Monk-ee business

(Photo of Christian monks in Jerusalem - by Terragalleria)

In Ken Follett's extraordinary two volume epic which depicts English life at the beginning of the 2nd millenium, the Priory of Kingsbridge plays an important role, for the priory was one of the most important monasteries in the land.

In those days, as in most cases today, monks took vows of obedience, poverty and chastity, although they were often more honored in the breach. In those days, as now, Monks provided for their own upkeep in a number of ways; sometimes by begging, by raising crops or making items for sale, and/or quite often by levying a tax of food or goods on the people.

Monks spent their time, not only maintaining their physical bodies, but also enhancing their spiritual life. When not actually working at some task, they were at worship and/or prayer, or engaged in less holy pursuits, such as gossip, drinking, sleeping, and in some cases, sexual assignations.

As I read through "The Pillars of the Earth," and "World Without End," I remember being struck by the thought that the monks of the Kingsbridge Priory were, for the most part, superfluous and a burden on the community they served. The only redemptive role connected to the monastery was the hospital run by the nuns.

The Kingsbridge Priory was located close by the Kingsbridge Cathedral, and relied upon the people to provide their subsistence. There was a smaller monastery in the woods, part of the Kingsbridge Priory, where the monks grew the food they needed and made the clothing they wore and created whatever else was required for survival. These monks also accepted "gifts" from the people within their sphere of influence.


What do monks do? Not much. They didn't do much in 1100 and they don't do much today other than arrange to perpetuate their own survival.

In Sparta, Wisconsin, for example, live a group of six monks of the Cistercian Abbey of Our Lady of Spring Bank. These gentlemen have figured out a way to resign from the world and still make a fortune from it.

They sell office products. Last year they sold $4.5 million worth of office products. According to an AP article by Emily Fredrix, "The sales are needed ... so they can survive and continue their good works."

Ms. Fredrix tells of other monks in Oregon "who store and ship wines for wineries and others who make goat's milk hand creams and soaps to pay for their ministries. In Canyon, Texas, nuns at the St. Benedict Monastery, sell what they call "'Praylines' - a combination of pecans, cream, butter, and, as the sisters note, prayer..."

"Many still cling to the usual -- such as making fruitcakes and caramels - but their wares are getting more exposure thanks to inclusion on LaserMonks' Web sites, which sell items made by religious workers."

The monks in Sparta do good works with the money they earn. After the $150,000 per year (from which they take a tithe of 15-20 percent) they take out for operating expenses, they give the balance to various charities.



Cistercian orders follow St. Benedict's rule which says that monks should live by works. They may receive donations, but are not to make more than what they need to survive. Actually the monks in Sparta make quite a bit more than they need to survive, but, as noted, turn those profits over to charitable institutions. This allows "them to continue living away from communities so they can immerse themselves in religious life but still be able to make money."


The thesis, of course, is that "religious life" is a good thing, a positive thing, a thing of value.

What does a "religious" life consist of? In Sparta, Wisconsin, it consists of "monks [who] live together, cook their own food and take care of the grounds. They pray eight times a day, sometimes for as long as 40 minutes, and chant in Latin.

"They pursue hobbies, such as painting, playing with their two dogs ... [and] They even have a workout room, where [they watch] James Bond movies while exercising."

I wonder if they get a bit titillated by James' well-endowed, scantily clad female friends? Would that be "an occasion of sin?"


Ah...no...because the monks "never lose sight of their Catholic religion. Their Web site also accepts prayer requests with several dozen or more coming in a day. The requests are printed and stacked several inches thick on a wooden table outside the monastery's sanctuary. The monks look through them, pick a few and keep the requests with them during the day.

"People who are sick, people who need a job, a 12-year old who wants a pony, and in our own way, we offer those up to God ... It's kind of having a virtual way of having someone care about you."


Why, in the 21st century would anyone get the idea that there was something objectively "good" about living apart from the human community? What is "good" about it? What is good about a "religious" life defined as cooking your own meals, taking care of the grounds, praying for 40 minutes at a time, chanting in Latin, playing with your dogs, exercising, and carrying around prayer requests from people you do not know and have never met for which you will pray if you remember and have time?

Hell's bells, I know lots of folks who cook their own meals, take care of their grounds, play with their dogs, exercise, and sometimes when life gets tough, they pray all day, not just 40 minutes. I don't know many who chant in Latin, though. Maybe that's what make "religious" life special?

Furthermore, is a prayer more likely to be heard by the deity if recited by a monk than a regular human being?

This monk-ee business appears rather weird and like something that would be most appealing to misfits who are so psychically damaged they can no longer abide normal human contact. It certainly isn't any kind of "normal" lifestyle.


Christians still acknowledge the value and validity of much of the Hebrew bible and if there is one constant taught by the Jewish tradition it is the value of engaging the world and seeking to make the world a better place.

The Jesus of the Gospels is ambiguous on the matter, at once telling his disciples to minister only to the people of Israel while in another place says they are to go to the whole world. Nowhere does he say they should withdraw from the world to play with their dogs and pray.

The religion of Christianity, however, was infiltrated relatively early with people who couldn't stand other people and withdrew to sit on towers or live in caves or gather together in monasteries and nunneries with like-minded brothers and sisters to pray and play with their dogs.


But one need not look to some religious "authority" - either book or shaman, to understand that for the great majority of people, monk-ee business represents an aberration of life as it should be lived. And while we all experience a strong need to "get away from it all" at one time or another, we know, existentially, and from scientific studies, that our psychological and physical health is related in a number of ways to the people--male and female--with whom we live in relationship.