Community Covenant

On Tuesday, April 8, the DY volunteers, our director Dawn, and some special mentors convened for a Recommitment Service to walk through the commitments that we've made as an intentional community and, obviously, recommit ourselves to that covenant.  We started writing the covenant on our retreat in October.  Although we set out the basic framework in the fall, we still had some refining and wording to do and we finished the final copy the week before the ceremony.  (For all you astute readers, that means that we finished our covenant on April 1, the day Dawn pranked us really good.  So we also wrote a fake covenant that was really offensive and sent it to her as the "real" as a prank back on her.)  Now that I've been committed and recommitted to this community thing we got going on here, it's relevant to let you know what it's all about.  Without further ado, please read our esteemed covenant below.

Discipleship Year ~ Community Covenant 2007-2008

We are a group of Christ-followers who are exploring ways to live in community as the unified Body of Christ seeking to give of ourselves, develop deep relationships, live our faith authentically, learn from one another, and glorify God by . . .

Spiritual Disciplines
Sharing time: Sunday evening (at 8:30pm unless Katy works – 9:30pm)
· Framed by our relationships with God and neighbor
· Group prayer to close our Sunday time

Fellowship (Peaceful Community)
· Thursday evening dinner, nuts ‘n bolts, fun
· Valuing our individual relationships (one-on-ones)
· Stretching ourselves in engaging in different relationships outside ourselves
· Worship
· Participating in a Church body outside of ourselves
· Occasional corporate worship

· Personal prayer for one another (i.e. picking one person each day of the week)
· Servant Leadership School
· Learn together by participating in the weekly classes
· Rest and rejuvenation
· Solitude, cultivating outside relationships, retreat, etc.

Simple Living
· True to budget
· Food budget; rollover money
· Personal stipend
· Conserving energy in house
· Lights; electricity; heat; recycling; biking/walking; composting
Health - Personal ideas of sustainable health; Group dynamics/needs considered as a house

· Supporting local businesses (Serving the Community; Peaceful Community)
· Shopping/working at the City Garden Co-op
· Buying from local Salvadoran venues
· Dialogue about simple and sustainable living
· Valuing interpersonal relationships
· Moderation in isolating activities (i.e. TV watching, Internet time, cell phone usage)
· Fighting cultural addictions
· Sharing our resources - Computers, clothes, instruments, books, etc.

Using Our Gifts
Recognizing, celebrating, and developing gifts by encouragement, discernment, and balancing the variety of gifts
· Personal
· Other people’s gifts at home and direct service
· Community gifts

Peaceful Community
Conflict resolution
· One on one (Matthew 18); go to the source
· Avoid gossip – any kind of negative conversation without person present
· Validate emotions
· Resolve! Don’t fester
· Not taking sides
· Cultivating trust – creating a safe place
· Being present so that our relationships are bringing peace and healing to one another

· Supporting external peace efforts
Fellowship (Spiritual Disciplines)
· Thursday evening dinner, nuts ‘n bolts, fun
· Valuing our individual relationships (one-on-ones)
· Stretching ourselves in engaging in different relationships outside ourselves

Supporting local businesses (Serving the Community; Simple Living)
· Shopping/working at the City Garden Co-op
· Buying from local Salvadoran venues

Growth & Change
· Open to dialogue – engaging in issues that come up at work, with Dawn, in the news, etc.
· Servant Leadership School
· Open to compassionate criticism & self-criticism
· Accountability – to our covenant
· Flexibility in our understanding and expectations of our community and ourselves
· Anticipation of being different at the end of the year

Serving the Community
· Participating in a local church
· Engaged in our placements
· Building relationships with neighbors
· Openness to volunteer opportunities
· Serving food, playing music, demonstrations, etc.
· Engaged and present to the Church of the Savior community
· Supporting local businesses (Simple Living; Peaceful Community)
· Shopping/working at the City Garden Co-op
· Buying from local Salvadoran venues

Respecting our individual and unique expressions of these commitments, we acknowledge that their purpose is for the strengthening of our community and ourselves. We commit to being held accountable to this covenant through self-reflection and community support. For all these things, we depend on God’s grace and guidance now and forevermore. Amen.