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by Alan Heeks
More and more people want a spiritual dimension in their daily
life and work: they may call it desire for meaning, fulfilment,
being of service. Many are being drawn to explore the potential
of community to bring these intangible qualities into their lives.
'Community' is a word so widely used that it may help to define
two main types:
Intentional community: a group
with some shared aims or values, in which people are sharing resources
and living together to some degree – most often with their
own domestic space, plus shared space for eating and recreation.
These communities are like deep-rooted trees: they take years
to establish and are slow to change.
At the other end of the spectrum we have everyday community:
consisting of people in mainstream society with shared needs and
activities such as neighbourhoods or work organizations. Whilst
these might seem to be about purely material needs, they really
are not. Everyone has some need of companionship and support.
But it’s hard to find places to learn this in mainstream
society.
The need for more 'shoulder communities' is about bridging this
gap. We need places that embody spiritual values in the everyday,
in ways that are accessible to the mainstream. We need businesses
and neighbourhoods which people can understand and relate to because
they are familiar, but yet they lead us up the slope of the mountain.
'Up the slope' means growing beyond meeting basic needs like money
or shelter; bringing higher values into our life and work, like
creative fulfilment, serving the greater good, and restoring the
ecosystems of the planet.
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Alan Heeks can be contacted at mail@workingvision.com
or 01794-388707. For more information about planned community
called The Village Forest, see www.living-organically.com.
Creative Ageing: A small group of people,
including Alan Heeks, is working with Caduceus to create a symposium
on December 5th 2002 about Ageing and Community. for more information
see the announcement on the Conferences page, or email symposium@caduceus.info.
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PLEASE SEE CADUCEUS ISSUE 56
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