August 11, 2014
The City of New York wants to build homeless shelters in neighborhoods. Those who now live in homes in these neighborhoods do not want the shelters. On the one hand, welcoming the homeless would be a way to be more like Jesus. Yes, this is easy for me to say. I don’t own a home or have children running around the neighborhood, nor did Jesus for that matter. We are still left with the Gospel demand to shelter the homeless. Jesus did not give instructions as to where one builds a shelter. To be in a neighborhood could be very healing for a homeless person who feels disconnected. Property values are also an issue. Yet, you cannot build them in so remote a place that there is no public transportation or access to other services that the homeless poor might need. I hope that there is some negotiations between the city and the neighborhoods to see what can be worked out.