Who Is My Neighbour? A Sermon

There are no limits on who our neighbour is. Your Friday Nudge: reading for transformation

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It’s been a while since I have made some “reading for transformation” recommendations, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t been reading! As part of the research for my book, I decided to reread a book that is no less compelling the second time around and is even more timely. The Heat Will Kill You First was first published in hardcover in 2023 and then released earlier this month in paperback. The paperback version includes an Afterword that updates us, a mere 12 months later, on the statistics about heat, which have simply gotten worse.

Why would you want to read a book with such an intense title? Because we can’t fight what we don’t know or understand. Author Jeff Goodell writes a fast-paced, story-driven narrative about what global warming means: killer heatwaves, urban heat islands, migrating vectors for disease, and the increasing divide that is air-conditioning for the rich, and devastating risk of heat illness and death for the poor.

The problem with heat, Goodell writes, is that you can’t see it, and defining what a heat wave is is quite difficult since it can be context-dependent. And when heat is still associated with relaxing on the beach (google news articles on heat waves, and the pictures that accompany the stories are usually images of beachgoers enjoying the sun), it is very hard to make sense of the stats that show the rise of heat-related deaths.

When heat comes, it’s invisible. It doesn’t bend tree branches or blow hair across your face to let you know it’s arrived. The ground doesn’t shake. It just surrounds you and works on you in ways that you can’t anticipate or control. You sweat. Your heart races. You’re thirsty. Your vision blurs. The sun feels like the barrel of a gun pointed at you. Plants look like they’re crying. Birds vanish from the sky and take refuge in deep shade. Cars are untouchable. Colors fade. The air smells burned. You can imagine fire even before you see it. (the opening lines of The Heat Will Kill You First)

Goodell writes about the disproportionate risk that migrant farm workers, and other labourers, face from working in the heat. Since they are vulnerable to being replaced if they complain, they often work long hours without sufficient protection from the scorching heat. Goodell shares the story of Sebastian Perez from Guatemala, who died in the fields of a farm in Oregon during a heat wave. Photo by Mark Stebnicki: https://www.pexels.com/photo/farmers-harvesting-sweet-potatoes-9798973/

This book helps to make heat visible, especially to those of us who live in more temperate climates such as in Eastern Canada, and who have ready access to abundant air conditioning. This is my second time reading the book, and I am learning more than I did the first time.

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Part of our responsibility as people of faith is to be aware of and knowledgeable about what is happening in the world. I encourage you to read this book - get it from your library or buy a copy if you have the means - and read it. This is your Friday Nudge.

Sermon: Who Is My Neighbour?

Scripture Readings:

The Lord spoke to Moses, saying:

² Speak to all the congregation of the people of Israel and say to them: You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy. ³ You shall each revere your mother and father, and you shall keep my sabbaths: I am the Lord your God. ⁴ Do not turn to idols or make cast images for yourselves: I am the Lord your God.

¹⁵ You shall not render an unjust judgement; you shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great: with justice you shall judge your neighbour. ¹⁶ You shall not go around as a slanderer among your people, and you shall not profit by the blood of your neighbour: I am the Lord.

¹⁷ You shall not hate in your heart anyone of your kin; you shall reprove your neighbour, or you will incur guilt yourself. ¹⁸ You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against any of your people, but you shall love your neighbour as yourself: I am the Lord. (Leviticus 19:1-4, 15-18 NRSV)

²⁸ One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, he asked him, ‘Which commandment is the first of all?’ ²⁹ Jesus answered, ‘The first is, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; ³⁰ 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.” ³¹ The second is this, “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” There is no other commandment greater than these.’ ³² Then the scribe said to him, ‘You are right, Teacher; you have truly said that “he is one, and besides him there is no other”; ³³ and “to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength”, and “to love one’s neighbour as oneself”,—this is much more important than all whole burnt-offerings and sacrifices.’ ³⁴ When Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, ‘You are not far from the kingdom of God.’ (Mark 12:28-34a NRSV)

Let us pray: God of Life, may the words of my mouth and the meditations of all our minds and hearts lead us to deeper understanding of you and the love you call us to live. AMEN.

There is a lovely crab apple tree in my backyard, right outside the kitchen window. In the spring, its gorgeous pink blooms completely fill the window. My family and I watch them carefully and try to guess just which day they will have been at their fullest bloom. We know when that day is because, on the very next day, the blossoms just don’t seem quite so full.

I have known that tree longer than I have known my three younger children. As my children have grown, each of them likes to climb it; they need some help getting onto the lowest branch, but then they climb up and enjoy the vantage over the back hedge. The tree doesn’t seem to mind; it is also home to cardinals, chickadees and sparrows, as well as black, grey and red squirrels. All of these creatures are fed from the crab apple tree. The apples are tiny, just ornamental, so I cannot gather them for jelly. But they are the most nourishing food for the birds and squirrels.

I love that crab apple tree. The blossoms are gone, having made way for the fruit that is growing, which won’t be ripe until the fall. But I know, as well as I know the rhythms in my own body, that buds will return in the spring, and I will watch them unfurl, some into leaves, some into blossoms, that will, once again, turn the yard and the air pink with beauty.

I feel a real sense of kinship with that crab apple tree. That crab apple tree is a part of my home; it has stood tall over my babies as they have grown; it is something of beauty and nourishment and nurturing for birds and squirrels, for me and my family. I feel a sense of kinship, and it makes me ask the question: who is my neighbour?

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