love of neighbor

We seem to be relearning the social benefits of building community with our not-so-close neighbors.

"Love God, love neighbor." Sounds simple.

When arguments fail us, we turn to words of wonder.

As I drive past boarded-up churches, I am more convinced than ever that many congregations could afford to revisit their neighbor ethic.

At Cana, Jesus asks Mary, "What is this to me and to you?" It is very important that the church hear this question.

We live in an era of transition between more stable ages. We face material choices now that will shape and serve our communities for long generations to come. Society is emerging in fits and starts from centuries of essentialism that defined people by race, gender, religion, and class into narrow identities with determined roles. 

I read this week’s lectionary passages last summer in the Urubamba Valley in my native Peru, and in my native Spanish: “Pero Cristo ya vino, y ahora el es el Sumo sacerdote . . .” At first I resisted the Hebrews passage, as I prefer Jesus’ concrete teachings to more abstract theological concepts. So, while leading a tour group across the Andes, I turned to Mark: “And man must love God with all his heart and with all his mind and with all his strength; and he must love his neighbor as he loves himself.”

Jesus' simple summary of the law is actually complex.