True Simplicity and Authentic Poverty of Spirit

6:30 am

Toast, tea. I decided to keep reading Brother Victor-Antoine's Blessings of the Daily and today's entry was a particularly well written pertinent and poignant one. He writes:


"Reforms, throughout the history of monasticism, come and go. They are usually tied to a certain period or a charismatic personality, as they succeeded each other across the centuries. There are some today who, in an effort to purify what they consider the present ills of the monastic institution, would wish to return to what they conceive of as the monasticism of the Middle Ages – as if the medieval monasteries, or those of any other era, were ever perfect. In my view, that sort of idealism is nothing but a naïve approach to the problem. In truth, monastic life would not profit from a so-called literal return to the past, but rather from actualizing today the values learned from the past. For monastic life to survive, it must show the same versatility as the Gospel: it must be able to adapt itself to each epoch, to each place where it is implanted, or lived. . . . Filled with the grace and light that shines forth from the Gospel, we move forward seeking God daily with purity of heart, with true simplicity and authentic poverty of spirit, in the silence and solitude of the desert, where God always dwells. Monastic renewal, in essence, is all about this and all else is superfluous.”



1:00 pm

Bread, cheese, apple, water.



7:00 pm

Trout, broccoli, bread, water.