The Challenge of Community
I’m processing some of this publicly in the interests of transparency, and in the hope that some of you out there will have something to share that might help.
For about 3 weeks now at Ikon Community we’ve been engaged in an intentional conversation about what it might mean to be a “missional church.” The first week I talked about the basic paradigm shift from attractional (Christendom) church to missional church and proposed a “Discipleship > Community > Mission” rhythm of life. Then the second week I unpacked the subject of discipleship, or spiritual formation. So, at last night’s gathering we talked about community (I’ll bet you can see where this is going, eh?).
I’m sure many would disagree with me, but in my mind this is the critical topic in the formation of a post-Christendom church. Why?
Because we’re emerging from a cultural milieu in which the false notion of the autonomous self reigns supreme.
Because the church for the last several hundred years has capitulated to that notion, tailoring the gospel to fit an individualized and gnosticized form of disembodied salvation.
Because, as a result of these realities, people are generally averse to any form of interdependence based on the sacrifice and service of Christ’s way.
Because God’s redemptive narrative has never been about salvation for people; it’s always been about creating a people of salvation.
Consequently, last night I suggested that community life together is where discipleship actually occurs most powerfully and where, most often, God’s mission in the world around us is discerned by the Church. In fact, I would add that it’s only in our community relationships with one another that we encounter biblical “salvation.”
In many ways I’ve been indirectly preparing people for this one night for nearly 6 months. Since June we’ve met nearly every Sunday night and wrestled with the following key biblical narratives that impart the paradigm of God’s community: Exodus 16; Matthew 7:1-12; Matthew 28: 16-20; John 6; Acts 1-2; Romans 12; Ephesians 4; and 2 Cor 8:1-15.
Out of this background, two major challenges were raised last night that our group will have to wrestle with if we hope to birth a new missional church:
1. The need for commitment: If we’re going to be a genuine community then we must be willing to make some kind of tangible, loving commitment to one another. This commitment (what the bible calls a “covenant”) is what keeps us together in the midst of the inevitable conflict that comes when people “do life” together. Last night I likened this to a marriage relationship. Although our commitment is obviously less radical than a marriage, it is in essence the same kind of dynamic. In our case, the spirit of that covenant might be something like this:
“We agree, out of our deep mutual love for God, to pursue the Kingdom of God together, and help one another in that pursuit as often as possible, despite difficulty.”
Of course, that’s just the spirit of it. We’d have to flesh out together what it means in practice.
2. The danger of institutionalization: However, that very commitment bring with it the real danger of losing the “organic” character of our group. Commitment means we share responsibilities like discipling our kids, bearing the costs of mission, and stewarding our resources (including our money) together. However, often the kinds of structures that help groups do this can eventually turn a spontaneous and life-giving group into a cold and bureaucratic machine. Nobody wants that. But how do we avoid that pitfall?
I could just give my answers to these challenges – that is, I could attempt to “teach” authoritatively the right way – but it’s very important to me that the group wrestle with these issues together and generate a common set of biblical values. If we can’t do that, then there will be no church that comes out of this particular group – and to be perfectly honest, that could very well be what happens. This whole thing could easily fall apart.
If there’s anyone out there reading this, I’m curious about your perspective:
- What do you see as the key ingredients of a biblical community?
- Do you agree that community requires commitment? If so, what do you think of the covenant statement offered above (“We agree, out of our deep mutual love…”)
- What is it you like about our group now? What do you feel we’re missing?
- In your mind, what does it mean to be “organic” and what could cause our group to cease being organic?
- Can you think of any examples of groups or movements – either contemporary or historical – who have managed to keep the best of both worlds, that is, continually grow with organic spontaneity while still cultivating a deep and lasting level of commitment among its people?
Jason, I wholeheartedly agree! I love this post. To answer question 2 above, we discovered the same thing, that commitment WAS required for community. We asked those wanting to be on our core team to sign a covenant with 8 “fleshed-out” commitments that are in the spirit of what you’re talking about here.
A lot of people were very sqeamish about the commitments, though (some ended up signing on, others didn’t). But we’ve found it (so far) to be vital for a community to form, and many have already commented that the simple discipline of “showing up” that the covenant requires has been important for their spiritual formation.
I want to answer some of your other questions, too:
1. Can’t give a comprehensive list or anything, but I think that one of the necessary ingredients for true community is some kind of mutual sharing of resource, some kind of gift economy (like in a marriage or family – the money I earn doesn’t belong to “me,” we use it in common within the family, according to our values). Without some kind of shared economy, I think we’re saying but not doing community.
4. I believe you cannot really have fully functional life without structure (like a skeleton to hang your muscles on so you can work and run and play), so it seems that to keep things “organic” would simply mean to make sure the structures never fossilize – make sure osteoperosis doesn’t set in. Re-think, review “the way we do things” often so we don’t end up doing stuff because “that’s the way we’ve always done it.”
5. I met a few people from a monastic community called Life Mission Fellowship last year who seem to have this kind of community (http://life-mission.org/) – their vows are very extensive, and it takes a long time to actually get into the community, but they seem to maintain a very spontaneous, joyous way of life. “Hard to get in, easy to get out” they told me.