Love Your Neighbor

Building an economy based on beloved community rather than extraction and exploitation sounds like a huge task, but it can begin in our neighborhoods. Congregations can be a fundamental part of shaping such an economy, in part through deep listening in their neighborhoods, towns, and cities. In this episode, Bianca Vazquez and Kristen Kane (no relation!) talk about how co-ops offer powerful ways of building a more caring economy. Check their work with Beloved Community Incubator (BCI). Also che

Housing affordability has become one of the major economic and political crises of our time. How can Christians respond? The gospels put Jesus himself in the midst of a housing struggle, after all – “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” Laura Stivers talks about her new book A Home for All in the series Building a Moral Economy. Check out the toolkit that accompanies the series as well.

Amid cultural and religious transitions in North America today, many churches are having to close their doors or change the way they operate. What might churches facing such a scenario do with their property? Mark Elsdon talks about what the teachings and witness of Jesus might call us to do in such situations. Mark is a pastor and author with expertise in faith-based impact investing, social enterprise, and property development. I highly recommend the book Gone for Good?: Negotiating the Comin

How do the injustices that accompany climate change impact our local neighborhoods and congregations? How can Christians and congregations participate in building neighborhoods that reflect an economy that cares for all of God’s creation—not just people but plants and animals and the entire ecosystem? How can Christians be people of hope when the challenges we face seem so severe? Michael Malcom and abby mohaupt share experiences of ordinary people working for environmental justice. Check out t

Is Jesus’s commandment to love neighbors an economic commandment? We often imagine loving neighbors as something interpersonal, but attending to neighbors’ struggles also involves interconnected webs of economic activity. Ethicist Cynthia Moe-Lobeda shows how we have power to reshape our economy to focus on justice and loving neighbors, and also shares personal stories of hope over despair. Check out her book Building a Moral Economy and the book series toolkit buildingamoraleconomy.org. For a

Ordinary life in most of the United States today involves an automobile, whether to drive to work or get basic needs like groceries. In an economy so based around the automobile, though, what happens if you can’t afford to repair your car? I’m joined today by two people who saw neighbors struggling when their cars broke down and felt compelled to do something, based on Jesus’s commandment to love our neighbors. Oran Warder and Ben Nielsen talk about the ministry Go In Peace based out of the St.