12/2011 Via Vitae

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Benedictine Oblate Newsletter No. 14, December 2011

Via Vitae way of life

Benedictine Oblates of The World Community for Christian Meditation

BENEDICT THE BLESSED ONE

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an the pursuit of a spiritual path lead to the very egocentricity it is trying to escape? Not infrequently. The Desert monks were acutely aware of this danger especially in solitude and relied above all upon the abba-disciple relationship to avoid it.

It was however Benedict of Nursia (480-550) who devised a masterly, sapiential formula of training for the mystical life

based on community rather than a personal master. His Rule, though, is masterly especially in its modesty - and despite lacking any direct mystical doctrine. Even his name is anonymous, meaning the ‘blessed one’ as the Buddha was often called by his followers. The story of his life is known to us through legendary miracle stories collected as theological illustrations by Pope Gregory, a former monk under the Rule. These inspired innumerable works of art, most beautifully in the frescoes by Signorelli and Sodoma at Monte Oliveto Maggiore, worth a week’s retreat in themselves. Benedict began his monastic journey in an archetypal desert mode. He dropped out of school in Rome, (‘wisely ignorant’), curiously so for the founder of the system that saved learning in the Dark Ages. He took the habit from a nearby hermit and then spent years in a cave (Sacro Speco) in Subiaco, near Rome and still one of the most presencefilled and holy places in the world. He taught the Gospel to the pagan peasants around him anticipating the missionary branch of his spiritual progeny in future centuries. When some leaderless monks in the vicinity begged him to come and be their abbot, he kindly but unwisely accepted. He was too strict for them and, not for the last time in monastic history, the community tried to murder their abbot. He left them, but stayed in the coenobitic (community) form of monastic life rather than returning to solitude. He formed twelve monasteries each with twelve monks. Modern sociologists reading the rule note the emphasis on smallness for healthy group dynamics. Even in the big community he organises the members in ‘deaneries’ of ten. Yet in Chapter One of his Rule on ‘The Kinds of Monks’ he sees solitude as the goal. After an unspecified ‘long’ period of time in the monastery those who have ‘built up their strength … go from the battle line in the ranks of their brothers to the singlehanded combat of the desert.’ The military imagery might seem better suited for men playing at soldiers. Yet women, including Benedict’s own sister, Scholastica, whom one story shows praying better and


more wisely than her brother, respond as much as men,

who seek God and hunger for the contemplative experience

with certain adaptations, to the psychological wisdom of

of seeing God and listening to God’s Word? Firstly by

the Rule. The point of the military symbol is not the use of

identifying the call itself: ‘is there anyone here who yearns

force but solidarity, obedience and good management on a

for life and desires to see God?’.

collective mission. The short Rule was probably composed

Quoting psalms and the Wisdom literature as he often

over many years and seems to have a second ending

does, Benedict identifies seeking God with the goal of

attached. Most of the material is lifted directly from the

human life. That life does not cease to be human and

Rule of the Master one of the many other contemporary

variable once the goal is being pursued. When the ‘first

monastic rules. Pope Gregory, with Roman centralising

fervour of conversion’ wears off your brethren no longer

efficiency, selected Benedict’s for use throughout the

seem saints or even best friends. Stability then is one

western church.

of the vows Benedict defines and requires both physical

Benedict’s genius is seen in what he left out of his

and mental perseverance. He would have enjoyed the

original and in the Prologue which is his own. He was aware

rabbinical saying ‘you are not obliged to succeed, but you

that he was forming a softer rule than that of the golden

are not allowed to give up.’ But being Benedict, he knows

era. ‘We read that monks should not drink wine at all but

that people will, and so gives the monk three strikes before

since monks of our day cannot be convinced of this, let

he is out and not allowed to return.

us at least agree to drink moderately.’ This via media and

To balance stability which otherwise becomes static, his

common sense backed up by a firm but flexible structure

second vow stresses commitment to an ongoing conversion

of life and perennially valid principles of time management

of life and manners, a form of the endless pursuit of God

made the Rule, after the Bible the most influential text in

in the mystical life described by Gregory of Nyssa. And

European civilisation for a millennium. Abbots and business

obedience—ideally or eventually practised without delay,

leaders still join and turn to it for light on contemporary

spontaneously and from love not out of fear—completes the

social issues. And interestingly the best commentaries on

triad. Obedience must be practised vertically to the abbot

the Rule may not be written, as is often claimed, in hotel

and horizontally to each other and thus becomes Christ

rooms, but certainly are often composed today by women

like. Unlike later religious orders who saw the will of God

and no doubt one day by Oblates.

in the superior’s commands, Benedict allows the monk an

The Rule is a masterpiece of rationality, modesty

appeal if he is commanded to do what he finds impossible.

and self-transcendence. In the last, and usually least

If it fails, he has to do his best to obey and trust in God.

commented upon, chapter Benedict calls it a little Rule

The monastery is the laboratory in which the vows and

for beginners. Those who want to move on to high school

the ‘tools of good works’ train the monk for the higher

or even graduate school should consult Cassian and the

slopes. If it works well it becomes such a loving and freeing

fathers. So in what ways does this little Rule train those

place that it feels like the summit but this depends on good management. Firstly time-management, getting the

CONTENTS

balance right between physical work, lectio (spiritual reading) and prayer, which correspond to the human

Benedict: the blessed one............ 1

person’s composition as body, mind and spirit. The kind of prayer Benedict describes is communal

Editorial................................. 3

psalmody and reading – a collective lectio which serves as preparation for true contemplative prayer. Stress is

Salt, light and yeast................... 4

the disruption of natural human harmony. Peace is their

The only thing required............... 5

working well together. Murmuring (gossip and moaning)

Marriage & monastic oblation........ 6

is picked out especially for its corrosive attack on peace.

The hidden depth of the rule........ 8

virtues of paternitas and gravitas with not much left (at

Organisational management in the Rule shows the Roman least officially) for hilaritas. Overall, the abbot has an

News from New Zealand.............10

impossible task. He must be able to keep the list of the

An old symbol; Sydney oblate cell;

tools given out for work each day and constantly adapt

Christchurch...........................11

himself to each different temperament. He has the final word but is himself subject to the Rule and must consult.

