Poverty and Work

Jesus is insistent on the dangers of material gain and riches. We need always to be on the lookout for avarice. Jesus identifies himself with poverty in all its forms and those who seek Him must do so where He wants to be found. In order to make us rich in the sight of God, Jesus the Eternal, made himself poor (1 Cor. 8:9). Those who sincerely seek God by persevering in the monastic life can only do so if they make a solemn promise to renounce the private or temporal ownership of temporal goods. At the same time, they make their modest living through daily labour with occasional voluntary donations from benefactors.

Work, and in particular manual work, holds a venerable position in the Cistercian tradition. It is primarily a means by which Cistercians earn their own living. In this too, we follow the path traced out by Christ in the Gospel. Undertaken in a spirit of service and solidarity, work is interwoven into the fabric of our day and becomes another way of worshipping God. We are witnesses to the nobility of work and to its deeper dimension. Its freedom and excellence derive, over and above its economic worth, from the value both of the person who does it and for whose sake it is undertaken.

In other words, work allows us to show our love for the community in a very concrete way by the labour of our hands. This enables us to serve the variety of needs which pertain to living in community. Work seen and experienced as an expression of love of God and neighbour becomes a heartfelt prayer beneath the gaze of God.

The spirituality of work as it has developed down the centuries in the Cistercian Order represents a rich heritage for the Church and society. A monk, like everyone, needs to work not only to earn a living but for the good of his soul. Idleness is the enemy of the soul, and the devil finds work for empty hands! On a positive note, by generously participating in the responsibilities of the community, each monk is able to contribute to helping those in need who come to the monastery for assistance.

The gift of welcome is at the heart of monastic hospitality. The guesthouses of Cistercian monasteries are renowned for their special atmosphere of peace, prayerfulness and Christian kindness. Monastic hospitality is the most visible expression of the monk’s concrete concern for others. It is the overflow of a life given to prayer and the perfection of charity.

There is a great hunger for God in our world today. Most of those who visit the monastery guesthouse come to deepen or rediscover their relationship with Him. Others come just to be close to the community in whom they sense the love of Christ. It is hoped that all who visit for whatever reason feel welcome and consider the meaning of the life we live. Above all, monasteries are principally silent signs pointing towards heaven. They are a reminder that another world exists, of which this passing world is only an image, a foreshadowing.

With the dawning of a new Millennium, we draw closer to that holy night two thousand years ago in Bethlehem. In preparation for the coming of our Lord, the community here at Our Lady of Bethlehem Abbey desire that this will bring a new beginning into the lives of all. To this end our monastic guesthouse has been completely restored to make the stay of our guests as pleasant as possible. “He who receives you, receives Me”, our Lord has told us. We Cistercians see here the ipsissima verba, the literal meaning of Christ’s words. We try to live them as encouraged by our Rule: to receive each guest as we would receive Christ. Retreats can be organised with the Guest Master and refreshments are available in the basement.