I had an interesting conversation tonight when a group of us went for coffee. We stumbled upon a kind of interactive event with vaguely religious undertones. Anyhow I got into a conversation with one of the guys who was running it and he was telling me that "society no longer works on the parish-model, it's more focussed on networks of people who all come from different places to be together [because of shared interests etc.]" (and I'm thinking, what, like a megachurch?)

Now I think what he was getting at was the idea that our communities are no longer the people we meet when walking down the street, they're the people we meet when we get in our cars and drive to an event. And that Church should mimic that.

This goes against all my instincts regarding community. I really do feel that in order to build deep, growing, lasting relationships you need proximity. If and when I know where God wants me to start a community I will make sure that I live with and near the people with whom I build.