What's True About Intentional Communities: Dispelling the Myths

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What's True About Intentional Communities: Dispelling the Myths

Compiled by the Fellowship for Intentional Communities, October 1996

1. Myth: There are no intentional communities anymore; they died out in

the `60s & `70s.

Fact: Not so. Many of those communities survived and thrived, and many

new ones have formed since then. A significant new wave of interest in

intentional communities has grown over the last several years.

We listed 540 intentional communities in North America in the 1995 edition of

our Communities Directory--up from 300 in our 1990/91 edition. Several

hundred more communities (who declined to be listed) are in our database. We

estimate there are several thousand altogether.

2. Myth: Intentional communities are all alike.

Fact: There is enormous diversity among intentional communities. Most

communities share land or housing, but more importantly, their members share a

common vision and work actively to carry out their common purpose.

However, their purposes vary widely. For example, communities have been

formed to share resources, to create great family neighborhoods, to live

ecologically sustainable lifestyles, or to live with others who hold similar

values. Some communities are wholly secular; others are committed to a common

spiritual practice; many are spiritually eclectic. Some are focused on

egalitarian values and voluntary simplicity, or mutual interpersonal growth

work, or rural homesteading and self-reliance. Some communities provide

services, for example helping war refugees, the urban homeless, or

developmentally disabled children or adults. Some communities operate rural

conference and retreat centers, health and healing centers, or

sustainable-living education centers.

3. Myth: Intentional communities are "communes."

Fact: Many people use these terms interchangeably, however, it is probably

more useful to use the term "commune" to describe a particular kind of

intentional community whose members live "communally" in an economic

sense--operating with a common treasury and sharing ownership of their

property. Most intentional communities are not communes, though some of

the communities most active in the communities movement are.

4. Myth: Most community members are young--in their

twenties.

Fact: Most communities are multi-generational. In the hundreds of North

American communities we know about, most members range in age from 30 to 60,

with some in their 20s, some 60 and older, and many children.

5. Myth: Most communitarians are hippies.

Fact: While some of today's communities can trace their roots back to the

counterculture of the `60s and `70s, few today identify with the hippie

stereotype. (Moreover, many of the characteristics that identified "hippies" 25

years ago--long hair, bright clothes, ecological awareness--have become

integrated into mainstream lifestyles.)

On the political spectrum, communitarians tend to be left of center. In terms

of lifestyle choices, they tend to be hard working, peace loving, health

conscious, environmentally concerned, and family oriented. Philosophically they

tend toward a way of life which increases the options for their own members

without limiting the choices of others.

6. Myth: All intentional communities are out in the

boondocks.

Fact: While 54% of the communities listed in the 1995 Communities

Directory are rural, 28% are urban, 10% have both rural and urban sites,

and 8% don't specify.

7. Myth: Most intentional communities are organized around a particular

religion or common spiritual practice.

Fact: While it's true that many groups have a spiritual focus--and most of

the better-known historical communities did, such as Amana and Oneida--of the

540 North American communities listed in the Communities Directory, 65%

are secular or don't specify, while only 35% are explicitly spiritual or

religious.

8. Myth: Most intentional communities have an authoritarian form of

governance; they follow a charismatic leader.

Fact: The reverse is true; the most common form of governance is democratic,

with decisions made by some form of consensus or voting. Of the hundreds of

communities we have information about, 64% are democratic, 9% have a

hierarchical or authoritarian structure, 11% are a combination of democratic

and hierarchical, and 16% don't specify. Many communities which formerly

followed one leader or a small group of leaders have changed in recent years to

a more democratic form of governance.

9. Myth: Community members all think alike.

Fact: Because communities are by definition organized around a common vision

or purpose, their members tend to hold a lot of values and beliefs in

common--many more than shared among a typical group of neighbors. Still,

disagreements are a common occurrence in most communities, just as in the wider

society. The object of community is not so much to eliminate conflict as to

learn to work with it constructively.

10. Myth: Most communities are "cults."

Fact: Many sociologists and psychologists know that the popular image of

"cults" and "mind control" is distorted. Both the American Psychological

Association and the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion have done

research that refutes the idea that religious or other groups are

systematically brainwashing their members or interfering with their ability to

think critically.

Although the term "cult" is usually intended to identify a group in which

abuse occurs, its use frequently says more about the observer than the

observed. It would generally be more accurate if the observer said "a group

with values and customs different from mine; a group that makes me feel

uncomfortable or afraid."

Most communities are not abusive toward members. The ones which are,

especially those prone to violence, can attract media attention which falsely

implies that intentional communities are abusive in general. It's our

experience that the overwhelming majority of communities go quietly about their

business, and are considered good places to live by their members--and good

neighbors by people who live around them.

11. Myth: Community members have little privacy or

autonomy.

Fact: The degree of privacy and autonomy in communities varies as widely as

the kinds of communities themselves. In some communities individual households

own their own land and house, and have their own independent economy (perhaps

with shared facilities, as in many land co-ops); their degree of privacy and

autonomy is nearly identical to that of mainstream society. However, in

communities with specific religious or spiritual lifestyles (such as

monasteries or some meditation retreats), privacy and autonomy are typically

more limited, as part of the purpose for which the community was organized.

Most communities fall between these two points on the privacy/held-in-common

spectrum.

The trend among intentional communities forming now is toward more individual

control than was common among those which formed in the `60s and `70s. For

example, one of the fastest growing segments of the communities movement today

is cohousing, where residents enjoy autonomy similar to that of any planned

housing development. Finding a healthy balance between individual needs and

those of the community is a key issue for the `90s--in both intentional

communities and the larger society in general.

12. Myth: Most members of intentional communities live impoverished

lifestyles with limited resources.

Fact: Communities make a wide variety of choices regarding standard of

living--some embrace voluntary simplicity, while others emphasize full access

to the products and services of today's society. Communities tend to make

careful choices about the accumulation and use of resources, deciding what best

fits with their core values. Regardless of the choices made, nearly all

communities take advantage of sharing and the opportunities of common ownership

to allow individuals access to facilities and equipment they don't need to own

privately (for example power tools, washing machines, pickup trucks, and in

some cases, even swimming pools).

In terms of material wealth, communities evolve like families: starting off

with limited resources, new communities tend to live simply. As they mature,

they tend to create a stable economic base and enjoy a more comfortable

life--according to their own standards. Many established communities (20 years

and older) have built impressive facilities, some of which are quite innovative

in design and materials. The dollars to finance these improvements have come

from successful community businesses, ranging from light manufacturing to food

products, from computer services to conference centers.

13. Myth: Most people who live in communities are running away from

responsibilities.

Fact: Many people choose to live in community because it offers a way of life

which is different, in various ways, from that of the wider society. Since

living in community does not eliminate everyday responsibilities, most

community members raise families, maintain and repair their land and buildings,

work for a living, pay taxes, etc.

At the same time, communitarians usually perceive their lifestyle as more

caring and satisfying than that of mainstream culture, and because of this--and

the increased free time which results from pooling resources and specialized

skills--many community members feel they can engage more effectively

with the wider society. In fact, many communitarians are deeply involved in

their wider community of neighbors, and often provide staffing or even

leadership for various local civic and social change organizations.

For more information, please contact the Fellowship for Intentional

Communityhttp://www.ic.org/pnp/myths.phpInterested in learning more about a community that right up your alley?homeinedenhttp://.ning.com/group/essenceofeden