Heavenly Doctrine (Chadwick) n. 91

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91. But the neighbour is not only a person in the singular, but also people in the plural. The term includes smaller and greater communities, one's country, the church, the Lord's kingdom and above all the Lord Himself. All these are the neighbour to whom good is to be done out of love. There are too the ascending degrees of the neighbour. A community consisting of many people is the neighbour in a higher degree than a single person. One's country is in an even higher degree, the church in one higher still. In an even higher degree is the Lord's kingdom; and the Lord is in the highest degree. These ascending degrees are like the rungs of a ladder, at the top of which the Lord stands.


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