Come and See: Monastic Living as a Vocation (Next retreat)

So later today, I head back up the Hudson for another 4 days at the monastery.  The program this time is titled "Come and See: Monastic Living as a Vocation".  It's described as "a program for single men aged 20 to 48 who are interested in exploring Benedictine monastic life as a possible vocation path."

I know what you're thinking, because everyone I've told about this has the same reaction...

Oh... Hey Wait! ...  You're doing WHAT?????  (Maybe your head's tilted to the side and your eyes are penetrating me with a furrowed brow and the look that I just said I was going to steal the Declaration of Independence - you know the movie.)

Allow me to explain.  In the years I've been coming up to the monastery for a fall vacation, I've seen this program from time to time.  It was always one that I just passed by since it didn't really apply to me.

(like many of them here... http://www.holycrossmonastery.com/retreats/retreat-programs)

This year when I planned my vacation, I had a lot of vacation days to burn.  Due to the pending divorce I really haven't been able to break away, and for the same reason have not wanted to spend a lot of money on a trip not knowing what my financial picture will be in a few months.  So looking over the options and realizing I'd like to add a 2nd week, this time I noticed the Come and See retreat and while not really thinking about becoming a monk (right now my most important life goal is to provide some much needed stability for my son), I asked Laurie in the guest house office for more details.

She sent me on to Br. Bernard who probably has some title like "Vocations Brother" or something like that.  He pronounced me "single enough" for the program and then answered all my many questions with "Come and See", basically you won't know if you don't come and poke around a bit.

So I'm going to see. 

What do I expect to see?  I expect to gain a little insight into what makes a monk a monk.  If you scroll all the way down to my first year's posts in 2009, I remember writing about them as these incredibly centered guys who (to the guests) always seem to be calm and happy.  Over the three years, as I've got to know them a little bit, I can begin to see them as different guys who largely get along but all share a love for Christ (as well as living arrangements).  I see that Br. Andrew has a delightful sense of humor, Br. Julian sometimes prays using a camera (something I want to explore), Br. Bernard has a passion for sustainability, and the like.  All parts of one body with individual strengths (and I'm sure weaknesses).  Does this remind you of Paul's teaching?

I hope a number of brothers share their vocation stories.  How did they get from where they were to living in a monastery?  I know that Br. Mark knows my boss from his previous profession, and that Br. Julian was a former cosmetic chemist.  I know that Br. Randy was a former youth worker, so quite a number of their lives were on similar paths as mine.

I expect that I'll get to experience the teeniest bit of life at the monastery.  That probably includes being put to work ($50 for 4 days and 3 nights has to have some catch to it), maybe having the worship and chants explained a bit better to me, hopefully getting a tour of the "monastic enclosure" (the sort of off-limits monks-only space.  This last item is fascinating to me.  My satellite recognisance (via Google Earth) shows that they live in an octagonal building with 7 "bays" sticking out from it that's connected to the north end of the chapel, but there's not much else on the northern end of the monastery grounds.

I also expect to meet a handful of other guys who are curious enough to go on this retreat.  One of the them is Jose who was hanging around last week.  I know they run this program several times each year and that I don't really see too many new monks hanging around, so I imagine quite a number of guys come up here, kick the tires so to speak and then return to their (hopefully enriched) lives.

Beyond that, I don't know what to expect.  I know that for several years before my marriage broke up, my wife and I discussed and prayed about doing work together for disadvantated kids.  At that time Chuck, a friend from my Men's Group at church, told me that even if you don't do it the act of considering it will profoundly change you.  It has... it has changed how I approach my youth work, how much attention I try to give my nieces and nephews, and even how I try and interact with my son.  So I'm hopeful that a few days spent exploring monastic life will do the same.

After my first visit to the monastery, I purchased a book in the gift shop called "How to be a Monastic and Not Leave Your Day Job".  That's what I realistically hope to take away from this... lessons in how to be a Benedictine Chromatographer (or Father, or... ).  So if you're reading this from my workplace, don't pick apart my office just yet.  The process of vocational discernment lasts years and I fully expect to be back on Tuesday.  There are still exciting things happening in analytical chemistry and I don't want to miss them.