What Even Is Community?

Sometimes people say, “What even is community? What does community mean?”

I say that people “say” it, because sometimes the question is more like a wall, not a door. It’s a defense against practicing it, not a request for understanding it.

The definition isn’t hard to find. Here’s one. Merriam-Webster defines it as “a unified body of individuals: such as the people with common interests living in a particular area.”

The Latin roots include the prefix com- (meaning “together” or “with”) and -munis (related to duties or obligations). So etymologically, “community” conveys the idea of people united not only by shared attributes but also by shared duties. We are tied together by responsibilities.

As Christians we take communion every Lord’s day. We observe communion. We eat and drink communion. We have communion. What does that mean? It means we share life in Jesus. We have a shared confession, a common faith. We also share Jesus’ Spirit who unites us to Jesus as the Head and to another as different members of Christ’s body.

So we could say that we have communion-ity. More than sharing an Amazon hub (location-based), more than sharing tornado warnings (event-based), even more than being on the same page of the calendar (time-based), we are in Jesus and He is in us. Our community is based on Jesus.

We remember Jesus and our unity in Him at the communion table, but the reality doesn’t change after the bread and wine are gone.

We are a Trinitarian community, image-bearers of God who is one in three Persons, unity with diversity. We are disciples of Jesus Christ, God’s only begotten Son, and worship in Jesus’ name and mature in Jesus’ likeness. And as we acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord over all the world, our weeks, and work, join in serving Him as we serve one another.

We have spiritual ties, joint action, with diversity of gifted members. We are a community, and so we seek to cultivate it. That is the reason people often ask for a definition, because they know it includes duties. The good news is that Jesus has died for our selfishness and risen again for our new life, together, forever.