at greenbelt this summer i was less busy than normal so actually went to a couple of talks (shock horror!). one was to hear tobias jones. i read his book utopian dreams several years ago. in that book he recounts visiting various residential communities and the impact it made on him was clear. as a result, together with his wife fra they purchased a house with a reasonable plot of land in somerset called windsor hill wood and have run a community there for 6 years. the model of community is an extended family home. at greenbelt toby was apologetic about that in that it was an imbalance of power and resource but i felt that was actually the key to its success and it is a wonderful model, if not the best model. a place of refuge is a book that tells the tale of the first five years of that experiment. it's extraordinary – extremely challenging and inspiring in equal measure. the community has welcomed people who others simply don't know what to do with – those very much at the edges of society. it sounds extremely tough especially the rawness of the first couple of years but gradually as they learned a rhythm and rules to put in place and i guess simply the wisdom that can only come from doing it the community seems to settle into more of an ease. they have raised their kids in the midst of this rag tag community and toby said at greenbelt that he thought this was wonderful for their children albeit it has had its moments. at greenbelt toby was suggesting that everyone could do this. read the book of acts, read bonhoeffer, the sermon on the mount, jean vanier and away you go! i love that challenge and i certainly think being a follower of jesus calls me to really listen to that and try to be at the edges with people who are broken. but i am not so sure everyone can do what they are doing – it's a very special thing, and to be able to hold open such welcome, non judgement with the level of patience required is sadly not that common in my own experience. but i hope many more people do do it and find ways to open up generosity. it's a great read but be warned it will challenge you. if you have any interest in community you really should read it. at greenbelt i loved what toby ended by saying:

any way of living that is worthwhile is risky