before World War II. Doc Stein was everyone’s friend and healer. If someone worried about money to pay him
back, he would tell him or her: “You should worry to pay me? You think maybe I want to become a
millionaire? Pay me when you can.” And he treated the soul as well as the body
by admonishing his patients: “Just think only about getting well, and believe
in Gott and pray for health.”
We might think of Gamaliel in the reading from Acts today
as a Doc Stein kind of person. His
unshakeable faith in God allows him to tolerate a budding competitor to his
beloved Judaism without fluster. “…if it
(Christianity) comes from God, you will not be able to destroy them,” he tells
his fellow Jews. As St. Paul’s teacher,
Gamaliel perhaps imparted the acumen for Scripture and the love for God that
made his star pupil the most efficacious of Christian apostles.
Gamaliel and Doc Stein together remind us that
religious toleration may not go far enough.
We are wise to learn what other religions teach and how they are
practiced. As a result of these efforts
we are likely to better fulfill Jesus’ command to love our neighbors.
