Learning points from the "New Creation" community (by Lucy Huber)

Much of Lucy’s invaluable experience can be found in her document but the discussion highlighted several areas that LAMB should be thinking about.

1. The importance of having a chapel or prayer space within the community’s residence because prayer was an important part of the community experience.
2. The value of having a retired brother living in the community, but not actually engaged in the school - based work.
3. Regular community meetings each week and time spent socializing as a community.
4. The need for a person outside the community to act as a “one – to – one” almost like a spiritual director
5. Ongoing Christian formation particularly at the beginning in the form of a community retreat together. Time for spiritual development was essential throughout the year, particularly in the form of team retreats and the one – to – ones.
6. A mixed community (male and female) would have helped the work.
7. Avoid taking on too many commitments outside of the working - day as the team will be tired.
8. The need to give adequate money to the volunteers so that they can avoid hardship.
9. The possibility of “cover” from outside the community if necessary to cope with illness or occasions when a team member cannot function. Otherwise an increasingly heavy burden is placed upon the rest of the team as there is little scope for a “session off” team.
10. Be clear and focussed about what the community is for otherwise the team’s efforts might be dissipated. This was Lucy’s experience when they moved to the Liverpool Community.
11. Some sort of follow – up for the team themselves after their “year” so that they can begin to focus on what comes next for them in their own faith journeys.
12. "Getting your face known” in the schools was an important ingredient in the work and success of the community.
13. Music was a key element in their work with young people, as was some use of creative work like drama, collage and painting.
14. 2 weeks training and forming community in September meant that they were not ready to begin work until October. This is of importance for LAMB if the community is to be ready to begin work early in September.
15. More time in schools would have allowed more of a “follow up” to the retreat work. Perhaps they should have been more school based? Pupils when they have visited St Cassian’s have had a great experience of community but this has often highlighted the sense of school as being an institution rather than a community. LAMB needs to try to break this down as much as possible.

New Creation used training materials for community members at the start of the year; some of these are available here.