Who Is Your Neighbor?

Who Is Your Neighbor?

Mr. Rogers was long known for his children’s show on public television. He had a soft, lilting voice as he spoke to his youngest viewers, and this led to frequent mockery by comedians.

But what seemed a childlike speaking style had everything to do with presence. He looked intently into the camera as if a single child were right in front of him. He told kids that they were special just as they were.

He addressed every area of their need—from imagination to anger to divorce. He invited them to be his neighbor. Despite his audience, it’s clear that Mr. Rogers’s skill for presence could be modeled for any age.

Who are your neighbors? Really, it’s anyone who is near. There’s too much wrong in the world for you to just pass them by. You can—as Fred Rogers once said—love them into being. Stop and smell this fragrant presence of humanity. You can be their neighbor.

So he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” . . . The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”

Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.” —Luke 10:29, 37