Monasticism Puns

Hello friends.

I've always admired these kinds of lifestyles even as an atheist (I particularly romanticized monasticism). I know some don't necessarily apply solely to christianity but I was wondering how common these things are in modern christianity?

Do any of you follow some form or combination of these lifestyles/traditions?

It might be counterintuitive but are there any subreddits dedicated to these sorts of things? Especially in relation to christianity.

And if anyone can recommend any resources or links regarding this kinda stuff I would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks and blessing.

Does anyone have any experience with Bruderhof or other modern quasi-monastic Christian communities? If so, would you be willing to share your experiences here?

I've been reading up on some of them (Bruderhof, Catholic Workers, and the like) and am very intrigued by/drawn to them.

Did Jesus allow monasticism or was it an innovation by later Christian divines?

Posting on a new account to stay anonymous.

The more I learn about the history of our Church, especially her traditions, customs, services, music and practices, the more convinced I become that our church has been unfairly shaped by monastics.

Most specifically, monastic or celibate men whose lifestyle and experiences have little to do with laypeople living the in rest of the world.

Subpoints:

1. We fast way too much. We fast around 180 days a year, just shy of half the entire years. That’s every Wednesday and Friday (except Bright Week), Great Lent, the Apostles Fast, the Dormition Fast, the Nativity Fast and one-day fasts related to other feasts like the Cross and St. John’s Beheading. This is easy when your life is regulated in a monastery, and when you already keep to a strict diet. It’s also terribly unkind to expect laypeople to confess when they haven’t faithfully kept all the fasts.

2. The ideal of services is far too lengthy. If you learn about liturgics and music, you’ll understand that our service structure was largely born out of monastic settings, with most city rites (Constantinople etc…) no longer surviving. The “shorter” services like Liturgy come from Constantinople, but our parishes are still expected to eventually host more services, and hold them in a more traditional manner where a Vespers may an hour and a half or Matins may also last an hour and a half to two hours. The monastic version of services is treated as the ideal, not the exception.

3. Guides to confession for Priests and Laity are often written by monks, and contain strict disciplines. They recommend confessing ridiculous things like too much frivolous laughter. They impose strict penances and excommunications for commonplace sins.

4. Most spiritual books, and books about Church Fathers and scripture are written by monks, whose limited worldview and experience will shape how they view those events and people. But we take their word as Tradition.

5. The ideal Orthodox view of heaven is shaped by a monastic life. The vision of heaven being eternal worship and communion with God. But no mention of love, joy and connection to other people. No mention of being able to experience and explore the breadth of God’s creation without limits. Only what is essentially an everlasting church service.

Where am I wrong? CMV.

Forget your personal ambitions, talents, and visions. Your life is now one of obedience and menial tasks.

I've visited monasteries. My sister was a nun for half of her life. The parallels are striking. The religion is Money instead of Catholic or Orthodox Christianity. You have hierarchies that are strictly enforced and can not be questioned. There is etiquette, dogma, ritual. And who you are, once were, or could be is of no consequence. You are subservient to the order.

Know your place, neophyte. And stay humble. Let ye be excommunicated.

It took less than 5 months after graduating college to know that I did not want to be a part of this society. I knew I was called to live in community with others, not independently like a church group or even a church, but to live and work together like on a commune or convent/monastery. Having lived on a secular commune, I knew fairly early on they had a widely different understanding and culture of community than what I was looking for, and I know that monastic life is not for me. As a gay and progressive Christian, places like Bruderhorf or Catholic Workers would not be accepting of me.

Does that ring true for anyone else? You want something more or different but there are just no options? Why are there no progressive Christian communes? I say all of that to say that a few others and I set out to start the first progressive Christian commune, and we at least got the basic plan completed. However, the others have backed out leaving only me so I know I'm not the only one out there.

This is not an ad, I just want to know others like me who are serious about community. That being said, if you do want to talk about what we started to build, please feel free to ask.

https://www.ic.org/directory/kadesh/

Hello Fathers!

I was wondering if there were any books that you'd know of and recommend for a young man trying to help their parents understand monasticism other than the Rule of St. Benedict? Thank you!

Deo gratias.

I'm reading about the sramana movement, so I'm trying to learn about the different philosophies of the movement. Thanks in advance 🙏

Nichiren was a celibate monk. However :

• Monasticism was abolished during the Meiji Era so that monks were allowed to marry
• Some big Nichiren Buddhist organisations like SGI and Rissho Kosei Kai have no monks, just laypersons.
• Nichiren Shoshu has priests who are generally married.

