RATE COMPONENTS OF LIFE OF OUR COMMUNITY
most notable components of the rhythm of monastic life as practiced in this community:
THE monastic office (communal prayer)
"We believe that God is present everywhere ... but above all we must believe without hesitation when we attend to the Divine Office" (Rule of St. Benito 19, 1-2).
This conviction, and the Lord's invitation to "pray always and not lose heart", mark the rhythm of prayer and praise in the monastic community. Along with the effort to continually pray and spend all day in the presence of God, are of fundamental importance to the various moments in the liturgical prayer community (recitation and meditation the Psalms and other pieces of Scripture) and the daily Eucharist is undoubtedly the center of the day.
lectio divina (personal prayer)
"... at certain times should the monks engage in lectio divina" (RB 48.1).
important part of each day is devoted to reading, meditation, prayer and contemplation of the Word of God in the so-called lectio divina (reading of God). During this time the monk discovers the voice of Christ speaks in a special way in the Scriptures, nurturing it for their own personal prayer.
WORK
"At certain times the monks should engage in manual labor" (RB 48.1). Occupations materials are also a fundamental element in the search for God: "Well you are truly monks when they live the work of their hands as our fathers and the apostles" (RB 48, 8). To cooperate with God in the creative work and to meet their maintenance, the monks are engaged during certain times of day to work as community needs and talents of each. Several
Monastery resources and facilities are available for workshops, retreats and more. Offers spiritual direction and guidance to those who request it. As guests receive all who wish to experience spiritual depth in whole or in part by accompanying its rate monastic life. Religious, priests and lay people visit and enjoy the beautiful area where the monastery to take a break in their activities and renew their commitment to life.
liturgical prayer, lectio and work oriented entirely to the search for God, require an enabling environment for the permanent attitude of listening and dialogue He and permanent healthy distance from the distractions and noises of the world. That is why the withdrawal have central importance, moments of solitude and silence.
Similarly, as a great help to live the fraternity of which they are the monastic family, to persevere in prayer, and also as a requirement for the availability and the reception of brothers out, stability in the community (and in the monastery) is a fundamental element of Benedictine life and one of the strongest features of monastic life.
Also, obedience and conversion of manners (which are included poverty and chastity), are essential to this lifestyle consecrated. Stability, obedience and conversion of manners are the votes that a person must profess to join the community as a monk. These votes are understood and lived as an attempt to shape their lives radically the life of Christ.
THE OFFICE
We
MONASTERY, monks, that nothing we love more than Christ and willingly obey wish to follow him more closely, we try to have a free heart, available, thanks to the silence and humility, we are, or would like to be a "bards" God, men (...) that make their lives a praise, intercession, thanksgiving to his Maker uninterrupted.
Since San Benito concludes his chapter on humility, putting the humble monk under the influence of the Spirit of love, long organization dedicated to the Divine Office (Chapters VIII-XII). You can give the impression that he waited to have the house in order and have taught his disciples the essentials of life, to get to work with the first and most important occupation of their children: the Opus Dei, the liturgical prayer community .
The San Benito expression that refers to the Liturgy of the Hours has expressed, through the centuries, the fullness of its meaning. Celebrating the Work of God, is to surrender unconditionally to the work of purification and sanctification that is the same God through Christ and by His Spirit, and give a faithful response through praise and prayer. The Opus Dei, is a joint effort of God and the community gathered by and for him it is the most complete exercise, here on earth, Alliance [us] unites Christ and, through him, the Father.
certainly the highlight of the prayer of the monks, and also of the Church, are the Psalms, those poems sung to offer to God all that man can live in the anguish of abandonment, a cry of thanksgiving, or anger to joy serene. Over the days, weeks and years, the monks chanting permeates sense and taste for God. Dom Guéranger recommended the young monks: They will love the psalms, which were the daily food of the saints of our order, convinced that if they could use them in a familiar way, would have advanced to the safe path that leads to contemplation.
And in the same sense, referring to the Fathers of the Church, Dom Guéranger writes in the Preface of the Liturgical Year: These holy doctors of the early centuries: Where did light and fire that permeate his writings, if not the long hours of Psalmody, during which the simple truth and varied continuously passed before the eyes of his soul, flooding it with light and love?
In the short chapter XIX, San Benito merely remind us of God's presence in the office, chanted at the Divine Majesty, in the company of angels, and appeals to our faith, as it did at the beginning of chapter on humility (it seems that after a dozen chapters devoted to the organization of the office, back to the ultimate disposition is humility).
