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One of Love’s Ways

Monastic life has always been about the way of the heart.  And the balance, so dear to our teacher and master, St. Benedict, is between the heart and the mind.  That is why the Benedictine Life is a “way” and not a “nest.”  In fact, the monastic archetype in the human psyche, according to the Rule of St. Benedict, is understood as “seeking God.”  And as we seek God, we find ourselves on the way to the heart of God, through the hearts of our brothers and sisters, because we are a coenobitic community.

In the monastery, we find ourselves living in a laboratory of the spirit.  There, we learn to pray and work. We also find out who we are when we are in touch with God through Jesus Christ.  We understand more about life, death and neighbors.  That, perhaps, explains the keen interest that we monastics have with regards to diagnosing the “soul-life.”  Our gaze is a deep heartful desire to know, love and serve the other. In this, there is nothing manipulative in the monk’s relationship with the other. 

Our monastic life starts with a vision of love and a hope for charitable success.  Our desire is to see one another in touch with God in Christ.  We try to heal through the action of solidarity and not by condemnation.  The human heart is made by and for the love of God, and we are drawn deeper into love’s longing by love itself.   

A healthy monastery is one that seeks to stay connected with God by seeking to connect others with God.  And a monastery that is truly a community of seekers will be a monastery that will have something beautiful, truthful and loving to say to the world.  Love is what makes the monastery a fearless community, a place where God can be discovered.

The sorrow that takes hold of the heart of the monk is to see that so many monasteries have closed for the lack of vocations.  We also know that today, many monastics continue to live without quite knowing why or how their life should relate to the wider Church or to the wider world.  Is it that our hearts have grown cold and have withered?  Have we lost the very sense of who we are, what we are, and why the Tremendous Lover called us to a place where “God happens?”  Are we no longer in contact with the monastic archetype?

The way of the heart, so beautifully taught to us by St. Benedict in his Rule, should warn us about the inevitable loss that the world, the Church, and we ourselves would suffer without the monastic life.  Have we not touched and experienced the ultimate paradox, the “finite” made for the “infinite”, in that we all have an ontological hunger for God; and only God can satisfy that hunger?  And so, what is our answer?  Are we going to let these seekers down by offering them less than what they really need, namely God? 

What is needed in monastic life today is a compassionate heart, a heart that is on fire for the whole of creation, for all of humanity, and for all that exists. Our renewal should be focused on the way of the heart.  And we should be teaching one another this deep mercy of the heart. 

When the monastics talk about their experience in the monastery, it is not just for the monks or the nuns, but for all who are seeking.  Monastic teachings are universal in scope.  They are addressed not just to the desert, but to the city.  It is love, and the experience of love, that allows them to speak with sharp vividness about themes that are relevant to every human being.  They speak about repentance and humility, about prayer in its many forms, both outer and inner, about solitude and community, about silence, wonder and ecstasy.  The love that monastics share is truly a luminous love. 

The closing up of many of our monasteries and the lack of vocations may, in fact, possibly be the scourge of love.  Nothing but love is believable; and perhaps, that explains so much unhappiness in many monasteries that continue to exist. The love of God is an intolerable torment for those who have not acquired it within themselves.

Abbot Christopher OSB oliv