I am Brother

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Thank you all for your response. I’d like to keep this thread going with some simple questions that are good for discussion. To some people being a brother is a mystery. They don’t understand the call to be a brother, to live a life consecrated to being Christ’s brother and to living as brothers to others, the way Christ did. For too many people brothers are teachers, social workers or go to guys for priests. The fact is that those are some of the many ways in which a man lives out his call to be a brother to Christ in others. But none of those functions define a man as a brother. That would be like saying that what defines a sister as a religious woman is being a teacher or a nurse.

I believe that St. Catherine of Siena’s expression “the Mystical Marriage” best defines the life of a brother. It is a marriage between the individual soul and the Trinity. The brother lives out the communal dimension that exists within the Trinity. He brings that mystery into the world every day of his life.

One of the unfortunate things that happened to many communities of brothers is that they got stuck at Vatican II, just as some people got stuck at the Council of Trent. As human beings it is easy to get stuck on some point in history, whether it be the history of one’s personal life or the history of the Church. Many communities of brothers got stuck on the “renewal” called for by Vatican II and are still renewing, to the point that they are spinning their wheels. I say this in all charity.

Vatican II called for a renewal of religious life. But it never called for religious life to change into something new. It called for religious life to make new what was old, in other words to take the spirit of the founders and make them present in today’s Church. In this sense, to renew means to make something old new again, because you’re reintroducing it and making it more obvious for the world to see.

Now to the question, why don’t we pray for vocations to the brotherhood on these threads? Why don’t we promote the life of the brother? Have Catholics forgotten the significance of and the need for brothers in the Church? Do they understand that brothers are essential to religious life? The early founders of religious life (monasticism) were brothers, not priests. Without the monastic tradition we would not have the bible, the Liturgy of the Hours, Gregorian chant, religious art, and many other elements that have become part of the Catholic tradition.

Fraternally,
Br. JR, OSF 🙂
 
Brother - Yes, it is true that much of my exposure to brothers was via a teaching order. But I also had exposure to the Benedictines at a nearby abbey both as a child, in my cathedral choir, and the fact that one of the brothers at the abbey was a gifted amateur archaeologist whom I helped on his paleo-Indian digs on the abbey grounds.

I felt powerfully drawn to become a Benedictine when I was helping Fr. Dominic and his dig. I was just out of the Navy and had been exposed to the abbey since I was a child. To make a long story short, after a long period of discernment, I realized that I was trying to retreat from “the world” which is nothing like being called to the brotherhood itself.

To this day, my nearby Benedictine abbey serves roles in the modern world similar to those a thousand years ago. It is a center of learning (it is the principal undergraduate seminary for Louisiana). It is a center of culture (there are some really gifted musicians amongst the brothers who compose works which, while unpublished, my cathedral choir has sung and the brothers work closely with classical music groups out of New Orleans). It is a center of Catholic spirituality through its retreat house. It is a center of monastic works - literal works - as in hand made wooden caskets. The good brothers made a hand made wooden casket for our beloved and humble Bishop a few years ago. The brothers have their own farm and, in consideration of St. Benedict’s rule of Ora et Laboris, there are brothers who are farmers.

So, I do understand what you are trying to say in regards to brothers. I go to my 40th high school reunion in three weeks and one, only one, of my classmates followed the call to become a brother. There were no other vocations in my class of 150. In retrospect, HMC’s problem with vocations goes back a long time. I pray for vocations as I pray for those who have dedicated their lives to Our Lord.
 
my family hangs around the SOLT brothers and sisters from time to time.

Believe me, hanging with “da brothas” is such a blessing on our lives. We love (especially my little brothers) playing ultimate frisbee with them among other things! 😃

God bless all religious brothers and sisters!
 
Thre questions cross my mind.
  1. How many single or widowed men on these threads have considered becoming a religious brother?
  2. How do we promote vocations to the brotherhood on these threads in our communities?
  3. What does the average Catholic think about the vocation of the Brother? Does he or she understand it?
Fraternally,

JR 🙂
 
After my last posting, I began to reflect on the Gloria of the mass. It suddently struck me that the Gloria is probably the best explanation of the vocation of the Brother.

He is the man who gives glory to God for his greatness and glory in all things, sacramental, material, physical, spiritual and human.

The brother brings God’s glory to all men by living a life of praise, thanksgiving and worship. He is like the angels at Bethlehem who announce peace to men of Good will.

He proclaims to all men that Jesus Christ is the only son of the Father and that we have been incorporated into that sonship, therefore are brothers to each other through Christ.

Like the Gloria says, we proclaim that Jeus is one with the Father and the Holy Spirit. He is the holy one and the only Lord of his life and invites other men and women to live in the same fraternal relationship with Jesus Christ who reigns in glory above all that is created and yet to be created.

Finally, his life is one of peace lived in silence, prayer, worship and constant conversion. While he does not provide for the sacramental needs of the faithful, he nurtures the soul of the faithful who are seeking an intimate communion with the Divine through his witness and example.

Like Mary, he is committed to the service and ministry of the apostles. Like Mary, he submits to the apostles, but also cares for them as his brothers in Christ Like Mary, he embraces all of the Father’s children as his own family. Thus he is truly brother as Christ is brother.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF
 
JReducation said:
  1. How many single or widowed men on these threads have considered becoming a religious brother?
  2. How do we promote vocations to the brotherhood on these threads in our communities?
  3. What does the average Catholic think about the vocation of the Brother? Does he or she understand it?
Click to expand...
Good.
  1. Never have. I was not Catholic before married
  2. Vocations begin in the family. I have discussed this possibility with my oldest son already. It is still a possibility. Also, It is always good to see the brothers in the parishes. I like to visit monastaries on vacation.
  3. They have a vocation to the prayer life of the Church, both through Liturgy and intercession.
 
pnewton said:
Good.
  1. Never have. I was not Catholic before married
  2. Vocations begin in the family. I have discussed this possibility with my oldest son already. It is still a possibility. Also, It is always good to see the brothers in the parishes. I like to visit monastaries on vacation.
  3. They have a vocation to the prayer life of the Church, both through Liturgy and intercession.
Click to expand...
You are correct. The family is the soil where the seed is planted. I’m glad to hear that you have discussed it with your son. It would help him to go to some of the websites of different brothers communities.

If anyone is interested, I can provide some links. Not all brothers have websites, for different reasons. But there are many.

It’s also important to remember that many brothers do not serve in parishes or are monastic, because it’s not their vocation. My own community serves in the secular world. Our brothers go to work every day in banks, hospitals, schools, offices and other jobs. Our mission it to bring the charism of St. Francis to the secular world, especially to the unconverted Catholic.

In addition we work with the disabled, women in crisis pregnancies, the caregivers of the disabled and the sick.

We are an itinerant group of spiritual directors and companions to those who have no companions. We are also missionaries to Catholics who live by rituals, but have little understanding of the mystical life. We spend a great deal of time with Catholics who want to deepen their life of prayer and build families that are spiritual centers of growth. Finally, we work for unity among Catholics. We try to reconcile the different groups of Catholics who are at odds with each other over such issues as traditional vs orthodox, liberal vs conservative and so forth. Our goal is to bring the message of Francis of Assisi to the Church and like Francis, to rebuild the Church beginning with the crumbling blocks that are already a part of her structure.

As you can see, there is only one call to brotherhood, but very different charisms or emphases depending on the religious family.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF
 
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