A double attitude should characterize us in the choir, the nobility and humility. Nobility that emerges from a sense of the majesty of God that we celebrate in the office, and humility of each monk, lovingly aware of his condition as creature and sinner forgiven, of beloved son, but able to leave the parental home. The hours spent chanting would-have-to make our appearance necessarily interior: The Office is sacred must be done with humility, seriousness and respect.
About the Divine Office, San Benito again emphasizes humility and the fundamental principle of the rule to prefer nothing to the love of Christ. And when you start the chapter dedicated to those who arrive late to the Office, recommended to his own monks to leave everything at hand, as soon as they heard the signal and go with greater haste, because he continues, nothing is preferred to the Work of God (v. 3).
If anything we have of putting the love of Christ, if anything we prefer the Divine Office, is that there is a mysterious identity between Christ and the Divine Office. And we know, in fact, that the Liturgy of the Hours is the prayer of the Church, whose head is Christ, and that he is a unity, and this is even true in the Eucharistic liturgy.
Monks, spent several hours each day chanting, we will continue to lend our voice to the Church, the Son with the Father in the Spirit. This is the reason why love the Office and the love of Christ are so intimately united with us, the children of San Benito, until the moment when, as a condition sine qua non condition for the monk's loving concern for the Work of God, a sure way to look for really humble and obedient.
Perhaps we could ask: how can we live the liturgical prayer? What could we do to participate in a full, vital?
no compounding or techniques. The simplicity of the RB in this respect we are a good lesson. We will live faithfully our community prayer liturgy, penetrate into it by the fidelity of a lifetime. The first sentence of chapter XIX: THE ATTITUDE IN THE PSALMODY, joins the first degree of humility, to put it another way, our life of faith: Faith tells us that God is present everywhere.
A first consequence: the liturgical life is inseparable from the rest of our lives. It becomes its expression. The liturgy is not reality itself. What exists, what is life, is a community that wants to build on faith, you want to open to the action of God who wants to work in his project of love for humanity. The community is what has to be God's Work, Opus Dei, built in a particular place, as is built where it meets a group of people in Jesus' name. This work is done in our monasteries across all human realities, even the most banal and concrete in and through which a community is built. This work is at the level of spirits and hearts. In the Liturgy, is manifested and expressed in common in our confession of faith: board recognized by the action of the grace of God's love, always forward, and let us out of our deepest wishes, on behalf of itself and of the other brothers not put any limit to this word, and committing to follow Christ. In this sense, in which the service may be called God's work, because it reveals what each of us carry at the bottom of our hearts.
The second consequence: the liturgical life is the expression of community life with its ups and downs, its moments of wealth and difficult times, their flowering seasons and seasons of weariness. Seven times a day three hundred sixty-five days per year, our communities are shown as they are before God, to themselves and to others. The faithful who attend our celebrations may wish to always find a fervor decayese not ever. Probably find it hard to understand that after a day of work, community or difficulty, there are weaknesses, amusements, let nervousness which betrayed the choir. This is a test of sincerity that can be difficult to overcome, but it connects with the path of humility described in Chapter VII. You can avoid the temptation to corner this test. You can find ways to hide weaknesses, but sooner or later we must face the reality, ours, our community, which says it is.
What should never miss is the personal attitude of each monk (...), worship, intercession, thanksgiving ... on behalf of itself and also for those who do not know, can not or do not want to worship, intercede or thanks. It is our duty and our "supply" loving.
The third consequence is that the liturgy is prepared from the whole of our life. Liturgy and life are not watertight compartments, but communicating vessels. Whatever the liturgical reforms, there must always be a harmonic proportion, both at the individual and communal, between the place reserved for worship and to give other values \u200b\u200bof our life of faith: lectio divina, personal prayer, silence, the effort to combat the spread, labor, fraternal relations. Without this harmony and balance, all necessary reform efforts will be futile, or that they try to move from Latin to Castilian or Catalan, taking melodies Byzantine or inventing juggling to enrich the Office.
What is certain is that participation in the liturgy requires a special provision, an effort of attention, an explicit act of faith, put into action our whole being and to do so in a conscious and sincere.
If we believe that the liturgy is an expression of faith in our community, will also be the crucible in which the community is a common spirit: in the liturgy we pray as members of a community, but each member of us must grow spiritually through that prayer, as we make our community prayer. This is not one to be present "by obligation ", but to unite our spirit to that of our brothers to listen to the Spirit in the community.
Each one of us "is" in the Divine Office in the METER that "provides", and this is true for any joint work, also for the liturgy.
