Spirituality and Community Building: Mindfulness and Community Building
Examine how mindfulness and community building are related, and how mindfulness can be applied to make community work more effective.
This and other sections in the Tool Box chapter on Spirituality and Community Building (Chapter 28) have been written with the support and contributions of experts connected with the Charter for Compassion International. For more information about the Charter and its work, visit www.charterforcompassion.org.
INTRODUCTION
THE IMPORTANCE OF MINDFULNESS IN COMMUNITY BUILDING
The word “mindful” is frequently used in today’s popular culture. We say that we practice mindful meditation, or that we are mindful in our actions, or mindful of how we are perceived. But what exactly is being mindful, or practicing mindfulness? Why is it important for community builders? If we agree it’s important, how can we help build communities by using it? And how can we develop it for ourselves? These are some of the questions we will take up in this Tool Box section.
Mindfulness in a Nutshell
Basically, mindfulness means living in the moment. Instead of letting our judgments and assumptions clutter our words and actions, we respond in gentle, loving, compassionate ways. By so doing, we create better relationships – the building blocks of community.
In order to impact others and build strong communities, mindfulness must begin with us, as individuals. Mindfulness is expressed through our body, mind, spirit, and emotions. When we are mindful, we are more likely to be objective, nonattached, non-judgmental, non-defensive, and nonviolent in our interactions. Through this stance, we are better able to connect with others. And through those connections, difficulties are weathered and community is formed and strengthened. Trust among community members grows. All of these consequences are natural byproducts of living with mindfulness.
Mindfulness and Communities
Although mindfulness begins as an individual practice, when mindfulness is shared among group members, a community is more likely to thrive. Individuals become aware when their personal agendas and motives might not be in alignment with collective goals. With awareness, individuals are able to challenge their own beliefs to root out attachments, defenses, and judgments. The beliefs and ideas held by individuals then reflect those in the collective consciousness, meaning the shared beliefs and social norms of the group. These shared beliefs become the guiding force in making community decisions.
When groups operate from the collective consciousness, they are better able to identify conflicts more quickly. They can then acknowledge differences more easily, and take actions that are best for themselves.
There are many examples of mindful communities in action. Here are just a few:
- Mindfulness Community of Puget Sound in Seattle, Washington
- Community of Interbeing, an online community in the United Kingdom
- The Charlotte Community of Mindfulness in Charlotte, North Carolina
In these mindful communities, members experience strengthened relationships and a better understanding of the importance of interconnectedness, not only within their groups but in the larger community setting. For instance, the Mindfulness Community of Puget Sound is intentionally inclusive. Offering a variety of ways for the community to get involved, the community focuses on creating mindfulness within the individual, across the group, and on mindfully maintaining physical environments. As a different example, the Community of Interbeing is comprised of smaller independent communities that span the United Kingdom; it serves as a support umbrella for other communities of mindfulness.
In this Community Tool Box section, our aims are to define more closely what we mean by mindfulness and by community building; to identify key individual and group characteristics of mindful community building; to show how mindfulness can be effectively applied in community settings to improve community outcomes; and to suggest how it can be developed by individuals and communities alike.
We’ll be talking quite a bit about mindful community building as our discussion proceeds. So first, let’s identify some key goals of this community-building approach.
Goals of Mindful Community Building
Mindful community building has several implicit and interconnected goals:
- Identifying and setting goals collectively, by the entire group or an agreed-upon subset of the group. Common goals, based upon the mission and values of the organization, strengthen the community’s identity.
- Deepening relationships, which provide members with opportunities to know one another more fully. With these intimate connections, groups are more likely to communicate and work in unity toward their common goals.
- Working toward inclusiveness, which builds upon deepening relationships.
Mindful community building asks what segments of the populations are not represented and invites all community members to join. The mantra of mindful community building is “all are welcome.”
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