What Are We?

The Wednesday meetings are good. I didnt regret a moment spent listening to Dave tell us of his life, the small things and the big things that have shaped who he is and how he came to now reside amongst us. Yet, somehow things have changed from when we first began meeting in the evening last spring. Perhaps it is the desperation that has dissipated as we feel more confident of our success or maybe the increase in attendees that makes each of us feel less alone in this massive undertaking or it is just the comfort of routine and familiarity of friends. Whatever the cause, the change has been almost entirely positive except for one thing; we had reached a plateau of vision.

So much of the past year was spent envisioning how to implement this plan of renovation. The paperwork, the endless meetings and the need to have our ideas accepted by so many different interests took its proper toll and some felt overwhelmed by responsibility while others felt unprepared or helpless as to how their contribution could be of any use. Many hands make light work, but too many cooks in the kitchen can spoil the broth. So we needed to find the balance of responsibility and a renewal of the vision, which is why a Thursday night meeting was called. A different night in a different location with a focus of vision might be just what we needed to move beyond the plateau.

Below I quote the ideas/thoughts/feelings/visions of those that spoke at the meeting as well as some replies to the things that they said. Some are exactly the words that poured past their lips, while others are more succinct interpretations of the paragraphs or concepts that were spoken. No conclusions were achieved at this meeting; neither was it the beginning of new ideals; rather it was the voicing of those aspirations we have always had and the concerns over how best to achieve them.

This [meeting] is neither the beginning nor the climax of all our planning, only a point on the path toward a goal - Heidi

We want to support people in the community enabling them to achieve their goals, dreams and aspirations. - Sophie

We are powerless... What does a spirit of boldness look like in a life dedicated to non-violence and humility? - Dave V

In a community our mistakes destroy more... but less completely, while our individual innovations can be lifted beyond what could ever be achieved alone. - Tessa

Need to talk about our goals that arrived at dead-ends because that is where we have learned the most. - Dan

We must take care of those with vision. - Dave V

This [community] can not be "maybe your passion", it must necessarily be your passions shared. - Tiff

Leaders must give up control and followers must take up responsibility.... that is the definition of community. - Dan

Mark your skills and serve in them, but understand your weaknesses and let God work through you in them. - Dan

Poverty does not necessarily mean humility; pride can still hide in dirty rags, but it is much harder to reach out to someone from a place of privilege. - Jim

We need a group of us to commit to daily pray together. - Heidi

We dont want to make people more like us, we want to make us like more people. - Beth M

There is a difference between living vicariously through others versus enabling other to do the things that you can not. - Dan

The community needs the support of people on the outside because they bring enriching nourishment to an ecosystem that would otherwise be self contained. - Jordan

Leaders need support as much as they need followers. - Carmen

We must understand that once we open the ecosystem, we could potentially lose the very things that gave it life. - Mark

People must be allowed to be committed to things that are not directly part of the community. - Jordan

Are we willing to commit to something beyond ourselves.... a commitment that has no time limit? - Dan

There is a specialness in being together, but even more in loving someone who is away, whose return is anticipated. - Dave S

There are different levels of investment. - Jim

Not everyone will or must feel that change is necessary. - Mark

Stop focusing on what we need and instead work toward giving away what we want. - Alie

Focus on serving God instead of on ways to serve God. - Beth A

Our dreams limit what God has in store for us. - Dan



As a conclusion I have tried to write a statement of vision that perhaps encapsulates that which is of central importance to the community. It excludes many aspects but I believe that it captures much of the vision of the Atangard Society; Hospitality and Community.

The Atangard Society is an organization that pursues building an infrastructure of hospitality, creating a physical space and an organizational framework to allow us to direct people to the help that they need.


- dan

Atangard In Da News.

November 12 - Field Trip to St. Chiara

Over the past week a lot has happened with Atangard.  First off, the proposal we put forth to the city was voted upon and it passed!  And without any opposition.  This is huge.  It is another big hurdle that is now behind us.  It's so good have tangible progress.  There are still other clerical issues that need to be dealt with such as insurance, but getting approval of the proposal is a big step in the right direction.

