Monastic Living in Ordinary Time
“Liturgically speaking, you could hardly find a better time to become a monk than Advent”
-Thomas Merton, Seven Storey Mountain
We, the community members of the Abbey of Mary Mother of the Redeemer, began unpacking our boxes of books (many, many books) and other belongings and settling into our new home during the octave of Pentecost. We opened our chapel doors and began praying the Office with the hope of visitors immediately after Trinity Sunday. Now we are in the season after Pentecost, affectionately (and by some people not so affectionately) referred to as “Ordinary Time”. This season takes up quite a bit of our liturgical calendar and yet it doesn’t really get its due in my opinion. I happen to love Ordinary Time because without the anticipation we experience during Advent and Lent we are forced to slow down and look for God in the everyday occurrences of our lives. That should be easy living in a monastery, right? It still requires work on our part and lots of grace from the Holy Spirit. Each office is not going to be as moving as the Paschal Vigil, but we still show up and pray the Psalter every day (sometimes through yawns). Every meal is not going to resemble a Christmas feast and yet each one is worthy to be blessed and shared together. The quotidian details of monastic living are what enable us to live into our vocation. Normally I would never contradict Thomas Merton but when reading the above quote, I found myself wondering if the unsung season of Ordinary Time might not be more conducive to the stability that monks strive for.
What does being a monk in Ordinary Time look like here at the Abbey you might wonder? It looks like three sleepy people on a Tuesday morning forgetting to greet each other silently before a chapter meeting. You might catch me trying not to disturb the Abbot while he prays silently in the morning because I forgot to set up for Mass the night before. We may be laughing and sharing ice cream in the refectory (sorry St Benedict!) or crying in the chapel. We may be found kneeling before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament or with our noses buried in books on a train bound for Chicago (probably to buy more books). Since we have been here, we’ve celebrated the feasts of more than a few martyrs. We remember the sacrifices that they made and while none of us will probably be killed for our faith, we are reminded that we are called to daily die to ourselves. We attempt to abandon our own individual wills and strive to live in obedience to the Rule and to the Abbot. We listen for ways that God may be speaking to us through each other. By living together and worshiping together we learn patience and charity. I have contributed to Father Rob and Sister Debbi’s growth in sanctity personally by cooking a few meals for them, thereby giving them the chance to practice forgiveness. Who knew quinoa could be a path to holiness?
What will the future look like for the Abbey of Mary, Mother of the Redeemer? In just a few months the vestments worn at the altar will change from green to purple and we will experience our first Advent/Christmas here. We are talking about ways that we could prepare for guests. Sister Debbi has already performed a minor miracle in the cleaning of the basement bathroom that may one day be used by retreatants. We are thinking of adjustments that will need to be made if we have a postulant come to live in the Abbey (hopefully they will like quinoa). We are grateful for the chance to live and worship together and are excited to see what the Holy Spirit has in store for the future.
--Brother Joseph Mary Ignatius Miller, CMMR
