Very few people experience true community on a consistent basis, although deep in our hearts we yearn desperately for it.
Those of us who are Christian have an expectation that "church" will be community. Many of us are terribly hurt when we find that what we experience in church is "pseudo-community." That is, there is comradely or commonality around a cause or a person (usually a great preacher), but when the proverbial poop hits the fan everyone scatters like scared cats.
We want to be "real church in the unreal world," to quote the slogan of a church I know well. And yet we end up being the very opposite - Unreal church in the real world.
Last Friday night at our sabbath gathering we spoke about the qualities of genuine community:
* It is rarely orchestrated or regimented
* It often flourishes through trial and suffering
* It demands a "giving of one self" and movement toward intimacy
* It looks out for the common good, the good of the "other" rather than myself
* It is celebratory in an unscripted manner
This weekend I experienced community in some ways. When you experience it you know it - there is a freedom, a calm, an ease to it. As my friend Calvin said, it just happens rather than making it up.
Here's some photos from one of the community contexts - Shalom Village last Friday evening.
No comments:
Post a Comment