Who is Your Neighbor?
July 2025 - Bruce Fairbairn, Elder
The lawyer answered Jesus correctly. The Law can be aptly summed up as “love God and love your neighbor as yourself.” Still looking to perhaps trap Jesus, the lawyer then asked: “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus tells him and the other listeners the great parable of the Good Samaritan, leaving no doubt that the good neighbor was the one who saw another person’s need, showed mercy and helped him without thought of reward.
The question “Who is your neighbor?” and its corollary “How can I be a good neighbor?” are things well worth considering. As followers of Jesus, we strive to be more caring, responsive and humble toward others like the Good Samaritan. There are people all around us close to home that may be troubled, lonely or in distress whether from physical difficulties, emotional concerns or, particularly, spiritual needs. Many others are simply folks much like us who would enjoy some community, personal interactions and shared experiences. For a time, Barb and I started sitting out in our front yard on two Adirondack chairs and it was amazing and gratifying how many people (and dogs) we met in this simple way—people of different colors, shapes, sizes, clothing styles and religions. Not surprisingly, we found lots of common ground and shared values among a quite diverse neighborhood. To be sure, there were differences as well but, at heart, we are all people created by God in His image.
In many ways, our modern world and ways of living seem to militate against building even surface relationships with those around us. We live in big houses isolated from the community and drive everywhere in cars on single-minded missions from which we might casually wave at passersby. People’s eyes seem to be perpetually glued to smart phones, and their ears plugged into so much noise. Unfortunately, many folks (and not just young ones) seem to mostly and superficially connect with others only through social media.
I once wrote a poem entitled “Where have all the front porches gone?” It was a lament for the change in architecture and attitude occasioned by the continuing sprawl of suburbia. Many of our modern homes are oriented toward backyards with fancy decks and enclosed patios shut off and separated from the extended neighborhood. I fondly remember my family’s front porch back home and especially my Nana’s porch on the corner of 7th and Blish Streets in Seymour. On languid summer evenings, we would sit in the big swing on her rickety front porch for a lovely and relaxing family time. To my young eyes, it seemed like the whole world would slowly pass by on the sidewalks. Friends, relatives and strangers were all greeted and invited to “come up on the porch and sit a spell.”
Jesus knew His neighbors and actively reached out to those around Him, meeting needs where they existed. He “hung out” with a greatly diverse crowd to teach, heal, celebrate, weep, dine, and just enjoy friendships and community. He provided the New Covenant that we share with each other in communion each month, sent the Holy Spirit to guide and inform our daily walks of faith, and issued the Great Commission for all of us to reach out to our neighbors with the Good News.
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