The community is ours, let’s treat it right | Church Corner

Community. I like this word so I researched it.  It’s a late Middle English word taken from old French. Not that you necessarily care, but I’m going to tell you about it anyway. It’s taken from the word “comunete” and is supported by the Latin word “communitas.” The word community comes form the merging of two ideas: common and unity. There are several definitions for this word but my favorite is, “a group of people living together in one place, esp. one practicing common ownership.”

I like this idea of common ownership. Not in a socialist or communist way but in an understanding that because I am a part of this community I then have ownership in this community. That means I have the responsibility to not turn a blind eye to injustice or need.

The reality is that government will never be able to keep up with the needs of the people it’s sworn to serve.  Unfortunately governments local, state and national can forget that the role they have in our lives is that of servant.  But this isn’t about my thoughts on government, it’s about my thoughts on community.

Because government has its limitations, there is a need for the community to step in and provide when those limitations are evident.  I have the distinct honor of serving on several different community boards and have a front row seat of how the amazing people of the plateau do care greatly for one another. On the Plateau we have many great churches, the POM and the Kiwanis food bank as well as the youth centers and tutoring programs. These programs and institutions are designated to care for those who need a helping hand.

Even though we have all these great organizations to care for the people of the Plateau, we still need to be vigilant as a community to care for one another. We have a responsibility to assist our elderly or struggling neighbors not out of profit, but out of ownership for our community. This can be  as simple as picking up a piece of trash instead of walking by it waiting for someone else to do it.

I know I sound like I’m some kind of do-gooder and maybe that’s what I’m turning into as I get older. I’m just so thankful to be a part of a community that does truly care for one another and I pray that we will continue to do so. I would encourage members of the faith community to make this priority in their everyday lives. We also should teach and train our children not only be good Christians, but to be good neighbors, too. Deuteronomy 15:11 says, “For the poor will never cease from the land; therefore I command you, saying, ‘You shall open your hand wide to your brother, to your poor and your needy, in your land.’”

This community is ours to steward properly.  I say we do our very best.

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