One final thought for the evening on community...
Refractions: Refractions Vol. 20: The Housewife that Could
Jess Stammen started circulating this today, so I figured it was worth posting for discussion.
Jess' comments:
Jess Stammen started circulating this today, so I figured it was worth posting for discussion.
Jess' comments:
- Hey, I was catching up on the blog of an artist-friend in NYC this morning....and found a perfect follow-through/expansion of a bit of a conversation I began to have with you, Laura and Leah, and then continued with Scott. Go to this link: http://www.makotofujimura.blogspot.com/ ... and then scroll down to Vol. 20, "The housewife that could," (second most recent entry). It's about Jane Jacobs, healthy communities, and a hope for them.
- It was a huge kick in the butt for me: no, I do not need to run up to the woods to build my own house and make my own clothes in order to rightly relate to nature and my neighbors in true community. Even though New York City seems like the last likely alternative (and, in fact, seems like the exact opposite!) maybe I need to learn that God is not a respecter of geography (rural vs. urban) when it comes to his desire to see his creatures living together in right relationship. He was the one who told the Jews held captive in Babylon to transform the city they were living in despite their circumstances for being there: Build houses and dwell in them; plant gardens and eat their fruit. Have families and connect your families; build community; increase. (Jeremiah 29:4-7)
posted by AdamK | 11:07 PM
1 Comments:
If you don't think God hasn't been hot on my tail about this consideration of community:
On Tuesday night I made the exclamation about moving up to the woods; Wednesday morning I was bluntly put in my place by considering Jane Jacobs; and then Wednesday afternoon I met a young man (one of the construction workers at the church) who was born in a tepee and now lives in Monroe without electricity or running water, providing all his own necessities and eating mostly wild foods, yet still having gone to college, leading a seemingly successful and engaged life through his work. It was a quick 24-hour course in considering one extreme to the other (and back again) in order to shake free any assumptions/limitations I had made (or could make) about how to 'best' do community. All things are possible with God.
Concerning the possible, we asked a question a couple weeks ago that has been often in my mind and heart lately: what is the impossible thing that God wants to make possible through us? I don't have the answer to this; but we do, we will. Let's hop to it.
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