Redefining Your Neighbor
By Brian Holdsworth
It seems to me that one of the biggest problems, if not the biggest, with our world stems from our apathy towards our neighbors. Jesus spoke a lot about our neighbors and gave some incredible examples of what it means to be a neighbor. You don’t have to be a Christian to appreciate the timeless wisdom of the story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37). The contemporary usage of the word neighbor usually seems to amount to people around us, but in that teaching, Jesus specifically singles out one of the characters as being a true neighbor and then He told us to “go and do likewise”.
Something about Jesus’ acute awareness of the fact that our common definition of neighbor differs from His struck me really hard recently. Not for any particular reason, but just through contemplation. It was one of those moments where something just seems to make more sense and you have to spend some time unwrapping it before you can carry on with your day.
Our definitions of our roles and relationships in context to other people mean a lot. It defines our expected behavior, accountability, and sense of unity with others depending on what our relation is to them. Have you ever been travelling abroad and ran into someone from the same country you live in? Maybe they had a flag stitched on to a back pack or they were wearing a hat or shirt that gave it away. Don’t you immediately feel a sense of connectedness to that person that is different from all the other people that surround you at a given moment?
Imagine if you suddenly learned that you had a sibling that you didn’t know about and that they lived close by. In fact, they even worked or went to school in the same building as you and you’ve even passed them by and will probably do it again. Before you knew who they were, you probably took no notice. But now, because of the definition change, you’ll wonder about them. You won’t ignore them when you pass in the corridors. You may not become immediate BFF’s, but you probably would be more likely to show them consideration and courtesy that you otherwise wouldn’t have.
The point I’m getting at here is that the definitions of our relationships alter our behavior almost automatically. We have this idea of what relationships are supposed to be like among family members, which is why, even though we may not like everyone in our family, we still work towards the realization of that idea.
I think that Jesus was trying to change our thinking and our definitions of the role of neighbor. Our common definition amounts to someone who doesn’t matter, but Jesus’ definition is of someone who does. Someone who you should care about, even if you can’t know them. They have value and they’re important and if you saw them according to His definition, you’d be less likely to treat them with a lack of courtesy or kindness. Imagine a world where Jesus’ definition of a neighbor was our own. Selfish interest and group divisions would be severely compromised and isn’t that the source of so much conflict and disregard in our world?
So the next time you are eager to honk your horn at someone who made a mistake, or judge someone without knowing the whole story, or step on someone to get ahead; take a second to elevate that person from your definition of neighbor to Christ’s and be one component of a world redefined by the God who is Love.
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The opinions and ideas expressed in these articles are merely those of the individual contributing them. The Point YA Ministry does not necessarily endorse these views. Nothing written on this site should be considered an authoritative representation of the Catholic Church or Her teachings.
http://www.madonnahouse.org/restoration/2009/07/an_education_of_the_heart.html