MISSION:FELLOWSHIP & COMMUNITY 12

Relevance is the concept of one topic being connected to another topic in a way that makes it useful to consider the first topic when considering the second. The concept of relevance is studied in many different fields, including cognitive sciences, logic, and library and information science. Most fundamentally, however, it is studied in epistemology (the theory of knowledge). Different theories of knowledge have different implications for what is considered relevant and these fundamental views have implications for all other fields as well. During the 1960s, relevance became a fashionable buzzword, meaning roughly ‘relevance to social concerns’, such as racial equality, poverty, social justice, world hunger, world economic development, and so on. The implication was that some subjects, e.g., the study of medieval poetry and the practice of corporate law, were not worthwhile because they did not address pressing social issues. The Bible is seen as irrelevant by People who typically know nothing about it.  In reality the teachings of the Word are absolutely relevant to our culture and our society.  The concepts of fellowship and community meet the deepest needs of every human being, regardless of social or economic standing.  Discuss with your Mentor how you might be able to help someone who doesn’t yet believe in the need for biblical fellowship and community, to recognize its relevance in their own life.