Category: SolitaryLife

Day 674: “to wait …”

It is complex to attempt to distil his teaching as so much of it was an exploration, a moving towards, rather than a fixed position or theology. He believed in the work of the Holy Spirit and that the work of the contemplative was not to seek what he or she asked of God but rather to wait upon God. The monk or nun could only rid themselves of distractions and obstacles which interfere with the bestowal of spiritual gifts from God, not seek the gifts for themselves. It was this sense of patience and humility that flowed through William’s witness and made him so authentic to those who met him. He was not putting forward a spiritual plan or teaching others a technique of prayer. He advised and encouraged the clearing away of the emotional and spiritual debris that cluttered the individual soul, this being achieved through a path of repentance and forgiveness; then to await the gifts of God through prayer and silence. It was a challenging path, yet a simple one in its approach unhampered by mystical complexity.

Father William’s Baton, by Peta Dunstan, in Stephen Platten. Oneness: The Dynamics of Monasticism . SCM Press.

I am a little “aimless” at the moment. (Not to be confused with “harmless” which I am all the time.) I have dipped in and out of various books without much purpose. I found the above and thought it was worth sharing. “To get ready to wait on God”.

The Anchorage

Daily writing prompt
What do you love about where you live?
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I live in a place that is named, “The Anchorage”. And the short answer is, “I love everything about this place”. The location is great, the house is the right size for me, it is the right “style”, and I feel called to live there. This house has a place for my books and a special place where I pray. It is close enough to everything that I do not need to drive but can walk.

The longer answer: I think (hmmm?!) I have a vocation to the “enclosed solitary life”. That is, I live my vocation in one place. Enclosure can be understood very legalisticly – a border that I cannot cross. Or it can be understood as the place where a vocation is. This house is my vocation. And I love that!!!! I do not need to go outside to fulfil my vocation – my vocation is not elsewhere. I am called to be here.

2 s

What brings you peace?

Solitude and silence. Not the absence of people or noise. But openness to presence and a willingness to listen.

I have created (with the help of faithful friends) a context in which I can live this peace. So the context – the place – is the real source of my peace. I feel called to a place. I feel the absence of this place.

Anyway …

Day 658 – to be forgotten

I am a fan of reader-response in literary theory. So when I saw this quote, it made me think:

I am not sure if the quote is actually from Zinzendorf. Yet, for me, the last part spoke to me. I am willing to be forgotten!? Or, another way, “you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3).

It is one thing to speak about “hiddenness” and think about the anonymity of the solitary life. But am I prepared for the consequences?

No easy answers. But a desire for Jesus alone! Anyway …

Day 652 – ‘… economy of the Holy Ghost’

The contribution which stands out, however, as one reads the debate a century later, came from Charles Grafton, Bishop of Fond du Lac in the USA, the only bishop present who had been a member of a community. He made three important points. First, he believed Religious Life was a vocation and should be treated as such. Second, it did not belong, as priesthood did, to the corporate life of the Church, but instead belonged ‘to the economy of the Holy Ghost’. Obedience to a Religious superior was a voluntary action of love, not the result of the legislative action of the Church. Unlike ‘the fixity of ministerial orders’ then, he believed the work of the Holy Ghost in the call of Religious Life manifested itself in a variety of different forms. Bishops had to trust this call to have a corrective power in itself. Third, he reminded the Conference that in Religious, bishops were dealing with ‘special devotional temperaments’ that could be ‘personally emotional’ about small matters of worship. A high-handed approach would not therefore be advisable. He went on to echo the arguments put forward in Father Puller’s paper, and concluded by suggesting bishops should regulate communities only in relation to property, financial donations and insisting on communities’ having sound government.

Petà Dunstan, Bishops and Religious 1897-1914

rise

Daily writing prompt
Describe one habit that brings you joy.
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This may sound a little strange – and, well, it is. I like to get up early. I mean really early. Currently, my alarm is set for 4:30 am. Often I am awake before it.

Why so early? I have found that it offers me time for mental prayer. And it provides me silence. I have a cup of tea in darkness without the possibility of interruption. I say Morning Prayer at 5:30 am and listen to the 6:00 am ABC News. And then my day starts!

It is something to which I look forward. It is a habit that brings me much joy.

Day 635 – “abstraction”

One of my favourite Kierkegaard quotes relates to levelling and the power of abstraction:

… leveling is an abstract power and is abstraction’s victory over individuals.

Two Ages: The Age of Revolution and the Present Age A Literary Review, 84

The parish is in a period of transition – moving to welcoming a new vicar. I struggle with change so it is a time of anxiety. And my brain likes to play the “what if” game.

In that context, I was thinking about how I would explain my life. I tried, with little success, to write a rule in the form of a letter like the anchorite guidance literature. Also, I tried to collect Scripture verses to illustrate various precedents. One issue surrounding the solitary life is its very nature: an individual living an individual life. Yes, there is a historical precedent. But, like Lessing, there is an “ugly ditch” between the precedent and the lived experience.

So the first lesson is that maybe I simply need to live. My greatest battle is to surrender the desire (the motivation for my actions) to be accepted and loved. If I live for Jesus alone, I should seek all good things from Him alone! And then, restored and refreshed, I can love my neighbour without seeking something in return. (I am some distance away.)

Is any attempt to define, to abstract this life, really a desire to be admired as a spiritual hero?

Second lesson: my lived experience is beyond abstraction. Perhaps the whole point of the solitary life is a life dedicated to Jesus without further abstraction? Maybe real life is lived in the space beyond definition? A personal relationship is as individual as the persons involved. While there may be common elements, these do not define the relationship.

Just some random thoughts! Anyway …

Day 627 – reform


All go without trousers and lambskins. They abstain from the eating of fat and meat… They have a care for silence all the time and wear no dyed clothing. They work with their own hands to provide food and clothing for themselves. They fast from 13 September until Easter, except on Sundays. They bar their entrances and allow no access to the interior [of the monastery]… By their own work they have founded monasteries in deserts and wooded places.

Ordericus Vitalis on the Cistercian life.

“Go without trousers”? So glad there was a habit for them to wear.