Moved with Compassion

As they were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed Him. And two blind men sitting by the road, hearing that Jesus was passing by, cried out, ‘Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David ‘ The crowd sternly told them to be quiet, but they cried out all the more, ‘Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!’ And Jesus stopped and called them, and said, ‘What do you want Me to do for you?’ They said to Him, ‘Lord, we want our eyes to be opened.’ Moved with compassion, Jesus touched their eyes; and immediately they regained their sight and followed Him.

Matt 20:29-43 (NASB)

There is a lot of talk in this country about ‘compassion’ at the moment –particularly in relation to nursing, and why people perceive that there is a lack of compassion in the profession. But what does compassion really mean?

Most Bible translations use the English ‘compassion’ (literally meaning, ‘to suffer alongside’) to translate several different words in the Bible – none of which has so simple a meaning.

In this passage, the Greek word translated ‘moved with compassion’ is splagchnizomai, literally meaning ‘to be moved in one’s innards’ – either the bowels or the organs within the rib-cage.  It is an expression of the most visceral, physical response to the needs and suffering of others. When Jesus hears the plea of the blind men to have their sight restored, he is moved to his guts.

But when we see Jesus profoundly moved here, he does not stop with feelings. He acts, decisively and firmly to address the need that he sees, and heals both men there and then. Compassion in the Bible is a verb, not a noun – like love, it only means anything if it leads to decisive action.

In our nursing, we are often told to keep a professional distance, not to get involved. But to be truly compassionate, we need to be open to the pain and suffering and need of our patients, at any level, and be willing and able to be truly moved and to respond decisively – whether that is sorting out displaced pillows to make someone comfortable, or ensuring that appropriate analgesia is provided on schedule, or simply being present with a person in the most profound and inexpressible distress.  If we cannot be moved and spurred to action by our patient’s need, how can we be truly compassionate?