The Spiritual Theology of Intentional Community

Right now I am reading Spiritual Theology by Simon Chan. Its a fantastic read so far, especially to read a post-modern author from the Eastern World, Chan is a professor at Trinity Theological College, Singapore. In his book he describes spiritual theology standing, "between systematic theology and Christian praxis." I would argue Intentional Community is the pragmatic manifestation of Chan's definition of spiritual theology.

I spent this week in Nashville at the General Assembly of Presbyterian Church of America (PCA). Being a part of the PCA I lose MAJOR points with my predominantly anabaptist peers throughout neo-monasticism. I would argue though, that the PCA, whose identity is rooted in an anti-hierarchical, pro-grassroots, connectional philosophy, is the prime soil to plant neo-monasticism in the reformed world. The PCA is in fact not a speck interested in theological experimentation, but they are perpetually excited about experimenting with the organization of Christian community for the sake of mission and discipleship. I am eager to introduce my friends to the ideas of intentional communities and why they could fit into the larger Church. That got me thinking, at its core, what are we defined by as neo-monastics and what of that could translate to the Church.

The best resource is always the 12 Marks of Neo-Monasticism from the Rutba House. However, to complement this, here are some practical thoughts I'd shared. One of the myths of the subconscious and maybe even at the forefront of some people's minds is that intentional community is essentially for the sake of those living within the community. People dream or maybe subliminally long to recreate some sort of collegiate experience of eternal camaraderie. The type of community I am interested in and I think is the only sustainable form is to create a community interested in mission. To transform a neighborhood externally or to invite people into your home to transform their lives. Sharing possessions, minimizing environmental impact, and of course company, are all good things, but the idea behind them is for the service of a greater mission. Living simply in economics, with less environmental impact and more connected communally all liberate us to change peoples' hearts and the material world.

On the flip side of this misconception is maybe a naivety to solitary component to intentional community. Just because you cohabitate, share possessions, does not mean introverts need not apply. Solitude is a very monastic ideal. Some people only associate solitude with monasticism, when in fact it was a fuel for mission. Henri Nouwen's description of solitude is contrasted by loneliness saying that solitude is when we spend time alone to contemplate and create space to be hospitable to the world, while loneliness is spending time alone thirsting for company.


When solitude and mission come together, we see spiritual theology and we can create a form of intentional community more sustainable than an attempt at hyper-socialization or the strange isolation we create in our culture.

O Death, Where Is Thy Sting?

by austin pfeiffer

The past week was an incredible apex for our community. We saw the realization of many dreams. On Monday our chickens arrived and immediately one was laying. We continued the week with two eggs a day, using them in our homes and sharing a few with friends. On Saturday, Paul and Erin and I went to the farmer's market at the Joel and signed up for our CSA with Mill River Farm AND we ordered two chicks from them to add to our coop.

On Friday we had our sixth Critical Mass W-S, where we had 15 riders hitting our downtown. It was exciting to ride past all the restaurants, people's curiosity tickled and the energy of liberated bikers, safely riding together through these streets so foreign to human-powered vehicles. It was a beautiful night, ending with sweet companionship at Krankie's where we drank New Belgium beers and signed people up for Team Wonderbike.

On Saturday night we brewed another beer, what we're calling the Roulette American Ale, because it was brewed by two Americans, with American hops, malt, and yeast...plus Paul and I don't know what we're doing, so its a gamble whether it will taste good or kill you. The weekend was capped off with a huge community dinner on Easter Sunday night. We had friends from all over the city bringing food, good wine and beer, mingling on our front porch, checking out the chickens, getting to know each other, bringing community together.

It was a full life, a seizing of breath, air, passion, sweetness. Carpe Diem is the romantic mantra of fullness, spontaneity, and excitement. In Christianity we have something else, its 1 Corinthians 15:55..."WHERE O DEATH IS THY STING?" Taunting death we live unfettered by the chains of mediocrity, enjoying God's earth, his animals, and his people with depth and breadth. Ending a week so rich does not charm the words "Carpe Diem" off my lips, but bubbles up into a victory yelp of a pastor here in Winston, Hunter Dockery, who said last night with mockery, barb, and provocation, "O DEATH, O DEATH, WHERE IS THY STING?"

fear

by austin pfeiffer

This past weekend I was in a classroom discussing ancient monasticism. Of course, new monasticism came up. In the midst of the conversation a man rose up and shared that truthfully he was nervous and scared of the "dangers" of such a life. And bang, there it is. I sat back and allowed the conversation to grow itself. The room was filled with evangelical Christians in the midst of discussing a local Church that was doing a series called "The Fight of Your Life" and involved the construction of an actual boxing ring in the auditorium. For me I was struck by a dilemma here. We are so concerned with the danger of young people lacking accountability in doctrine while trying to live out a pretty straightforward, missional life, but not interrogative with such confusing and blatant misuses of finances.

