ABSTRACT
Developing a worldwide arrangement of sovereign states was a major step in the evolution of Homo sapiens as a global species. The cultural dimensions of national unity are more readily recognizable as social constructs than the biological ones, but they are no less objects of national pride. The nature of communities and the ground conditions under which they operate are changing radically, but the word is often used in the most ambiguous ways, as if a community of the twenty-first century could the same thing as a community of, say, the twelfth. Lesbian groups are an important and generally accepted part of the larger women's movement, but lesbians also have forged effective political alliances with gay males. For people in traditional villages and the tribal societies, religion is inseparable from community, simply an accepted part of the way of life.
