Re: Religious Practices in Cohousing
From: C.C. Barron (ccbarronio.com)
Date: Tue, 30 Sep 2003 12:42:07 -0600 (MDT)
In our group, including customs has been taken in the spirit it was done -- as
a token of respect, welcome and solidarity.  An example: two of our members
(who are pagan) sang "Lo Yisa Goy" as part of the talent show at our Solstice
party, and a Jewish potential member not only joined in, but invited us to sing
it with his Klesmer band the next month.  Then the pagans and the Jewish friend
joined Christian members in singing Christmas carols and eating Sun Bread.

In general, the customs we have honored have been represented by members of the
group -- we haven't "harvested" customs from religious traditions who aren't
represented in the group.  That might get more touchy (and is hardly necessary,
since we have so many traditions to choose from that ARE represented!)

I suppose if someone didn't want their own traditions celebrated in the group
setting, they could say so.  I would be really surprised to find that attitude
among the members of our group, though -- last year we consensed that sharing
holiday customs is a good thing.  (It wouldn't hurt to check in before assuming
we still feel that way this year -- I'll mention it when the time comes to plan
the holiday party.)

IMO, celebrating the religious traditions of friends WITH them is a great way
to develop a natural appreciation for their holidays and leads to an unforced
respect for their holidays in scheduling.  The opportunity to do this is just
another advantage of living in cohousing :-)

Blessings,

Cat Barron
Oak Village Commons
Austin, TX
www.oakhillcohousing.org




Jeanne Goodman wrote:

> Ok, C.C., you have now opened up another can-o-worms. <g>
>
> An emotional discussion took place once in our community when it came to
> sharing customs. Some felt having a Christmas tree in the commonhouse was
> offensive, while others felt is was custom sharing. Some felt it's ok to
> have a Christmas tree
>
> Some feel as though celebrating customs that are not your own disrespects
> the culture from which they come. For example, if no one in our group
> celebrates Kwanzaa as part of their own culture, but some members of the
> group would like to include Kwanzaa tributes during the season ... is it
> disrespectful? Is it arrogant to borrow from cultures not your own? Does it
> tarnish or insult the culture because your motives are different?
>
> I have very mixed feelings on this issue myself. Torn between wanting to
> share with other cultures and wanting to respect this discomfort.
>
> Jeanne Goodman
> JP Cohousing
> Boston, MA
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "C.C. Barron" <ccbarron [at] io.com>
>
> P.S.  We also enjoy sharing our customs with each other at holiday time
> -- last year we had a party on the Winter Solstice at which we ate Sun
> Bread and sang Jewish songs as well as Christmas carols.  As far as
> holidays are concerned, we find the more, the merrier!
>
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