Community is...

... sharing a common vision?

In our circles the question is asked "what is your vision?" the implication being that God has given the community some specific raison d'être.

As I ponder this question I am of course aware of our links with certain other Christian communities across the world. A Google trail will turn up some good but mostly negative opinions of these communities, the negative ones being fairly obviously written by folk who have left with a large chip on their shoulder. Personally I do not identify with this sort of "vision". Back in Oxford days I agreed to be the OICCU "Rep" for our college for one year, but in order to do this I was told I had to sign my agreement to their Statement of Faith and this I refused to do on principle. Later, in my BBC Research days, I attended a baptist church and wanted to help out with young people's meetings. I was told I had to first become a "church member" and to do this I had to sign an agreement to their Statement of Faith. They would not budge on this requirement so I signed under considerable duress. Although since then I have not been asked to repeat this signing business, I hope you will surmise that I strongly resist and abhor being constrained into someone else's belief pattern.

When I consider the individuals in our community I do not find strict adherence to any particular denomination or movement in spite of the fact that every year we invite ministries from the aforementioned "links" for our annual convention. True, a common denominator is our Christian faith and obviously a desire to express this in our living together, but beyond that we are all different. Some have thought this a weakness but I rather think it is a strength. Although at the same time I wonder if there is enough cohesion to keep our community from self-destruction, which cohesion has to be that agape love that transcends human differences.

Graduation

Long, long ago, mid 1974 to be more precise, I graduated from Oxford University with first class honours in Natural Science (Physics). This should have been a great occasion I suppose, but my memories of it are all fuzzed. The whole affair rather horrified me.

There was this tradition that your scout should adorn you with the graduation gown at the appropriate moment for which he expected a tip and this arrangement frightened me - how much, why, etc. I have always abhorred tipping. Partly because I am tight with money and partly because I get embarrassed. I think I neither asked my scout to do the honours nor tipped him - but my memory is hazy on this point.

I have only two pictures to record the event, both very poor quality. I suppose my father is behind the camera. The backdrop is the Sheldonian Theatre, venue for all graduation ceremonies. What had just happened inside its walls is totally gone from my memory. As with my wedding day, I was glad when it was all over.

Aunty Mary on the left and Nana and mum beside me

My mum in her dress purchased for the occasion

I hate public affairs in which I am on show.  Earlier in my life I was sent to Sunday School and every year there would be an anniversary event which the mums and dads would attend and at which the children would perform and then be given a prize - perhaps a sentimental Christian story book.  The quality of the performances was awful but even more awful was being expected to stand up and deliver such an awful performance. I still cringe just thinking about it. Perhaps my whole life has been jeopardised by those anniversaries.

It's this being expected to be what one is not that gets me. A bit like a Mexican meal - zillions of pots of this and that, some hot and some cold, which you have to dump on top of a dank circle of dough and mix it all together and somehow get it to one's mouth before it succumbs to the law of gravity, by which time the whole thing is stone cold and thus lost some of its appeal. And to add insult to injury you then have to wash and dry up all those zillions of little pots. Why not just mix it altogether before serving it? At least that way it might stay warmer.