i waved goodbye in my barefeet, down at the end of the drive, blowing kisses to the bikemovement caravan as they rolled away into the distance, eastward bound. the bikers had departed earlier; i now remained, my toes wet with dew as i took slow strides up to the Nissley/Wenger’s charming back porch, a haven for reflection till my ride came to take me back west. light was still making its way into the sky, and church was going on next door.

i have an immediate sense that my trip is over; i have journeyed with these bikers for one week, one of the most challenging weeks of my life, on many levels. i have physically surpassed what i feared i could not do; i have been immersed into a uniquely intense communal experience; i have joined others in asking questions and engaging in dialogue that push what we know as the established church, that push what we know as established society, spirituality, and what it means to be in authentic community. i entered this journey with challenges, and i leave challenged.

thus, my deeper sense is that this journey is not over; it is called a bike movement,not a bike trip. i am a part of this movement prior, amidst and following these days on the road from Chicago to Columbiana. i believe this movement was happening even before the conversation took place last spring that pulled this group of people together and sent us biking. and this movement continues.so although i am sad to part with these bikers only six days from the coast, especially after just starting to truly get in the bikemovement groove, i trust that it does carry on, that each of us is part of the overall movement, and the movement a part of us.

it is conversation, it is questioning, it is challenge. more than anything, it is community. why do we do it? the question threading throughout bikemovement has been “what is church?, what is community?” but the question i am left with this Sunday morning, with a worshipping body singing one way down the road and a biking community riding down the other, is “why do we do church?” why do we engage in this wearisome seeking, why do we ask those often painful questions and enter into such tense and tricky dialogue? it is such a difficult endeavor. why do we do this, work hard for something, some community, despite the tiresome effort it takes and the pain it involves and the brokenness? why church? vulnerability, relevance, openness, practicality – what does that mean? what does that look like? is this kind of intentional communal life and faith journeying we envision really possible?

as i said, i leave challenged. i leave asking, questioning, seeking. i leave trusting that in this i am not alone, that the movement continues, that others are seeking and asking some of the very same questions. at a fundamental level, i think this is what faith community might be about. at the very least, it is hope.

Posted by Anna Roeschley

This entry was posted on Monday, August 21st, 2006 at 11:42 pm and is filed under Trip06. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.