So, is some other Nichiren School still keeping a Sangha of celibate monks?

My fellow brothers in SR, I want to share some thoughts I've had after spending the past few days on retreat at a Trappist monastery.

Monasticism dates back to the 3rd century in the Christian West and even earlier in the Hindu and Buddhist traditions, but in all its forms, one of the essential tenets of monasticism has always been the call to celibacy, and for good reason.

It goes without saying that many of us here understand through our own experience that self-mastery in SR leads to greater productivity and inner peace. When an individual is at peace, then naturally it follows that the surrounding community and society at large ultimately benefit from the practice of that individual. For this reason, I don't believe that it is a mere coincidence that the activity of the monastery became the lynchpin of medieval society, in which entire towns revolved around the life and industry of celibate monks.

It was from the work of celibate monks that advances in agriculture, medicine, science, and education were made. Cistercian monks drained swamps to make innovations in agriculture; they also discovered how to harness waterpower to make mills and factories. and the discovery of plant genetics was by Gregor Mendel, an Augustinian monk. Even the modern university has its foundations in the cathedral schools established by monks in the middle ages.

Sadly, this centuries-old traditional way of life has been sharply declining in recent decades, and that isn't because marriage rates have been on the rise in its place -- in fact even marriage rates have been steadily declining. One thing that has been on the rise, however, is porn usage. About 200,000 Americans are classified as porn addicts, and over 40 million Americans regularly visit porn sites. It is now estimated that 28% of people view porn at work, with each of those people spending an average of an hour and 38 minutes each month viewing adult content while at work. Can we consider it a coincidence that major depression has been steadily on the rise and [labor productivity](https://www.bls.gov/opub/btn/volume-6/pdf/below-trend-th

Dear Brothers and Sisters in the Dharma,

I would like to seek your opinions on the mentioned topics (TLDR version below):

• What is it that prevents us from ordaining into the Noble Sangha when it seems to clearly be the most direct path towards awakening? (For one, it definitely doesn't mean that ordination = enlightenment)
• Is it "wrong" to "escape" from this mundane world that is so unstable, subjected to change, and conditioned by the conventions of society? For context, I am about to graduate from my university studies by mid-2022 and I do have considerations for ordination. However, how do I make the distinction between "escaping" and actually knowing that this mundane world is truly non-satisfactory and monkhood can provide more satisfaction?
• Lastly, has anyone had experiences with spiritual bypassing? I am somewhat aware of the work I have to do in order to transform certain unwholesome qualities within myself. However, meditation wouldn't be a panacea for our problems, would it? But we clearly don't see any form of therapy work that is suggested in the Buddha's scriptures (I mean for obvious reasons, the Buddha wasn't a psychologist but a spiritual teacher which explains why). That being said, should one just meditate in hopes of having our problems "solved" (since, as I have mentioned, meditation is the primary - if not only - technique that the Buddha formally taught.)

TLDR version

• If you are a lay Buddhist, why are you not ordained?
• How does one know if one is in the trap of escapism and if so, why is it not a valid reason for ordination/what is so "bad" about it since we are escaping into something (namely monkhood) that seems to be more worthwhile?
• As human beings, we are flawed in many ways. Should we work on transforming our flaws using other methods? Should we solely depend on Buddhism/meditation practice?

Thank you.

May you be well and happy.

I know that Buddhist monks are generally allowed to visit their families if the family comes to see them at the monastery, or if they have to leave to go visit sick relatives and things of this nature. However, Orthodox Christian teaching seems much more strict about renunciation of everything in the world, including family, and Christian monks seem to have little to no contact with family members. So, in the Orthodox tradition, are monks outright forbidden to maintain contact with family at all, or are their relatives allowed to visit at the monastery?

What role does monasticism play in the everyday life of the Eastern Orthodoxy Church and its believers? Is it similar to the role played by Catholic monastics?

Also, how does a person know if they should be a monk? Is it a special calling only given to some, or can anyone become a monk if they try hard enough? Why would a person become a monk anyways?

Hey Dudes!

Just wanted to let our quiet little beach community know I tested negative for COVID and have since been able to reunite with my special lady friend and our little Lebowski.

I’m very grateful for the support from everyone here while I spent my time away from everyone.

Thankie, Rev. Ross

Or is seminary a straight railway track towards serving as a parish priest? I know there are priest-monks and all, but most of the stories that I have heard are already monks who then become a priest, not the other way around. Furthermore, would it make sense to pursue studying theology at a seminary if you have the inclination towards monasticism?