Does this seem biblical to you or New Age?

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But if we take the VW microbus, we will have to be careful. There will be so many other there we may accidently get in the wrong one.

I wonder if Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong will be there.
 
Well, I’d have to see it to know, because what’s on a web site and what is on the ground are notorious for their differences.

Nevertheless, if I were a cradle Catholic New Ager who decided to visit, based on the web site, and this turned out to be even a remotely orthodox Catholic monastery which dared to talk about Jesus (not just the Christ) as being our Lord, God, and Redeemer (rather than just Teacher), a place that actually revolved around love for the Eucharist and which celebrated a daily Mass that is fully within the rubrics…well, I’d be in for a shock.

I’d think they’d deceived me, by their seemingly studied lack of traditional rosaries, crucifixes, and references to the Sacraments. I would not take “Catholic roots” to mean that they were really still bound-to-Rome Catholics! I’d take “Catholic roots” to mean that I could white-lie myself into believing that my grandparents weren’t turning in their graves! I’d probably want my money back.

But that’s just me.
 
The first thing about this organization that gave me pause was on the “About” page:
We are a new monastic community in the Catholic tradition, whose founding inspiration gathers its momentum from the prophetic message and guidance of our mentor, Fr Thomas Berry, c.p. , writer, scholar and cultural historian.
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Whenever I see an organization claiming to be in the “Catholic tradition” I can be reasonable certain that they are a splinter group, such as the Old Catholic Church.

A little further down the page they list some of their organizing elements. Among them are:
  • recognizing Christ as Teacher and Master of Wisdom still resonant today
  • obedience to the collective wisdom of the whole
  • a heritage of sacred reading (Lectio Divina), prayer and ritual
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There is no doubt that these folks do use the Bible. In reading the articles, I found several biblical references, primarily to the Book of Wisdom, and the Gospel of John, but also to Psalms, Acts of the Apostles and others. I am not sure what they believe about the Bible. I am not sure if they believe that it is the inspired word of God. I suspect the do, to a point.

I am not sure what the mean by “obedience to the collative wisdom of the whole.” If the “whole” decided that Jesus was not divine, would they be obedience to that? This of course got me thinking about they do think about Jesus Christ. There very first “organizing element” is a recognition of Christ as “teacher and Master of Wisdom.” This mentions nothing about Christ’s Divinity. The remainder of their elements listed, there are 12 although I doubt this is a comprehensive list, makes no mention of the Father and the Holy Spirit.

I decided to go hunting on this website to see if I could find any references the God the Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.

The first reference to Christ I found was in the article Andrew Cohen and Evolutionary Transformation. In it Sr. Gale Worcelo attempt to reinterpret the teaching of the “Desert Mothers and Fathers” in the light of the teaching of Andrew Cohen. Cohen self styled spiritual teacher on “Evolutionary Enlightenment.” The following is taken from his biography on his website
Cohen was born in New York City in 1955. Raised as an atheist, his life was irrevocably changed by a spontaneous revelation of “cosmic consciousness” at the age of sixteen. Haunted by the experience, Cohen eventually abandoned his dream of becoming a jazz drummer and, at the age of twenty-two, began seeking spiritual enlightenment. Moving from the study of martial arts to Kriya Yoga to Buddhism, Cohen’s search finally came to an end in 1986 when he met the Indian master of Advaita Vedanta H.W.L. Poonja. Shortly after this life-transforming encounter, and with the encouragement of his guru (with whom he later parted ways philosophically), Cohen began to teach.
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Continued next post
 
Continued from previous post

There were several references to Christ and to Mary in the article Holy Ground: Where Catholic Tradition and the Universe Story Meet. In it Sr. Worcelo gives her reflections from a retreat she went on:
On this 4 th day of retreat we gather in the chapel for the celebration of the
Eucharist. I am moved by the simplicity of the elements of bread and wine, the hands raised in blessing, the starkness of the recited words, “This is my body given for you, this is my blood poured out for you.”
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These words flow from an ancient 12 billion year text that tells the story of self gift and grace. They have been spoken by supernovas, galaxies, plants, animals, carbon, lovers, women giving birth, martyrs of the faith, Jesus the
Christ and all of us today.
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We are the universe gathered in this moment celebrating its profound singularity. This explosion in motion is one radiant being; incarnate, conscious, Christic and undivided.
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The basket of bread and cup of wine are passed around the chapel at communion and we all partake of this single energy event. I eat the bread and drink from the cup. There is actually no “I” doing this, only 12 billion years of holy celebration in joyful conviviality! The whole journey is this moment as it is the moment of the absolute future of Christ fulfillment radiating back to the present.
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In the following she is speaking of her devotion to the Black Madonna. I though this devotion was great, until I got to the last sentence:
This image runs deep in my Polish roots and I have loved her all my life. She announces the Mystery manifesting its radiance in her flesh. She is Christ Bearer, matter impregnated with Spirit. She is woman of grace, accepting her own body as the chalice of the Spirit.
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There is a beautiful Icon of Our Lady of Czestachowa in the monastery chapel. I sit before her in an open gesture of prayer. This Madonna is mysterious. I cannot penetrate the secret of her face. She embodies a divine calm, a concentrated awareness of herself. I am hungry for her guidance and wisdom, my eyes are teeth and I receive her as a wafer in communion.
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Based on the two previous quotes, she really seems to lack a proper understanding of the Eucharist and the Real Presence.

