community

We spent this weekend in South Carolina at Clemson with Justin where he is enrolled in the PhD program. Friday evening he and his friends took us to Bluegrass and Barbecue for dinner followed by a visit to Nick's, a hole in the wall bar in downtown Clemson. Justin's friends are an eclectic group. They are all graduate students. Their political views, religious beliefs, and value systems are from every end of the spectrum, from Catholic to agnostic, from liberal to conservative, from Christian to pagan. However, the camaradorie in the group was evident. They freely discuss their differences without need to condemn.

As we discussed his friends with Justin, he made the following statement - "I like my friends, they are all broken". For the most part they understand their imperfections and the places where their life falls short. Instead of hiding behind a mask of goodness, they dare to be open. Without a doubt, some are more transparent than others, personality plays a role. However, there is little posturing. Justin spoke of the difficulty that will come when the time comes for each of them to move on to another place in life. He spoke of community like he never experienced before, community that he confessed could move him to tears with the depth of relationships.

As I reflect on our interaction with Hampton, Erin, Frank, Lori, Justin, and Trenti, I got the sense that Jesus would have been comfortable with them. It is the way it should be.