I’ve come to know that Christ is present when a few people gather together to pray and share. It doesn’t have to be two or three – it could be seven or a church full of people – but in my experience, when people show up together to seek God, God shows up too.

God is present when I pray on my own, of course. When I can introvert to my heart’s content, I’m quiet enough to notice God with me. However, although I value a little solitude, praying alone is not the same as being in a group. Over the years that I’ve been part of my religious community, I’ve experienced how present God is when we come together. I’m grateful for my praying community these days, but I also miss our large group gatherings, and we lost a lot of those this summer. God Space, too, has shown me how God draws near to us when we gather, and I miss being able to meet in person for our small groups and dinners. There’s something about being together that makes God visible. I have no doubt that our Christian faith is a communal one.

Why God is so present in community is a mystery to me, though. None of my communities is perfect; each of them is made up of people with gifts and limitations, people who are a little holy as well as a tiny bit broken, who are sometimes annoying but pretty endearing, like all people are. If you think about it, people are pretty strange. We have odd mannerisms and exasperating habits. We assume everyone thinks just like we do, and since we all assume that, we miscommunicate a lot. We hurt each other, accidentally or on purpose. We love well but also drive each other crazy. We are a wonder of God’s creation but capable of so much destruction. When I was in college, I had an anthropology professor who used to say that humans are really just a bunch of smelly apes. That sounds about right. Our opposable thumbs don’t make us special, but our sweat glands and unique body chemistry make us extra stinky. Where’s the glory of God in us?

And yet, for some reason, God saw fit to make us into God’s image, somehow, some way. What it is within us that images God is sometimes a mystery, but there’s something in each one of us that’s a reflection of the divine. Maybe that’s why Christ is so evident when people gather. When we seek God together, we reflect to each other that which is holy in us. When members of my community describe how God is working in their lives, it resonates with me, and I experience God in them and also myself. When I see care and compassion expressed in my communities of really unique people, I see how community is not about perfection but about love. Ultimately, no matter how good my private prayer is, I need to experience the Holy in other people. I am incomplete on my own; I need to be in relationship to see God manifested. Even though communities are imperfect, God is present in them.

So, here we are in a pandemic, and I’m guessing that it’s not just me that misses being with community. Physical distancing and gathering virtually still seem like our best options. I’m grateful for Zoom, with all of its joys and challenges, and it amazes me how, even though we are together virtually, God is present in real ways. It’s my great hope, though, that at some point in the not-too-distant future, we’ll be free to gather in person again. After months of screens, being able to look each other in the face will feel like a miracle, won’t it?

If there’s a gift in this time apart, it’s discovering how much community means to us. Maybe these days of disconnection will show all of us how much we appreciate being together. We may have taken communities for granted before, but I bet we won’t anymore. Until we can be close to each other again, I hope we continue to build community in creative ways. I hope that this pandemic is a call to move toward each other as best we can, seeking and finding God among us.

By Sister Leslie Keener, CDP

Sister Leslie Keener, CDP is the director of God Space, a community-building spirituality ministry in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky. She’s a Sister of Divine Providence with a Masters in Ministry and a Certificate in Spiritual Direction and Retreats from Creighton University. She directs retreats, meets with people for spiritual direction, and serves as the vocation director for her community. She also serves on the Coordinating Council of Spiritual Directors International. She enjoys music, dancing, and meaningful conversations.