g, as I said before, more than 17 years. As I remember, the common table was happening often in the beginning of the existence of this community. However, then the quantity of it went down very fast. Now, I see the connection between spiritual condition and growth of the church members and the time which was spending together around the sharing meal. Now the faith community is shrinking and dying slowly., My opinion is that the common table, the practice of sharing meal could be very good treatment of its spiritual health. It could be a really refreshing approach for the community. The common table could strengthen interpersonal relationships within the community. Sharing food could become joyful moments of presence each other. I think that the faith communities should learn to celebrate the presence of other people, does not matter insiders or outsiders of that community. It leads to an idea of ??the church as a dinner. This image implies that a dinner of whole community should be an important and central moment in community s life. Consequently, the meaning of common food needs to be reclaimed and redefined. From my point of view, this practice could revive, refresh, and reborn this particular Ukrainian faith community. This Christian community should become a table of welcome, which will welcome everyone who comes.light of these considerations, I also would like to discuss what the relationship should be between a meal and the Eucharist. Should the common table be the context of the Lord s Supper or the two is separated? From my point of view, from the sharing of the communal bread and wine flows the sharing of the meal in its extended understanding. It should develop into the experience of the whole community. As it was mentioned before, food brings in itself performative character. This performative act brings the aspect of togetherness and unity between people, which flows from the act of the Lord s Supper. However, from my point of view, Ukrainian Baptists lost this link between the Eucharist and sharing meal as a communal experience.the contrary, for the early Christians this connection was very crucial. At the beginning Christian services were mostly domestic; consequently, the room was furnished with a D-shaped low table around which guests reclined to eat. Therefore, Ukrainian faith communities should consider the application of this experience to their lives. Cope, referring to the early Christian communities, points out that from the Eucharistic communion in which only a small token quantity of the ritually offered bread and wine was consumed by the believers, while the real meal was continued as a separated function. I think that the application of this link between the Lord s Supper and sharing meal can bring real refreshment in the communities spiritual growth and development in Ukrainian context.
. 3 Sharing ourselves
1.3.1 Intentional availabilitymentioned already that people are interdependent human beings. They can not be without a community of other people. They really need to share something with someone. David McCarthy defines the practicing of sharing as a basic grammar of common life. Shannon calls it a school of sociability. It is really essential aspect of our being as human beings. From the theological point of view, our sharing as Christians makes the Kingdom of God visible for this world. Thus, sharing is essential aspect us not just as human beings, but also as Christians. It is difficult to imagine how the Holy Spirit will move people to the unity in koinonia, if they would not share with each other. Therefore, here I would like first of all to consider about the nature of sharing itself.real sharing in community implies our openness toward other people. It means the sharing ourselves with others, or revealing our strengths and weaknesses to other people. This is the meaning of koinonia which characterizes by knowing others and, in the same time, be known by other people. This openness also should be extended to those who are outside of community. I think that people rather prefer to isolate their interior than to open it. Therefore, this sharing requires our willingness for self-disclosing and being ready to be changed. It takes sometimes a lot of time to manage this transition from the stage of the community for myself to the level of myself for the community. It requires dedicated discipline for it. However, precisely this attitude can make us as the whole persons. To share ourselves, to open ourselves toward others is the most precious gift which you can give to people. This gift involves us in storytelling. People reveal their story of their lives. Then, seeing the open souls of others, we become to know each other in a deeper level. It also helps us to learn how to love other people who have different stories from ours., Somebody can ask, But how can the per...
