Community Building is the way to really connect with yourself and others.
Community Building is a group process that can lead to deeper, more authentic communication. Community Building is an adventure in human interaction based on a set of guidelines and principles rather than an agenda or particular procedure. Participants are gently guided by specially trained facilitators who take the group through a process that shows how to look beyond the cultural, political and religious differences that prevent us from embracing our common humanity. During a Community Building process the ultimate goal of the group is to experience a deeper level of being in community
COMMUNICATION GUIDELINES
Speak personally and specifically, using „I“ statements.
Speak when moved to speak, don’t speak when not moved to speak.
Be inclusive, avoid exclusivity of yourself and others.
Be emotionally present with the group.
Express displeasure in the group, not outside the circle.
Commit to “hang in there“.“
Each person is responsible for their own success and success of the group.
Participate verbally or nonverbally.
Respect strict confidentiality.
Be on time for each session.
Say your name before you speak.
Speak personally and specifically, using „I“ statements.
The Process consists of 4 stages
Pseudo-community, Chaos, Emptiness and Community
Pseudo-community
is the usual, every-day level of communication between people, mostly with the intention of being kind with each other and support feeling safe in the relationship. The downside is that differences, other opinions and deeper emotions are hided and not available. The way to go deeper leads through talking more personaly and concretly, using “I” statements.
Chaos
is the stage where our differences become visible and we try to solve them. Usually we want to heal others, push them to accept our opinions, fight for power, do not listen… The solution is to look inside ourselves, feel our emotions and discover the needs and stories behind them instead of making projections on others.
Emptiness
is the big challenge and goal of the whole process. To become empty means to be able to express everything what is in me, all my expectations, opinions, judgements, and by sharing them let them go until I feel totally open and empty. Then we can really listen to others, really stay connected, really understand each other. This stage is like a small death, it is a kind of personal transformation.
Community
in Community Building does not mean only being a group, but experiencing a deep level of connection between people. In Community, the members feel extraordinery safety, understanding, acceptance, inclusivity and deep listening. People feel their gifts and individuality and conflicts are solved with respect. People feel being “at home”, they feel free, they feel oneness, they feel union, they feel the Spirit of their community.
WE INVITE YOU TO THIS WONDERFUL JOURNEY WITH US!
Morgan Scott Peck
Morgan Scott Peck (1936-2005) was an American psychotherapist whose essay books became a classic of spiritual and popular psychological literature. His book is well-known. In the Czech Republic, a new edition of his book “The Different Drum” was released in 2012 with the title “In Another Rhythm(“V jiném rytmu”) . It promotes community development and explores the behavior of people in groups. Peck discovered certain patterns that can be experienced, realized and deepened at seminars. According to them, he created the concept of the “Community Building” seminar. It is a “different rhythm” – a different, deeper way of finding common speech, leading to accepting oneself and others with everything that we are and it brings peple to mutual understanding and love.
