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Probably one of the most famous teachings from the Christian tradition is ‘love your neighbour as yourself’. As a way of being in the world, the idea of ‘neighbour’ – the one who is in proximity to us – not necessarily family or even friend – just there – is a powerful one in Christian teaching. In answer to the question from a lawyer – ‘who is my neighbour’ – Jesus told the story of the Good Samaritan. A powerful and imaginative tale in which a random act of violence was followed by an equally powerful random act of kindness.

And although the 4.2 million people in England who live in social housing live peaceably with their neighbours, the Housing Ombudsman has reported a doubling of complaints about anti social behaviour in the last 5 years. Loud noise during the day and night, music, abusive shouting, unmanaged dogs, damage to property, graffiti, and in extreme cases, threats to the person.

Complainants describe significant mental and emotional distress, and crucially, exhaustion. One 17 year old told the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ that having little or no sleep had a huge impact on her ability to study for her GCSEs. Another that he was so sleep deprived he lost his job.

Practical political questions are live in this situation: what are the relative responsibilities of the individual themselves, the landlords, the police. But there are deeper questions that we as a society must ask ourselves. Who is our neighbour may be clear, but how they are is a tougher question. Many of the people making the noise, shouting abuse or attacking their neighbours are themselves vulnerable, distressed or angry –sometimes addicted or unwell. The feeling of helplessness, and being trapped in your home, indicates the power that neighbours have on us, and makes the ethical challenge to ‘love my neighbour as myself’ a live and urgent one.
Christian teaching will emphasise individual responsibility; I can’t blame anyone else if it is me smashing the camera or turning up the volume. But why I am doing that – day after day – stuck in patterns of behaviour that damage me and others - requires the strength of a community – to discern and change.
As challenging as it is, the Christian ethic of loving my neighbour as myself asks me to place myself in my imagination in the shoes of the one whose daily habit has become to disrupt, intimidate, hurt and attack my neighbour. And then to ask myself: what would I want people to do with me when I did that? Similarly, to place myself in the shoes of the neighbour being hurt. And then as part of building a just and fair society, create systems that insist on the slow and painstaking work to make and keep peace.

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