Journal of European Baptist Studies, 2017

live apart from the inconveniences of those with exceptional needs, but from the capacity for healthy relationships that neither extols ‘the cult of normalcy’ nor excludes others. 30 Connection and purpose, Newbigin explains, is enhanced with the understanding that ‘the image of God in the human person is bound up with this mutual inter-relatedness and interdependence.. .There is no being human except in relatedness, and the true relation between human beings is expressed in the phrase: “Be servants of one another”.’ 31 The contented person does not need to fix the other to avoid suffering dis-ease by their limitations. Their afflictions are matters for prayer, not for determining their value to the community. The community is enhanced by the presence of those who remind those of us with good health to humbly serve the disabled, as Christ did for us. Idealism is strong in young adults, and coming to grips with the imperfections of the community can be difficult. In a culture of instant gratification, unrealistic expectation may be put on the church to be the perfect community, meeting people’s felt needs without infringing on their freedom. Jean Vanier cautions: It is difficult to get people to understand that the ideal doesn’t exist, that the personal equilibrium and the harmony they dream of come only after years and years of struggle, and even then only as flashes of grace and peace. If we are always looking for our own equilibrium — I’d even say if we are looking too much 29 Sang Uk Lee, ‘The Possibility of Hope: introspective and Aesthetical Analyses’, Pastoral Psychology 64:5 (October 2015), 711-725 (p. 720). 30 Thomas Reynolds, Vulnerable Communion (Grand Rapids: Brazos, 2008), p. 46. 31 Newbigin, The Other Side of 1984: Questions for the Churches (Geneva: World Council of Churches, 1984), p. 56. 50 Journal of European Baptist Studies 17:1 (2017) for our own peace — we will never find it, because peace is the fruit of love and service to others. 32 Community takes time to build, but it is difficult to persuade a millennial that time is needed to realise its benefits. In a culture where one can instantly find information, entertainment, and a sense of relationship on¬ line, building a face-to-face relationship can seem tedious. I have heard, “I tried that Bible study for a couple weeks, but I didn’t fit in”, or most excessively, “I dated fifty women through E-harmony last year, but not one of them was worth a second date”. Catherine Nemey and Hal Taussig counter well: ‘The emergence of community depends on an extended process. It is the product less of romantic longing than intense and prolonged passion, decision, and commitment.’ 33 Leaders and mentors frequently point out that it is in deepening relationships, not a constant search for new ones, that one can find satisfaction. To that end, Wednesday night is Community Night at Scum. The building is open, a group may use a smal