The journey inward...................12

It is a wonderful, brief, vivid and humane description of the Christian lifestyle in which ‘all the members will be

Preparing for birth; Ash Temple....13

at peace’. Exceptions prove any rule and Benedict makes many of them, especially for the old, sick and children,

Book corner............................14

the most vulnerable members of any society. Weaknesses

2012 events; Contact info...........16

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EDITORIAL

of body and character are treated with patience – a rare feature in most spiritual doctrines. Yet there is a single-mindedness (‘prefer nothing whatever to the love

V. May the word of Christ flourish among you, R. As you guide each other from the fullness of wisdom.

of Christ’) that never turns moderation to compromise. Focusing on the mundane as he does, Benedict achieves

Benedictine Daily Prayer: A Short Breviary p. 949

something astounding. We see God reflected in the ordinary

T

– Christ dancing in a thousand places. And yet this, he

hese words touch me each time I pray them, as they speak to me of the meaning of our oblate community. They encourage fidelity, perseverance and internal fortitude among other virtues. The ‘word of Christ’ can be understood as our mantra when meditating and as the word or phrase that touches us during Lectio Divina. Being faithful to these spiritual practices along with the Rule of St Benedict enables us to guide each other in a manner that is different from the world’s way.

insists, is still the spiritual kindergarten, just the beginning. with much love

Laurence This article originally appeared on www.wccm.org ‘Weekly Teachings’ 20/11/2011

Mentoring is a firmly established Benedictine practice and noted in RB Ch. 58:6: “A senior chosen for his skill in winning souls should be appointed to look after them with careful attention”. However, we don’t use the word ‘senior’ as that implies a hierarchy that does not exist in our oblate community. It is worth noting that elsewhere St Benedict calls the whole community together knowing full well that “the Lord often reveals what is better to the younger”. Two different situations but relevant with regard to mentoring. Co-ordinators have written to me of the reluctance in their oblate communities from those who have made their Final Oblation, to be involved in the ministry of mentoring. Mentoring is a most appropriate way for the oblate to continue his/her own formation that does not cease at Final Oblation. Speaking from my own experience, to mentor another as they discern God’s will regarding oblation is a gift to be cherished. To quote St Francis: “It is in giving that we receive”. To assist those new to mentoring, there are written ‘Guidelines for Mentors’ as well as supervision. Becoming an oblate within our monastery without walls is not a private affair, but grounded in all aspects of community. Being open to the promptings of the Spirit, “The will of God will never call you to where the grace of God cannot keep you”. We welcome Mary Robison who became the oblate Coordinator of the USA in September. We wish Mary every blessing as she steps into this role, and endeavours to acquaint herself with the U S oblate community. This will take time. Mary’s email address is on the back page for those who would like to welcome Mary. We bid farewell to Bob Kasarda who accepted the role of US Oblate Co-ordinator when Greg Ryan resigned in July 2010. We are grateful to Bob for his generosity of time and energy in getting to know and work with the oblate community, but understand the needs of his other commitments. We wish Bob every blessing and as with his predecessor hope to hear from him from time to time. May the blessing of peace and the peace of blessings surround you, your family and friends during the Christmas Season and remain with you during 2012.

Hope blooms as hopes die. Hopes are veiled desires or fantasies which we use as substitutes for reality or as defenses against disappointments and sufferings. Often we have to tremble on the brink of despair and the evacuation of desire before discovering the meaning of hope. Before we get to that brink we start clutching at false hopes. The John the Baptists of our lives –those who alone give authentic consolation– are not harbingers of doom but preachers of reality. But at the graced moment of emptiness we are visited by hope that enlightens us about the meaning of the process we are passing through. Even if we cannot see the light at the end of the tunnel yet we know–with a kind of night-vision– that we are on the way and even the feeling of failure or of being forgotten are part of the process that will flower in the light of love. LAURENCE FREEMAN

With love and prayer TRISH

(from Advent Reflection Week 2: http://www.wccm.org/category/category/advent)

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SALT, LIGHT AND YEAST

how much we can learn from meditating with children and as we approach Christmas it’s particularly interesting to recognise how we can savour the new “salt light and yeast” that comes to us from the children’s childlike understanding of the infant Jesus. Unfortunately many children get very little in the way of a solid grounding in Christianity from their families but interestingly one of the priests who attended a recent “inservice training day” put forward the view that one of the main sources of evangelisation in the future may well be directly from the children. One way that this can begin to happen is if we recognise the huge benefit and impact of Christian meditation on the “precious lives” we have been entrusted within our schools. We have been amazed and delighted at the way in which teachers have recognised and grasped this opportunity in beginning to implement this beautiful prayer of the heart

You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned? It is no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. …

in the schools where they work. In an age where religious instruction has sometimes been relegated to a simple mugging up of facts from the Bible in order to regurgitate

You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lamp stand, where it gives light to all in the house. Just so, your light must shine before others,

those facts in an exam, there comments are truly “salt and light”: “It feels like this is life transforming” “This will have a huge impact on our children’s behaviour”

that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father. … The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch was leavened.

“It’s what I’ve been looking for” “I like the emphasis on prayer – not just a de-stressing technique” We know that by encouraging our children to enter their

s oblates, we share the privilege of service; not only to

A

“inner room” or “heart room” they can not only get to

our own community but also to the world at large and

know themselves better but also get to know God better at

in this relatively secular age we have many opportunities

a personal level and this is a gift that they take with them

to honour the commitment that my wife Patricia and I

for the rest of their lives. We are helping them to make their religion a living

made at our Final Oblation. “The three basic vows of the Benedictine Rule are principles of life to which the

reality by helping them to practise those Christian values

oblate makes a commitment of heart and mind – Stability,

they learn in their own lives in such a way that they

Obedience, Conversion. These general principles are lived

naturally share true Christian love with those around

out in personal ways. There are, however some particular

them. In other words, they become a light in a relatively

elements of the oblate commitment which also highlight its

secular and dark world and spread that light in a loving and

meaning. In the context of this reflection: Sharing in some

persuasive way. People often think that the art of persuasion is

way in the work of the community to pass on the Christian tradition of meditation.”1 This particular element speaks

dependent on well chosen words delivered in cleverly

clearly to the work Patricia and I are involved in. This

constructed phrases, but we are becoming increasingly

service is never a burden - we both continue to be amazed

convinced that the deep silence of meditation is infinitely

and humbled at the way in which the saying “in giving we

more powerful. This seems doubly impressive when so many

receive” manifests itself in everything we do.

people actually fear the absence of noise and rush to fill that so-called deathly silence, with the bombardment of

During the past few months we have begun to realise

noise from the radio, television or iPod. By contrast, notice how small children really enjoy

1 Freeman, Laurence: Monastics in the World, http://www.wccm. org/content/monastics-world

quietly looking around their environment in pure 4


THE ONLY THING REQUIRED

amazement – silently absorbing the wonders of nature around them and noticing things that we, as adults, may

From a letter to the Canadian Oblate Community, 6 August 2011

become so accustomed to that we pass by on the other side.