In the minor prophets it is littered with rebuke of God's people throwing festivals and celebrations of their piety while God's children starve and the Lord himself is thirsty for worship actually directed toward him. My propensity is to start conversations with assertions like these, however in the context, I knew I was out of my element. So once the roar died down I rose up to say, "uhh, yeah, I'm one of those kids...the kids in the houses, doing the monk-nouveau thing". I pointed out that some of us went to pretty "normal" churches, that we knew some peoples in America doing the same thing as us quite safe in their Christianity, and I think implied maybe for the gentlemen to site some examples of the "heresy potential" he believed were inevitable in such settings.

Intentional communities are certainly vulnerable to cult-like homogeneity in thinking and citizenry. They are also free from some accountability. For me its important in what we are doing to live first, respond second. Our goal is not to prove anything to anyone, but to act out our beliefs and force outsiders to draw conclusions from reality, not hypothetical. On a regular basis people assume we live in a fraternity environment where my wife is subjected to horrible machismo or that we are seeking to fracture the Church further. Of course nothing could be farther from the truth, in fact we are expressly working to unite the Church and commit to a lifestyle where my family's life is shared in responsibility with others therefore relieving burdens, not adding to them. So intellectually we can respond or we can keep living and pose the question back, "Where are these heretical dangers you hypothesize? Where is your evidence? And what do you suppose we do as young people to live out a passionate faith?"

This week I read a piece by John Shelby Spong on homosexuality where he essentially said, "I'm done discussing this with anyone who opposes me." What a foolish way to present your argument. Our argument is our life of course, and as such we will join the conversation by living Christianity in such a way. People may rebut our assertions with words of hypothesis, but until they can rebuke the simplicity of my comrades actions, I will be proud of our little corner in Winston-Salem, the Hawthorn block in San Diego, the neighborhood Kensington in Philadelphia, and the many places in between, arguing with loving action while their skeptics chat in the ivory tower.

We wanted purple laces...and we got richer.

by Austin Pfeiffer

My wife Erin and I recently moved from Boston, MA to Winston-Salem, NC. We're a part of starting an intentional living community. Its been a two year preparation for what we're doing and its taken many forms. The idea began when I was living in San Diego and met a group of people who call themselves "The Ecclessia Collective", specifically, "The Hawthorne House." I must admit my initial attraction was its subversive nature in relation to typical American community, but I was compelled for the sake of attention...like someone who wears a feather boa in summer or green high tops with purple laces...its just as much about subversive expression as it is a cry for attention. Jason Evans of the Ecclessia Collective quickly warned me that the sexiness of this lifestyle is a myth. Of course we are still on the honeymoon and incapable of seeing past the glossy shine of our new world.

The few things we do know so far are we all experienced short seasons in our life, on the gulf coast after Katrina, in the Dominican Republic, on the streets of San Francisco, where we lived out of a backpack, with a rain soaked Bible, a journal, and a desire to love other people. Then we found ourselves returning home, eager to pursue entertaining ourselves with good beer, hip cafes, movies, afterall, that is what our generation does best, we entertain ourselves. So we set out with three things understood and the rest is still up for debate. The first thing, we are not simply renting a house together, this is a lifestyle, not a lease. The second, we will live intentionally, a word my wife treats with vehement sobriety. The third, we will live simply.

The first thing first, we have a house, we live together, we have a lifestyle...so far things are working. The second thing, intentionality, really only requires proximity and deliberation. We wake up every morning at 8 am and pray together, we have meals together, we discuss the arrangement of furniture, we intend each thing to have a purpose. Simplicity, such a shoulder shrug of a word, so unassuming...simplicity, that is our steep incline.

Simplicity has been the absolutely most difficult part of our lifestyle. We have eight people deeply involved in our community, four living with us. Before the eight of us came together, we all lived in seperate dwellings, with partitioned possessions. Now we are a collective of people with many musicical instruments, one guy roasts coffee at home, another brews beer, we all have a DVD collection, and we are shocked to find ourselves...wealthier through the experience. In some ways, we find ourselves realizing in a shallow sense, what it meant in Acts 2, that none among them were in need. However we've found ourselves at a crossroads. How many Target pot & pan sets can we harbor "just in case this doesn't work out." How many televisions, DVD's, do we need, should we have? Simplicity is easily the most difficult to accomplish. We hope long term that as we share possessions, we will feel released from the perpetuation of our American lifestyle of consumption. If we borrow what we do not have from each other, we free our income, our time, to be spent living out the most fundamental expressions of the Gospel, captured in a tidy sound bite known as Micah 6:8,

But he's already made it plain how to live, what to do,
what God is looking for in men and women.
It's quite simple: Do what is fair and just to your neighbor,
be compassionate and loyal in your love