The congregation as monastery
Looking for meaning
People are looking in many different ways for meaning in their lives. Questions about the meaning or otherwise of life, about love, about meaningful relationships and the task you have in this life occupy people’s minds, inside and outside the church. Do we as church have anything to contribute to people’s search?
Religion is ‘in’ again. Reflecting, experiencing, feeling something of the divine, in yourself, in other people, in the world around you. Meditation and prayer, interest in Buddhism, reincarnation, living thoughtfully, and also: letting yourself be led by people who ‘see’ more, being a medium, having paranormal gifts. Bookshops are full of books about esotericism. People in the church, too, occupy themselves with these subjects, looking for other ways and connections with this new religiosity. Very often all this searching is referred to as ‘new spirituality’. Spirituality is a word that can mean many different things, but one thing is certain: it has to do with ‘spirit’ and with what the ‘more’ that there is between heaven and earth.
Can the church accommodate these questions? Are they picked up and heard? When people are searching and have special experiences, can they be discussed in a safe environment? Do we as church have something to offer the discussion?
Our worship is often very verbose: many words. Would it be possible to have more silence, more concentration? What is there we could learn about mediation, from the point of view of the Christian tradition?
The church as monastery
The books of Henri Nouwen, Anselm Grün, Jurjen Beumer and Wil Derkes are currently very popular. They point the way in terms of spirituality. They connect, search for and describe the experience of having been found. They offer a good basis for a discussion group, which also could have something to offer to people outside the church. The Benedictine spirituality and thoughtful way of living helps people to make connections between faith and life. During monastery weekends participants can have a rest and catch their breath.
Jeroen Jeroense, a minister in Elst, thought of an ‘umbrella’ for the congregation that wants to use this method to give people space when they want to look for meaning. That umbrella is ‘the church as monastery’. The monastery is a community of monks that offer hospitality and many ways to catch one’s breath. The church as monastery offers more than words and meetings, there is room for celebration, silence, meditation and prayer. People eat and drink together, they exchange experiences, people work together using their hands, and in all these meetings there is room for God.
A number of suggestions
- Organise a group from church to spend time at a monastery. The group could include people who hardly or never attend church.
- Watch the BBC series ‘The Monastery’ about people from all layers of society who entered the monastery. What are their experiences? And how do we respond? Invite a friend from outside the church to join in both watching and responding.
- Arrange a series of evenings reflecting together on an author or thinker e.g. St. John of the Cross or Julian of Norwich, also consider contemporary authors such as Walter Bruggeman or Max Lucado. Take care to read and hear about all sorts of forms of spirituality.
- Consider going on a pilgrimage every year. Walk together and encourage conversations about faith to develop naturally as a matter of course. Stop off at chapels, churches or monasteries for a rest, go inside and have some time for quiet. Reads a text together and leave the church in silence. We continue walking and talking. Who can take part? People from our circle of friends and acquaintances. Church members as well as non-members.
- In the Protestant congregation of Elst in the Netherlands, life is based on the model of the monastery. The church is a place with a number of different ‘rooms’: for meals, for reflection, for silence. The Rev. Jeroen Jeroense said: ‘We can learn things from the monastery. From that tradition we only took over the chapel and the meetings. But the monastery is much richer. In the monastery you find everything that can be found in a community. Eating, sleeping, making music and brewing beer. I try to integrate all these things in the congregation. We have a meal group, a learning house and a spiritual café. God does not only speak to us in celebrations, we can look for him in all things.’[1]
Possible approach for the church
- Do you as church council recognise this searching attitude, these questions about meaning and the new forms of spirituality inside and outside the congregation? What is the evidence you see of this in your environment? What are the questions you come across and what is on offer (bookshop, courses, and spiritual centres)? Do you think that you as congregation have something to offer here? How?
- Start a conversation with people who are asking or have asked questions about meaningfulness and the new forms of spirituality. Are there people in your congregation who have experiences in this respect? Invite them to tell their story.
- What kind of offer could your congregation make to your locality? How does that fit in with your own identity? What are the Christian sources you could use in this respect?
- Make a concrete offer (a small group, a course, a series of celebrations) and invite a target group. Good promotion is very important here! Make sure you have a safe and open atmosphere. Very often there is suspicion of the church (‘is there really space for my experiences?’). Also, make sure that there is clarity with regard to your own story. Ask people outside the church for their ideas and their evaluation.
