Monasticism: It's Not Just For Monks

This is my junior thesis on Monasticism. It is my first draft and before I turn in the final draft I appreciate if you would read and comment on it. I am still working to improve it and I would really appreciate any comments and suggestions!

"The monastery appears ominous and foreboding, clinging to its perch high on rocky cliffs facing the North Sea. At first glance, [it] would seem an austere place. The wind blows constantly, bringing only snow and sleeting rain. Waves roar ceaselessly along the base of the cliffs...Thick curtains of fog wrap the promontory in gloom...It is a comfortless place. Life for the monks consists of daily rounds of disciplined prayer and cold stone. Yet the church is the magnetic
force that provides the monks with a bond of unity within its wondrous beauty of deep foundations, crypts of dressed stone and glazed windows. Indeed, in this small church on this bold and windswept outcrop overlooking the sea, there can be no escaping His presence."

Who is the Monk? Does the Monk exist only as a religious symbol of bygone days? Was the Monk simply a element of the medieval culture or a corrupt social power in European history? To remove the “thick curtains of fog” in one’s mind obscuring men from meeting the Monk face to face, one must perceive the purpose and the identity of a Monk. The common foundation of all monastic communities is the three vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. These vows were the means to fulfill the Monk's purpose of pursuing the ideal Christian life. The Monk, through these vows, dedicated his entire life to learning to love God. Consequently, the Monk, and the institution of Monasticism, is the image of the ideal Christian life. Nevertheless, the road to completely understanding the monk is long and full of twists and turns. This roadoriginates at the crossroads of history and philosophy nearly two thousand years ago.

The word "monastery" is derived from the Greek monos, meaning "alone". Christian Monasticism is generally regarded as a way of life involving persons living in seclusion from the world, under religious vows and subject to a fixed rule.# Monasticism has truly stood alone, as it remained steadfast in the midst of a changing world for over fifteen hundred years. From its beginning in 4th century Egypt to its modern equivalent in America, Monasticism has taken a deep root. What is the driving force of Monasticism that kept it flourishing so? To answer this question, one must understand the foundation of Monasticism; for the driving force of Monasticism is deeply connected with its origin.

To understand Monasticism as a whole, one must view the philosophy it is founded on. Monasticism must be viewed from the standpoint of its inner meaning, that is, a tangible expression of the renunciation principle. Renunciation is self-denial, which is the purpose of all ascetics. The most blatant of the monk's purposes is to deny himself and thus, renunciation is the goal of monks. Hence, the common denominator of all monks throughout history is this philosophy of renunciation. The Christian monk sought to deny his will in order to conform to God's will and so used the three vows of poverty, chastity and obedience as a means to this end. Edmund Gurdon in the Catholic Encyclopedia VI gives a perfect explanation of how a monk used the three vows as the means of renunciation:

“Foremost among these means must be reckoned the vows, which are greatbarriers raised against the inroads of the three great evils devastating the world(1 John 2:16). Poverty frees the contemplative from the cares inherent to the possession...of temporal goods, from the moral dangers that follow in the wake of wealth...Chastity frees him from the bondage of married life...so "dividing" to the heart and mind (1 Cor. 7:33)...By the same virtue also he obtains that cleanness of heart which enables him to see God (Matthew 5:8). Obedience, without which community-life is impossible, frees him from the anxiety of having to determine what course to take amidst the ever-shifting circumstances of life.

Without this knowledge of the philosophical foundation of Monasticism, one's understanding of Monasticism's history cannot be firmly grounded.

In the late third century A.D., the Christians were greatly oppressed in the Decian and Diocletian persecutions. At a time when Christianity was stalked by the Lion of the Roman State to be devoured, the anchorites arose. The anchorites were the first documented hermits, or men who led an eremitical life. The most famous of the desert hermits was St. Anthony.# St. Anthony was the icon of the hermitical livelihood. Anthony was born in 251 A.D. and lived in a city in Lower Egypt. At a young age, Anthony was convicted by the message of Matthew 19:21 - “If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.” So Anthony gave away all his possessions and lived in his garden, seeking out other ascetics for wise counseling. Years later, Anthony desired a complete life of solitude, and so went beyond the boundaries of his ascetic brothers to live in the harsh Egyptian desert. This practice became common in Egypt from the third century onward. It was also in Egypt that colonies of hermits, living separately but in close proximity to each other for mutual support, began to appear. Monasticism was born from these loosely organized communities of 'Desert Fathers'.# Yet, were these hermits called to a life of solitude as they supposed, or was there another reason for this exodus into the desert?

