Silence is spoken here.
                           
The Pecos Benedictine
“Poustinia Experience”

The Pecos Benedictine Monastery of “Our Lady of Guadelupe” in Pecos NM has begun a program to open our monastic “Poustinia Experience” to our retreatants.

“The Poustinia Experience” is a deep hermit-type form of contemplation, for those seeking the Christian Oneness with the Holy Trinity in the “warm Silence of God”.

It was brought to this country by Catherine Doherty, and described in her book “Poustinia”. Catherine was raised in Christian Russia, and emigrated to the Western Hemisphere. She has shared her experience of Poustinia with the West, especially at Madonna House near Toronto in Canada. Through her book, many have found the experience of Poustinia compelling and spiritually fulfilling.

The Pecos Benedictine Monastery has decided to bring this “Poustinia Experience” to its monks and nuns, to aid them in their silent monastic contemplation. We are utilizing our former retreat hermitages for this purpose, with our resident “Poustinik” for spiritual guidance to facilitate this program.

WHAT IS “THE POUSTINIA EXPERIENCE” ?

The Poustinia, which in Russian means “desert” (as for “the Desert Fathers”), is a hermitage-like dwelling “Where Heaven meets earth”: A quiet, isolated, secluded, solitude on our monastic grounds.

The Poustinik (one who lives alone in the Poustinia) for four to thirty days, can be anyone:

  • A man or woman
  • From any social strata
  • Learned or unlearned
  • A lay person
  • A consecrated person (clergy or religious)
  • Of any age, generally over 20;

Who is inspired by God “to arise, seek and enter into God in the Poustinia”, and so is willing to Experience Holy Poverty:

  • Leaving people and worldly things behind, while in Poustinia,
  • Wearing simple clothing
  • Go into the Poustinia “desert” to:
  • Be alone with God (but not “lonely”), 
  • Enter the Great Silence of God,
  • Be in silence with God, and
  • Listen to God speak to him/her;

Enter into kenosis:

  • Emptying the “self” of the “world”, the “flesh”, and the devil;                   
  • Pray to God:
  • In repentance for one’s sins and those of the world,
  • To intercede for his community’s and the world’s needs,
  • To thank God for His abundant blessings, and
  • To praise and worship God for His Divine attributes;
  • Atone for sin’s offenses against a Loving God with:
  • Fasting and Mortification of the flesh;

On entering the Poustinia, the Poustinik will:

  • Enter the “novitiate of God’s Love”;
  • Learn to know Who God is directly;
  • Let God reveal Himself in a rare fullness;
  • Counter through/in God’s Wisdom the world’s defects in intellectualism;
  • Be alone physically with God;
  • Empty both mind and soul of all relationships;
  • Receive back those relationships in the deeper dimension of God’s Love;
  • Learn how “to care and not to care”: carrying loved ones in the heart;
  • Meet and listen to the speech of the Blessed Trinity;
  • Live with and love the whole of humanity in the Hearts of Jesus and Mary;
  • Pray, weep, endure all desert temptations;
  • Mortify the flesh, for mankind;
  • Hunger for and seek God, as a pilgrim of the Absolute: God; and
  • Meet the Word in the Warm Silence of God.

The Poustinia Prayer allows the Poustinik to:

  • Stay in the Presence of God;
  • Just BE with God and listen;
  • Contemplate the Words that God gives;       
  • (Using meditative and mental prayer prevents one from “listening attentively” for the Lord to reveal His Word directly.)

Use:

  • The Jesus Prayer (as in “The Way of the Pilgrim”):
  • “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, have mercy on me a sinner.”;
  • Other short inspired prayers ( as in “Monastic Practices”);
  • Contemplative Love (as in “The Cloud of Unknowing”), thereby to maintain the “loving attentiveness” to God, as John of the Cross.

The first day you enter the Poustinia, you will receive spiritual direction, and orientation about the “Poustinia Experience”. Our Poustinik will be available to offer spiritual guidance throughout your experience. Since we have only three Poustinia at this time, we suggest those interested call us well in advance for their reservations. The “Poustinia Experience” can be of varying lengths, ranging from four to thirty days. The rate for our experiences will be $80/night, which includes lodging in your Poustinia, your food, daily spiritual guidance, and the book, “Poustinia” by Catherine Doherty.

Approaching the Poustinia: GUIDELINES:

  • The Poustinia is a place where you are going to meet Christ in joyful
  • solitude.
  • Be not afraid, for Christ is Perfect Love, and Perfect Love casts out fear.
  • The Poustinia is a prayer house which you enter to be alone with God.
  • The only reading book that should be in the Poustinia is the Bible which, many Poustiniki read on their knees.
  • Since the Lord furnishes the Poustinik with insights, it is advisable to bring journaling materials to facilitate your “Poustinia Experience”.
  • The Poustinia is also a place of penance, where “one lifts the two arms of prayer and penance”.
  • When you go into the Poustinia, you will be given the foods that allow you to fast as you can, not as you can’t. Some may take only bread, coffee/tea. Some may take grains, nuts, fruit, vegetables, and/or meatless protein foods with coffee/tea or some non-alcoholic      beverage. Your spiritual director will help you discern the best and safest foods for your physical condition.
  • You will be furnished with a spiritual director to help you with basic instruction and on-going direction before and during your “Poustinia Experience”.
  • The Poustinia is also a place of poverty, so the furnishings are generally, a bed, desk and upright chair, one easy chair, dresser, a kitchenette with necessary cooking and eating utensils, and a bathroom with a shower.
  • The Poustinik, in the spirit of poverty, brings only a change of simple clothing and a minimal number of items for personal hygiene.
  • Since God expressed Himself in nature, the Poustinik may want to bring also appropriate clothing and shoes for walking or hiking.
  • Since The Pecos “Poustinia Experience” is in our monastic setting, the Poustiniki may avail themselves of any of the monastic prayer that will not disrupt their attention to the Silence of God. Attendance at Daily Mass can be particularly helpful for “Touching God“.      
  • Above all be at peace, because you enter with Christ into His solitude and peace.

 

For reservations contact
Gertrude, Sister Oblate OSB
505-757-6415 Ext. 234
E-mail: spiritdir@pecosmonastery.org

or write:

“The Pecos Benedictine Poustinia Experience”
Pecos Benedictine Monastery
P. O. Box 1080
Pecos, NM 97552