The power of community
More than a twu buzzword
September 20, 2006
Yolanda Kornelsen
Community. It’s the single most overused word on the Trinity Western University campus. Parents are promised a healthy community for the purpose of guiding their aspiring scholars safely through the hazards of university life. Student election speeches and application forms abound with promises of what they can do for the community. Clubs, residential programs, and discipleship groups are founded to promote a spiritually vibrant community.
By the end of my first year, I had had enough of “that word.” I wished that people would have the originality to employ the diversity of the English language and choose alternate words. Phrases such as ‘collective populace of TWU’ and ‘our extensive university clique’ were out there waiting for someone to grab them and wow the members of our TWU campus, but no: to my continued anguish, ‘community’ remained the buzzword for campus life, making me increasingly intent on purging it from my vocabulary.
So now you’re probably wondering why I’m the editor of the Community section. After a time of trying to avoid that little detail and deal with this section as if it were merely a dustbin for leftover articles, I decided to try to pin down the actual meaning of community.
One dictionary defines community as “a group of people living together in one place, especially practicing common ownership” or “ a similarity of identity.” Yet there is more to community than merely having something in common. It is not until we take pride in what we share that we become a community. Realizing this and being willing to take ownership of what we share is what gives a community its strength and desirability.
At Convocation chapel, Dr. Raymond mentioned that a community needs to be engaged or else it will die. Community is not about herding together a random assortment of people and thoughts, but about creating a diverse and interactive environment, which promotes communication in order to provoke challenging discussions and stimulate growth.
We might live in a very individualistic society, but our impact on this world will not be achieved as individuals. When we associate ourselves with some affinity, caucus, or group, we can begin to make a difference. Therein lies the attraction, the strength, and the power of community. I hope that we can take ownership of a little piece of our TWU campus, no matter how we choose to label it.
Now you go...
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