The origin of Monasticism in the 4th century was largely a reaction to the degeneration of the Church during the rise of Roman Christendom. Abandoning its chiliastic conceptions, the Church had settled down into the acceptance of the 'world' as a definite part of economy. Whatever the ultimate issue of Constantine’s adoption of Christianity as the official religion of State, its first effects were to lower the ideal of Christianity itself. The stalwart Christians whom Diocletian had killed had been replaced by a mixed multitude of time-servers and half-converted pagans. The conviction of truth gave place to the acceptance of custom. The Church was garnished with all the resources that a world-empire and an age-long culture could afford her. But she seemed unconscious that she had a lowered standard of life, and a theology whose simplicity was spoiled by the systems of philosophy that she had tried to assimilate.# From this culture of perverted Christianity, the first monastics fled. The early monks vehemently denied the church to be controlled by the established government. Thus, they separated from the nominal Christian church to seek a pure community separate from the society of the Roman Catholic Church. Although the Roman Catholic society did not persecute the nominal Christian, the monks rejected the 'spirit of the world' displayed in this society, and so departed from it.

It is important to note that at this point in history that a dramatic shift occurred in image of the Christian life. In the early years of the church the Martyr was the Christian ideal. Christianity was being persecuted, and a strong Christian needed to be a courageous, fearless and pious martyr. However, the first monks transformed the spirit of martyrdom into the ascetic imitation of Christ, reviving Christian enthusiasm and piety. Therefore, by the mid-fourth century the monastic ideal was an acceptable substitute for the spiritual heroism required in the days of persecution.# This monastic ideal of a pure life in a nominally Christian world was the transformed Christian ideal. The root of Christianity remained the same because the common philosophy of renunciation continued from martyrdom into monastic life; the Christian's life was still a relinquish of self in order to gain the "mind of Christ" (1 Cor. 2:16). The transformation came in the early monks' adaptation of the appearance of a Christian. By becoming a monk, one could lead a Christian life in the cultural circumstances of the era. From this point on, the religious world saw the passage to the cloister as the conversion to the transformed Christian ideal.

Thus, from the two grounds of the ascetic call and the degeneration of Christian society, the earliest form of Monasticism arose. Though it was St. Anthony who first organized the hermits' colonies into quasi-monastic communities, the true founder of Eastern Monasticism was St. Pachomius, who established, in southern Egypt, a number of monasteries for men and women. This was the beginning of coenobitical Monasticism (i.e. monks living together in organized communities). The Monasticism
organized by St. Pachomius spread throughout Egypt, Ethiopia and Asia Minor. The monastic traditions of Egypt began to be known in the West beginning in the late fourth century, as literature about the lives of the desert fathers was disseminated, and individual
monks traveled to and settled in Europe. Eastern Monasticism of the 4th century is truly the origin of documented monastic life, but it was not until the 8th century that Monasticism as it is thought of today was established.

Eastern Monasticism began as a separation from the new Roman Catholic Empire of Constantine, but Western Monasticism emerged from the shattered empire of Rome, at the beginning of the Dark Ages. During the fifth and sixth centuries, monasteries were founded in Italy, Gaul, Spain, and Ireland. At this stage of monastic development, there was no accepted rule that governed monastic life. In the West there were translations of various Eastern codes, such as the Rules of Pachomius and Augustine, as well as Athanasius' Biography of St. Anthony. However, there was nothing that could be called a working code for the management of a monastery. This changed in the eighth century with the widespread adoption of the Rule of St. Benedict.# St. Benedict was born in Spoleto, Italy in 480, soon after the Fall of the Roman Empire, and began his religious career as a hermit. St. Benedict was a practical man, with knowledge of the problems involved in monastic life and the various codes of the East and West. Out of his
knowledge and personal experience, he wrote the Benedictine Rule. St. Benedict wrote the Rule during a period of almost incessant wars, pestilence and famine. Rome was constantly besieged as well as depopulated. The mode of life offered by St. Benedict to monks must have appeared, against this background, as a haven of peace, stability and orderliness. The Benedictine Regula deals with spiritual and practical matters, such as the duties of an abbot, the virtues required of a monk, the timetable of everyday life, the discipline, the food, and the clothing.# As George Zarnecki in "The Monastic Achievement" put forth, "The true father of Western Monasticism was St. Benedict."
This Rule became the leading guide for monastic living and, consequently, was vital to the history of Western
Monasticism. Despite the contrasting origins of Eastern and Western Monasticism, both possessed the common goal of conforming to God's will through the ascetic vows of poverty, chastity and obedience.