My dear Sisters and Brothers of St Benedict,

Nowhere is this enjoyment of “being” rather than

B

eing an oblate of St Benedict is an affirmation of one’s

“doing” more evident than in the gentle silence of Christian

solitary, monastic self. The self in whose depths the

meditation where the apparently ordinary experience of

Prayer of Christ rises ceaselessly. We must, as scripture

sitting quietly in our own “inner room” is shot through

says, be always in the state of prayer. Do not shout from

with the extraordinary experience of enjoying some real

the roof-tops, but go into the quiet room. …

value-time with our Creator. One is even tempted to

The longer I meditate, the stronger this inclination

wonder whether Jesus actually taught Mary to ponder all

becomes – to be monk, alone – yet not alone. We are, all of

those things in her heart. And, at what stage, did Jesus

us oblates, are monks. Father John often said that tonsure

learn to enjoy the benefits of going to the hills to pray all

and habit, even a monastery, does not a monk make.

by himself? Certainly children seem to enjoy the discipline

We are, each of us, responsible for the discipline of our

of meditation and are able to share with others really

life of prayer, which is nothing less than the communion of

easily. So much so that many of the children who learn to

our Spirit – lost (and found) in the spirit of Christ.

meditate in school, also begin to meditate at home, and

Our primary responsibility is to live out of this profound

often teach it to their parents.

Reality – as we promised when we took that leap of faith

The hunger for silence seems particularly universal among

into the Unknowing. And we must take it again and yet

the schools we have visited and may well be the “yeast”

again, each time, surprised that we are always caught.

that both children and teachers are searching for. We need

Therefore, whatever life may throw on one, I hope to meet

to lighten the daily drudgery of the secular concentration

with confidence, because I know that I am loved.

on targets, to-do lists and exams.

So let us be very very serious about our fidelity to the

If we can spread this belief in “living silence” – rather

mantra, to meditation. Father John’s talks, those Monday

than “deathly silence” then it may well be a source of

and Tuesday night talks, so thoroughly prepared and

evangelisation in our schools and families and bring a new

given with so much love, passion and urgency. They were

meaning to the “risen” Christ in all our lives.

meant for you and me. This is where the teaching is. If the

If you would like to find out more, please contact:

teaching of Christian meditation is to survive in its absolute

CHARLES and PATRICIA POSNETT

simplicity for future seekers – validate it in your own

UK Special Coordinators, Christian Meditation with Children charles@posnett.entadsl.com

experience, listen to Father John. Let us be more mature and confident as we stretch out our hand to one another. As far as praying goes, the bottom line is that we are One, in and with, the Prayer of Christ, always. Is this enough? The only thing required of me is that I stay faithful.

POLLY SCHOFIELD, Canadian Oblate Co-ordinator

wccm.oblates@bell.net

The reception of Teresa Decker as an Oblate Novice, with other oblates who participated in the International School Retreat, Fara Sabina, Italy, 3-9 September. Teresa is the only meditator in Uruguay discerning a call to the oblate way of life. Front row L-R: Kath Houston, Australia; Angela Gregson, UK; Mary Robison, USA; Christiane Floyd, Germany; Giovanni Foffano, Italy. Back row L-R: Mario Bossu, Italy; Fr Laurence; Teresa Decker, Uruguay; Kim Nataraja, UK; Giovanni Felicioni, UK; Stefan Reynolds, UK.

5


MARRIAGE AND MONASTIC OBLATION Twelve Steps of Humility

A

re you still reading that book?” My fiancé asked me

to make an unreasonable demand, the cellarer should not

after she had seen ‘The Rule of St Benedict’ travel with

reject that person with disdain and cause distress, but

me on various journeys. I had to try to explain to her that it

reasonably and humbly deny the improper request’ (Ch.

was one of those books which one never finishes. I became

31).

an Oblate in 1996. Last year I got married. Two forms of

5) I don’t have children yet but reading the qualities

vows; different, but compatible. Surely the criteria of the

needed for an Abbess or Abbot I get some idea of the

call is similar: ‘Is there anyone here who yearns for life and

demands of parenting: ‘They must know what a difficult

desires to see good days?’ (Ps. 34.13). The married Oblate

and demanding burden they have undertaken: directing

is also a coenobite; he/she lives in a community. I have a

souls and serving a variety of temperaments, coaxing,

few reflections.

reproving, and encouraging them as appropriate’ (Ch. 2).

1) Before I was married, in my bachelor days, I was

And change nappies!

free to do what I liked with my

6) What about the teaching

holidays and when I came back

on silence (Ch. 6)? Well, in my

from work. In that sense every

experience, it doesn’t work in

bachelor is a sarabite: ‘Their Law

marriage. However ‘Speaking

is what they like to do, whatever

and teaching are the teacher’s

strikes their fancy’ (Rule Ch.1).

task; the disciple is to be silent

To be married is ‘to love not our

and listen’. In my experience

own will, nor take pleasure in the

marriage and teaching do not

satisfaction of our desires’ (2nd

go together. My wife does not

Step of Humility, Ch. 7). One has

want to listen to my theological

to take into consideration what

opinions at breakfast or at any

the partner wants. My wife does

time. I have to climb down

not fancy a holiday in an Ashram

off my retreat-giving pedestal

in India.

before I am ready for an

2) In that sense to be married

evening cuddle. There are no

is to be under obedience. I have

Zen Masters in the bedroom.

to listen to my wife. It is not just

For me silence is the silence of

me anymore. ‘Constraint wins a

heavy opinions.

crown’, as St Benedict reminds.

7) What about sex? In

That crown is the ability to live

marriage is to ‘love chastity’

beyond my ego and its desires;

(Ch. 4) really a tool for good?

being able to live with others. My

‘Do not gratify the promptings

wife is Christ to me, in that sense

of the flesh’. Well, it plays

she is also my Abbot.

more of a role in marriage than just getting children.

3) If the root of obedience is to listen and respond, that

Maybe the rule has taught me a little that sex is more

is key to marriage. If I am asked to do something (“Can

about giving than begetting. Sex may be part of that ‘good

you hoover the house/ take the dog for a walk/answer the

zeal’ which Benedict sees as ‘fostering fervent love’ (Ch.

door, etc.”) - unless I have some real reason why I can’t -

72): ‘No monastics are to pursue what they judge better

then why not assume that this is what I am called to do. So

for themselves, but instead, what they judge better for

I try to respond promptly. I don’t quite match those who

someone else’. It gives meaning to Benedict’s injunction to

‘immediately put aside their own concerns, abandon their

remove one’s knives before going to bed! (Ch. 22) In sex we

own will, and lay down whatever they have in hand, leaving

are all vulnerable and joyful, it is not a place for power or

it unfinished’ (Ch. 5). At least I should not annoy my wife

moralising.

by leaving undone, or postponing without reason, what has

8) Getting married normally (and certainly in my case)

been asked.

