Belfast Bulletin: Living in Community

One of the aspects of this year with the Young Adult Volunteer Program is to experience living in community with the volunteers who are serving with us in Belfast. Most people hear the words "living in community," and think of a group of people living together in a house, sharing every day life with one another...grocery shopping, cooking, cleaning, sleeping, joining in fellowship, etc. However, for Karl and I, experiencing community looks a little bit different. While the other volunteers in Belfast share living quarters, Karl and I have our own flat. In order to experience the community aspect of this year, we focus on meeting with the other YAV's regularly for fellowship and meals, engaging in bible study and prayer, exploring and growing in our Christian faith together and supporting one another in our faith journeys. Some weeks we get to see one another quite often, while other weeks we find ourselves swamped with work and only meet up once.

This past week, we had the opportunity to immerse ourselves in community while on a retreat with the entire group of YAV's. We travelled by mini bus (driven by our site coordinator, Doug) to the north coast of Northern Ireland. We stayed in a cozy house in the countryside at a place called Corrymeela Knocklayd. Corrymeela is a community committed to promoting reconciliation in Ireland and throughout the world (http://www.corrymeela.org/), and they own the house which we stayed in. The house was located in close proximity to Ballycastle and The Giant's Causeway, which we took advantage of for one of the days of our retreat. We spent a whole day taking in the breathtaking views of the coast of Northern Ireland and the outstanding rock formations of the Causeway. This country truly has some of the most spectacular scenic views I have ever seen!

Aside from enjoying the scenery of the coast, our retreat was a time to relax, take part in daily devotions, converse with one another, talk about our experiences in Belfast so far, cook meals and eat together and just get to know each other even better....our retreat was a time to live in community.

There is something to be said for living in community with fellow believers. Time spent in the company of the other YAV's is enriching, challenging and humbling in so many ways. We don't always get along perfectly or agree with each others' views on everything, but each person of the community brings something different to the table. We are able to learn from each other and learn what it means to gather with and encourage one another in faith. Living in community with the YAV's is an experience which I would not trade for anything.

"Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching." -- Hebrews 10: 23-25