SPIRITUAL COMMUNITIES Gradually, those who join in sacred union will be guided into small affinity communities of people committed to holding a safe, loving space for each other. In the course of supporting each other unconditionally, a group consciousness wil spontaneously emerge and the group will be guided in a consensual fashion toward the fulfillment of the spiritual purpose made possible by the joining together of its members. Committed love always extends without effort to others who are becoming ready to receive it. Each community is therefore not only gifted with its own integral, ritual communion, but with service to others outside the group. The extension of the safe, loving space happens naturally. There is never any urgency about it. It is not a "doing," but an allowing. Since there is no doing, there is no attachment to the outcome. That is why it is genuine service. If there is ever any need to reach out, proselytize, convert, or build membership in the spiritual community, the space will no longer be safe either for those who pretend to hold it, or for the people toward whom it has been offered. Growth happens because there is a natural tendency for that which is loving and healing to attract that which needs healing and love. Since this happens magnetically, there is no need to go seeking outside. But when new members are attracted to the community, there is a commitment to welcome, to acknowledge, to serve. Often this can be done best by showing others how to create and hold a safe, loving space for themselves. The environments in which this is needed are endless: schools, hospitals, shelters, prisons, you name them. When the requests come in, they are simply honored, for there is a willingness to share one's joy with all who ask for it. As love is naturally and organically extended, and guidance increasingly functions through group consensus, the safe, loving space becomes established in the world. Separation is quietly but profoundly overcome as people find safety and reach for the love they want. A spiritual renaissance begins on the planet, born of the decision to love and honor oneself, extending into sacred relationships with another person, and finally manifesting in small, decentralized communities guided through group consensus and the mutual practice of the forgiveness process. This scenario is given to you not because there is any need to "make" it happen, but so you will recognize what is possible for you as consciousness shifts on the planet. The age of the individual is coming to an end. As the needs of the individual are met through the commitment to self care, the capacity for genuine intimacy unfolds. Sacred relationships are formed and abusive relationships are transformed. Communities are born when several families come together. They may or may not live together, but they do join in common purpose. From: 'The silence of the heart' by Paul Ferrini, ISBN 1-879159-16-3