goes hand in hand with becoming a householder. Setting

4) “Let’s go to Venice for our summer holiday!” In this I

up house has its demands. For an academic like me I am

have to be like the monastic cellarer: ‘If anyone happens

reminded that in manual work (cleaning, shopping, cooking, 6


gardening, DIY) we are living like real monastics (Ch. 48). Cooking for one another, according to the rule, is a way of ‘fostering love’ (Ch. 35). ‘Consequently no members (husband or wife) should be excused from kitchen service’. For me ‘toiling faithfully’ in the house and its life and stability in the marriage is the ‘workshop’ where love flowers (Ch. 4). 9) I certainly give more dinner parties than I used to. With house and home, especially in the country, hospitality plays a new role. ‘All guests who present themselves are to be welcomed as Christ’ (Ch. 53). Though my wife does not meditate in a formal sense, we share the same faith. For me this is nowhere more clear than in trying to ‘show every kindness’ to our guests. In welcoming them we welcome more than them and realise that our home is more than our home: ‘God, we have received your mercy in the midst of your temple’ (Ps. 48:10) 10) Before getting married I reflected on Benedict’s

beginnings of monastic life’ (Ch. 73). In the monastery of

‘Procedure for Receiving Members’ (Ch. 58) as parallel to

marriage I am still a junior. I have many venerable elders

the commitment of marriage. As Benedict says it is not to

under this profession for whom I rise and offer them a seat

be taken too lightly. Dating is a sort of postulancy (though

(Ch. 63). I ask for their blessing. But my wife is my Abbot

a bit more fun!). Engagement is a sort of novitiate even,

and Prioress. Her orders take precedence (Ch. 71).

in Benedict’s view involving moving in to see whether

I have recently taken up, with my morning and evening

things really work. Then we get our ‘marriage preparation’

meditation, chanting the Office to myself. “Go into the

meetings where we were told ‘all the hardships and

garden if you are going to make that racket”. I obey,

difficulties that will lead to God’ on this path. Then the

and have built myself a little garden Oratory. ‘Nothing

vows: ‘For better and for worse, for richer and for poorer,

else is done or stored there’, I am not ‘disturbed by the

in sickness and in health, till death do us part.’ Or as

insensitivity of another (!)’ and if I ‘do not pray in a loud

Benedict puts it: ‘They must be well aware that, as the law

voice’ then I figure ‘I will not interfere with anyone else’

of the rule establishes, from this day they are no longer

(Ch. 52). The moral of the story is that we should all ‘walk

free to leave the monastery, or shake from their neck the

according to another’s decisions and directions, choosing

yoke of the rule which, in the course of so long a period of

to live in monasteries and to have a prioress or abbot over

reflection, they were free either to reject or accept.’

them’ (Ch. 5). Or as they said in the sixties: ‘Make love not

11) Marriage is a sharing. In the house things are no

war’.

STEFAN REYNOLDS, UK

longer labelled ‘yours’ or ‘mine’. Even our bodies belong

stefandreynolds@yahoo.co.uk

to each other. Benedict’s description of profession fits the self-giving of marriage; ‘without keeping back a single thing

We cannot love or serve others seriously without discipline. We cannot be free without learning discipline. A spiritual practice followed as a discipline raises consciousness beyond the ego level of perception and awakens a new way of seeing. It helps us to see the fruits of the practice in a new way and this gives access to a level of energy beyond what even the biggest or best-directed ego can imagine. It is the non-coercive power of the Spirit which the ego’s desire for control and domination can never achieve.

for themselves, well aware that from that day they will not have even their own body at their disposal’ (Ch. 58). 12) Marriage is an enclosure; ‘faithfully observing God’s teaching’ we are ‘in the monastery until death’ where ‘we shall through patience share in the sufferings of Christ that we may also share in the eternal presence’ (end of Prologue). Commitment. Patience. Monogamy. Monotony. But also depth. Deepening love. Unconditional love. Unending love. As Leonard Cohen puts it: ‘The bed is kina narrow, but my arms are open wide, and here’s a man still working for your smile’ (from the song ‘I tried to leave you’). Twelve steps of humility. I am sure those who have been married longer than me will have more experience. I would do better ‘to be silent and to listen’ (Ch. 6). Still Benedict

LAURENCE FREEMAN First Sight: The Experience of Faith, p. 62.

wrote his rule so that ‘by observing it in monasteries, we can show that we have some degree of virtue and the 7


THE HIDDEN DEPTH OF THE RULE opening and without any efforts. But the Rule is similar to meditation - the outward simplicity, which opens its doors only when some work was done, which involved all three components of each person - body, mind and spirit. So, the Rule, seen by us at the beginning as something uncompromising simple and severe, begins to disclose its depth step by step. Constancy, humility in silence of body and mind, calmness and discipline - all the things we’re trying hard every day to make them the axis of our life - all these things make our vision sharper. And only then we can see that there is something that the Rule says, not literally in the words and terms, but only in experience, which we can get in its simple and practical chapters.

Maria and Albert Zakharovi, Ukraine, with Fr Laurence following their Final Oblation in Poland 19 October 2011

Chapter 20: Reverence in Prayer

O

This chapter is one of the most short in the Rule, and

perception.

brevity, helping the disciple to find the most concise

ne of the most amazing experiences we had lately in

maybe it’s very important. In our view St Benedict tries

our daily practice was an incredible feeling of depth of

to express the most important things with the maximal

the Rule, gradually unfolding and becoming accessible to

way to the logical silence of pure experience. We find

It’s like the spiritual experience as a whole - at the

in our daily meditation the humility and the reverence,

very beginning we learn about the many spiritual realities

referred to as the essence of the act of prayer. The more

logically (the existing of the Divine Reality outside and

we are faced with a difficult but rewarding experience of

inside us, the basic laws of cause and effect, the path of

meditation as a discipline (rather than as a hobby, which

spiritual growth), and it can be supported by some mystical

can be postponed for a day or two), the more we realise

feeling, growing within us. But at the beginning we cannot

that the daily concentration and peace are the greatest

really feel all the beauty and grandeur of these things (and

possible reverence and humility before existence. When we

in our early spiritual experience it was just like this), - that

put off at certain times of the day all that we have - our

is why we can accept and honor them mostly mentally, at

work, thoughts, desires, memory and identity - we start at

the level of concept. Then at a certain point we begin to

100% to participate in something that is and that is offered

experience the true depth of the reality to which we have

to our attention initially. The result of our daily practice

started to go at the beginning, relying on the wisdom and

(as in our own experience, so in the experience of most

discipline.