In Western Monasticism, the monk made a daily effort to use the three vows, and practices which were associated with the vows, such as office - in obedience to Christ's commands of worship - and manual labor - so as foster an equality of wealth and resources - as a means of living a holy life. A monk's day began with the ringing of bells, some time between midnight and two a.m., signaling the first prayers of the day. After a short nap, prayers were again held at sunrise, and then at three-hour intervals throughout the day. Communal prayers averaged about five hours per day, while private prayer and contemplation could take up to four more hours. Meals were served once a day in winter, twice in summer, with meat forbidden except in case of illness. At least three hours per day were spent in manual labor, with remaining hours not spent in prayer devoted to study, especially of Latin, and sacred reading.# The monks employed the three vows, and associated practices, to center their daily lives’ around the work of God.

The monastic communities of the Middle Ages not only shared much of the same daily schedule, but they were also, as a whole, the driving religious and social force of medieval civilization. Even though monasteries were separate from secular society, they
deeply influenced it, for the monastery was the refuge from social unrest and the haven of scholars and literature. Monastic communities proclaimed the stability of religious reflection and brotherhood in an unstable world of riot and bloodshed.# Solely because the convent offered this asylum of rest and meditation in an unsettled and turbulent society, was the medieval period the age of the monk.# The monasteries were also the driving social force because they became the pioneers of agriculture, the arts, theology and philosophy.# Furthermore, the monastic cell, though not specifically set up to do so, became a study and monks became scholars,# fundamentally of the Bible. As Norman Cantor in his Encyclopedia of the Middle Ages recounts:

"During the medieval period, monasteries were the centers of knowledge and education. They maintained schools and libraries, and were responsible for copying manuscripts. And although monasteries were founded with the idea of withdrawal from monastic life [sic: i.e. secular life], they became a major force
in the secular world of agriculture and government."

The monastery was the only refuge for the Bible and other ancient texts, and without it nearly all the great works of history would have been lost. Besides preserving the Biblical texts, the monasteries provided other religious support through their published works. Consider Thomas Aquinas, a medieval monk, who contributed his religious ideas to society in response to cultural changes. More specifically, the reason that Thomas Aquinas wrote "Summa Theologica" was because he was striving to refute the pagan idea that Faith and Reason were incompatible. The influx of these ideas was largely due to the crusaders' return from the Middle East, for they returned exposed to Eastern pagan philosophy. Consequently, the clash of ideas in the West turned into a major religious disagreement during Aquinas' lifetime. The monastic communities, originally distinct from social government, developed into the cornerstone of the medieval civilization through their strong religious and social influence.

Monastic communities exercised the greatest influence in society when it came to the “Great Commission”. Perhaps the mission field would seem a sphere little suited for monastic energies, but no idea could be more false. Mankind is proverbially imitative and so, to evangelize where paganism once ruled, it is necessary to present not simply a code of morals, but an actual pattern of Christian society. Such a "working model" is found in the monastery; and so it is the monastic order which has proved itself the apostle of the nations in western Europe. St. Columba in Scotland, Augustine in England, Boniface in Germany, Columban in Switzerland, were monks who, by example, led the nations among whom they lived from paganism to a Catholic civilization. Nor did the monastic apostles stop at this point but, by remaining as a community and training their converts, they established a society based on Gospel principles and the stability of the Catholic faith, in a way that no individual missionary, even the most devoted and saintly, has ever succeeded in doing. Not only were the medieval monks focused on evangelizing, but they were also active in the overall mission of Christ, that is, possessing charity. The philosophy of the monk according to the Rule of St. Benedict regarding charity is as follows:

