Thoughtful Thursday: Christian Conversation on Communism
*Disclaimer: I am not an expert on Communism, or Christianity for that matter. These thoughts are the scattered result of my experiences here. Please check my facts for yourself.*

BBC says that Romania is a "slower developer" than other Soviet Bloc countries, and I'm in the least developed area of Romania. For this reason, I have had the privilege to go back in time and see the results of Communism on these people. This place looks much as it did 20 years ago- concrete everything, smokestacks jutting into the sky...some days the oppression can be felt in the smog filled air. I have listened to the stories of my friends experiences in the mines, the Secret Police, watching their brilliant educated parents be forced to work manual labor. In Romania, Communism meant fear, and assimilation, and numbness.

I'm not saying I don't see the flaws of Capitalism. The wealth gap, in America especially, disgusts me. The idea of a classless society is heaven to me. Even my current hero, Dorothy Day, at one time found Communists to be more socially relevant than the Christians she encountered. And I too see much of American Christianity as "a world apart, a people within a people, making little impression on the tremendous (non-Christian) population of the country". I have encountered too many opiated conservatives, too many people who think the abundant life means a white fence, short commute and 2.5 bathrooms.

So what's wrong with communism? You ask. Didn't Jesus encourage it, and the early Church exemplify it?
my answer: not exactly. You probably know that community is one of my most fervent passions. You also probably know what a word freak i am, and the fact that Communism and community are so closely related etymologically is not lost on me.

I've studied the doctrine of the Trinity A LOT here, since my director is writing his Doctorate on it and its implications for community development. Here's my understanding in a nutshell: There are three distinctive and unique beings in one distinctive whole. They are fully and completely one and yet they still retain their individuality. Dana purports that this is the model for true Christian community- everyone is wholly and distinctively themselves, and yet one. Communism couldn't afford anyone to retain their individuality. The whole system rested on the ability of the comrades to become identical- without distinctive traits. Take a look at communist sculptures- it totally embues this ideal. Communism sought not to create a society of equal individuals, but faceless workers. And the effects I can see around me are heartbreaking.

The saddest Communist story I can remember hearing here was about a town in Transylvania, known for it's tremendous culture. Before the Communist regime, it was one of the few towns where ethnic Romanians and Hungarians lived in tranquility together. It did this not by ignoring the differences, but by celebrating the culture and traditions of each ethnicity. The Communist regime feared the individuality of the citizens and so they flooded the town. Seriously, the village was in a valley and they filled it with water. Nowadays one can go there and the only sign of the underwater village is the steeple of the church jutting out of the bog. This is such a metaphor in my mind of the methods of Communists here in Romania: flood all that is rich and unique with greyness and concrete.

I suppose that is where my thoughts end for now. If you have a different opinion/experience/take (or if you feel i have misrepresented facts) please continue the conversation by leaving me your email in the comments section.