meditators) is something that St Benedict understands as

Beginning the every day’s reading of the Rule, each of us

the best sacrifice for God - the purity of heart and sincerity,

felt the aspiration and sympathy for this ancient text. But major portion of this sympathy surely was based on logic, and at the beginning we faced the interesting feeling. The Rule for us was like the nut, inside which something important is hidden, but it’s under protection of the nutshell, or, it’s better to say, the protective fence. The discipline of daily meditation and reading obviously is the way of action which can lead us to the very heart of the Rule. However, we felt that moving to the centre of the Rule is related to success in moving to our own hearts - to the inner peace and concentration. It is very difficult for modern people, who live in a huge flow of information and who are replete with this information, to feel the spiritual importance of the such simple and practical texts as the Rule. Many people, including us, are accustomed

Maks Kapalski, Poland; Maria and Albert Zakharovi, Ukraine; with Fr Laurence following their Final Oblation in Poland 19 October 2011

to “understand” any book at once, at the moment of 8


the absence of bifurcation. Maybe, we can compare it with something that Buddhists call the “suchness” (tathata). Acting every day according to our oblate discipline, we begin to open ourselves more and more - and sometimes it’s the discovery of something not best in ourselves (such as irritability, or laziness, or weakness). But accepting it and moving on through the path of discipline and concentration, we understand that it’s the only way to live in the presence of God’s attention, not rejecting it, making it the witness of every moment of life. Brevity of our mantra and the simplicity of what we should do every time, help us to remove the self-ego. It brings us the tremendous freedom that allows us to accept all the components of every day’s life, which manifests the

Taynã Malaspina Bonifácio being received as an oblate novice by Fr Laurence at São Paulo, Brazil in November

Divine presence - as the difficulty of compliance with the schedule of the day, and also, for example, the beauty of the sunset observed by us after the evening meditation. Such an experience we felt in the recent weeks of our

There is nothing more sought after and desired in our time than the gift of peace – interior peace and world peace. Interior peace is the gift of a heart that knows the experience of Divine Love. When we are no longer afraid, no longer caught in the guilt and anxiety that block our experience of love, we know peace.

practice, and these reflections on the Rule became for us a special expression of our own inner feelings.

ALBERT and MARIA ZAKHAROVI, UKRAINE

info@wccm.org.ua

Handoyo Gazali being received as an Oblate Novice by Fr Laurence. The ceremony was held at the conclusion of the Indonesian National Conference held during Fr Laurence’s visit to Indonesia 30 November-5 December. Handoyo is the first of two Indonesian meditators discerning their call to the Benedictine oblate path.

Peace is the result of handing over our very lives to the Divine Other, knowing that Divine Love is completely trustworthy and that all we need will be provided– that there is nothing to fear. Because it is indigenous to human nature to extend what is known in its own heart, the experience of interior peace that we now know is extended in our world. We become peacemakers.

When the rhythm of the twice-daily meditation becomes part of the fabric of our being, entirely natural and so always renewed and renewing, then our life is being transformed from the centre outwards. Then we are learning to see even the appearances of our ordinary life, work, relationships, with the vision of love. The Christian is called to see all reality with the eyes of Christ. JOHN MAIN

EILEEN O’HEA

The Present Christ

Woman: Her Intuition of Otherness, p62

9


NEWS FROM NEW ZEALAND

O

Jane Hole, in her presentation on Obedience, mentioned

ur New Zealand oblate community came together for our annual contemplative time of reflection at “The

the difficulty of moving from our idea of obedience

Home of Compassion”, Island Bay in Wellington on 14-16

as a child (“doing things I didn’t want to do”), to the

November. Thirteen of the seventeen NZ Oblates attended.

Benedictine aspect of obedience. “Benedict calls a

Included in our group were four postulants who had

community to obedience, but he does not call it to

discerned with their mentors their readiness to take the

servitude.”1 We are called to listen and in the listening to

next step and were received as oblate novices. Three

learn to respond to the call of the Spirit.

were from Christchurch, the city that has seen so much

And then we become distracted

instability from earthquakes this past year. So it was with

And God’s love calls us to return

great warmth and enthusiasm that we welcomed Margaret

We listen and return

Moore, Sally Dunford and Margaret Nouwens. Jane Hole has

And we become distracted again

been their mentor and will continue during their novitiate.

And comes the call of love again

Our fourth postulant, Ruth Kinilau is from Rotorua in the

We listen and we return

North Island, her home town being famous for hot pools

… And so on

and boiling mud areas, and our welcome to Ruth was just as

… And so it is and so it will be

warm. Ruth has the continuing support of her mentor, Stan

Ross Miller offered the third thread of Conversion. Both

Martin.

Hebrew and Christian faith, he said, understand Conversion

It was fitting therefore that the conferences over the

as a process in which a person “returns“ as in the parable

three days we were together would centre on the precepts

of the prodigal son and changes by the grace that is always

of Stability, Obedience and Conversion and what they mean

offered. It is not so much we are great sinners. It is more

especially during the time of novice formation.

that we are daily re-encountering love and grace, as sitting

Stan Martin in leading the reflection on Stability

still and silent, we become entirely open to God.

introduced the paradox that Stability, in Benedictine

Another thought he presented was our expectation and

spirituality, implies, of necessity, change. We are required

consent to changes in our life. The surprise often is that the

to advance in perfection, ever striving daily to come closer

changes are not necessarily where we expected them to be.

to the presence of God in our ordinary lives. Our stability is

For an oblate each day is new. Each morning brings our

grounded in fidelity to the community while we move each

return to Jesus. Both in the Hebrew and Greek of our

day to a growing awareness of the Spirit.

scriptures the word conversion comes from the verbal root to return to where we belong.

Our relationship with the Divine Other will always move us to relationships with others in a life of love and service. Since our prayer leads us into Christ’s own consciousness, our life will pattern of what was most characteristic of Jesus’ life, a life of relationship and service to the Other and all others. Like Jesus, our life will grow in its expression of the inseparableness of love of God and love of neighbor as we allow ourselves to be drawn more deeply into intimate relationship with the Divine Other.

HUGH MCLAUGHLIN, Oblate Co-ordinator, New Zealand

hungnz1916@yahoo.com.nz

1 Chittister, Joan: The Rule of St Benedict: Insights for the Ages, Crossroads, New York, 1993.

Front: Sally Dunford, Margaret Murphy, Jane Lys, Jane Hole, Stan Martin; Centre: Paddy Walker (partially obscured) Ruth Kinilau, Janet Price; Back: Elizabeth Isichei, Hugh McLaughlin, Barbara Welsh, Margaret Nouwens, Ross Miller

EILEEN O’HEA

Woman: Her Intuition of Otherness, p. 63 10


AN OLD SYMBOL

SYDNEY OBLATE CELL

Put a steadfast spirit within me. O God … Indeed you love truth in the heart; Then in the secret of my heart teach me wisdom. Psalm 51, Benedictine Daily Prayer: A Short Breviary, p. 1106

