Here are my thoughts on the New Monasticism Conference I was at. I’m sure there will be a lot of random thoughts but just deal with it. My first impression when I got there was, “Great, I’m at a Hippy fest and I definitely do not fit in with this crowd.” I felt like I was the only one that didn’t have dreadlocks, piercings in other places besides the ears, and I didn’t wear the same clothes everyday. I was the only one there that was wearing sorority t-shirts J Anyway, after getting to know them, it was great to see that we all have the same desires of living out our faith, the same views on war, violence, the death penalty, social justice, etc. I learned the most from talking with other people and hearing their stories. Englewood Community Church- This is the church that was hosting the conference. The church is smack dab in the ghetto of downtown Indianapolis. The people said that the church has a different history but I don’t think its that different compared to a lot of churches that were predominately white back in the day. The church had a lot of members that were a part of the KKK and back in the day there were more white people living in that community but now there’s mostly African Americans living there. Having the KKK at that church hurt some of the connections that could have been made with the community. About 15-20 years ago is when the members of the church started to move into the community. They now have most of their members living in the community. The houses were really run down and therefore they were able to buy the houses for really cheap and fix them up. In the beginning the families all took out loans to buy several houses and fix them up. Now they have a Development Project in which it is more of an organization so that the families don’t take out as much loans and the bank helps them out more because the banks are required to do so much to help with community development stuff. If a family wants to buy a house but isn’t part of the church this is how they would do it: First, the church buys the house and they have members of the church fix it up and the family pays the church and somehow this gives a family with really bad credit and not much money a chance to own a home and build up their credit as well as providing jobs for the men in the church to fix up the house. The church decides how much rent will be depending on the financial situation of the family who bought the house. In this community, poverty is rampant. There is a lot of gang and prostitution activity in the area. At 9:00 in the morning I was advised not to walk to the church by myself because prostitution was still going on at that time. Having the church live in the community has brought a lot of change to the area and now there is another church that has started to help out the area as well even though the church isn’t as close to the community. The church members that live in the community share their stuff and seem to really believe that it isn’t theirs. They also just seem to take care of each others kids without any problems. Across the street from the church is some vacant land so they cleared it off and started a garden. They have cabbages, strawberries, tomatoes, peas, potatoes, asparagus, wheat and some other stuff. They don’t have enough wheat to really make a lot but it is a good learning experience for the kids. They have just enough wheat to make one loaf of bread for communion. J Also, they have their own bees and make their own honey, hand cream, and lip balm. (That stuff is amazing). Bruderhof- At the house that I stayed at, a married couple from a Bruderhof Community in Pennsylvania also stayed there. I am so glad that I had the opportunity to get to know them. I had way to many misconceptions about them. There are about 280 people that live in that particular community however they have communities all over the world. About 50 years ago, they all lived in poverty. They started a business that makes equipment for kindergarten class rooms and special ed students. Now they have so much money that they are struggling with knowing what to do it. Because of the money they are able to send people out to disaster areas and keep them there for however long they need to be there. Recently, they just gave up their microphones because they were afraid that they were becoming to reliant on technology. Also, the families gave up all of their “toys” (mostly baseballs, footballs, bats…) because people were becoming possessive of the stuff instead of remembering that it belongs to the entire community. So everyone brought their stuff together and now it is all in one place where people can come and borrow it freely. About 6-8 families will live in one big house, the individual families will have breakfast on their own but they eat dinner as one big community. They used to eat lunch together but instead use the lunch break as worship time. This community owns about 10 minivans and the community shares them as needed. This might sound like a cult but it really isn’t. Next summer, I hope to spend a week with them and live like they do. I think it would be a great experience. Nehemiah House: This is a community of about 13 families living together in Springfield, MassachusettsAnyway, 5 families live in one house, a few in a house next door and there are a few more families that live in an apartment complex down the block. The guy that started this is a recovering alcoholic and therefore, in order to help him out, no alcohol is allowed in any of the houses ever, even if some people are okay with drinking alcohol. If one person struggles with something, the entire community does whatever they need to in order to help that person. All of the families get together every morning, Monday-Friday to pray together and they are also held accountable for having their own private time of prayer. They also attend some sort of weekly bible study and a weekly community dinner. It is required that they attend a church weekly for worship. They do not all go to the same church. They want to go to different churches to show/teach what it is like to live in a community and encourage others to do the same. Every month, the community gets together to worship and hold a meeting to talk about issues going on, chores, etc…Also, they hold each other accountable to observing the Sabbath. Every person picks a day that they can observe the Sabbath and they are expected to do that. They have quiet hours so that people can get their rest, there are no co-ed visits in other places besides common areas, and they are to avoid the appearance of impropriety. They are expected to do intentional ministry to the city or local neighborhood. I was also able to meet members of Jesus People USA, Reba House, and Rutba House. If you have questions on those communities just ask. Things I learned through the sessions: -Not everyone is called to live in community like this. (Something I’ve been wondering about lately) -One role of these communities is to encourage the church to live more like a community. -Church attendance is going down and some believe the reason for that is because people don’t feel free to question some of the things the church believes or what Christians believe. When living in community or if you’re part of a church you need to let those people answer the questions and have their doubts. Help them to find reasoning and answers. Provide a safe environment where people can have candid discussions about their faith, lack of faith, questions, and doubts. -In a community, there needs to be some roots and stability. Not many people can be nomads. The main reason people are interested in community is because we are hungry for roots and a sense of where we’re from and who we are. A problem with that is it requires a lot of commitment and we struggle with commitment. People are worried that stability will constrain us but the monks say we need stability to grow. Example: a transplanted plant will never be able to take a strong root. Stability doesn’t work unless it is freely chosen. Stability is about loving the people. Stability makes perseverance possible. The thing with stability is that it is constantly changing though. You might need to change some of the things you are doing in order to maintain stability and ministry in the community. Examples: a bike can only stay standing as long as it is in constant motion, a river keeps about the same temperature but it is always moving. -Love is the most important thing when it comes to community. You have to love each other, just liking people isn’t enough because you aren’t going to be best buds with everyone in the community. -Community is hard, ugly, and time consuming but it is also a great blessing. -Some people were really concerned that heresy might pop up in some communities. In order to prevent heresy, the community needs to have a relationship (where both can have accountability and encouragement) with at least one church. -One thing that surprised me was that most communities aren’t their own church and they don’t all go to the same church. -Immorality will slip into the community because it is made of humans but you learn, you fix the problem, and you use the opportunity to show love and practice forgiveness, humility, and honesty. Random things from the trip: Spent some time with Hippydan and his wife Annika who make up the band Odon Soterias. Had lunch with 2 of the Psalters and then had dinner with the entire group because this other girl and I were the only ones that stayed an extra night. The Psalters are amazing people and probably the most gentle people I have ever met. And I met a Benadictine Monk. Visit these websites: New Monasticism www.communitesofcommunites.us this site isn't up yet but it is for those who are in a community to get their name out and to encourage each other and to discuss things http://www.ekklesiaproject.org/ Any other questions? | 
