Over the summer, two incidents in Ontario hit the headlines, tore across social media and drew my attention to the harsh reality that living in a community can sometimes be a difficult thing.

The first happened in Kingston.

Two married women came home from a weekend away to receive an anonymous letter telling them that there were people out to get them and that the writer did not agree with their living in Kingston as a married couple.

There were threats of intimidation, violence and bodily harm, including being shot with a pellet gun.

The police were, of course, called, and the matter turned over to them. While there has not yet, to my knowledge, been a resolution or charges laid, it is, I understand, being investigated as a hate crime.

The second incident was more recent. It happened in Newcastle, Ontario. An autistic child was being cared for by grandparents, to give his mother, who is also disabled with MS, a break.

If you have any knowledge and experience of autism, you will know that some people with that disability can be loud and if you are not aware, a bit disruptive. It was this behaviour that led a neighbour to write an anonymous letter to the child’s grandmother, telling her that she should move and then do some incredibly offensive things with her grandson.

When this letter drew the attention of the media, it became an item of interest around the world. It attracted attention from not only Canadian broadcasters but global media, as well.

What was remarkable about both stories was the response of social media. By that I mean Facebook, Twitter and all the other instant networks that populate the globe. The term which is used when something like this happens is that it "goes viral." Everyone is talking about it. It dominates the dialogue of the community.

The other side of all of this is that there were generally two reactions to these events. The first was utter condemnation of the letter writer. I was absolutely astonished at the vitriol expressed by those who took offense at the letters. Not that people should not be offended. I was and I believe people should be offended. But the strength of the reactions that I read in my own little corner of the internet cause me to shake my head.

The second reaction was deep expression of support. In the case of the autistic boy in Newcastle, the moment the first TV news crew showed up, the neighbourhood was out on the streets and sidewalks supporting the family. That support has not wavered.

I would like to think we have come a long way in Canada towards inclusive community, but the events of the summer show us that not much has changed. There are still angry people out there who are afraid of anything and anyone different from whom they are or who hold differing values than their own. But while it may have been tolerated in the past to intimidate your neighbours with little fear of consequence, that is no longer the case.

I suspect that the people responsible for the anonymous letter in Kingston and Newcastle have taken the hint that people in their community aren’t pleased with what they have done. And while there may well be police investigation, I trust that community pressure has sufficiently mortified them to let them know that their actions are completely unacceptable.

If there is a positive outcome to all of this, it might be found in the words of Jesus when he said "Love the Lord your God and love your neighbour as you love yourself." I see a lot of love of neighbours shown in these two stories over the summer, especially love for neighbours who are different. Perhaps the same love can be extended to those who have perpetrated these two events so that they can realize a community is stronger than criticism and hate. And it’s strong community we all want, isn’t it?

Rev. David Shearman is the minister of Central Westside United Church, Owen Sound and host of Faithworks on Rogers TV - Grey County