"Let all guests who arrive be received as Christ, because He will say: "I was a stranger and you took Me in" (Mt 25:35). And let due honor be shown to all,
especially to those "of the household of the faith" (Gal 6:10) and to wayfarers.When, therefore, a guest is announced, let him be met by the Superior and the
brethren with every mark of charity. And let them first pray together, and then let them associate with one another in peace...Let the Abbot pour the water on the guest's hands, and let both the Abbot and the whole brotherhood wash the feet of all the guests...Let the greatest care be taken, especially in the reception of the poor and travelers, because Christ is received more specially in them..."

Thus, the monasteries' philosophy regarding the mission of Christ is to offer charity to all strangers and poor and to evangelize the nations. Through these means, the monastic communities significantly impacted the society of the Middle Ages.

In spite of the medieval monasteries’ reputation for expanding society and religion, they were also renowned for corrupting society and the Catholic religion. Monasteries became infamously known for their greed, immorality and pride, though these were in direct contradiction to their vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. The greed of the medieval monasteries was apparent in history, for monasteries were generally founded by wealthy feudal lords, who then appointed their sons and daughters abbots and abbesses. As a result, many monasteries became wealthy estates, with large land holdings that employed thousands of workers. Thus, the abbot or abbess of a large monastery could wield great secular power - a most definite source of pride and vanity in monasteries.# The monasteries and convents, the cloister of the nuns, became so immoral that the cloisters became known for their hypocritical debauchery instead of their chastity. The popular opinion of monks in the 14th century is well illustrated in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. One such illustration is found in the Canterbury Tale's Prologue:

“This said monk let such old things slowly pace
And followed new-world manners in their place...
Nor that this monk, when he is cloisterless,
Is like unto a fish that's waterless...
I saw his sleeves were purfled at the hand
With fur of grey, the finest in the land...
He had of good wrought gold a curious pin:
A love-knot in the larger end there was...
Fat was this lord, he stood in goodly case.
His boots were soft; his horse of great estate.
Now certainly he was a fine prelate:
He was not pale as some poor wasted ghost.
A fat swan loved he best of any roast.”

The monk was no longer the image of holiness, but the icon of hypocrisy.

In the eleventh century, just at the apex of monastic corruption, a revival of monastic piety emerged. There began to be widespread dissatisfaction with the wealth and power the monasteries possessed. Several new monastic orders arose, inspired by the
lives of the desert fathers and the Apostolic brotherhood, as well as by the Benedictine rule itself. They sought a simpler form of religious life, with less dependence on serfs, and churches that provided income for the large monastic estates.# There were five major orders that arose to reform the present state of Monasticism. The earliest order, in 1084, was the Carthusians, which was established by St. Bruno and centered around a Rule called "The Statutes." The Carthusians reformed monasteries through their focus on contemplation and solitude. Soon after, in 1098, St. Robert of Molesme founded the
Cistercians - the "White Monks" - as a reformed branch of the Benedictine family. Over a hundred years later, in 1209, St. Francis instituted the Franciscan Order to restore the spirit of poverty that had been infected with the spirit of greed. The Franciscan Order begot the venerated Catholic saints St. Bonaventure and St. Anthony of Padua. In 1220, St. Dominic adopted the Rule of St. Augustine and founded the Dominican Order - "Order of Preachers" - with the specific purpose of evangelizing. This Order produced the well-known medieval apologist St. Thomas Aquinas. In 1244, a group of Tuscan hermits also adopted the Rule of St. Augustine, returning to the early spirit of monastic piety, and so formed the Augustinian Order.# These five monastic orders were all formed to revive Christian piety and reform the monastery.

