A monastic life

It's been a few days since we've posted, as I, the official poster, have been spending some time at a monastery. Yes, you read that right. After much thought, I've decided to devote my life to the church in a different way...and a different church.

Okay, not really.

But I did spend three days at the monastery in Huntsville, UT. (Who knew that out here in the middle of Mormon America, there was a home for Catholic Trappist monks?) You can click the title of this post to go to their website. They have guest quarters where people, such as myself, can come and retreat for a few days. No shaving of the head or wearing of robes required. Celibacy, yes, but only because my wife was over 100 miles away.

It was actually a very refreshing few days. No computer, no tv, no cell. Just lots of reading, writing, and listening. I thought I might get a little stir crazy, but found instead that I was extremely content. They have prayers (chanting of the psalms plus a hymn and a scripture reading, followed by silent prayer) 7 times a day, plus a mass each day. Those of us on retreat are free to attend any or all of the prayer services, and mass, but of course as a non-catholic I could not take the eucharist (communion for us protestants). There were a couple of other guys there at the same time as me, and while we talked at meal times, the rest of the days and nights were simply God and me.

The services are spaced throughout the day, with the first one, Vigil, beginning at 3:30 am. Yes, that's in the morning.

When it's still dark.

And they always begin the prayer services by ringing the chapel bells.

Before every service.

Including the ones at 6 am. And 3:30 am.

And most services end with a series of bell rings (3 rings, break, 3 rings, break, 3 rings, break, multiple rings) Including the first service which ends around 4 am.

Do you get the sense that a normal sleep pattern was not part of my retreat?

I must say, the monastic life didn't appear very joyful, at least just watching them from my perspective. But what I did appreciate was the way the psalms and prayer were infused into my days. By including a portion of the psalms in each service, every two weeks, they have sung, actually chanted, all 150 psalms during the liturgy. And then they begin again. And while it was rather emotionless, I couldn't help but be moved as I listened and read along as they recited the psalms. Regardless of their expression (or lack thereof), God's Word is incredibly powerful, beautiful, and filled with hope. Having it actively folded into my day only made me more aware of the continual presence of God, even away from the chapel.

I even made it to Vigil at 3:30 in the morning.

Once.

As I said, my sleep schedule was a bit wacky, so since I was awake, I seized the moment. It was a strange sensation, rising from bed at that hour, walking a few steps to a chapel, and jumping into worship of the Lord, especially worship so far away from my paradigm. Strange, but invigorating. As tired as I was, I couldn't immediately go back to sleep. And when I did, the 6:00 bells awakened me a mere thirty minutes later.

I'll definitely do it again. That extended time of quiet and solitude not only refreshed me, it gave me time to come to some needed conclusions, answer some questions that had been roaming around the back of my mind. Most of all, be still and know that He is God.

Next time, though, I may bring earplugs.