Thy fellow human being

It is a day of rest so I thought that I would translate an interesting paragraph from German instead of Greek. As they say, a change is as good as a rest!

This is from Hoffnung für Alle, Galatians 5:13-15.

Durch Christus wurde euch die Freiheit geschenkt, liebe Brüder und Schwestern! Das bedeutet aber nicht, dass ihr jetzt tun und lassen könnt, was ihr wollt. Dient vielmehr einander in Liebe. 14 Denn wer dieses eine Gebot befolgt: »Liebe deinen Mitmenschen wie dich selbst!«, der hat das ganze Gesetz erfüllt. 15 Wenn ihr aber wie die Wölfe übereinander herfallt, dann passt nur auf, dass ihr euch dabei nicht gegenseitig fresst! HFA

Through Christ freedom has been given to you, dear brothers and sisters. That doesn't mean that you can now do, and not do, whatever you want. Rather serve each other in love. Then whoever follows this one command "Love thy fellow human being as thyself!" they have the whole law fulfilled. But when you pounce on each other like wolves, then watch out that you are not thereby devoured in return. (free tr. from the German)

13My friends, you were chosen to be free. So don't use your freedom as an excuse to do anything you want. Use it as an opportunity to serve each other with love. 14All that the Law says can be summed up in the command to love others as much as you love yourself. 15But if you keep attacking each other like wild animals, you had better watch out or you will destroy yourselves. CEV

ὑμεῖς γὰρ ἐπ' ἐλευθερίᾳ ἐκλήθητε ἀδελφοί μόνον μὴ τὴν ἐλευθερίαν εἰς ἀφορμὴν τῇ σαρκί ἀλλὰ διὰ τῆς ἀγάπης δουλεύετε ἀλλήλοις 14 ὁ γὰρ πᾶς νόμος ἐν ἑνὶ λόγῳ πεπλήρωται ἐν τῷ ἀγαπήσεις τὸν πλησίον σου ὡς σεαυτόν 15 εἰ δὲ ἀλλήλους δάκνετε καὶ κατεσθίετε βλέπετε μὴ ὑπ' ἀλλήλων ἀναλωθῆτε

The German phrase Mitmensch, which I have translated as 'fellow human being' best reflects what is taught in Gal. 3:28.

3:28 Faith in Christ Jesus is what makes each of you equal with each other, whether you are a Jew or a Greek, a slave or a free person, a man or a woman. CEV

'Neighbour' leaves open the interpretation that this command applies to the relationship between one citizen and another, that is, a person should love someone else belonging to the same category as oneself, a freeman so behaves towards another freeman, and a woman to another woman, and so on.

But the radical expression 'fellow human being' calls for an end to slavery, an end to racism, and an end to declaring that men and women have different fulfillments in this life.

I have actually heard people talking about how those of a different race may not have the same need for freedom as we do. 'Others', supposedly, can tolerate oppressive conditions because they do not 'feel it' as we do. Imputing such notions to others, differentiating between the peoples of the east and west, or between the rich and the poor, between husbands and wives, all denies the equal and radical call to freedom that is the theme of the epistle to the Galatians.