“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”
— Jesus, in Matthew 11:28-30 (The Message)
Kairos is a community that searches for faith in our relationships with each other, our neighborhoods, and the holy.
After all, the opposite of faith is not doubt, but certainty. That’s why we take questions and skepticism seriously.
We are followers of the way of Jesus Christ, and we welcome people of any or no faith to serve, pray, and build community with us.
Community happens in our home-based discussions, in serving those in need, and in activities like learning workshops.
Kairos gatherings include time for silence and spiritual practices, such as guided meditation, centering prayer, lectio divina (contemplative reading of texts), and sometimes art and music.
Gatherings are currently Wednesdays at 7 p.m. at someone’s home and on Zoom.
Martin Luther prefaced The German Mass and Order of Service (1526) with an interesting vision. Alongside his Latin and German orders, which were to be used for teaching and shaping young people and potential converts, Luther foresaw the need for a “truly evangelical order” for dedicated followers of Jesus, who would gather in homes in prayer, for communal exploration of scripture, to receive the sacraments and serve the poor. In modern language, it would be a safe space to live out Christ’s baptismal claim on our lives. Half a millennium ago Luther wrote that he did not have the committed persons to form such a community then.
In the 21st Century we think the time has come to inhabit Luther’s vision.
Kairos Communities, an authorized worshipping community of SEPA Synod, explores what that vision of community looks like in a very different context from that in which Luther wrote.
Kairos in intentionally a church without walls. We are invited into each other’s homes for food and fellowship, for bearing each person’s joys and burdens, and worship that features Communion, a safe space for prayers, and a participatory community discussion of the day’s scripture reading(s). In this informal environment participants have said that they find it easier to explore the Bible and to see the scripture living in their lives than they had simply hearing a sermon.
As a minimalist faith community we are able to devote time and money toward helping neighbors in need. We have had a long relationship with The Welcome Church and their mission to serve people experiencing homelessness in Philadelphia. And we also encourage participants to seek causes that speak to their hearts in their local area, which they do in many ways: through food pantries and Code Blue shelters, a substance abuse recovery clinic, Scouting, sharing art with the community, and many other ways.
Our ethos is basic:
- We are designed to be a community of practice in which we help each other to live out the spiritual disciplines of listening to God, responding to people in need, and maintaining a safe, nurturing space for our faith journeys.
- Scripture is interpreted and proclaimed in community. Everyone can participate, not just the pastors. When we share meanings and connections to the world today or insights from Christian tradition, the Holy Spirit uses it all to preach a pretty good sermon.
- Participants are equipped to lead worship, implement ideas for community service, and to bring their unique gifts to benefit the whole.
- We free time and energy for serving others by not managing a church building and having few committees and meetings.
- We focus on what is truly important to God and our neighbors by reducing or eliminating what Luther would call the ’adiaphora’ (less important things).
Kairos Communities
(215) 660-4475
info@kairoscommunities.org
facebook.com/kairos
www.kairoscommunities.org