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Who is Your Family?

Lifting women out of poverty

Gates Foundation via Compfight

Living in the tension of the already and the not yet is a blog written by Americans living in India who have chosen to live among the poor at their same economic level. They’ve written a post called On Miracles and Justice through Community. It contains a challenge to rethink who our family is. Check it out!

Here’s an excerpt from the post:

The redefinition of family and responsibility for our fellow human beings is at the very heart of the Kingdom Jesus preached. He scandalized his listeners by declaring that his mother and brother and sisters were not merely his biological kin, but included all those who did the will of God. He revolutionized our concept of the “neighbor” whom we are to love as we love ourselves to include not just those who are ethnically, religiously, or geographically close to us but even those who are our enemies. Many people were offended by these teachings because they believed that Jesus was devaluing the relationships between parents and children, or between people of the same nation or religion. Those people didn’t understand him. He was actually telling us that we owe that same level of committed care and compassion to whoever is in need of it, whether they’re biological family or not.

Related Reading

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Podcast: Is It Important to Live Near Your Small Group?

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