New Camaldoli Hermitage LENT/EASTER 2021 New Wineskins And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed. – Luke 5:37 62475 Highway 1, Big Sur, CA 93920 • 831 667 2456 • www.contemplation.com LENT/EASTER 2021 Community as an Ecosystem and Energy In This Issue Prior Cyprian Consiglio, OSB Cam. 2 Community as an Ecosystem and Energy I attended the Workshop for Prioresses and Abbots (and Prior Cyprian Consiglio, OSB Cam. Priors!) some years back, shortly after I had assumed the mantle of leadership here at New Camaldoli. The work- 4 Contemplative Renewal and New Monasticism shop was entitled “Leadership in a Complicated Rapidly Fr. Adam Bucko Changing World.” It was filled with the best advice I have 6 Camaldolese Charism Wine for New Wineskins gotten about being the prior of this community, and Andrea Seitz, Oblate, OSB Cam. phrases from it continu- ally come to my mind 7 Bede, Bruno, and New Consciousness when I am thinking Dorothea Derickson about “the big picture” here at the Hermitage 9 New Wineskins Retreat and of the future of reli- Helena Chan, Oblate, OSB Cam. gious life in general. 10 Renewal of Heart and Soul Fr. Steve Coffey, OSB Cam. The presenters first offered us two images: 11 What the Monks Are Reading one could see a com- munity either as a 11 Activities and Visitors fortress or as an eco- system. A fortress is an institution, built on a high. dry place, made of brick and mortar, un- changing. An ecosystem, on the other hand, like wetlands, sees the com- munity as an organic organism that is supple, And just like that, it’s Lent again! It’s a season of adaptive, ever-evolving. fasting and simplicity. A time to go a little deeper A wetland could look and to strip away all that might be in the way of like a failed fortress; doing that. We are given a chance to make changes on the other hand, a and to ponder what we need to give up, to make fortress could look like a way for God to be revealed by renewal. It’s a deep, stagnant pond. This was rich season of preparation. And it is a good time to some of the tension at reflect on this theme of New Wineskins. What is the Vatican II: Is the Church church being called to change? How can we, as the an unchanging institu- body of Christ, respond to these changes? Jesus tion, or is there room established himself as the new covenant; what are for aggiornamento—an the new promises we are called to, both personally updating—and even and spiritually? Now, more than ever, it feels like outright change? the time is ripe for change and refreshment. As Mahatma Gandhi said, may we be the change we Along with that come wish to see in the world. As we journey through two diverse approaches Lent and enter the Easter season, may your days to problems. Some is- be filled with new life and joy, and may your hearts sues require technical solutions, and experts come in and be renewed and refreshed with hope and love! fix the problem—a plumber, a mason, an IT specialist. But other issues are really adaptive challenges that require in- Peace, novation and new learning on the part of everyone. Adap- Lisa tive challenges also involve loss and grief because some things can’t be fixed and are simply supposed to die and leave room for new growth and new birth. A last category that was offered, us was the subtle differ- 2 ~ New Camaldoli Hermitage contemplation.com ~ 3 ence between vision—knowing where you are going and the early part of the 20th century, leading up to the great laying out a map on how to get there, as in strategic plan- event of Vatican II. Ressourcement is a French word meaning ning—and clarity of purpose, which doesn’t just ask where “going back to the sources.” It was particularly behind the we are going but why we’re going there in the first place. council’s 1965 “Decree on the Up-to-Date Renewal of Reli- gious Life,” called Perfectae Caritatis. That document asked Outside of that workshop, one other framing device has all religious orders and congregations to go back to their also been foundational for me. Similar to the fortress and roots, to make an intelligent, authentic return to the sourc- ecosystem is the idea that our spirituality is both an energy es—a “constant return to the…primitive inspiration of the and a container for that energy. Energy with no container institutes, and their adaptation to the changed conditions leads to dissipation and chaos; but all container and no of our time.” Part of this was a look back at the charism of energy leads to lifeless community. the founder, in our case Saint Romuald: “the spirit and aims of each founder should be faithfully accepted and retained, as indeed should each institute’s sound traditions, for all of these constitute the patrimony of an institute.” But note that this return to the sources is not an archeological dig for a museum piece; it has as its primary reason a pres- ent renewal so as to be relevant to the future. This was meant to bring about a genuine clarity of purpose, not just to ask where we are going but why we’re go- ing there in the first place. This work is ongoing, and perhaps never should be considered finished. My own experience in religious life leaves me with the in- tuition that something new yet wants to be born within the context of religious life so as to be relevant not just to the future but even to the present. I certainly hope and pray that Camaldolese monks and nuns, and New Camaldoli Hermitage itself, will continue to be present and active in our world. However, once we ascer- tain what is essential to our life—the fortress, and the vessel, it behooves us Obviously every community, as every religious order or to ask what in our life needs to adapt and grow in order to congregation, is some combination of both—a fortress be relevant to the present age and the future. Even more and an ecosystem, the energy and the vessel for that ener- salient for this issue of our newsletter, is there something gy. And every community requires both technical solutions new that wants to be born from out of the ecosystem of and adaptive challenges, some shoring up of the vessel Camaldolese monastic life as we have known it thus far? and some inspiration for the energy. I have found that in And how can we be a part of that, foster its growth, and my own role as prior, some of my most important ongoing lend what we have to offer as well as learn from the new discernment is in figuring out when which is called for. exciting explorations taking place? These are some of the issues we hope to explore in these pages, just one small A great work of ressourcement went on in the Church in piece of a long conversation. contemplation.com ~ 3 Contemplative Renewal and New a real opportunity here to re-examine our tradition and to discern what is truly valuable in our tradition and what is Monasticism worth offering to support the future. Fr. Adam Bucko Q Adam, you yourself are rooted very firmly in the Fr. Adam Bucko has been a committed voice in the Christian tradition. Do you believe spirituality can flower movement for the renewal of Christian Contemplative just as deeply if one is not practicing within a tradition? Spirituality and the growing New Monastic movement. He has taught engaged contemplative spirituality in A Well, first of all, we have to acknowledge that when Europe and the US and coauthored two books: Occupy people hear about spiritual and not religious people, they Spirituality: A Radical Vision for a New Generation and The often immediately think that these are people who are just New Monasticism: An Interspiritual Manifesto for Contem- shopping around and not really that committed, that they plative Living. He was one of the featured speakers at want to use many different tools to dig different holes and, the annual retreat this past summer. At the retreat, he as a result, they can’t go deep. But when we look at some selected a few questions to answer in hopes of framing of the people who come from that group, we realize that where contemplative life is going, as well as the role of actually many of them spend more time practicing than Monasticism and New Monasticism in the future land- regular churchgoers. As one Hindu monastic once said to scape of spirituality in America. a Christian priest friend of mine, “It is possible to use differ- ent tools to dig one hole. For most things we need to ac- complish in our lives, we actually use more than one tool.” Q We hear a lot today about the younger generation So, maybe it is actually possible to use different practices not being interested in God or religion. Some denomina- to go deeper in your spiritual life too. tional church statistics tell us that by 2050 there will be hardly any people left in the church. What do you think about that? A I hear that “young people are not interested in reli- gion or God” a lot, especially from clergy.