The Group Serves the Growth and Happiness of the Individuals
"It is vain to talk of the interest of the community, without understanding what is the interest of the individual."
-- Jeremy Bentham ( Philosopher 1748-1832)
The Community is there for the Individuals — not the other way around.
What is important is who you become as you participate in community. You are given the opportunity to contribute to community, and to the individuals in the community, so that you can grow and ultimately bring yourself joy.
We're careful not to sacrifice ourself for the group. For if we harm the individual — then the vitality and long-term health of the group is sacrificed.
"The garden is there for the flowers —
the flowers aren't there for the garden."
The end goal isn't the community. The process of becoming a community grows individuals that are more open, powerful and loving. And those individuals have a greater capacity to live more consistently in joy and freedom — while accomplishing things in the world.
The goal isn't in having a community — the goal is the learning, growth, connection, and fun that happens in the process of creating and maintaining the community.