The monastic life
In the spirit contained in the Rule of St. Benedict, monks seeking
to live in praise and intercession adoring silence to better serve
the men and women everywhere from the depth that gives the experience of
things God and knowledge of the deepest yearnings of the human person
Monasticism Benedictine Community is eminently well and becomes a monk
brother among brothers who help in his progress as fraternal describes
the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Prayer
The monks have always tried to combine solitude with hospitality, two concepts
which would appear to be mutually exclusive but which in fact are not. The
tension between the two has been fruitful over the years for the monks
themselves, the Church and for society. The secular history of the community of
Montserrat is eloquent proof of this. Solitude enables the individual to find
the light of the Word of God; thus the person gradually moves towards
self-acceptance, peace and inner harmony. This occurs above all during the
passionate search for God through the liturgy and private prayer.
The liturgy marks the daily rhythm for the monastic day, marking both its
beginning and end. The monks come together five times a day to celebrate
divine service on the Liturgy of the Hours. In addition to this, there is the
celebration of the Eucharist, which is the central event in the day of the
Monastery and Shrine. Many pilgrims take part in the monks' liturgy,
particularly in the Eucharist and the main hours of divine service.
The monks also set part of the day aside
for private prayer and for reading the Word of God or other spiritual works. The
ideal situation, as given both by the New Testament and by the Benedictine Rule,
is for prayer to God to be as continuous as possible.
Hospitality
The life of the monks in terms of
humanity and faith is no different to the basic experience of all men and women
because, when all is told, we all live with the same problems around us:
problems regarding love, solitude, personal harmony, solidarity, work, use of
material goods... and, sometimes, wearied or even weak faith.
The life of faith leads the monk to discover the
presence of Christ in another, whoever he or she may be. This means the monk
must welcome him or her in a sincere and friendly manner and must feel himself
to be the brother of all people.