L

ying sick in bed last week, I doodled with a pencil trying to map the journey of my soul that has brought

me to this day. The many strands weaving in and out, from baptism in the Presbyterian tradition, to coming seven decades later as a Catholic to seek entrance into a contemplative Benedictine community began to resemble one of our Canterbury shingle rivers seen from the air, with many tributaries coming and going. Gradually, more

SYDNEY OBLATE CELL DAY, 8 OCTOBER Front L -R: Janet Sorby, John O’Neill, Trish Panton, Isabel Arcapalo. Back L-R: Ann Bergman, George Bryan, Judi Taylor, Penny Sturrock, Marina Müller, Martha Miglietta, Paul Taylor, David Chauncy.

recently, the many strands entering and leaving have seemed to come together as one steady single flow that knows its way to the sea. The Waimakariri river, always a

F

rom 5-11 October, three meditators from Argentina—

potent symbol for my family, now carries this new meaning

Marina, Isabel and Martha—visited our Sydney

for me as it makes its way from narrow rock-confined

meditation and oblate community. At this time, Marina

mountain gorge, through wide meandering plains to

Müller was preparing to make her Final Oblation during Fr

eventually form a single coherent flow, ocean bound.

Laurence’s visit to Latin America, 1-20 November. Marina

This present river comprises the weaving together of many years of spiritual direction under the searching eye

was the instigator of this visit that evolved out of the close

of a Jungian analyst, the start/stop/start again movement

connection Marina had with her mentor over the years. The purpose of their visit was to learn about the

of various meditation practices, and a gradual giving in to the soul’s desire for the depth and mystery of the Catholic

Australian experience of teaching the teachers to introduce

faith.

Christian meditation to children, and to generally exchange ideas regarding our respective meditation communities.

The difficulties of the last two years—learning to be a widow, breaking bones and the on-going stress of

During the Sydney visit our October oblate cell day had

co-existing with Ruamoko, the earthquake god, have

been planned, and they participated wholeheartedly in

been a thorough testing ground for my first steps on

every aspect of that day. Over the six days our time together was very much Ora et

the Benedictine oblate path. I have found a strong and dependable firm base from which to push off, and a wealth

Labora (prayer and work), but also included an element of

of inspiring people and writings to energise the way ahead.

‘play’, as they relaxed and enjoyed the generous hospitality of two oblate families in particular, who ensured they

I haven’t found it to be an easy path, but in submitting to its rule I’ve been finding the rewards: a firm structure that

were taken out to dine and visited places of international

contains my scattered, excitable and often undisciplined

interest around Sydney. From Sydney our visitors travelled to Townsville, to learn

nature; a cooling influence to my tendency to be hotheaded, and a joyful sense of being caught up and held in a

firsthand from Ernie Christie and Kathy Day about their

world-wide fraternity that plugs gaps of loss and change.

experience of the teaching Christian meditation to children in all the schools of the Townsville Diocese. Another very

SALLY DUNFORD, NEW ZEALAND;

positive and delightful experience for all.

jhdunford@xtra.co.nz

TRISH PANTON

pantonamdg@ozemail.com.au

CHRISTCHURCH Getting back on its feet

I suppose you'd have to say that being in the city of Christchurch is inexpressibly sad (in the damage to homes and lives) and inexpressibly wonderful (in the strong instinct of people to be together, and the ingenuity, courage, humour and energy being poured into getting our city back on its feet). I wouldn't want to be anywhere else. JANE HOLE, NEW ZEALAND; holejane66@hotmail.com 11


THE JOURNEY INWARD

REFLECTIONS ON A SILENT RETREAT

W

e hear promises of expansion of life through Christian

earlier with a more natural period of Christian Meditation

Meditation. Expansion of life was definitely nowhere

as the day was breaking. Such peace! Such inner beauty! It was not until after I had departed on the last day that I

close to Beaumont, Texas for me as I grew up on the Gulf Coast south of Houston. All I had ever seen of Beaumont

realized how internally quiet I had become and how long it

was I-10 as we made car trips through it to Louisiana,

had taken to get that way (literally on the 3rd day). Driving

or the odor-evident petrochemical plants spanning the

back into Houston, I felt like I was being rudely jostled back

horizon, or the local university to which we made quick and

into too much insanity. I didn’t want to avoid life, but I

intense band trips for competitions.

wanted to walk through it in a different way from everyone who seemed so un-peaceful.

But here I was, choosing to spend most of my precious

About that time I realized that I had re-emerged into

Labor Day weekend at a retreat center with a Beaumont

the rest of the world with some really good tools, and I

address. Bottom line: Great decision!

still call them up to serve me. Among the most powerful

I made it in faith, and once again the Holy Spirit took me to ordinary places with ordinary people to witness subtle

are particular memories based on physical sensations I had

transformation. I know to wait for it - but it never fails to

while in the Beaumont woods:

surprise and to touch me.

Hearing the miraculous meshing of unmatched voices and feeling the energy of breath work as we chanted psalms in the several worship periods of each day;

Our excellent retreat leader Gene worked with our excellent retreat center hosts Michael OSB and Peter OSB to

Realizing I was humming some snatches of tonal chant patterns at other times under my breath;

create a respite, carved as it were out of our usual busyness in the “real” world.

Smelling moisture in the wind after a so-long period of drought in our area;

They used rhythms of both sitting and walking meditation

Watching raindrops as they dripped across soaked and thirsty vegetation (yes, during that weekend Beaumont was blessed with welcome rain from a tropical storm);

periods, multiple and throughout the waking hours; didactics with discussion carefully inserted into our overall silence; and frequent brief personal time periods

Moving my arms gently to spread a light prayer shawl around my body with sensation of the fabric falling across my knees in the cool air, as I began work of the mantra where we sat in the dimly lit chapel;

encouraging the traditional balance of work, study, and prayer. They created a strong sense of our being safe and cared

Viewing our line of meditative walkers, winding peacefully under covered walkways in a slow and soundless thread of beautiful human diversity;

for through hospitality in the Benedictine tradition - the meeting of Christ in the stranger. All three leaders provided spiritual mentorship and guidance, formally and informally.

Being struck by changes in fellow retreatants, remembering when I saw the faces and expressions of the last morning back to how they had appeared on the first evening, and then marveling how even through silence we get to know things about each other.

Gene’s didactic sessions were based on the sharing of wisdom in the Christian meditation tradition with its history, Christian foundations, and fruits. He skillfully led the way in encouraging some of us to start our discipline

And I love to think of how a so-small experience of

and others of us to maintain one. We all took part in

Beaumont in my previous life has now been lifted and

nurturing new meditators and empowering them to share

enlarged. Thanks be to God and to all the helpers of the

their new practice in their home communities.

Kingdom!

