The becoming of community...

just finished reading ian mobsby's 'the becoming of g-d' -
the last couple of chapters deal with the issues of community and leadership.
ian rightfully states that we live in a society of acute consumerism and individualism -
and that the challenge for us today is to create human communities that will reflect
God's kingdom - ian calls these 'intentional spiritual communities'.
spiritual communities that are modeled on monasticism and deep spirituality and led by servant leaders...
here's a quote:
'human becoming through community is no just about contemplation, participation and worship. There are also very real possibilities for practical action...some examples of practical action are those who work with the homeless, cafés to connect with local people in public space...social work...the source of our inspiration, the Monks and Friars of the pre-modern period, were very involved in practical projects with the poor and needy...i love the idea that the Church's café becomes the hub of the local community. A number of emerging churches have done precisely this...a community taking on such a project, with a degree of maturity in contemplative prayer, can really enable growth through giving rather than taking and consumption...'

looking forward to ian's book on New Monasticism !!