Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Religious Conservatives in Cohousing?

[balaji (balaji]

It is a good question, but ironic:  the majority of successful cohousing
communities (I use the term "cohousing" broadly) have been religious. One
thinks immediately of the Hutterites -- 100,000 people in the northern US
and Canada who live in small cooperative villages.  Historically, we have
Brook Farm (MA), Oneida (NY), North American Phalanx (NJ), United Order of
Enoch (UT), Wisconsin Phalanx, New Harmony (Indiana), Koreshan Unity (FL),
Aurora (OR), and of course all the Shaker communities.  All of these were
religious communities, cohousing-like in structure, and many of them
lasted for decades; some, like the Hutterites, flourish today.

For some reason, we in the cohousing movement actually believe that our
idea began with the introduction of the term in the 1980's, and for
historical depth we turn to Denmark.  The fact is that American cohousing
represents only the latest incarnation of a old American communtarian
tradition.  Read Carl Guarneri's "The Utopian Alternative" or Charles
Nordoff's classic "America's Communal Utopias."  Personally, I would date
American coshousing to George Rapp's experimental community in Indiana in
the 1820's.

By the way, I am teaching a course next term on "Utopias:  The
Anthropology of Intentional Communities."  If anyone is interested, I
would be happy to send the syllabus.

Best wishes,

Charles W. Nuckolls
Utah Valley Commons
www.utahvalleycommmons.com

>
> Hi Randa,
>
> Lets morph it again!
>
> In talking with identified leaders of the "intentional community
> movement,"
> I've heard that there are more religious intentional communities than any
> other "type" of intentional community. They go on to say that many
> religious
> intentional communities do not identify as being an intentional community
> -
> they are, rather, members of "religious communities."
>
>>From my reading, I understand that many religious intentional communities
> are VERY conservative. Part of why they are in community is to better
> support their religious beliefs by living apart from the mainstream.
>
> I've had little direct experience with members of residential religious
> communities - although I just exchanged emails with members of a Jewish
> group who are considering use of the cohousing model. The latest article
> in
> Cohousing Magazine is entitled "Is religious cohousing possible?"
>
> http://www.cohousing.org/cm/article/religion
>
> How would you answer that question?
>
> Craig
>
> On Fri, Nov 7, 2008 at 12:03 PM, R.N. Johnson <cohoranda [at] yahoo.com> 
> wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> I think community is perceived as "liberal"  in much the same way that
>> religion is often assumed to be "conservative".  The reality is more
>> complex.
>> Randa Johnson
>> New Brighton Cohousing
>> Aptos,CA
>> *******************************
>>
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