Faith: Christian "Communal" Living

Saw this item about a group of Christians trying to live simpler lives in a more commune like setting. They are a part of the New Monastic Movement.

Excerpts:

BILLINGS, MONT. -- In a peeling house on South 32nd Street, five friends came together to stretch their faith.

They left comfortable apartments for a communal home within walking distance of a prison, a pawnshop, a derelict trailer park. Exhaust from a sugar beet factory drifted down the streets.

Moving in last January, they pledged to spend one year together, learning to become true followers of Christ. They would give generously, love unconditionally. They would exchange their middle-class ways for humility and simplicity, forgoing Hardee's fries, new CDs, even the basic comfort of privacy.

"The focus has to be on God and the way of life he has set out for us, as opposed to the way we want to live, which is very selfish," Jeromy Emerling said.
.......
On the cold November day when Phyllis and Kyle moved out with their children, Jeromy stood in the foyer, overwhelmed with sorrow. He had been so consumed with the conflicts in the house, he said, that he had not realized how close they had all grown.

Later, he wrote it down, as if to remind himself: "In just 11 short months we had grown to love a family with whom we really had very little in common. Genuine, honest, sacrificial love. The Kingdom of God revealed itself to me in that brief moment -- an ideal realized through the fog of messy lives."

Jeromy had no illusions as he prepared for his second year as a monastic.

He and Debbie had invited several single friends to move into the house; they were also saving a bed for a meth addict they knew, hoping he'd move in when he got out of jail.

New faces meant new frustrations and more fights about mopping the floor. Jeromy knew it would be exhausting, exasperating.

But this was how he felt called to live. He still believed the house could be a blessing.

The article follows the ups and downs of learning to live together and reach out to their neighbors.

I was quite moved by the story and it has made me think about my own lifestyle.

I pay X amount of dollars a month in rent to live where I live. If i were to join such a "New Monastic" community, I'd probably be able to cut my rent in half.

Questions:

What would I do with the extra money?

Would I actually be willing to give it away?

Would I be able to adapt to a life where personal space and privacy would be significantly diminished?

How able would I be able to connect with housemates and neighbors in such a setting?

I'm thinking about these questions and examining my life but no answers ...