Building Christian Communities (3)

I am posting my notes on a book called “Building Christians Communities” written by Stephen Clark in 1975.

A basic Christian community is an environment of Christians, which can provide the basic needs of its members to live the Christian life.

• It must be Christian, organised, large enough (40+) local, complete, and united.

• The environmental approach is interaction or value orientated.

• The goal is to get people to interact in a particular way and accept certain values.

Communities are formed by an environmental approach, not a functional approach.

• When church work becomes more professional, they begin a more functional approach (providing services and organising worship).

• People can be present and happy at worship without forming community.

Activities should be designed primarily to further the environmental dynamic.

• Many church activities are good, but they do not build a community of people committed to Christianity.

• They may be functionally effective, but not environmentally effective. For example, people can be happy at worship without commitment being formed.

• We should be caution about starting new activities.

• Activities should be assessed on whether they increase commitment to Jesus and his body.

• Leaders should not waste efforts shoring up existing activities.

The chief criterion for leadership is the ability to develop community.

• Leaders emerge as people accept their leadership.

• Leaders must have a strong relationship with Jesus.

• Strong communities will provide a continuing supply of leadership.

• The church needs leaders, who can work with an environmental approach.

Building Christian Communities (2)

I am posting my notes on a book called “Building Christians Communities” written by Stephen Clark in 1975.

A community is a strong effective form of environment.

• Christians in the first four centuries were received into strong communities.

• Society is now de-Christianised, so Christian communities are now more necessary.

• It is no longer feasible to make society Christian.

• A Christian community provides an environment in which strong Christian lives are possible.

• In strong communities we will find the strength to influence society.

Our basic challenge is to form communities, which allow Christian life in the world.

Small groups are not enough.

• They do not have sufficient resources and will eventually stagnate.

• A larger community provides more breadth and balance.

• Primary relationships are not the only relationships a Christian needs.

• A bond can exist between people who don’t know each other well, but who have common goal or ideal.

A family is not enough.

• Family must be strengthened, but a family cannot go it alone.

• They need to be part of a larger community to succeed.

Building Christian Communities

Many years ago, I read a book called “Building Christians Communities” by Stephen Clark. I think this is one of the most important books that I have read, and I have read quite a few. Stephen Clark was a leader in the Catholic Charismatic Renewal.

He begins his book by describing two sub-optimal pastoral approaches.

1. Activities orientated
2. Problem orientated.

The problem with the activities approach is that people develop fatigue with achieving a goal.

Concentrating on problems prevents the emergence of holistic solutions.

Stephen advocates a holistic approach that focuses on the goal of the gospel. He says,

The main goal of pastoral efforts in the church today is to build communities, which make it possible for a person to live a Christian life.

Environment
An environment is a stable social situation or a stable pattern of interaction between human beings. They vary in intensity, size, etc.

• Beliefs attitudes and behaviours are formed to a great degree by the environment in which we live. A Christian needs a Christian environment.

• This means that forming a Christian environment is more important than reforming Christian institutions.

• When society as a whole does not accept Christianity, it is necessary to form communities in society to make Christian life possible.

Environmental factors are more fundamental than institutional actors in bring Christian growth.

• Institutions are designed to complete a particular task.

• They can influence behaviour, but not basic beliefs, attitudes and values without an environmental process.

• Environments can change people without institutional help.

• The early church was more environment than institution.

• Parents are concerned about the environment of their children.