Despite these Orders' efforts to reform monastic life, the age of monastic authority was essentially over by the end of the thirteenth century. In many Benedictine monasteries numbers declined, in part because of the end of the practice of donating
children to be brought up as monks. In the latter part of the Middle Ages, a more relaxed form of Benedictine life was adopted and was acknowledged as valid by Pope Benedict XII in 1336. The age of Luther and the Reformation caused a precipitous decline in monastic vocations, for the Protestants saw the hypocrisy of the monks and concluded that the institution of Monasticism was depraved. It wasn't until the reform movements of the nineteenth century, which aimed at establishing places of religious and social refuge,
that monastic fervor was rekindled in the West.#

With a firm grasp on the fifteen hundred years of Monasticism’s history, one can truly evaluate the purpose of Monasticism. The knowledge of Monasticism’s biblical and social foundation in the fourth century to its religious and cultural conditions in the thirteenth century enables one to contrast the core philosophy of Monasticism with the shifting environment of the Medieval Age, to the end that one may fully understand what place Monasticism has in history and in the Christian Church.

"Fathers and teachers, what is the monk? In the cultivated world the word is nowadays pronounced by some people with a jeer, and by others it is used as a
term of abuse, and this contempt for the monk is growing. It is true, alas, it is true, that there are many sluggards, gluttons, profligates, and insolent beggars among monks. Educated people point to these: "You are idlers, useless members of society, you live on the labour of others, you are shameless beggars." And yet how many meek and humble monks there are, yearning for solitude and fervent prayer in peace! These are less noticed, or passed over in silence."

Dostoevsky in The Brothers Karamazov, paints two opposing pictures of the monk, yet which portrayed the true nature of a monk? Is Monasticism merely a cultural phenomenon, a product of its historical environment, or is it, at its heart, something entirely different? But, given that the history of Western Monasticism is so colossal and diverse, what avenue of analysis should a Christian critic take? Should one judge only Monasticism's philosophy, according to a Biblical standard, or should one simply weigh the pros and cons of several monastic examples? To gain a proper and sound critique, one must employ both. These two avenues of analysis supply a Christian critic with a complete understanding of monasticism, for one discovers its foundational principles and examines the means men used to fulfill those principles in both ancient and modern history.

To determine the reality of a monk, one must first unearth the foundational purpose of monasticism. It has been pointed out that the monastic ideal is an ascetic ideal,# with asceticism most simply defined as a denial of self-will in pursuit of a divine will. This monastic ideal was little more than a precipitation of ideas previously in solution among Christians as it was foreshadowed in the asceticism of the Gospel and its first followers.# The ascetic denial of self is wholly Biblical. Only when ascetism
contradicts Biblical principles of bodily welfare is it wrong (i.e. when one's asceticism promotes physical abuse). Matthew 16:24-25 speaks of it as a necessity, "...If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever desires to save his life shall lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." Biblical asceticism is also found in I John 2:15-17:

"Love not the world, nor the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the charity of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world is the concupiscence of the flesh, and the concupiscence of the eyes, and the pride of life, which is not of the father but is of the world. And the world passeth away and the concupiscence thereof. But he that doeth the will of God abideth forever."

These passages can be multiplied, and bear but one meaning - asceticism - if taken literally. Asceticism is not only required in the gospel, but it is also displayed in the lives of Christ's followers. The disciples of Christ dedicated their energies to the spread of the Gospel and, giving up all their possessions, passed from city to city in voluntary poverty (Matt. 10:7-10). The Apostle Paul renounced property and marriage so as to devote his life to the poor and needy that he may fulfill the mission of Christ. If these were not, strictly speaking, monks, at least the monks were such as these; and, when the monastic life took definite shape in the fourth century, these forerunners were naturally looked up
to as its the first exponents. For the truth is that the Christian ideal is frankly an ascetic one and Monasticism is simply the endeavor to effect a material realization of that ideal.#

Though Monasticism possessed the Christian ascetic ideal, did the monks apply Biblical means for effecting that ideal? Monasticism epitomizes Biblical asceticism through the use of the Three Vows. The monastic vows to a life of poverty, chastity and obedience are the means of pursuing the ideal of a Christian: To Love God and to Love others. Asceticism is an integral part of Christian Love, for a Christian can never Love unconditionally (i.e. selflessly) without first denying himself. The three vows accomplish this purpose by denying one’s self (one’s life/will) completely (poverty/chastity) in order to conform completely to God’s will (obedience). The call to poverty as the means for surrendering one’s will to God is evident in the Scriptures. Matthew 19:21 illustrates the reward for a life of poverty, “If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.” Godliness in poverty is also outlined in I Tim. 6: 6-10:

“Now godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we carry nothing out. And having food and clothing, with these be content...For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from their faith in greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”

Thus, a life of poverty is encouraged in the Bible as the means for focusing on the will of God.

