Constitutional text - Chapter Tree - Our Community life

and will be eÀ.'"Plained in detail in the next Dossier.
Concentration on the "mission" dimension of a commmity is very
valuable because it insures that it will be "outward-looking" and
"other-centered". Just as an individual who is always self-absorbed
tends to slowly strangle himself in his own egotistical "me", so too
a corrnnunity can extinguish its dynamism by being wrapped up in an
egoistic "we".
it is as a corrorrunity that we witness to
God's presence among us and of the power
of the Gospel to bring together in a community
of brotherhood men of every language,
race and nation.
Our baptism, vows, veneration of Mary, and the mission of the Congregation
all bring us together - but we have chosen to be not merely
together, but to be a "corrnnunity", a connnunion, KOINONIA, born
in and of fraternal love, the gift of the risen Lord through the
Spirit.
The preceding corrnnentary on the first paragraph and the pages in the
essay on the witness value of corrnnunity life are sufficient explanation
of the fact that "as a connnunity we witness to God's presence
among us". But what of "the power of the Gospel to bring together ... "?
There is too often a seeming lack of 1 'evangelical power" in our midst.
Why?
It is true that our vowed lives proclaim that the gospel values are
central in our lives. Yet it must be admitted that the communal
living of these vows seem to have lost effective farce as witnessing
to others and also effective force in terms of support for ourselves.
An important part of the reason for this can be found in what David
Knight has to say about COI111Til.ll1ity. For him a religious corrnnunityis:
an environment of col1ll1l.lJlal faith-expression according to the
spirit of the three vows •.•. Authentic religious community
will express many things in its life, many different values.
But above all it must express an eÀ.'"Plicit centering of faith,
hope and love on the person of the Lord .•.• For any real community
to exist among Christians, they rrust know each other
as persons responding to Christ. They must know in some way
that each individual in the cornmunity has taken a personal,
free stance of faith, hope and love toward Jesus Christ ••••
Expression must be given to one's corrrrnitment, and the expression
must be understood. (David Knight, Cloud by Day, Fire
By Night, Vol. I, pp. 118, 127, 131-3)
- 46 -