On Monday, November 10, several people from the project headed out to Vancouver to meet with the people of St. Chiara's who live in community in the downtown Eastside.  There are four main houses that are part of this community housing where they have an open door policy for meals and have several people who live there part time.  In total there are about 40 people in residence there with a core group of original members.  Kathy and Lane spoke with the people who were out there (Sophie, Carissa, Jim, Beth, Mark, Dave V, Dan, Debby, Dave S) about what they were doing and why it was they have made the choice to pursue living in a tight knit community and serving those around them.  They posed some difficult questions trying to see why it is that we are seeking to do something similar to what it is they have.  The group was challenged to find a concrete reason, or goal that they can unite within so that they can succeed in their efforts to make positive changes in Downtown Abbotsford.  Specifically each person was asked why they wanted to live at Atangard.  This got me thinking a bit, and as I don't intend on living at Atangard.  My current goal is to finish my schooling and to do this I need to move to the States for a few years, if all goes as I am planning that would mean that I'll be moving next fall.  So, why is it then that I'm involved in this at all?   I came up with two things: first I plan on helping with the renovations.  I have skills in that area as it's my current job and want to contribute in any was I can.  And secondly, and I think this reason is more important to me.  Even though living in Atangard isn't a goal of mine right now, many of the people who do want to live there are close friends of mine, and it's their goal to live there.  So for me, the main reason I'm involved is to help and support my friends in any way I can to help them achieve their goals.  It's the only thing that makes sense for me to do, so I do it as best I can.

What stuck out most to me as a theme of the conversation around St. Chiara was the challenge from Kathy and Lane to commit, and not just unofficially, but to really commit to a time period for how long you intend on living in Atangard.  They stressed that this was a very important issue.  The general sense of the discussion was that long term commitment is scary.  We don't like being "held down" for an extended period of time.  We like our ability to get up and go whenever we like if circumstances change, or if we just don't feel like doing whatever it is we're doing anymore.  Often it's easier to abandon a situation rather than stick around and work it out.  It's very evident in our culture by the number of failed marriages we see or hear about.  Commitment has become a word of convenience; if it's convenient for me, I'll be committed.  If we don't stand by our commitments we're just flakes.

To close out the night, Jamie spoke.  He shared the experience he had while at Interns at ACA.  He talked about the struggles he had with what he thought to be how a Christian should act, and the holding back of emotions that he thought a "good" Christian shouldn't have.  When he started to put aside these notions of how he thought he should act emotions he had suppressed started to come out and although is was a hard process and still is, it has been a healthy one.

That about sums up the meeting that was, so I'm going to sign off at that,

Steve

Before Pictures

The above the pictures are from the inside of the FVI (the hotel that we will be renovating/where we will live). Don't worry, reno's haven't started yet.

Cultural Baggage

Something that was discussed this week was the idea of cultural baggage. Carman posed a theory that maybe God didn't mean for the Isrealites to kill all those people in the old testament; maybe he just wanted them displaced. And she couldn't understand why God would want to instigate a genicide on any scale. Doug Bryce brought up the idea of cultural baggage and how maybe it was God's intention to only displace them but maybe because of the times the Isrealites were in, with all the violence of other gods and peoples, they interpreted his commands a little differently than we would today.
I was talking with Sophie today about how, even if we use the same words, comunnication can be such a tricky thing. I was telling her about my good friend Suzanne and how different we are but we've been friends for a long time. We make sure we are aware of how different we are and try to communicate accordingly. There have been countless times that I have been offended at something she's said because of how I interpreted it. And then she'll ask me what I THOUGHT she said and, more often than not, be like, 'Oh no! THIS is what I said."
It's a dangerous thing to assume we know people completely. Especially the ones who are most like us. We are constantly changing our perspectives, our tolerances, our minds.
If there is one thing I appreiciate most about this friend's group, it is their hunger to understand. Each other and everyone they come into contact with. The more I get to know them the more I am overwhelmed by the beauty that radiates from them. Maybe this happens whenever you form strong connections with people.

