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A spiritual comment and prayer to start the day with Rev Lynne Gibson Good morning. I belong to a generation who grew up learning ‘by heart’. At school, that meant poetry and snippets of plays, crammed into our brains before exams, never to be used again. In Sunday school, it meant that we also learned the creed, the whole catechism and the Ten Commandments by heart. Increasingly, I find I’ve been reflecting on God’s command to observe a holy Sabbath, and his reminder that the day of rest was for everyone – families, servants and the ‘stranger who is within your gates’. The ‘stranger who is within our gates’ is to be welcomed, protected and will also receive Gods blessing. There is at present, debate and disagreement about to whom we owe those obligations. Are they to be largely confined to those closest to us? In a sense, it is a similar question to that asked of Jesus “Who is my neighbour?”. When Jesus was asked that, he told the parable of the Good Samaritan. It was an uncompromising response. The neighbour to the injured man was the one who showed love and compassion. Not only did he help in a practical way while others passed by on the other side – but he stepped out of his comfort zone and took a risk in crossing the road to help ‘the other’. There are many examples of intolerance and fear-filled hatred of those who are a different race, creed, colour, gender and sexuality. The call to people of faith and none, to cross the road to help, to step out of our comfort zones and to speak up for the ‘other’, has never been more important. ‘Who then was a neighbour to the injured man?’, Jesus asked. ‘The one who showed mercy on him’, the lawyer replied. Jesus said to him, ‘Go and do likewise.’ Lord, give us courage, kindness and the compassion that we might show your mercy to everyone. Amen