The Ashram Community

The Ashram Community seeks to be a community of disciples true to the teachings and example of Jesus.

Joining Ashram involves making the following commitment:

I commit myself

	to hold to the truth as it is in Jesus
	to support each other in good and ill
	to challenge evil with the power of love
	to offer the Kingdom in political and economic witness
	to work for the new community of all creation
	and to risk ourselves in a lifestyle of sharing.

This shared common commitment is lived out through members in different ways, and is renewed annually.

• For some members their commitment means living in an Ashram Community House and working in the local community.
• Others attend regular (often monthly) local meetings with other members for shared worship and meals.
• Some members work in pairs with each other to explore and support each other's commitment.
• All members are expected to make an attempt to attend the two annual weekend national conferences organised by Ashram.
• Many members are involved in local politics, in overseas aid organisations, in fair-trading and related issues.
• Many have been active in the inner-city - as volunteers, advice workers, community workers, lay and ordained church workers, teachers etc - either full or part time.
• Each year Ashram finds a project to which all members are encouraged to contribute a 'day's pay' as a part of their planned giving.
• All practice some kind of planned giving - often tithing - mainly to causes outside the Ashram Community. There is no set subscription but members are asked to contribute to Ashram expenses.

Ashram members are involved in deciding the policy of the charity through the Community Meetings at the two annual conferences. There are a small group of officers elected through this body as officers of the charity to carry out its work, as well as sub-groups that can be set up from time to time to carry out specific tasks (such as writing a web-site!)

Ashram was founded in the late 1960's in Rochdale, Lancs; where John Vincent was minister of a Methodist church. Much of the text on these pages comes from his writings, and he is still the Leader of the community. Some of the ideas behind it - as well as it's name - came from the Hindu tradition of the Ashram.