A life of chastity is clearly recognized in the Bible as a way of forsaking the things of the world in order to embrace the things of God. Paul, the chaste apostle, discusses chastity in I Cor. 7:32-35:

“He who is unmarried cares for the things of the Lord...But he who is married cares about the things of the world...The unmarried woman cares about the things
of the Lord, that she may be holy both in body and in spirit. But she who is married cares about the things of the world... And this I say for your own profit,
not that I may put a leash on you, but for what is proper, and that you may serve the Lord without distraction.”

The faithful Christian is spiritually chaste, but one who is chaste physically sacrifices one's physical life as well as one's spiritual life to God, in order to rely more wholly on Him.

The final vow of obedience is the most blatant in Scriptures and yet the most complex. All men from the beginning of the world were called to obey God, and the Bible reflects this truth (Gen. 2:16-17). Yet, the vow of obedience is more complex because it not only encompasses spiritual obedience, but physical obedience. In a sense all Christians are called to be physically obedient in as much as it regards their spiritual walk, but the monastic vow of obedience completely constrains the partaker to a fixed schedule. It binds the monk from all forms of worldly independence so that he may become fully dependent on God. Monasticism’s means of reaching the Christian ideal, the three vows, reflects the end of the monk - to follow Christ’s command to Love Him and Love others.

All monks may have been united by a common Christian ideal, but does the historical depiction of the monk exemplify the philosophy of Monasticism? The history of Catholic Monasticism fluctuates between the monk reflecting the image of holiness and the image of corruption. But does the monastic philosophy trump the negative aspects of Monasticism or do the perversions of Monasticism nullify the foundation of Monasticism? The second avenue of analysis, weighing the pros and cons of historical examples, answers this question. As one looks over the positive and negative aspects of Monasticism, one can not mistake the means of Monasticism for its goal. The historical monk’s means to become the ideal monk may not have been right, in fact many attempts were completely hypocritical and heretical, such as the monks portrayed in the Canterbury Tales. Yet, even if individuals and whole Orders were corrupted, the perversions of monasticism do not change the fact that the goal of the monk, through the three vows, was to completely and passionately follow Christ’s command to Love Him and Love others. In a word, the perversions of monasticism do not invalidate its goal. Just as it is unfair to judge a book by its genre, it is unfair to any institution to base our judgment of its merits upon its perversion.# Christiancritics must not judge monasticism on certain cases of Monasticism, but on the common purpose in Monasticism. In judging Monasticism, it is necessary to ask the question: Does this instance of Monasticism portray the purpose of Monasticism? If the case in point does not portray this purpose, then one cannot judge Monasticism by it, but if the case does portray the purpose of Monasticism, then the example can be used to analyze Monasticism. In conclusion, any specific example of Monasticism, positive or negative, must be judged in light of the foundational purpose of Monasticism.

However, if Monasticism is inherently a Biblical enterprise and any example of a monk does not invalidate its purpose, why do most Christians oppose the ideal monk and the cases which reflect this image? The reasoning behind this popular objection is
outlined in Philip Schaff's The History of the Christian Church IV. He advocates,

"The monks represented a higher type of virtue in entire separation from the world...The patristic ideal of piety passed over into the middle ages; it is not the scriptural nor the modern ideal, but one formed in striking contrast with preceding and surrounding heathen corruption. The monkish sanctity is a flight from the world rather than a victory over the world, an abstinence from marriage instead of a sanctification of marriage, chastity, outside rather than inside the order of nature."

