Church...a community institution for the kids
I happen to think that the best example of a community without earthly masters, without earthly punishable law, is a church. It's a weird thing, because we know as Christians, we obviously answer to THE master, the Lord, and we should attempt to follow His commandments.
But ideally church itself is so much other than that anyway. It's Christ's body, a way for us to be involved in something beyond just ourselves. In a church you find community, networks, financial and moral support. You find education, acceptance, not disappointment. You find opportunities to serve, not community service. And church is one of the few working examples of a societal construct that, should you choose not to invest financially, will not immediately fail because of your inability to do so. You can still reap all the immediate benefits of attending without necessarily putting anything in. Of course, to go beyond this, to truly grow, you'd have to invest your time and resources as an act of devotion to God and your love for Him.
I'm hitting on this idea only because church is kind of what Matt is describing in his ideas about a perfect society. There are definitely leaders, who have no call to be masters, but rather than that, teachers. Since I hear a lot of talk emphasizing the important of teaching in our society, I think it's good to dwell on the fact that being involved in a church body really helps you learn from and teach to others.
I'm rambling.

There is a church for everyone.
Furthermore, everyone has a calling and purpose to be in a church. Everyone has a gift that God has given them, and everyone has the choice to use it.
For some of us church isn't even important, for many, it's not even a part of life at all. But the more you involve yourself in it (with the intent of coming closer to God, and not just keeping yourself busy) the more you'll find that the worries of the rest of your life shrink away. In other words, the societal constructs we dread...political, economic, etc, become less of a pain. Now I'm not talking about shutting myself inside a sanctuary all the time. I'm talking about making God's design for society the axiom of your cultural viewpoint. Me, I'll readily admit I'm not as involved in church activities as I should like to be. Heck, up until 4 months ago I went to church rarely, and put my bad sleep habits before God.
So basically, concluding this whole ramble, I should say ultimately, put God first-the rest comes second-but if it's an answer to seeing community work right, look towards getting into a church and helping make that work right, and see how that blesses the community around it.
I was gonna go off on a tangent about churches around the world and the blessings those have brought to the communities without, despite what über-liberal anti-Christians say, destroying the local culture. However, I know less about this subject than I would like to, and my post is getting long.


- posted by Nathan Prime @ 00:27

 
Anarchy...
I would like to make an effort to oppose Matt's arguments in order to either force him into strengthening his case or changing his ideas.
I was thinking a great deal today when mowing the lawn, because, although mowing the lawn is a stupid way to spend time, it does give some of us a bit of time to think and process different opinions.
Whether the true definition of anarchy is 'without law' or 'without masters', I find it flawed. Any society trying to function even minimally without the presence of both will ultimately fail. There must be a standard. There must be a leader. Though 'democracy' is by no means perfect, it is the best functioning system we have, because it preserves a means of law and a means of leadership. Ultimately the first and greatest form of law and leadership must be moral. Through moral law we find the basis for all other law. Through moral leadership we find government free of corruption.
Of course this is never true in practice, but I can't imagine anarchy providing anything better.
How do we find the standard for morality? Not through ourselves, naturally. By no means can we ever believe that we as humans, by ourselves, hold the key to some greater understanding of our world and perfect society. Any 2-year old has to be taught to share. Morals are learned, they are not innate. This is a hard concept for a society of relativists and post-modernists to grasp. Morals are learned. True understanding of moral law comes with the power of the Holy Spirit. And that can only be gained by coming to Christ. I can see example after example in my life, in the lives I've seen.
That's all for today. Peace.
- posted by Nathan Prime @ 17:04