The Benedictine Oblate Path - for Today (Click on title to see PDF for printing)

Since the time of the Desert Fathers and Mothers, when the Christian monastic movement began, there have been many ways of expressing the monastic archetype. Even in the Desert there were anchorites, hermits and coenobites. The Desert wisdom also knew that the monastic archetype dwells in each human soul as that which orientates us to seek God “before everything else”. For the monk the archetype takes a visible expression in what we call the monastic life – a life that received its great expression in the Rule of St Benedict. But those working in the world can no less be in touch with the power of this archetype and form a special bond and community with those living in monasteries. The oblate expresses this bond in the monastic archetype by uniting monk and lay person in a way that is especially powerful and necessary today.

If there are different kinds of monks it is not surprising that we find new forms of oblation developing today to respond to the particular spiritual needs of our time.

Thirty years ago John Main received the first oblates of a small monastic community he had started with a special emphasis on the practice and teaching of meditation. He saw his experiment as a restoration of the essential link between the traditional form of monastic prayer in the Divine Office and the oratio pura as taught by Cassian whom St Benedict points us towards at the end of his Rule.

Monastic life today is in crisis and is seeking new forms of serving the Kingdom of God through the Church. The insight of John Main that ‘meditation ( oratio pura ) creates community' is proving to be of great relevance to this search. It is impossible that the monastic charism will die and therefore it is inevitable that it will take new forms. This must include a more flexible and less legalistic approach to monastic commitment and it will place less emphasis on the clerical aspect of the monastic vocation as it has developed in the western tradition. As Bede Griffiths once said “every Benedictine monastery must be a centre of contemplation”.

In my life as a monk for the past thirty years I have come to believe firmly in the future of Oblates. I feel that new kinds of Benedictine oblates will help develop the new forms of monasticism that our world needs in order to find the spiritual depth from which alone we can respond to our overwhelming problems. The oblates of the World Community for Christian Meditation offer one example of how a new wineskin for the perennial new wine of monasticism can be developed. They do not ‘belong' to one particular physical monastery and so form a global ‘monastery without walls'. This represents a variation on the idea of Stabilitas but one that can speak powerfully to people's experience of community in the 21 st century without in the least diminishing the value of physical stability.

They are men and women, spread through many parts of the world, committed to a regular practice of contemplative prayer which they integrate with the opus dei and the vows of St Benedict. Like all Christian contemplatives they are conscious of their silent presence at the heart of the church and their love for the world radiates from this centredness in the Body of Christ. Many lead meditation groups, in schools, churches, prisons and hospitals. Others are involved in teaching children to integrate the contemplative dimension of prayer at an early stage of their spiritual journey. Others specialise in inter-faith dialogue and in work for unity and peace in our fragmented and violent world. Some of our younger oblates are now choosing to serve their novitiate as a year of fulltime service and study which becomes a special kind of spiritual formation for their future vocation in life.

The characteristic Benedictine tradition of tolerance and inclusion, of balanced diversity and stable yet radical openness to conversion is needed today more than ever before. A new manifestation of the spirit of St Benedict is demanded by our times. No one program or group can achieve this as it is the work of Wisdom itself but the Benedictine Oblate has an increasingly important role to play in this contemporary evolution of a great tradition.

Laurence Freeman OSB - The World Community for Christian Meditation - Monte Oliveto Maggiore

BENEDICTINE OBLATES of THE WORLD COMMUNITY for CHRISTIAN MEDITATION
(Click on title to see PDF for printing)

Since John Main osb received the first oblates into our community thirty years ago there has been a steady increase in the number of meditators who have experienced meditation drawing them to the twin forms of monastic life, solitude and community, in their “single-minded search for God”. From the beginning of the wider Christian Meditation Community Fr. John gave equal value to the forms of commitment made by monks or oblates. Oblates in his vision were not merely “attached” to a monastic family; they were fully participatory and contributing members, which they indeed are. This represented both a return to an ancient tradition and an important new development.

As Benedictine Oblates of The World Community for Christian Meditation we form a global ‘monastery without walls' and we are exploring new ways of being contemplative communities in communion with each other sharing a call to love silence while being fully engaged in the world. As we do not have a single physical monastery the basic element of our oblate community is the “cell”. The word “cell” has a long monastic tradition referring originally to the monk's cave or room. With us it is used to describe presence, not only physical space. Therefore an oblate cell can exist where there is even one oblate living alone. It also refers, more usually, to a group of oblates living close to each other who are committed to meet regularly for the purpose of prayer, continuing formation and support.

Through the internet we are able to stay in touch with each other regularly. When an oblate is living a distance from others, even in another country, they can be remembered by those in a cell meeting. Increasingly in recent times, oblates are asking to be sent the text for Lectio Divina, and the section of the Rule of St. Benedict being studied as well of the time that the cell is meeting. In this way (given time differences) they are able to be united in spirit, for meditation, prayer, reflection and study. Most oblate cells follow the simple format of Christian meditation, Lectio Divina, study and reflection on some aspect of the Rule of St. Benedict. Following this there is a time for local matters with regards the cell and community life.

There is an oblate Coordinator in each of the countries where there are a number of oblates. As the International Oblate Coordinator I try to keep in touch with other coordinators. We also have an active “Process of Discernment”. A mentor is appointed for each oblate novice who contacts their mentor every three months for guidance as they continue to discern their call to the Benedictine oblate way of life. When it is not possible to meet physically because of distance, the contact is made by either phone or email. In RB 58 St. Benedict cautions us: “Do not grant newcomers to the monastic life an easy entry, but, as the Apostle says, Test the spirits to see if they are from God (1 John 4:1)”

Reflections on the Rule of St. Benedict are sent by either email or postal mail by the coordinators in each country on a fairly regular basis. There is also a newsletter along with opportunities in most countries for retreats, the John Main Seminar and other events in the meditating community at which oblates can meet and share the strength of their common bond.

As I experienced the First World Congress of Benedictine Oblates held in Rome in September 2005 I felt very much a part of the wider oblate community among the 36 countries represented. As I listened to the presentations and participated in the groups as the National Lay Coordinator for Australia and the sole representative of the oblate community of The World Community for Christian Meditation I saw that our oblate community is a new way of living the Charism of Benedict “in response to the particular needs of our time”. The relationship with the Olivetan Congregation is particularly strong and friendly for us because Fr. Laurence Freeman belongs to it and like all Benedictines, we feel at home and hospitable wherever the spirit of the Rule is lived and cherished.

Trish Panton - International Oblate Coordinator - The World Community for Christian Meditation

Sydney - Australia