Jesus, whose birth Christians celebrate today, was once asked by a scholar of the Jewish law how to attain eternal life. The answer came from that same religious law: Love God with all your being; love your neighbor as much as you love yourself.

But Jesus was then pressed with a follow-up question: “Who is my neighbor?” He proceeded to tell what is probably the most famous parable in the entire Christian Bible — that of the Good Samaritan, now well known to Christians and non-Christians alike.