Our whole group participated with Michael and Peter as

LINDA A. SCHMALSTIEG,USA

they pursued their regular worship practices of the Daily

lmasch@earthlink.net

Office. Our location in the southern reaches of the East Texas

Faith is the light of consciousness found in the heart. The price of the ticket into the heart is the loss of self. Meditation is the act of faith that leads us on the journey from the head to the heart. It is made as it is felt. It is made in the stillness from which action flows.

Piney Woods (who knew they went that far into Beaumont?) steeped us in quietness and the healing presence of nature. I began to experience a restoration through these rhythms, returning to a physical and emotional balance away from my usual over-busy life. My willingness to be kind to myself was tested and won out through luxuries of naps and solitary walks during hours usually invested

LAURENCE FREEMAN

in other things. I found myself re-setting daily patterns.

First Sight: The Experience of Faith, p. 69.

By the time I left I felt a renewed ability to start my day 12


PREPARING

FOR

BIRTH

ASH TEMPLE A pile of ashes which the wind could blow away leaving a blackened spot. This remains of what my ego built and celebrated many years. It proudly stood before like Job, I bowed my will to you, perceived accepted in my heart that what you want from me, had wanted all along, was love unconditional embracing all. A love which saw the sacred in the eyes of each respected them worked for their good because in loving them I’m loving You in hurting them, its full of pain to say, I’m hurting You.

I

f we really want to know the truly spiritual meaning of Christmas, the celebrations and rituals at home and in worshipping communities, we have to know with wellprepared and peaceful hearts what it means to enter the space where celebration becomes joyful. This is what the daily pilgrimage of meditation teaches us from within. In that simple and humble journey we discover what it means to make space in our heart. We feel what it means to prepare the heart for the great celebration of life. As we prepare, and as our spiritual materialism and egocentric expectations drop away, it dawns on us that the event we are preparing for precedes us. The great liturgy has already begun in spirit and in truth. So often we have the experience and miss the meaning. Afterwards we know the hollowness and disappointment at what was merely said or done in external signs that did not connect us with their underlying realities. This is the sad result of being unprepared, of being lost in the superficial. But once we have found true relationship at depth, everything that happens to us is drawn into a meaningful pattern. It is only necessary for us to prepare our hearts and we are prepared for everything. One reason that Christmas can still mean so much to us spiritually, despite all the materialism and busyness which accompanies it, is that it continues to remind us of our innocence. Often, however, our sense of innocence is romantic rather than Christian. We think of a period of ‘lost innocence’ and are filled with that great enemy of all maturity, sentimentality, and that great enemy of prayer, nostalgia. In any season the spiritual balance and clarity of life can be disturbed by emotional self-indulgence, by the cultivation or indulgence of an image of self. These are the common ways we stifle our sensitivity to truth and our

At my ground zero place of blackness, out of these ashes Phoenix-like Your joy and love arise within my heart I lift my hands my heart in gratitude to You Source of all wisdom Love Who came to me gave me my sight persuading me persistently but gently that Your way is best. Ash Temple marks the spot where what was of no worth within my heart was tried by fire. I am committed now. Each time I find unworthy thoughts and ways and deeds within my life I’ll bring them here.

capacity for empathy with others.

RON DICKS, CANADA rdicks@rogers.com

JOHN MAIN

My inspiration for this poem came when I was having coffee and saw a van belonging to a dental company which had the name of Ash Temple.

An extract from the letter ‘Preparing for Birth’, included in John Main’s Monastery Without Walls, The Spiritual Letters of John Main, Canterbury Press, Norwich, 2006, pp. 144-145.

13


BOOK CORNER

from the laity. He also saw it as a fruit of the encounter of the world religions. He draws attention to the fact that John Main’s recovery of mantra meditation for Christians

THE NEW CREATION IN CHRIST, Bede Griffiths

came from his study of the monastic tradition of prayer but

Christian Meditation and Community

also his encounter with an Indian monk witnessing to the less obscured contemplative wisdom of the East. Fr Bede

It is fitting in this year of celebrating the 20th Anniversary of The World Community for Christian Meditation to return to the wisdom and teaching in ‘The New Creation in Christ’

sees John Main’s teaching as the fruit of open mindedness and depth, an integrative vision which actualised in the practice of meditation is what the world needs so much today. There are many gems of wisdom in the book like the story of Father Jules Monchanin, founder of Fr Bede’s Ashram in India who, Fr Bede says; “approached a group of school children and asked them, ‘Where is God?’ The Hindu children pointed to the heart and said God was there. The Christians pointed up to the sky.” Fr Bede comments: “These are two different ways of understanding God and of course they are complementary; we are all learning today how to reconcile opposites.” It is this experience of nonduality that Fr Bede sees at the heart of meditation; God is in us and we are in God. For the Christian, Fr Bede says, this integration is lived out in human relationships. Oneness with God leads to oneness with others. Jesus prayed in the spirit to his Father; “I in them and you in me, may they be completely one.” Like John Main, Fr Bede sees the nonduality of the trinity through analogy to the interpersonal

T

his book is important for Oblates of WCCM because of

communion that it makes possible: “I think that love is the

its subject, its occasion and its author. As to subject the

key. In love, there are two, and each has to go beyond the

first two chapters speak for themselves: ‘The Monastic Ideal

other. They have to transcend their differences and meet at

According to John Main’ and ‘The Extension of the Monastic

the point where they become one.”

Ideal to the Laity’ and goes on to look at ‘The Future of

Fr Bede and John Main met a couple of times and, as

the Contemplative Life in the Church’. He encourages the

Fr Laurence says in this introduction to the book, the

growth of small lay communities and meditation groups

fruit of those meetings was a sense of joy and laughter.

drawing from monastic wisdom but independent, recovering

Here were two very different people, whose monastic

the simplicity of the early church. As to the occasion the

journeys took them away from England (no prophet is

book is an edited transcript of the talks given by Fr Bede

accepted in their own household?) in opposite directions

at the 1991 John Main Seminar in New Harmony, Indiana

and yet they discovered the same thing. As Oblates of The

where, as Fr Laurence explains in his Introduction, WCCM

World Community for Christian Meditation, in all parts of

took “its first form and structure”. If John Main can be

the world, we are heirs of their wisdom. As a foundation

seen as the founding father of WCCM Fr Bede was its God-

document ‘New Creation in Christ’ reminds us of our

father at this moment of naming and orientation. As to the

commitment as Oblates to study John Main’s teaching and

author Fr Bede was a Benedictine monk who witnessed to a

the monastic tradition from which it comes so as to serve

contemplative meeting, even marriage, of East and West.

the unity of all. It still challenges us today to try to realise

In these talks he highlights the influence another monastic

that vision through the openness and hospitality of our

prophet had on his integrative vision. From the beginning

meditation groups and the community of our Oblate cells.

this book is rightly generous in its appreciation of John

Alongside the book are the original tapes and CD’s of the

Main.

