Coming from a similar evangelical background to the person above, I can say that the community is very different than that of a club or sports league. I'm not diminishing the community that you
can get out of it - even seemingly-trivial associations can become profound. Some of the strongest connections I've had with people have been with co-workers.
But a community centered around a particular framework, with a particular set of goals that extend beyond even the lifespan of the people involved, combined with an outlet for collective grief/ecstasy. It's hard to describe if you haven't grown up in it, but it's different from any other community I've experienced.
