Citizens or Neighbors?
Last week a Tennessee man’s house burned to the ground while firefighters stood by and watched. Gene Cranick hadn't paid a $75 insurance fee that opts him into his county’s fire protection services, according to him he simply forgot to send it in. So when his house caught fire, firefighters showed up and watched his house burn (with his pets inside). They worked to save a neighbor's field (who had paid the fee), but simply stood by as his house burned to the ground. There is much to-do being made about following the laws of the land and the safety of firefighters working in a place they aren’t insured to protect. Comparisons are (rightly) being made to instances where people die in the ER because they are refused treatment since they don't have health insurance. What we see is that the system rewards those with privilege any money who can afford protection, but denies help to those who fall outside that group.
Those, of course, aren’t the only laws that prevent help from reaching people. Numerous cities have passed laws against panhandlers. Included in these laws are rules that forbid giving handouts to beggars. These laws make it against the law to feed the hungry – giving a sandwich to a homeless guy on the streets is technically illegal in many areas. Also there are the laws about not giving aid to immigrants. Pastors cannot offer shelter, food, or sanctuary to the needy if they are illegally in this country. Doctors cannot treat the wounded for fear of lending aid that is against the law. We have allowed ourselves to be consumed by a system where we have essentially forgotten that the Sabbath was made for people, not people for the Sabbath.
Somewhere along the way we have started caring more about being a good citizen than being a good neighbor. It’s strange, because we still attempt to instill in our children the idea of being a good neighbor – to help even those that oppose us. With two young children at home, I see a lot of the TV shows and movies aimed at kids. I see Dora going off to help out her arch-enemy Swiper when he gets in trouble. Or in the new Tinkerbelle movie, I see the fairies mounting a rescue attempt for the one fairy that always tries to ruin their lives. No matter who those people are or how bad they have been, the message gets sent that if they are in trouble you help them no matter what. In the same way we teach our kids the story of the Good Samaritan, emphasizing that racial, cultural, and economic lines do not matter when it comes to how we should help others who are hurting. We say that we value being a good neighbor, but how quickly that gets abandoned when it gets in the way of being a good citizen.
Allowing the laws of the land to stand in the way of love is not what it means to live out what Jesus was encouraging in that parable. Standing by and watching a house burn down and pets be burned alive because of a $75 fee is not being a good neighbor. Nor is letting someone die because they aren’t rich enough to afford insurance. From a certain political perspective it can be justified as being a good citizen, but that is not even close to being the same thing. Perhaps we need to listen more to the lessons we teach our children. Being a good neighbor means taking care of people no matter their economic, racial, or political status. It means loving them no matter how badly they may have treated us or offended our sensibilities. It means we have to stop being the Priest or the Levite who let the excuses of legality and red tape justify our crossing to the other side of the road and walking right past those who suffer. Being a good neighbor means revering compassion and love above following the letter of the law. The laws were made to serve, not to prevent us from actually serving.
But I fear we have it all backwards in our society as we constantly seek to find new and more creative ways to avoid doing the hard work of actually following Jesus.
Update – For a perfect example of this messed up worldview, read these comments arguing that letting the house burn down was the "Christian" thing to do since having compassion means you follow a weak "feminized" Christianity that doesn't care about responsibility or prosperity.
julieclawson(at)gmail(dot)com 
Such a good post, JC. I was watching this story, being from Tennessee and all. Noted on CNN yesterday that one of Gene's family members clocked the fire chief in the jaw that night. (I got redneck cousins and brothers– I could see how it would happen.) I think we really should consider what being neighbors, as opposed to citizens or the God-ordained Individual, means. It's sloppier, it's more embarrassing, and yeah– it's a lot like being in a big extended family.
Recently, I was robbed by a young man who mowed my lawn. He broke in twice, came back a third time, but couldn't get in. The police caught him and sent him to jail, and since then, he's gotten out and returned to the neighborhood. It's interesting to negotiate our space together: We're both walkers; we both buy cigarettes from the same corner store. But my "brothers and sisters and cousins" are all around, too. Because we relate to each other over the proverbial fencepost, everyone's aware of other people's business. The other day, a local walked me home at dusk after I mentioned I'd felt creepy seeing "Johnny" walking near.
The point is, we either negotiate these things socially, like neighbors, with minimal intervention by the police and courts, or we negotiate these things from a "justice and order, citizen" standpoint, which is far removed from the reality of neighborhood and community. There's not enough prison space to lock up everybody you or I believe is dangerous to us personally.
I hope Gene and his clan have churches and neighbors and all sorts of loving people around them, providing what he needs and maybe even helping him to build a NEW house. I know Tennesseeans, and I can't imagine there's not some move underfoot to gather 'round his family and help them be restored.
Thanks for the great column. I love your writing.
Pitch perfect Julie. This deserves to be linked to again and again.
Julie, I completely agree with you about the ridiculousness of these laws.
Toronto has had some problems with aggressive panhandling, though. There are certain street corners that can get….interesting at times because of this. I've seen men and women (who are probably mentally ill) scream at people who didn't give them money. I once saw a man lunge at someone who declined to give him money. The man had a cast on his leg, though, so wasn't able to hurt anyone. How do you think cities should address this?
Halfway houses or more group homes would be a good start, but I don't think we can ethically or legally force someone into this sort of environment unless they meet certain criteria (e.g a danger to self or others.)
What about those in the grey areas, people who are just functional enough to stay out of jail but who honestly can't cope well with the rules of society? How should local governments handle this? How should ordinary people?
Lydia – I think it comes down to what the purpose of the laws are. Is the purpose to remove an annoying part of society, keep people safe, or help those who need help? I am not saying that we don't need laws, just than when laws stand in the way of doing justice and loving others then we have a problem. There need to be loopholes for love. It's like what Derrida says – that when justice/love is codified it becomes injustice. Life cannot be dictated by rules that claim to cover every instance. The laws always favor someone and often end up hurting those who they were intended to protect. I think if more people saw laws as guidelines helping us to live humane lives, and not as absolutes that must be followed even if that causes us to sacrifice our humanity, then stuff like this wouldn't happen. But we revere the state above the person – and that is scary.
I can only think that the man who was quoted in the post you linked has not read, or else discounts, the second greatest commandment, "Love your neighbor as yourself." "Individual responsibility" and "personal accountability" might be the buzz words of Republicans, but they are far from the most important values of Jesus Christ. The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and self-control. Anywhere in there about accountability and personal responsibility? I thought not.
This'll blow your mind. http://action.afa.net/Blogs/BlogPost.aspx?id=2147499026
Warning: don't read if you aren't in the mood to get angry.
And so Ayn Rand-think spreads like a hideous cancer to the fire department….
A weakened feminized version of christianity? So compassion is weak? I truly don't understand how anyone can say they are a christian and feel this way…it's not the kind of chrisitian belief I have known all my life. I can understand the opposing view, but surely the writer of this lame view has at some time in his life been fortunate to not receive what he deserves. Makes me sick that this situation has caused this kind of an uproar. In my opinion, he's a christian in name only…his attitude is nothing 'christ-like'.
Keep writing…I appreciate your views.
I don't recognize Fischer's Jesus.