The Monastic Heart of Orthodoxy
To those who see only through distorting "scales" of Western culture, what seems to be deeply valuable is the heroic individual, who carves out his own proud path, and sings, "I did it my way." Those who withdraw from this world in repentance and prayer are sneered at as self-indulgent "navel-gazers."
But others have heard Jesus teach that the first shall be last, and the last shall be first, and that he who seeks to save his life shall lose it. A few of the scales, at least, have fallen from their eyes, and they strive to follow Christ's call, "Deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow Me!"
In Archimandrite Lazarus Moore's biography of the saint, St. Seraphim of Sarov praises the monastic life:
... the saint raised his hands to heaven and with rapture repeated several times in the presence of the Diveyev Sister Paraskeva Ivanovna who was there at the time this doxology to monasticism:
"There is nothing better than the monastic life! Nothing is better!"
(St. Seraphim of Sarov - A Spiritual Biography, Archimandrite Lazarus Moore, New Sarov Press, 1994, p. 255.)
This does not refer to a life of luxury, however, but of ascetic struggle, and one to which we all are called, not only monastics:
To those in Monasteries Father Seraphim advised, in accordance with the general teaching of the Fathers, obedience as a way to humility. And humility is death of the passions. "Renounce your will and receive humility throughout your life. Then you will be saved. Humility and obedience are the eradicators of all the passions and the planters of all the virtues" (Barsanufius the Great, Ans. 309 etc.). "As cloth which the dyer heats, tramples on, combs and washes, becomes white as snow, so a Novice who suffers humiliations, offenses, reproaches, is purified and becomes like pure, shining silver, refined in the fire" (Ant. hom. 113).
And though these words were addressed primarily to Novices, yet in a certain sense the Lord has made the world so that everyone has to submit to someone else, subordinates to their superiors, children to their parents, wives to their husbands, and so on. And everywhere one has to humble and break one's own will and subject it to the will of others. A mother has to humble herself even with her own children, so as not to be irritated, and not spare a punishment when it is necessary. And what patience, what sufferings are required throughout the education of her children, in their illnesses and the correction of their faults! Sometimes the outward circumstances of life are difficult and painful. Humility and patience are needed everywhere. At other times, the Lord sends us, even in the world, someone to break and crush our pride. Certainly no one in the world is abandoned by the Lord Who cares for the salvation of all; but there is no salvation without humility. And therefore we must watch attentively and ask ourselves: What is the Lord doing this very moment to humble me? And this lesson of God must be at once accepted, without waiting for another, without rejecting it, and without devising one's own seemingly better ways of salvation. The Lord surely knows best what is best for us, sinners, at a given moment. And what we plan ourselves is usually only the enemy's red herring to draw us away from the work of God. (Ibid., pp. 319-321.)
St. John Chrysostom also reminds us that even in our busy lives, we, too, are called to the same path, and have the possibility of advancing along it as well:
For even one dwelling in a city may imitate the self-denial of the monks; yea, one who has a wife, and is busied in a household, may pray, and fast, and learn compunction. Since they also, who at the first were instructed by the apostles, though they dwelt in cities, yet showed forth the piety of the occupiers of the deserts: and others again who had to rule over workshops, as Priscilla and Aquila. (St. John Chrysostom, Homilies on Matthew, Homily 55.)
As we all try to walk this path, we look to our monastic brothers and sisters as great athletes of the spiritual struggle, who strive to follow Jesus in crucifying themselves to the world, and the world to themselves. They walk ahead of us. They pray for us all. And they have much to teach us!
The rise and fall of Orthodoxy in different nations in the world often has paralleled the presence and health of monasticism there. The great flowering of Orthodoxy in Holy Russia paralleled the rise and spread of monasteries such as that at Optina, and others. These monasteries were able to live and thrive because of the support of the Orthodox faithful, even those far from the monasteries, who understood their value to the Body of Christ, to the world, to themselves, of this prayerful presence, and the teachings from the elders of the monasteries.
Orthodox monasticism has been called, "the barometer of the spiritual life of the Church." We in America have not grown up with this rich and deep tradition, and many of us are unaware of the small monastic presence in this land, and how precious it is, even when we are unaware of it. We must cherish and support our brothers and sisters, monastic fathers and mothers in the faith who walk, in humility, self-denial, and sacrificial obedience, the prayerfully silent path of the heart.
The Hermitage of the Holy Cross in West Virginia is a precious treasure, and in our own land, and our own times. We reproduce below a past letter from Father Seraphim:
Summer 2003
Dear Friends,
Many of you may not know of the great growth and changes our Brotherhood has undergone in recent years. When our Monastery was founded in 1986, no one thought that it would ever grow beyond a small skete. In the past three years, however, the Brotherhood has almost tripled in size. We've gone from six men to seventeen. At the beginning of 2000, we received a large land donation. There were nine brethren when we moved to our remote mountain home in West Virginia. Eight have since joined.
In the past, our Brotherhood has always provided for its own daily sustenance through the work of our hands. Our growth and our new location have made it extremely difficult for us to continue in this way. Our Brotherhood has tripled. Our business income has not. We are faced with the task of providing adequate housing and functional community buildings, water and septic systems for a large and growing community all this in a hardly accessible place where before there was only one permanent structure. Because of our lack of proper buildings and our low income, we hive been forced to stop accepting new candidates for the monastic life.
In the past we were able to provide a calm haven for troubled men; a prayerful place to be strengthened spiritually before re-entering life and work in the world. At present we are no longer able to provide this kind of hospitality. Given the culture and times in which we live, it is a miracle that anyone answers God's call to live a pious life whether in monasticism or in marriage. It is unfortunate for a monastery to be unable to help those seeking salvation on either path.
Now we are asking you to help us by becoming benefactors of our Monastery. With your financial support, you can help us in two very important ways. First of all, you can stabilize our income until we are able to sufficiently expand our business to provide for our daily needs. Secondly, you can help us to build adequate housing, work spaces, and community buildings for our large and growing Brotherhood.
The Orthodox Faith has been preached in America for over 200 years. English-speaking Monasticism, however, has yet to thrive and grow on this continent. Without a strong monastic movement, there has never been a strong local Church; and without the support of the laity there has never been strong and durable Cenobitic Monasticism. We are asking you to strengthen the Church by strengthening us. Help us to work for our salvation. Your generosity for Christ's sake will surely help your own soul as well.
Our Brotherhood celebrates-in English the full cycle of Divine Services daily, including the Divine Liturgy. Our benefactors are commemorated, not only in every Divine Liturgy and Great Litany, but also in the daily Molebens and the private prayers of the monks. We invite you to come and pray with us.
Sincerely in Christ,
Fr. Seraphim & brotherhood
Again, from the biography of St. Seraphim of Sarov:
Lay people must also honour monasticism in heart and in deed, so as to be able at least in some measure to partake of the grace of monasticism through others. To this end Father Seraphim advised people to give alms to Monasteries or to work for them. (St. Seraphim of Sarov - A Spiritual Biography, Archimandrite Lazarus Moore, New Sarov Press, 1994, p. 261.)
We invite you to visit the web site of the Hermitage of the Holy Cross, and to support them by purchasing their offerings, and in any other way you may feel called to do.