"Each friend represents a world in us, a world possibly not yet born till they arrive." -Anais Nin

There is a theme of people realizing how they are different and how they are not like others in the group and faulting themselves for it. Like Dan talking about how he never cries. Or me talking about how I always cry! The things we cannot help about ourselves, even in their purest form, leave us with a sense of not being in control. I think that is the main issue here.
When we see someone who is not like us in the very way we can be our best we envy the thing about them that would make us unlike who we are. Something that I try to do, though it doesn't work half the time, is, when i actually catch myself thinking negatively about myself, in a way that isn't productive, I try to think about things that are good inside of me. Ways I know I affect other people in a good way. Even different measures of success. Sometimes I can't even think of one way I've been successful in my life, but I think it's only because I discredit the things that I've put more work into because of my priorities and I believe people when they tell me in order to be considered successful I should own a car, a house, a husband, some kids, a career. And, I won't say I don't want those things, even if just to avoid semi-awkward conversations comparing things I don't even have in commen with other people, but I do want those things, on some scale, because they represent structure and stability and respect and success in our culture. But not only for that reason, but some days that is my only reason.
There are so many pre-suppositions and unwritten rules just in living every day within a society. What we need to do, instead of assuming other people have the same cultural baggage as us, is seek to understand them instead of seeking understanding from them.

--Carissa

Pacifism And The Escalation Of Violence

One night there was a discussion amongst my friends about pacifism; it revolved around the passage in the Bible that says to turn the other cheek when struck. The common interpretation is that one should "humble they self" even further, however that is not necessarily historically accurate.  The type of strike is that of a master to a slave; a right arm backhand against the right side of the victims face.  By turning the other cheek it is not a sign of submission but rather one of defiance against one who presumes to be your master.  By the simple act of turning and revealing the left side, one has overturned the master-slave hierarchy without resorting to violence.  The attacker must now either strike you as he would an equal and thus legitimate claims of equality or back down from further acts of violence.

The verses continue with other examples of revolt that are commonly mistaken by modern readers as showing weakness or submission. Such as that about carrying a pack two miles if asked/forced to carry it.  According to Roman law it was illegal for a Roman soldier to make someone carry his pack more than one mile.  Thus if the individual that is forced to carry the pack takes it further he is causing the soldier to break the law and creating the threat of ejection from the military and thus his source of power.

The third is about if one is sued for their shirt they should give their coat also.  In a society where nudity was highly offensive the act of going topless would be an insult to the person who took the clothing as much as it would be for the one who lost them.

This discussion inevitably led to modern day applications of such defiance pacifism on the macro political scale.  An example of the opposite was put forth that (despite any distaste we may have for it) the preemptive violent actions of nation states against those they perceived as potential threats often succeeded in preventing escalated violence.  However, I can not agree with this conclusion because I DO NOT BELIEVE VIOLENCE CAN STOP VIOLENCE.  A POTENTIAL ENEMY IS NOT ACTUALLY AN ENEMY AT ALL UNTIL ONE SIDE COMMITS AN ACT OF VIOLENCE AGAINST THE OTHER JUST AS A WAR WILL NEVER END UNTIL VIOLENCE CEASES. [oops... unintended caps but I like the effect]

"But how", it was posited, "can pacifism stop violence?" and I must admit it cant. So what is the point? Well, actually there are two points.

Point one is that if you adhere to pacifism there is a good chance that no violence will occur.  However, if you act on preemption , violence is guaranteed and your chance of avoiding violence directed toward you is not actually eradicated only potentially decreased.

Point two is that violence begets violence, if one nation state attacks another because they see them as a potential threat then all potential threats must be dealt with in the same manner.  Any sign of weakness and that country will become a target for retaliatory violence.  The same is true on an individual level.

Though pacifism may not be able to prevent all violence from occurring it can stop the escalation of violence.

  The person who had pointed out these concepts was Jim, thus it was no surprise that when he spoke on Wednesday night his discourse on life was tightly intertwined with the concepts of social justice and non-violence.  These are things that are very important to me personally and I believe (whether you realize it or not) that they are central to the philosophy that we are creating for the Atangard Community Project.

- dan