John Main Seminar which are available and bring to life

For these reasons it is a book worth returning to many

Fr Bede’s inimitable charm, his humility and his humour.

times and is in many ways a sequel to ‘Monastery Without

Either as Audio or as Lectio these are the conferences of a

Walls’ as a description of how WCCM developed from the

founding father of a community and vision to which we are

teaching on meditation John Main rediscovered. Fr Bede

continually recommitted in our daily meditation.

was a scholar and a mystic which can be seen in his careful study of John Main’s teaching. He was also a prophet who

STEFAN REYNOLDS, UK

saw the contemplative renewal within the church coming

stefandreynolds@yahoo.co.uk 14


A WAY IN THE WILDERNESS, James Bishop

I recommend one with a dated daily reading of the Rule to encourage this good habit. You may know or work with prisoners who would find a

I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.

sympathetic insight to Benedict’s Rule and its application

Isaiah 43:19

to prison life. You may be feeling somewhat imprisoned yourself, perhaps by busy schedules, work, or just by all that life tends to throw our way. Whatever your circumstances, I invite you to journey with me. It will not be a journey of escape, for no growth comes from escapes. Rather, I have found a path forged by St Benedict, a “way” to live while we are in our wildernesses. I invite you to join me on this way in the wilderness.

JAMES BISHOP

jamesbishop@mannex.com

MANIFESTING IN FORM, Eileen O’Hea Final writings and poems 1994-2005

T

he room spun, and I reached a sweaty hand toward the table in front of me, attempting to steady myself. The

gavel struck. I had expected to hear a deep echo, the echo you hear in the movies when the judge’s gavel exclaims the finality of judgment. There was no echo. There was only a dead thud, muted in the same way as my expectations of a last-minute miracle. I was sentenced to twelve years in prison, and with good

E

behavior I would serve at least ten of those years. I sat in

ileen’s writings capture the distilled wisdom of a woman

my cell afterward thinking about what I would do with all

who has been seeking God all her life and who had

that time, and still somewhat flummoxed that God had

come to know the God who was also seeking her within her

failed to provide a miracle.

seeking …

But God had provided a miracle, and the miracle was the

Her last writings possess the clarity, precision, even

decade I would spend in prison.

terseness of a teacher skilled at her craft. They carry that

I was introduced to the Rule of Saint Benedict at the

sweet pain that truth cuts us with as it slices through old

end of my first year in prison. I fell in love with it almost

fixed patterns, melts down comfortable self-deceptions,

immediately, and saw great depth and insight. The parallels

and opens us to the wonderful formlessness of the real.

of prison life and monastic life were striking, but as I

They also have that radical refreshing humility of a genuine

learned to live the Rule as best I could under those harsh

teacher who is in passionate love with the truth, not her

circumstances, I was experiencing tremendous personal

reputation.

LAURENCE FREEMAN

growth. When I was released from prison ten years later, I continued applying the Rule to my daily life, and found it to be replete with lessons for personal growth in “normal”

To receive the love of a friend, husband, wife, or any person – or even a pet – is to know the experience of Divine Love. All is one. Love of God and love of neighbour are not separate realities.

daily life. “A Way in the Wilderness” is not simply a commentary on the Rule of Benedict. Rather, it is a guide to using the Rule to help us through our own wildernesses in life. I draw from experience in prison and from my own life outside of prison. I also include basic instructions of daily meditation. Though some of the content is based on prison experience, it is intended also for “the rest of us” who live in prisons of our own constructions. The full text of the Rule is

EILEEN O’HEA

included and I read several different translations of the

Manifesting in Form: Last writings and poems 1994-2005

Rule of St Benedict. Each one was useful and helpful, but 15


MONTE OLIVETO RETREAT 9-16 June 2012

THE BOOK OF THE HEART STAGES OF CONTEMPLATION

JOHN MAIN SEMINAR

SPIRITUALITY & ENVIRONMENT 16-19 August 2012 INDAIATUBA/SP, BRAZIL with LEONARDO BOFF, FREI BETTO OP, LAURENCE FREEMAN OSB

T

T

change and development. But we need a sense of the

world and those wishing to discover the practice.

he essential nature of the human journey is like meditation: it cannot be analysed or measured. Ends

and beginnings meet and cycles of growth make for fresh journey and its main stages in order to make meaning of our lives and to endure their dark nights. The theme of this year’s Monte Oliveto retreat explores how we can perceive what is happening on the inner journey and how this can bring us to self-knowledge, true personal freedom and the confidence to love.

he John Main Seminar is an annual event designed to broaden and deepen the teaching of Christian

Meditation. It brings together meditators from around the

PRE-SEMINAR RETREAT BE WHO YOU ARE Led by Laurence Freeman 13-16 August The Christian understanding of Jesus as the Word made flesh transforms the way we see our own humanity and also the natural world we are part of. "Nothing that is not against nature is against Christ" (Clement of Alexandria)— this liberating insight has to be more courageously embraced in our own time so that the mystery of Christ can become fully transformative. But this is not only a theological project. It begins—and finds its culmination— at the deeply personal level of experience. And this is why meditation inour own tradition is such a blessing and necessity—it opens us to the mystery of the inner Christ and to the cosmic Christ simultaneously. Our daily meditation

Jamb figure of Abraham, with head turned hearing God's message North Transept Central Portal, Chartres Cathedral

leads us to self-knowledge and also gives us new words with which to understand and communicate the Word itself.

Using traditional imagery such as the Ars Contemplativa figures at Chartres Cathedral as well as contemporary psychological insights Fr Laurence’s talks—together with the unique atmosphere of beauty, peace, silence and

Bookings and further info: www.johnmainseminar2012.com www.wccm.org

community which have come to characterise the Monte Oliveto annual retreat—present a special opportunity to grow in wisdom and peace by understanding what the journey of our life is and what it means. Bookings and further info: www.wccm.org

NATIONAL OBLATE CO-ORDINATORS USA: Mary Robison, maryrobison@mac.com UK: Eileen Dutt, eileendutt@yahoo.co.uk NEW ZEALAND: Hugh McLaughlin, hungnz1916@yahoo.com

VIA VITAE, No. 14, December 2011 EDITOR:

Trish Panton PO Box 555 Pennant Hills, NSW Australia 1715 Tel: +61 2 9489 1780 Mobile: +61 409 941 605 Email: pantonamdg@ozemail.com.au

GRAPHIC DESIGN: Alexandra Irini, Australia

ITALY: Giovanni Foffano, foffano@libero.it IRELAND: Rowena O’Sullivan, rowenaos@gmail.com CANADA: Polly Schofield, wccm.oblates@bell.net BRAZIL: Marcelo Melgares, marcelomelgares@yahoo.com.br AUSTRALIA and INTERNATIONAL: Trish Panton, pantonamdg@ozemail.com.au


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