All the Way to Jerusalem—Overcoming Sectarian Tradition

The dichotomy of Israelites and Samaritans has been an ongoing rift since the fall of the Northern Kingdom. A people never able to completely part ways with their pagan idols, they created an amalgamation of Judaism with their former gods and were forever outcast from the Israelite culture. Yet when Jesus came, He seemed to ignore this cultural rift continuously. Does that mean He simply ignored their pseudo-pagan religion or did He bring a message of reconciliation that we can still learn from today?