The modern Christian, being out with genuine Christian spirituality and accepting the interpretation of monastic origins given by historians, distorts, fears, belittles and even ignores Monasticism. But it is the monk, from the earliest times, that refused the Christian religion to be corrupted by the pagan environment. It is the monk that constantly challenged the leaders of the Catholic Church to raise the standards of morality. It is the monk that gave refuge to slaves, to the impoverished, the persecuted. It
is the monk that meticulously copied and recopied the Bible. It is the monk that stood as an example of Christian living (i.e., self-control, self-denial, humility) and it is the monk that best exemplifies the idea of “the common life in the Body of Christ.” He did all this and still does.#

The monk's "higher virtue and patristic ideal of piety" are false attributions. The monk's origin was not a search for a life of higher Christian virtue, but a search for a life of simple Christian virtue separate from the influence of the corrupt Catholic Church. The monk is a monk not because he despises “the ordinary Christian,” or because he wants to "flee from the world" — no indeed, he loves the world (i.e. the people) or else he would not pray for them, paint for them and write for them. Furthermore, the monk is certainly not "running away from life", attempting to reach a super-human state of perfection, for Christ is life, and thus, he runs not from anything, but headlong into something, Christ. The charge that monks disparage Marriage is erroneous. To a monk Marriage is good and holy, but a life of Chastity is a higher calling. Just take the examples of Christ, the Apostles, and St. Paul. None of them condemned marriage, but they understood a life wholly given to the Master was better. Monks have given themselves up to prayer, contemplation, fasting, writing, in essence, a life wholly devoted to God. If modern Christians think that these activities are not the most important, then they are not attuned to the meaning of the Christian life.# And so, when compared with the truth of the Scripture and history, the charges brought against Monasticism no longer stand. It must be concluded then, that Monasticism is the image of the ideal Christian life. The ideal Christian life is represented in the common foundation of all monastic communities, the threefold vow of poverty, chastity and obedience. Monks act as spiritual warriors, divesting themselves of possessions, a marital relationship and the freedom to choose in
order to focus on communing with God.# Christians must simply accept the fact that Monasticism is the image of the ideal Christian life, because it is the life which wants to begin the Next Life already, and there is no Christian life more ideal than that.

Through these three avenues of analysis, a Christian critic gains a complete understanding of Monasticism's foundational principle, that is Love for God and man, and how life of the monk emulates this principle, namely through the means of the three ascetic vows. Therefore, a Christian critic echoes Dostoevsky's judgment of the nature of the Monk:

"Obedience, fasting, and prayer are laughed at, yet only through them lies the way to real, true freedom. I cut off my superfluous and unnecessary desires, I subdue my proud and wanton will and chastise it with obedience, and with God's help I attain freedom of spirit and with it spiritual joy...Meanwhile, in [the monk's] solitude, he keeps the image of Christ fair and undefiled, in the purity of God's truth, from the times of the Fathers of old, the Apostles and the martyrs. And when the time comes, he will show it to the tottering creeds of the world."

The time has come for the monk to present to the world the reality of the ideal Christian life. In the eyes of the monk, a Christian is not simply a man of goodwill, who commits himself to a set of beliefs and has a dogmatic conception of man and the universe. He is not simply one who follows a moral code of brotherhood and benevolence with a strong emphasis on certain rewards and punishments. On the contrary, Christians themselves too often fail to realize that the infinite God is dwelling in them and they are in Him. They remain unaware of the presence of God in the midst of the world of men. The monk's wisdom is therefore oriented to experience God's presence in the world. However, contemplative wisdom is not simply an aesthetic extrapolation of certain intellectual or dogmatic principles, but a living contact with the Infinite Source of all being, a contact not only of minds and hearts, but a transcendent union of consciousness in which God and man become, according to the expression of St. Paul, "one spirit"
(1 Cor. 6:17). Without this deep root of wisdom and contemplation, Christian action has no meaning or purpose.

