In this series of short reflections on the Rule of Columba my aim is to explore the wisdom of Columba’s life in Christ and creation and to seek to apply this ancient rule, this daily walk to my own personal exploration of the life of the Spirit. In doing so I hope that in some way the principles of the Columban rule can find a newer expression and vitality in the modern era.
Rule 1.
BE ALONE IN A SEPARATE PLACE NEAR A CHIEF CITY , IF YOUR CONSCIENCE IS NOT PREPARED TO BE IN COMMON WITH THE CROWD.
Crowds don’t have individuality, they are collections of individuals who loose their individuality. They can become a swath of non-personalities who adopt a corporate identity that leads to conformity. Joining a crowd is a matter of conscience, it is a statement that you are prepared to sacrifice some of your uniqueness to blend into a more mainstream existence. Perhaps it is around this compromise that the conscience plays it true part. Some are clearly called to be involved in the mainstream, yet it should be treated as a matter of exception and conscience rather than as the normal Christian experience.
In recent years I was involved with founding an organisation that works with small scale miners. As it became more successful it began to develop traits of institutionalisation. Its culture became one of conformity and the expectations of its members increasingly insisted on conformity rather than diversity. Conforming to process, to language, rules to govern freedom to speech, clauses inserted into contracts to control freedom of association and many other practices, all in the name of protecting the organisation. I found myself moving from being at the centre to the margins of the group because I was not comfortable with conforming with the unwritten rules that emerged. My conscience was unable to accept the being in common with the new crowd. It was time to leave.
In many respects my experience with the small scale miners group was similar to experiences I have had in certain church groups. The simple idea that our way, our interpretation of events, doctrine and behaviour are correct and therefore must be conformed to is prevalent in a Church that is battered and bruised by the massive cultural movements in our world. It seems it is trying to define its existence through conformity to belief and cultural practice. Conformity manifests itself around a centre, this centre can be a practice like the use of contraception, or it can be a doctrine like a particular view of the atonement or capitalism. These ideas and practices set themselves up and insist that others do as they do, or believe as they believe. I can think of no more obvious ideology in the modern world to illustrate this than the charging of interest on loans. Clearly there is no biblical precedent for this behaviour, yet everyone who confesses Christ in the west, including myself, compromises on this point.
In essence the crowd will always require conformity that leads to the follower of Christ having to make a choice. Will I compromise or won’t I.
‘Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but through the renewing of your mind be conformed to the pattern of Christ’. I think Paul understood the hard choices that the world thrusts upon us and the pressures we come under to conform to patterns of behaviour that are counter intuitive to the radical freedom’s that are inherent in the gospel message.
It is to this issue that Columba so eloquently speaks when he talks about separateness, aloneness and being a part of the crowd. The intentional separateness that we are called to embrace does not only have a mystical inner impact on our relationship with God through the creating of the space for us to conform to the pattern of Christ. It also has a social and cultural impact as well. By not being in common with the crowd we reduce the power of ungodly ideologies by the power of 1. As others follow suit so the overall impact of the crowd is reduced even further. Naturally the danger here is that as we move out of a centre, another centre is formed, in effect creating the very same problem we have just spoken about. By staying in the aloneness with God, helps put the breaks on this happening. Christ is the centre and our practice, our naked imitation, is shaped in the place of solitude first.
For many the pressure to conform is so strong its leads to a breakdown in their faith, disillusionment with the Church, hatred for Godly authority and a crisis in their own identity. Yet it is precisely this non-conformity and commitment to being free that defined the early British church. Their non-conformity to the centralised Roman church practice and doctrine is what made them so dangerous in the minds of their detractors. It is precisely this non-conformity that is so dynamic in the rule of Columba and in my opinion has contributed to the continual festering non-conformist nature of the British church and its people. Christ is the safe haven for the non-conformist in an age of bland cultural obedience. Where space to find freedom is at a premium, being alone in a separate place with God is the harbour of our souls individuality and the greenhouse of its growth. Christ and Columba give us permission, in fact call us to come out of the mainstream and find our identity in the margins of solitude with the Trinity.
It is ok to be different, its ok not to fit in, it is often the first step on the journey to maturity with God.
