This post was mentioned on Twitter by ashleyjmel: “We want the world to change for these folks.But too often, we never even see them.”A must read from @Sojourners: http://tinyurl.com/yghzllm…

But good socially-minded public policy is not 'neighbourly' as such: the relationships are too indirect.

And we have a responsibility to reach out to those whom we know need help, to put ourselves in the way of neighbourly encounters. So it's not ok just to avoid distressing scenes or people in need on the basis that by doing so we never took on neighbourly responsibility.

The flip side is that incessant reporting of tragedies around the world arguably exposes us to encounters with need to which we are unable to respond in a neighbourly way, thereby breaking down the need-response link Jesus wants us to foster.

But good socially-minded public policy is not 'neighbourly' as such: the relationships are too indirect.

And we have a responsibility to reach out to those whom we know need help, to put ourselves in the way of neighbourly encounters. So it's not ok just to avoid distressing scenes or people in need on the basis that by doing so we never took on neighbourly responsibility.

The flip side is that incessant reporting of tragedies around the world arguably exposes us to encounters with need to which we are unable to respond in a neighbourly way, thereby breaking down the need-response link Jesus wants us to foster.

On the bright side, I hear there are serious efforts being made to reinvent Detroit into a hip, transit and people friendly city. It's a shame how de facto many if not most parts of the country basically require a car to get around, leading to isolation and a lack of a sense of community.