“Am I my brother’s keeper?” The first person to utter this question, Cain (in Genesis 4:9), more than likely expected, or at least hoped for, an answer in the negative. It is clear, though, that readers of the Bible are intended to respond in the positive: Yes, I am my brother’s (and sister’s) keeper. In contemporary society, at least as based on reports in major newspapers worldwide, the appropriate response to this eternal query is decidedly more mixed. For example, advice columnists tend to proffer resounding “hands-off” responses. A Canadian asks, “My brother is a lifelong heavy smoker. He’s […]
