Being a Person of Communion
The human person seems to be at the best in the context of social connections, interactions and finding oneself being loved and accepted in the community of fellow humans. There is an indisputable truth in defining the human person as a social being well opened to being in social interaction and connection with others, beginning from the primary social unit of the society, the family, to higher strata of social connections: communities (small or large). The sense of being isolated or seeing oneself as a lone ranger without desiring any human social interaction and being fully fulfilled in such context can only be visible in few isolated cases. For majority of mankind, fulfillment, happiness and growth are realizable in the context of communion with others in small or large social/ community units. It is more plausible to assert that humans will favor social communion or interaction more than just be completely isolated from other people and sense of social interactions in communion.
Relating to others creates a sense of being able to be loved and accepted as an integral member of a community. It gives the impression that one’s identity really matters and one is never seen as inconsequential element in society. That sense of acceptance creates a sense of fulfilment and value. The joy of being accepted by others cannot be described fittingly in words and the pains of being regarded as irrelevant or inconsequential cannot also be described in words too. It is imperative for us to realize that there is great fulfillment that comes from being really integrated in the community. Thus, it becomes necessary to make each person in our communities feel valued and respected irrespective of class, status and struggles of life. The readiness of a person wanting to connect with others in the community should be received with sense of acceptance and true regard.
A person who knows his or her fulfillment will come from relating with others in community should never be received with cold shoulders but warmly received and be helped to path of fulfilment through social integration and communal interactions. People who reach out to various communities for acceptance, warmth, love and true support for life should never be turned down as though they had no value at all in such communities. Being welcomed and accepted and respected in love should be the firsthand experience of first timers in community gatherings at all levels.
In our religious parlance, no one should step into a church community as a stranger should leave that gathering still a stranger or an inconsequential fellow who has strayed into a gathering where he or she will never be accepted or welcomed. The feeling is always devastating for whoever experiences that. We, as integral members of a community should learn how to make everyone, even first-timers, feel greatly special and highly loved and respected even in their first encounter in the faith or social based communities. No one must leave us with sense of rejection or dejection as he or she remains a social being, a person of communion. A person of communion must never have to struggle so hard to be accepted in various social units he or she wants to be integrated into, especially in faith-based social units. The love or warmth of the community makes newcomers, or first timers, feel loved and see the social unit as their home with families and friends.
The desire to be loved and accepted in hospitable social unit is uppermost in a person who sees the truth in being in communion with others. Such hope is dashed when one enters a community gathering and feels unaccepted or treated with cold shoulders. Our communities thus must be hospitable, very accepting and respectful to people. Our communities must have the strength to make one feel integrated easily. A person of communion should feel very at ease in communities and be able to be at ease in making his or her wonderful contributions for the good of the community. We must all be true agents and channels of hospitality, community integration and social acceptance for all and sundry. With us, let the weak feel strong, the abandoned feel accepted, the sinner feel helped to be better and the good feel happy to remain good.
Hebrews 13, Romans 12, 1Peter 4, Leviticus 19 and Proverbs 19.