Why is Contemplative Religious Life Valuable?

[AnneElizabeth]

Just for the sake of discussion, what about a 100% pure contemplative hermit, like Saint Onuphrius?

I’ve never read about the saint you mention here, so I don’t know if I could comment on it, but I’m assuming from the way you wrote your comment that you mean that he was a saint that had no contact with others (mostly) at all in his life?

One thing I have noticed with people is that they tend to believe that being religious means you help others and are a really ‘nice’ person and you go way out of your way to make everyone else happy and comfortable and sacrifice a lot of yourself to do so. This is sweet, BUT the number one thing God asks us to do is to “love God above all else” (aka to do His Will). Its both the first thing mentioned in the 10 Commandments ( I am the Lord thy God; thou shalt not have strange gods before Me.) And also the first thing mentioned in Matthew 22- known as “The Greatest Commandment” :
…37Jesus declared, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’… (bold and underline emphasis mine of course for for clarity)

  Notice, the SECOND commandment is to love your neighbor.   If someone is working hard to get the FIRST commandment to be done, I don't think The Lord is going to have any problem with that.... just as in the story of Martha and Mary (Luke 10) , Martha did not like the fact that Mary was taking all that time to sit with Jesus to listen to him because there was work to be done and she wanted her help and thought Mary was being wasteful or lazy or not helpful.   Martha then asked Jesus to tell Mary to get back to work basically,  but  the reply from Jesus was:  41“Martha, Martha, the Lord replied, “you are worried and upset about many things. **42But only one thing is necessary.** Mary has chosen the good portion, and it will not be taken away from her.”    (again, bold emphasis mine for clarity)

SO that IS what He asks of everyone to FIRST do- seek to put God first. It is the number one thing every real religious should be doing because if you seek first the kingdom of God- everything else will just fall into place as it should. You will already love as you should love and you will do His Will. This is also why I also see contemplatives as a powerhouse of grace as Dorothy here put it- They are putting The Lord absolutely unequivocally first- giving no provisions to other things of life (not that there are problems with having other things in life- as things do need to be done, but that the contemplative puts all else aside for The Lord to fill them more- they are answering a call from God. If someone has sought the Lord and they are in solitude for the rest of their life and don’t do anything for another person (so as long as they are really doing what God’s Will is) then there cannot be any trouble with that.

In the same sense… people who are injured or sick or disabled are not expected to ‘work for people’ as they cannot physically do those things, but they can pray and offer up their sufferings and seek the Lord first with their whole heart . The world may see them as useless or poor, but they really, as well as the contemplative religious, can become powerhouses of grace also. I believe this is why we see the push from within society for euthanasia and also the poor rapport of contemplative life… Evil wants them gone… no powerhouse of grace to channel to the people, and because of that the people become weaker and more easily led away from the Lord. Scripture states : A three ply cord is not easily broken as we are told in Scripture- but when you have everyone ‘individualized’, …well then, its a smorgasbord of souls to fall to do evil’s bidding. Just takes a puff of suggestion to push them over and most of the time they have no clue of the evil they have done. If the Lord says a three ply cord is not easily broken, then since whole convent is more than a three ply cord, its then one very super strong cord. Pity people see them as lowly and lame as they would view a mother that gave birth to a baby in a stable, … and then probably berate her too for being such an abusive, foolish or lazy mother. When people don’t understand the circumstance, how quickly they will judge.
By the way, you don't even have to meet with people to dispense grace. Or talk with them. You can simply pray for them to God and petition on their behalf. (This is also what a priest does too when they are up at the altar, he is praying on behalf of the people to God. This is also why the priest used to face the altar in the past and not the people like we have had it for the past 40 years or so.) That might sound really lax and lazy and to some misguided people 'easy' to just have a life of 'prayer', but the fact of the matter is, if you really believe (which, by the way, is really a truly difficult thing to do since a lot of it goes against what we humans esteem as wisdom/ knowledge), you know that prayers will move mountains, as God's word says.

 

[AnneElizabeth]

I have a follow up question to this thread: How do contemplative monks/nuns fulfill Corporal Works of Mercy?

I have this great fear that if I were a contemplative monk, I would find myself hearing the words of Matthew 25:41:

I know my fear must be wrong based on Catholic teaching and practice, but can anyone point to something from official teaching or tradition to allay my concern?

In your quoted scripture, the part about taking people in, most monasteries do that…or they should, at least. I do know the stay rates are significantly les expensive compared to regular hotels and such. I would hope that they would take in someone in need if someone came to them in need…maybe it’s not done so much now, but in past history, perhaps this was common thing to do? I’m not sure. But it’s a good question.

Let’s put it this way…you are living as a contemplative monk, and you get a phone call of a distressed man in need, you have the choice to send him away or take him in, or at least help in finding real help for them…you still have the choice to follow God’s Word in that scenario. Whatever we choose to do in this life, we still have the option to do as God says, when scenarios occur.

In matters of obedience, make sure you choose superiors you trust that from your observation have it in mind to fully live and do God’s Word. This is the same when choosing a spouse, or when choosing a teacher or school for your child, you discern…you just don’t pick any one…you discern, as they do with you as well. So if you find a group that scoffs those works of mercy, thinking to themselves that’s not their job to do those works you mention, then you very much have the option not to join.

 

[lynnvinc]

When I had just converted to Catholicism back in 1973, we visited a cloistered Carmelite monastery in India. The old, retired priest who said Mass for them, who lived in a small house outside the monastery explained to me how they pray all the time, that this is the true powerhouse of the world.

I imagined it being an electric station with wires going up to heaven.

 

[Dorothy]

When I had just converted to Catholicism back in 1973, we visited a cloistered Carmelite monastery in India. The old, retired priest who said Mass for them, who lived in a small house outside the monastery explained to me how they pray all the time, that this is the true powerhouse of the world.

I imagined it being an electric station with wires going up to heaven.

I like that description!

The graces that come from their prayer are distributed to the Body of Christ (the Church) on earth, according to the will of the Lord.

 

[JimR-OCDS]

Today’s Gospel Reading, the last sentence explains it.

He[Jesus] remained outside in deserted places,
and people kept coming to him from everywhere. MK1:40-45

Jim

 

[e_c]

Moses needs Joshua to fight, Joshua needs Moses to pray.

From Peter’s ministry came the seed for the conversion of Rome, with John’s lifelong contemplation there came the Fourth Gospel.

FWIW - Thomas thought the highest vocation was to the contemplative-active life.

newadvent.org/summa/3188.htm#article6