The word "allelon" is a Greek reciprocal pronoun that means "one another." It appears in the following passages, to list a few:
- John 13:34 - "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another."
- Romans 12:10 - "Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves."
- Ephesians 4:2 - "Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love."
- 1 John 4:7 - "Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God."
We chose Allelon as our name because these passages represent the kind of community we are asking God to create in our midst. Love for one another and submission to one another are foundational for our community. By God's grace, we try to die to ourselves everyday, recognizing that our lives are no longer our own; they belong to God, and they are stewarded by the whole community.
The Story
The Allelon community was founded in August 2009, when four ACU students moved into a house on Cockerell Drive, one of three streets that together make up the Stevenson Neighborhood on the north side of Abilene, Texas. After months of prayer together, these four felt called by God to start an intentional Christian community, planted in the center of this neighborhood, a neighborhood known for crime, drugs, violence and lingering, latent racial segregation. They decided to share everything in common and find out what it would look like to live with open hearts and an open door, trying to love God and be good neighbors. Fast forward almost two years to May 2011, when three of the women from Allelon decided to join their brothers in living in the Stevenson Neighborhood and moved into a house just down the street.
Since then, God has blessed Allelon with many incredible relationships in the Stevenson neighborhood. He has added to our number virtually daily and is continually shaping us through the relationships he has formed across racial, economic, and generational lines. There are now eight people (2 married couples, 4 singles) living in three houses along Cockerell Drive, alongside dozens of others – from ACU, from the Stevenson neighborhood, and from the wider Abilene community – whom God has called to be a part of Allelon. We are one body with many different parts; each person is called to something unique by God. But as a community, we share a common love for God and our neighborhood, and we are devoted to seeking God’s kingdom together as he breaks down the walls in our hearts and in our hood.
