Their goal: Create a sense of community in a chaotic neighborhood overrun with drugs, prostitution and gangs. Their work mirrors, in some ways, the “new monasticism” movement, in which Christians move into urban or rural areas to work with the poor. “How can you worship a homeless Man on Sunday and ignore one on Monday?
Twelve Marks of the New Monasticism
How to Derail the New Monasticism: An Interview with Shane Claiborne
His 2006 book, The Irresistible Revolution: Living as an Ordinary Radical, has shaped much progressive Christian thinking about living as Jesus taught. His story as told in Christianity Today explains the experiences that have led him to pursue service to the poor and nonviolent activism.
“How can you worship a homeless Man on Sunday and ignore one on Monday?” said the sign outside St. Edward’s Cathedral in Philadelphia. Inside, a group of 40 homeless families were joined by students from Eastern University to protest the eviction of women and their children from the abandoned Kensington neighborhood church.
New Monasticism in Wikipedia
In their own words..
We “New Monastics” are a bunch of Jesus followers who have committed ourselves to a new way of life in community. In the summer of 2006, we responded to many people’s desire to experience and learn about our way of life by developing a focused, weekend-long introduction to the theology and practice of New Monasticism in North America. A year later, wanting to learn what community looks like across the dividing lines of our time, we introduced opportunities to learn about community in Brazil as well.
For the sake of discernment and mutual encouragement, we have connected with other followers of Jesus who are experimenting with a new way of life in community. The “12 Marks of a New Monasticism” name what God is doing in our communities. The Community of Communities is an online directory where you can find a community near you.
To clarify our own thoughts and share the good news we’ve seen and heard, we have written a number of books which you can find here. We partner with Cascade Books to publish the New Monastic Library Series.
We’re not sure just what will come of all this. But we’re so grateful for the good news that God has not abandoned the world. Something new is stirring, drawing deeply from the old. And we’re glad to be part of it.
Shane Clairborn “The Simple Way”
- http://www.thesimpleway.org/about/
- http://www.thesimpleway.org/index.php/store/listing/category/spiritual-practices/
New Monasticism Social Network
Tags: Anti-poverty strategies, Monasticism, simplicity
