Reply #86: Let me spell this out...

[helleborient]

It prevents a specific, connect-the-dots image of God sitting on a cloud, or my image, or anyone else's from creating divisions within our community.

Our community focuses more on the teachings of Jesus, but yet we do believe there is something indefinable that connects us spiritually that we choose to call "God." We choose not to get hung up on materialistic definitions of it.

A very central part of our community is the centrality of an "open table" communion as part of every service. Remembering that Jesus called everyone, regardless of background, personal wealth, ethnicity, etc. to participate in a community meal...this is very similar to the ideal of Jubilee (equal property ownership)

Our community took a lot of flak locally when a photo showed up in the local newspaper of a Muslim visitor taking communion with us...and it was this community choosing to protect our local Islamic Center from violence in the wake of September 11 that helped me decide it was the community to be part of.