On her last day at the retreat she writes this prayer. I think it is a little bit scary. In it she refers specifically to the goddess Tiamat:
This morning on my final day of retreat I drape myself with the cosmic red shawl and feel the stupendous activity of the fireball alive in me. Leaning over the paper on my desk I write the following prayer of intention which will be recited each day in our new community of Sisters of Earth.
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O Divine Wisdom, you who were present in the Holy Fire at the beginning of time -
Give us Light and Guidance.
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You who introduced the first partnership of hydrogen and helium -
Teach us how to combine our energies to give birth to the Ecozoic Era.
You seeded the dark of space with galaxies and stars -
Gift us with abundance.
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You hold all things together in the Holy Embrace of the curvature of space -
Keep us grounded and expansive.
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You were there at the sacrifice of Tiamat, our grandmother star -
Teach us to give Everything to the will of the Divine.
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In a moment of grace, Earth learned to capture sunlight -
Help us photosynthesize the Light of Christ and become food for the future.
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With awe and reverence we step into the flow of 12 billion years of Universe unfolding.
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We are a further phase change of the original fireball. We claim that heritage and say YES to the evolutionary potential that is calling us forward and demanding that we reinvent ourselves as a species .
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May we shape a monastic life coherent with our place in the universe.
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May we come to understand the implications of this!
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May we advance consciousness for the sake of the whole.
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May we become expressions of wholeness in this deeply divided world
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We place our highest gift s at the service of this call at the service of Divine Love itself.
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As Sisters of the Earth Community we turn to you Mary, in your manifestation as the Black Madonna and ask you to awaken us to the sacredness of matter in our own bodies , in all of life, and in Earth itself.
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We call out to the voices of our ancestors …
Give us guidance.
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We call out to the unborn children of all species …
What do you ask of us?
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Click here for information about the goddess Tiamat.

Based on what I see on their website, I would advise anyone I know to steer clear. Ther is more here in common with the Druids than the Catholic Church. They seem to have adopted elements of Christianity to fit in to their own theology, just at the Gnostic did at the start of Christianity or was done more recently by slaves imported to the New World with Santeria. In my opinion, this is defiantly New Age, wrapped in the clothing of Christianity.
 
I have Polish roots also. But I can guarantee you, they are from a different garden.
Prayers & Blessings
 
The more I look at this place, the more I am reminded of the Heaven’s Gate cult which was basically a UFO cult.
 
“Photosynthesize the Light of Christ so we become food for the future”??? :eek: :eek: :eek:

I guess they are morphing into PLANTS!!! :eek:
 
CB_Catholic said:
“Photosynthesize the Light of Christ so we become food for the future”??? :eek: :eek: :eek:

I guess they are morphing into PLANTS!!! :eek:
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It made me cringe, too, but being bad at metaphor doesn’t necessarily an apostate make.

It is possible that they are apostate, but don’t want to admit it. It is also possible, though, that they are trying to evangelize New Agers into the True Faith, by using common language to point them, as Paul did, to “the God Unknown.”
 
EasterJoy said:
It made me cringe, too, but being bad at metaphor doesn’t necessarily an apostate make.

It is possible that they are apostate, but don’t want to admit it. It is also possible, though, that they are trying to evangelize New Agers into the True Faith, by using common language to point them, as Paul did, to “the God Unknown.”
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I looked at this web site and all I saw would scare me away big time. I personally would avoid them like a plague, just from what I read.
For their sakes, I truly hope I am wrong.
prayers & blessings
Deacon Ed B
 
Deacon_Ed_B said:
I looked at this web site and all I saw would scare me away big time. I personally would avoid them like a plague, just from what I read.
For their sakes, I truly hope I am wrong.
prayers & blessings
Deacon Ed B
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If I had to hang my life on it, I’d vote with you. It is what I don’t read there that scares me.

Still, fear isn’t truth. One can hope…there are some people who are pretty bad at constructing web sites.
 
Let me put it this way, as a Vermont Catholic:

This site is NOT on the diocesean web site. Anywhere. The only monastery listed in the diocese of Burlington (which covers the entire state of Vermont) is Weston Priory.

Father Berry (who is apparently about 94) may have been ‘ordained a Passionist priest’ but that doesn’t mean his ‘monastery’ is affiliated with anything Catholic. Let’s pray for him–at his age he is probably quite close to meeting the Lord for eternity.
 
Tantum_ergo said:
Father Berry (who is apparently about 94) may have been ‘ordained a Passionist priest’ but that doesn’t mean his ‘monastery’ is affiliated with anything Catholic. Let’s pray for him–at his age he is probably quite close to meeting the Lord for eternity.
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Prayers promised. I would ask that everyone pray the Chaplet of Divine Mercy for all of those involved with this. AND NOT JUST ONCE.
Prayers & Blessings
Deacon Ed B
 
Tantum_ergo said:
Let me put it this way, as a Vermont Catholic:

This site is NOT on the diocesean web site. Anywhere. The only monastery listed in the diocese of Burlington (which covers the entire state of Vermont) is Weston Priory.

Father Berry (who is apparently about 94) may have been ‘ordained a Passionist priest’ but that doesn’t mean his ‘monastery’ is affiliated with anything Catholic. Let’s pray for him–at his age he is probably quite close to meeting the Lord for eternity.
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Well then, the Diocesan website is defective because as everybody in the whole wide world knows, the Charterhouse of the Transfiguration is in that diocese, sitting peaceably and in perfect silence on Mount Equinox. But then, it would be most Carthusian of them to eschew the publicity of the diocesan web page, especially since they do not invite visitors nor solicit vocations. See here.
 
where is the Eucharist at this retreat center? There is no mention of where you can go to attend mass.
 
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