We're descendents of cowboys and rough riders - independent souls that killed those living in tribes. So it's no wonder that we struggle so to find our tribe. We don't understand tribes - their power is mysterious to us. For example, we are baffled by the tribal violence in places like Rwanda.

And it's no wonder that so many people are tribe-less and profoundly lonely. Even the tribal lowest common denominator - the extended family - is in such disarray that it fails to serve as a model of a tribe for most people.

Tribes are groups of people held together by common interests and values. Students and retired people tend to be tribal, hanging out on-line or in RV campgrounds. Myspace.com is a mechanism for building virtual tribes, but can't deliver on the real thing.

Real tribes are cross-generational, blending old and young around a vision for the future that inspires hope and loyalty. The Amish and the Masons were cohesive tribes that inspired prior generations, but which struggle to say anything relevant to young people today.

Of course God's people have always been profoundly tribal. The Jewish experience has always had the power of a shared story and religious identity. And wherever people are earnestly seeking and following Jesus, there is a tribe. We share a common Lord, a common purpose, a common spirit, and a common vision for loving others.

Many Jesus-followers may not live at this level, but a yearning to find our tribe and to belong to it lives deep within us all.