“The central feature of the model of Celtic Christianity is the monastery, the mission centre from which the surrounding area was impacted with a living gospel. From these centres the faithful would live lives of expectant devotion, strict asceticism and sacrificial charity. They sought to emulate Christ and create “heaven on earth??� in these places. Their approach to establishing these communities was not necessarily to search for converts as much as to express their own devotion to God. In such a spiritually charged atmosphere how could one not expect that Christ would add to the church daily.“ Lessons from the Celts by Frank Emmanuel.
Why could not our home and our cul-de-sac become, not a monastery, but definitely a mission centre and a community from which the surrounding area can be imapcted with a living gospel? Families, especially extended families of Christians, living out the gospel in a community would be an unusual witness in our society.
My vision for this kind of community in a suburban setting includes several possible elements:
We could, as the Lord allows financially, buy several of the homes on our cul-de-sac for our children, their husbands or wives, and their families to live in. We would have individual homes and respect each other’s privacy while at the same time being able to live in community. This community could take several forms: a Sabbath meal together once a week on Sunday or Saturday night, shared celebrations, sharing of work in the yard or in the home, watching out for one another’s children and for the eldery in our community, sacrificially giving ourselves to one another. While the community would never be perfect, being made up of imperfect human beings, we could “serve one another in love??� and so show to the world what a Christian extended family is supposed to look like. We would also have the opportunity to use the gifts and talents that the Lord has given each of us to help each other and to minister to those outside the family. For instance, some could sing or dance to glorify the Lord and edify the family. Others could make meals or organize ministry or teach the things they love to the children. We could help each other economically by sharing tools, negotiating group price breaks, and telling each other about bargains. A fruit and vegetable co-op or some other kind of shopping co-op might be a possibility. In fact, there is no limit to the kinds if materials and stuff that might be shared enabling everyone to save time and money: books, other educational materials, entertainment movies and games, yard tools, etc. Does anyone else have any other ideas about how this might work? I’m going to post this introduction to an essay on my blog, and if any of my family reads it and wants to respond, please email me or post to the family blog.