Q: What is the Advent Community?

A: A community of Christians who feel called to follow Jesus together. 

Q: What does the Advent Community do?

A: Right now, we gather every Sunday at 10:30am for Bible study, prayer, and conversation—though that is likely to change as we listen for God’s call for us and seek to live it out.  Other things we’ll probably do in the near future include: meals together, creative worship, studying books together, art, serving the poor, helping one another out, connecting to our neighborhood(s)—whatever it is we feel God is calling us to do.

Q: Why do you use the term “community” instead of “church”?

A: Lutheran pastor and theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer made a distinction between two different German words, both often translated “church.”  The first word, “Kirche” (pronounced: kir-ke), means the church building and organization—used much in the way we talk about “church” (as in “go to church” “belong to a church” etc).  The second word, “Gemeinde” (pronounced: geh-mine-duh) is a bit harder to translate, but is something more like “church-community.”  It’s closer to the Greek word “Koinonia” which carries meaning like relationship, sharing, communion, intimacy, participation, fellowship. That’s what we mean by “community.” In short, it’s about the people and our life together, not about an institution, structure, or building.  For Bonhoeffer and for the Advent Community, we believe God is more interested in the Gemeinde part of church than in the Kirche part, and calls us to live together—to “do life” together—for the sake of one another, for the sake of our neighbors, and for the sake of the world. 

Q: How is Advent Community connected to Bethlehem Lutheran Church?

A: You might say Advent Community is the missional heart and soul of Bethlehem Lutheran Church.  We are the intentional Gemeinde in the midst of the Kirche. Since 2006, Bethlehem Lutheran has been undergoing a process called “Transformational Ministry” meant to get us back in touch with what God is up to in our neighborhood and in the world and to help us connect better to God’s call for our congregation.  In early 2009, the leadership and missional core of Bethlehem Lutheran realized we needed to transform even more deeply than we had been thinking if we were going to be a sustainable organization.  Conversations and events through the spring, summer, and fall of 2009 led the leadership to reimagining how God might be calling us as a community of Jesus followers. Just before Advent 2009, the Advent Community was born as a new way to “be the Church” together.  Our hope is that God intends this community to be a transformative force that reenergizes Bethlehem Lutheran Church for mission, but we also recognize that God may have a different plan for us.

Q: How can I be a part of Advent Community?

A: Come and join us Sunday at 10:30am, or at one of our events (check the website http://www.adventcommunity.org).  You can also email us at adventcommunityspokane@gmail.com and a member of the community would be glad to share coffee, a meal, or drinks with you so we can get to know each other better, so you can learn more about us, and you can see if you would like to be a part of Advent Community.