Loving Our Neighbors: How are we to respond and be neighbors in light of COVID-19?
Mark 12:30-31 says:
“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these.”
Being good neighbors in a time of crisis is critical for the survival of community. People who are vulnerable or on the margins of society do not have the same ability to survive in a time of crisis. For example, when my family and I realized that the COVID-19 had made its way to the United States and was beginning to spread, we went out and stocked up on food and supplies. We are prepared no matter what direction the pandemic would turn.
This is not the case for many families. In Philadelphia, the poverty line is nearly 400,000 Philadelphia residents—roughly 26 percent of the city’s population[1]. These residents live on an income of $24,500 for a family of four [2]. This means people are barely getting by week to week. They have no ability to stock up on food or other supplies. As we close workplaces and shut down income-generating events, we are really affecting many Philadelphians. They have been living in survival mode for years. Christians should be leading this call to action and care for our neighbors.
In the words of Jesus: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” This idea is very simple. We should take the same care of our neighbors as we do for us and our families. Christians should be thinking about their neighbors’ survival the same way they think of their own survival. The Gospel calls us to think of others above ourselves.
Philippians 2:3:
“Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves.”
This is a unique opportunity to get two know and love our neighbors in a time of crisis. We can offer a stable presence and hope in a time of need. We can offer care and compassion. We can practically meet the essential needs that arise. Help will come in many forms but is best established through a relationship. This is an opportunity to get to know your neighbors.
Here are a few simple ways to be thinking about how to live out the Gospel in a time of pandemic:
Prepare and have food on hand for you, your family, and extra for your neighbors.
Go to the elderly on your block, give them your phone number and tell them you will food shop for them and have extra food if needed.
Talk to all your neighbors let them know you are there for them and will work with them to make sure everyone is OK.
Make sure to maintain regular contact with neighbors. People will need relational and emotional support, as well. So just checking in on people will create opportunities to serve them.
Pray for your neighbors.
[1] https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/fact-sheets/2019/04/the-state-of-philadelphians-living-in-poverty-2019
[2]https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/fact-sheets/2019/04/the-state-of-philadelphians-living-in-poverty-2019
Personal Note
Times are crazy and yet we as the Church have a unique opportunity to serve and show up in big ways across the region. We can take this idea of loving our neighbor as ourselves to a new level.
Most of my time has been shifted to focus on Easter Outreach and developing ongoing food distribution sites across the region. We are still serving at Emmanuel weekly but have to limit volunteers and are doing take-out service only. Last Saturday we saw an increase in people served 210 take-out meals. We will continue to do take-out service and limit volunteers for safety.
We have 5 Easter Outreach sites set up distributing food this week and hope to have more online by next week. We have also developed a partnership with Philadelphia Cooperation for the Aging and are doing delivery service for there senior centers. Easter Outreach wants to ensure the elderly and vulnerable have access to food during this pandemic and we are shifting our sites to weekly ongoing grocery service. You can read more about our COVID-19 response here: http://www.easteroutreach.org/covid19-response. I will send out a more details letter next week focusing on the work of Easter Outreach.
Prayer Requests
Pray for the safety of the most vulnerable in Philadelphia. The elderly, people with medical conditions, homeless, food insecure, and people who are out or work. May the Lord be with all of them and protect them.
Pray for the safety of the volunteers who are helping with Emmanuel and Easter Outreach.
Pray and consider supporting me and my family as we still are in need of monthly support. I am not able to be as active with personal fundraising with how much time I am focusing on developing sustainable ongoing food distribution sites.
Sincerely,
Vito