Why do Christians admire the men and women who are called to the life of a Missionary? The answer in simple; Christians see their passion and sacrifice for the mission of Christ. Christians see them communicating a new way of life to the world, offering liberation to the captives of sin and despair, and opening men's eyes to the reality of God's Love. However, the Missionary is not alone in his purpose. The true Monk leads the same life of the Missionary, but the lifestyle of the Monk expands and balances the lifestyle of the missionary into the ideal Christian life. The monk is not only striving to fulfill God's call to love his neighbor, through evangelization and charitable missions, but he is sacrificing himself to a life wholly devoted to God. The monk balances the missionary life by recognizing that, though the call to evangelize is a vital aspect of the Christian life, it is not the focus of the Christian life. The focus of a Christian is to Love God first and foremost; and the monk does this through a life of contemplation in God. The deep desire for God and the need for silence, study and meditation - essential aspects of contemplation - are at the heart of Monasticism.# Although contemplation alone does not construct a new world - for Christians must also be active missionaries - without it Christians will never understand the significance of the world in which they must act. Without it, Christians remain partial and divided; they lose sight of charity and justice. Without the intimate, silent, secret pursuit of truth through love, Christian action loses itself in the world.# Thus, the monastic life exemplifies true communion with God, with the right emphasis on contemplation and action. The monk expands the lifestyle of a missionary with the knowledge that the proclamation of the gospel does not end with the salvation of the sinner. No, salvation is the beginning of the journey of communion with God and this is what the monk proclaims, not only salvation to his neighbor, as the missionary does, but devoting one's entire life to realizing a relationship with God.

If the monk is the image of the Christian life, are all Christians called to be monks? First of all, since every Christian is not called to be a preacher or an evangelist, every Christian is not called to be a monk. One must be called by God to be a missionary, for not all Christians are to be the "feet of the Body of Christ". In the same way, not all Christians are called to lead a monastic life in a cloister. However, all Christians are called to be monks outside a cloister; since the principles of Monasticism reflect biblical truths. One might ask, how can each and every Christian be a monk in this day and age? Well, simply stated, monasticism for all Christians entails adhering to the philosophy of the three vows. This not only involves holding to the core philosophy of Monasticism, that is, Loving God, but also to the philosophy of asceticism. Christians can learn much from the Monastic philosophy for it shows one how to be organized and passionate in implementing Biblical truth in one's daily life. Monastic values do not need to be in a cloister setting, no a monk can be on Wall Street, Main Street and down on the farm#, simply because Monastic philosophy is useful in any Christian's life as the way of growing closer to God. For instance, many cloisters find lay people who desire a deeper life of prayer and dedication to God, but they don't feel called to abandon their responsibilities in society. They find support for their decision in a relationship to the monastic community through which they apply monastic philosophy to their daily lives.# In essence, the monastic vows of poverty, chastity and obedience sum up the one thing God asks of Christians - that they be people of prayer, people who live close to God and for whom God is everything.# Thomas Merton, an American monk of the 20th century, wrote on the duty of the Christian, declaring, "This is his call to us - to be people who are content to live close to him, to renew the life of closeness and experience."

A Christian in any situation can use "monastic means" to strive for the goal of imitating Christ. A Christian becomes a "cloister-less monk" by possessing the lifestyle of a monk, which begins with upholding monastic values. The first monastic value is a certain detachment from secular life, which is essentially employing monastic solitude. This value assists Christians in remaining untainted from the 'spirit of the world' and in understanding that they possess a counter-cultural relationship to the world. The second monastic value is possessing a "preoccupation" (i.e. focus) with the grounds and implications of one's belief.# The monastic emphasis on studying God's Word and using every day to "redeem the time" (Col. 4:5) provides a Christian with a sure spiritual foundation, so that in action one is a conscious of the purpose and direction of glorifying God. The final monastic value is holding a special concern for the inner transformation of the soul. This is putting first the love of God and the dwelling in community with Him consistently and with passion and fervor. The end of the monk, incorporating all three values, is truthfully and simply stated by Thomas Merton: "The blessing of solitude resides in the attuning of the heart to the voice of God - to the inexplicable, quiet, inner certitude of one's call to obey, hear, and worship Him, in silence and alone."

And so the road to understanding Monasticism ends where it began, at the purpose and identity of the Monk. The journey into the history of Monasticism and its Biblical truths removes the “thick curtains of fog” from the Christian's eyes so that he can see the Monk face to face. The reason why "in this small church on this bold and windswept outcrop overlooking the sea, there can be no escaping His presence," is because the Monk, and the institution of Monasticism, is the image of the ideal Christian life.