Though we may not have known it, we have been traveling through “Ordinary Time” . . . for some time now.

For monastics, the weeks and months between the end of Easter and the beginning of Advent, and between the end of Christmas and the beginning of Lent are the days of “Ordinary Time.” Of course the Liturgical Church has lots of special events taking place in between: loads of Saints’ Days and special calendar celebrations, but if nothing else, the Prayer Book is a little easier to follow.

For the typical modern family today there is the crescendo between Thanksgiving and Christmas, between the last and first days of school . . . and scattered personal and national holidays, of course . . . but these don’t seem to keep rhythm for us.

What part of the monastic life, if it could be lived out enclosed within your world, is most appealing to you?  The silence?  The regime?  Worship?  Prayer?  It’s “Recreation” in the Abbey . . . let’s have a bit of conversation on the subject.

Azalea blossoms at Abbaye Francaise