A remote preparation necessary for liturgical prayer: study, read and enjoy the Scripture, Psalms, etc.: Rule explicitly provides for it, even in very material details ... so they rest just over half night and get up and rested. The time remaining after the vigils, which used the brothers in need of it in the study of the Psalter and the readings. This preparation has to be underlined in particular where the monk takes his first steps in the monastery, and always continued throughout his life. This would impact the Divine Office and lectio divina. But there is also a more immediate preparation, both from the point of view of the same sentence (books, pages, etc ...) and what relates to personal dispositions (meditation, silence, etc.).. In community life we \u200b\u200bare always supportive or unsupportive each other, because we favor or spoil the environment at that level. Also, each one is responsible for his own attitude, so God help us to judge too fast the attitudes of others ...! There are too many factors at play that we can escape. May our spirit
consistent with our voice, this phrase of St. Augustine, contained in the conciliar Constitution on the Liturgy, is one of the major purposes of the liturgical reform: it is necessary that the faithful approach the sacred liturgy with available straight of mind, put your soul in tune with his voice and work with divine grace to not receive it in vain (Sacrosanctum Concilium, 11).
is the spirit (mens), not just the mind or thought, but obviously we need an effort to keep attention the meaning of words spoken or gestures made. In this area, each person pays tribute to his temperament and must do whatever possible in order to develop the child's attention span. But liturgical prayer has not become a concern. Community Being by nature, can be adapted at any time, to each person. It is also impossible not to be persecuted, even during the Occupation, by the thousand concerns and projects that form the fabric of our lives. The grace of God can fill these gaps, but not always done in a sensitive manner.
The spirit we seek and find beyond our thoughts or our imagination, at heart level, and I have taken that word in a sentimental, but in the biblical sense, ie at the level of our desires and decisions.
When we pray and sing in the Office "match the wishes and decisions throughout the day? Are we going to the choir with the right heart (not always want to say "pure" or "without fault"), willing to engage, or are we going from inertia, without much conviction? Our spirit will agree with our voices if there is a genuine and profound harmony between our lives, what we are and what we are not capable of being, our soul searching, and we worship and praise Mystery in the office, beyond words. But also in spirit, the liturgy is an action that encompasses our whole being at certain times of day.
need, therefore, time is the work of a lifetime. The community has a certain freedom to organize that time: a combination of hours, duration, etc. depending on the circumstances or age. But once adopted specific provisions, it is up to everyone to participate with our whole being in the office. The Rule of St. Benedict intransigent as regards this participation, and considers the place par excellence of the community meeting. Even in the case of late arrival, expected to Brothers unite, as far as possible to the community in prayer (XLIII). The reasons invoked by the rule are not as obsolete as it might seem at first sight. We are of the same clay that our predecessors in the monastic life, simply reading or television have replaced other "distractions." But the major reason is the belief in the Spirit that is there where the community is gathered.
However, as it always does, after asserting a fundamental value upon which rests the community, the Rule provides that life will impose their laws and require certain commitments. Yes, the whole community must be gathered to pray the Divine Office, however, at the end of each hour will always absent memory of the brothers, and may often have: Chapter L provides for work and others that require the monk to remain outside the community . Health reasons, age prevented, sometimes, a brother to attend the choir. I think what matters is to maintain transparency with oneself and with others. Our personal involvement in the office can be a real test of our involvement in community life. It could also be an opportunity to question our brothers in the community, never judge, on whether or not regular participation.
Benedictine Rule is also insistent on the accuracy of the Work of God. This accuracy is a sign of the provisions with which we go to prayer. Hard to leave several times a day, often at times that would be favorable, a work that urges us on. It is always a great temptation to gain a few minutes. This availability is also an act of faith and a necessary condition for us to increase the taste for prayer. San Benito
still talking about other requirements regarding the Eid prayer, the responsibility of those who have a particular request. Whether the summons to the community with a sign, or who have a role in the liturgical celebration every do so with humility, seriousness and respect, no one will dare to sing and read, but one that can fulfill this office so as to edify the listeners. All are not suitable for all - thank God - especially in our time, so given to the majors. Liturgy requires many talents and gifts. The goodwill alone is not enough, nor faith ... Each of us must simply recognize what it does, and what does not work and stay in peace. Fortunately we are not alone who decide, perhaps in some cases unfortunately, "but relying on the opinion of our brethren, especially those responsible.
(From Monks to the third book Millennium, written by Cherry Rellán Mercé. Editorial Monte Casino. Zamora: 2000)
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