The Imitation of Christ as Traced Out in the Gospel

This invitation and response are lived in a milieu which helps to make the monk a man who aims with all his being towards this reality which never changes.

His entire task in this life is to allow the light of Christ to penetrate and redeem all that is not of God in us. Like every Christian, exemplified in Mary, he strives to be a diffuser of this light through the witness of an authentic Christian lifestyle.

Through the pages of the scriptures we experience the call of God and hear him beckoning. As Saint Benedict writes:

Let us get up then, at long last, for the Scriptures rouse us when they say: It is high time for us to arise from sleep (Rom. 13:11). Let us…open our ears to the voice from heaven that every day calls out his charge: If you hear his voice today, do not harden your hearts (Ps. 94⁹⁵:8).... Come and listen to me, sons; I will teach you the fear of the Lord (Ps.33³⁴:12).... Seeking his workman in a multitude of people, the Lord calls out to him and lifts his voice again: Is there anyone here who yearns for life and desires to see good days? (Ps. 33³⁴:13). If you hear this and your answer is “I do,” God then directs these words to you: ”...my eyes will be upon you and my ears will listen for your prayers; and even before you ask me, I will say to you: Here I am (Is. 58:9). What, dear brothers, is more delightful than this voice calling to us? See how the Lord in his love shows us the way of life. (Rule of St. Benedict, Prologue)

St Benedict then goes on to tell his monks that his intention is to establish a ‘school for the Lord’s service.’ His intention is to ‘set down nothing harsh, nothing burdensome,’ but he recognises that to amend faults and to safeguard love there will have to be ‘a little strictness.’ Through progress ‘in the way of life and in faith, we shall run on the path of God¹s commandments, our hearts overflowing with the inexpressible delight of love….’

Each vocation is unique in its circumstances and each calling is precious in His sight, whether it be as a priest, married or single person. But in one way or another, this call of Christ to be a monk has touched our lives and changed them forever. The monk’s response reflects that of the merchant looking for fine pearls, who when he finds one of great value, goes and sells all he has and buys it (Mt. 14; 45–46). What we share in common is the centrality of prayer in our daily lives. Guided by the Gospel, we are caught up into the Way of the Lord Jesus who often withdrew into solitude to pray. In particular, we look to the Gospels as through a window into the heart of Christ. We strive to make our own that deep and ever present relation of Jesus with His Father which was at the heart of all His aspirations and activities.

As we walk together in pilgrimage towards the house of the Father, we find in Christ our point of reference for everything. Uniting time and eternity in monastic adventure, which is above all an inner adventure, draws us deeper and deeper into the abyss of the Trinity. The journey of faith will never end as the Lord leads us from one beginning to another beginning, through beginnings that will never end. A new understanding of time arises from this Christ-centred outlook which frees us from the demands of our ego.

We come to appreciate that the passage of time is given to us for a very holy and solemn purpose: to progress continuously towards God. From this vantage point, we begin to see the world in the perspective of Christ and understand that this life is full of eternal life.

The life of union to which we aspire is nothing less than a desire to practise the prayer of Christ during His stay among us. Our spirituality, and the vision and discipline arising from it, cannot be compromised with the wisdom of this world. Like all Christians, we are in the world – albeit at a distance – but not ‘of it’. Criticism of the contemplative life comes especially from those conditioned by a secular mentality. Restricted to the horizons of this life, they find it difficult to understand how individuals persevere in a life of unceasing conversation with God and continuous prayer.

St. Paul sums up the Cistercian attitude:

We look not to what is seen, but to what is unseen. For what is seen is passing, but what is unseen is eternal.

Silence and the solitude which protects it, community life anchored in stability, poverty and Christ-like hospitality: these are the three fundamental dimensions which enrich and sustain our search for God through a life of private and communal prayer. Let us explore in more detail these three dimensions.

Here is something, dear friends, which you must not forget: in the Lord’s sightone day is like a thousand years and a thousand years like one day. (2 Peter 3:8)