“The renewal of the Church will come from a new type of monasticism which only has in common with the old an uncompromising allegiance to the Sermon on the Mount. It is high time people banded together to do this.

 ~ Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Was he right?

“A new type of monasticism?”

“Nothing in common with the old?”

“Gather people together to do this?”

Long hair robes and sandals? Sun-baked skin and emaciated features? Dark caves and lonely days? Stereotypes and misconceptions surround our perception of ancient monastic life.

For years I’ve had at least a passing interest in monasticism and its influence on the early church. Men like the “father of all monks,” St. Antony, who’s story is told by Athanasius in his biography of this unusual, yet charismatic figure. A solitary man who led in the spread of monasticism throughout much of Western Europe.

Monasticism is a strange word for the 21st century:

  • characterizing a secluded, dedicated, austere manner of living;
  • signaling a break, retiring from high energy, noisy, frenetic;
  • deserving further examination.

Seclusion. Retirement. Solitude.

Wait.

Retirement?

“The portion of life during which one is retired, removed or voluntarily withdraws from service, office, business or profession.” A season of life everyone talks about, many dream of, some prepare for financially, fewer emotionally, even fewer spiritually. In the Western world, this turns into 20-30 additional years for every person having reached society’s accepted age for retirement.

Chances are, you are approaching retirement or are already well into it, and probably you are still looking for more than what you’ve found so far. So are the people you serve as pastor or mentor or volunteer. Christians, in particular, discover that without something beyond the selfish self, we are taking a pass on what is intended to be a season of holy sacrifice, a “giving what we cannot keep to gain what we cannot lose.”

Could it be that longevity and retirement years have been given to empower the Church with a new kind of monasticism?

We are formed by our Creator to instinctively need more. That’s the “why” of retirement communities, keeping us comfortable and occupied; of shopping malls, where we buy lots of good stuff; of recreation and entertainment industries, leaving us little time or energy for anything substantive. Ask any retiree. “How is life working for you?” They will usually say they are busier now than when they were employed. The next question of ourselves and others should be, “What are you busy doing?” and then, “Who are you busy becoming?”

For the committed Christ follower, it is about time. Our time. Time to lay aside misdirected preconceptions, nonessential differences, innate suspicions, religious acedia. Time to give ourselves a holy nudge and the opportunity to think “outside the box.” Time to affirm bringing together contemplative transformation and apostolic outreach as our primary discipleship motif. Time to embrace a vision that inspires and equips the transformed life, and mobilizes for us for ministry to all generations. Time for a “new type of monasticism!”

Forget robes and sandals, caves and lonely days, and ask yourself what might this “new type of monasticism” look like? Let’s imagine it together. What if one day Christian young elders (midlife-69) and master elders (70+), even though geographically dispersed, were to bring their interests, talents, spiritual giftedness and life experience together in a common vision, all across North America. What if they decided that the Church (and by default our local churches) were to become society’s most powerful and effective intergenerational connector. What each decided to share life together with someone twenty years older and someone else twenty years younger? And what if each of these ‘someones’ were to do the same? And so on. It would not be long before churches local and the Church worldwide would start to experience a deepening transformation and an excitement in outreach on a whole new level.

What if we made Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) our uncompromising new “monastic Rule?” Others have done it. Why not us?

What might this mean for pastors and others in 50+ Ministry? Society today declares the retirement years to be “My time.” “It’s still all about me time.” What if the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) was the meaning and purpose mandate for all Christ followers in our retirement years? Think about it. Our Redeemer-Leader has laid out his philosophy for life and servant leadership. An unmatched “how then shall we live” scenario is clearly set forth.

What if these two things, contemplative transformation and apostolic outreach, were to be the core of our 50+ and interGen discipling ministry? Times of withdrawal and engagement. A life punctuated with prayer (solitude) and action (involvement). Experiencing old/new paradigms of holy obedience and adventure. Combining the contemplative and the apostolic as did many of the early followers of Jesus who carried the Christian message to the world.

Bold mission and service.

Prayer

Rest in mind,body,spirit.

In community with others in various Christian traditions scattered, disbursed over a wide area.

Available and vulnerable.

A new type of 21st century monasticism.

Nothing in common with the old
but an uncompromising allegiance
To the Sermon on the Mount
in the discipleship of Christ.

I think the man was right. I believe it is time to gather people together to do this. How about you? What do you say?

ward-sign

 

For further reading, I recommend Celtic Daily Prayer from the Northumbria Community, a forward by Richard Foster; Living Prayer, by Robert Benson; and Radical by David Platt.