
Christian Life Community
Seeing companions not strangers in others. Olaedo, OZOEMENA. Class of 2021
I never thought of myself as the religious type before joining the Christian Life Community (CLC) religious group. Don’t get me wrong, I pay full attention during the celebration of Holy Mass, say a quick prayer every night before bed, and mumble some words before I began eating my food. It never really went much deeper than that until I began to really understand who I was, where I was and what I was doing. The big questions in life which many prefer to leave unanswered began to pop into my head and they just wouldn’t come out. That’s when I joined CLC – sometime in the middle of the first term of my first year at LJC. A period in time that was so dark and confusing for me. I firmly resolved that I was tired of living in darkness and would find some light. At first, I didn’t think too much of it. It was just a few minutes sitting with some older students I barely knew and read the Bible or something; or at least that is what I thought. Much to my surprise, my first day as a member was extraordinary and I even had trouble finding the right words to describe it. It exceeded my expectations far beyond what I could easily describe.
CLC as a religious group is all about a Christian community – Christ’s design for what human inter-relationship should be, and it is nothing short of beautiful. At first, it felt like a friend group, so to say, or a club. Quickly, it metamorphosed into a close-knit friend-family of the most unlikely people to band together. I grew to look forward to Sunday afternoons as that was a time I could get away from my busy and sometimes boring life, to something new and refreshing every week. Being a member of the group has made me a person of community. I can look at someone I’ve never spoken to and see a companion, rather than a stranger. This is something I have found nearly impossible to do for most part of my life. This is what I love the most about CLC. The sense of community I’ve gained from it is truly an enriching experience, I’m grateful to have had.