Silent Monks Learn to Speak for Revenue

Silent Monks² Learn to Speak for Revenue

On a 500-hectare estate of rolling hills in the Virginia countryside live 11 Trappist monks.

There used to be almost 70. But the decision to become a monk¹ is not as popular as it once was.

This might explain why: The monks follow the Rule of St. Benedict, which dates from the 6th century. They have given up their worldly possessions. They have promised to remain in the same community under a vow³ of “stability.” They agree to remain celibate⁴, and they live separately from the world.

And silence is maintained as much as possible. 

“The first rule of St. Benedict is ‘listen.’ He believed in a restraint of words. It’s a particular message for our era, in which words have become so cheap,” explained Father James Orthmann.

He is originally from New York City, and has lived at the Our Lady of the Holy Cross Abbey in Berryville, Virginia for 39 years. Now, he is 65.       

The Benedictine monks’ motto in Latin is Ora et Labora, or in English, “Pray and Work.” Each day, the monks pray for eight hours, sleep for eight hours, and work for eight hours. The work can be manual labor⁵, sacred reading, or charity.

And they pray. The monks pray five times a day at 3:30 and 7 in the morning, 2 and 5:30 in the afternoon, and 7:30 in the evening. They sing medieval chants in English, and every two weeks they pray all 150 Psalms⁶ or inspirations from the Bible.

By about 7:45 pm each evening, they go to bed.

But the monks and the abbey are facing a difficult reality. The number of monks has declined since the abbey was founded in 1950. At its peak, there were 68 monks. Today, there are just 11, and many are older than 70.

“Nowadays, it’s hard to recruit new monks,” said Father James. “It’s a huge adjustment in our culture, much more than when I entered 39 years ago.”

“Advertising for monks doesn’t work,” said Kurt Aschermann, a lay person -- or helper -- who promotes the abbey as a volunteer. The target market for monks is men between the ages of 35 and 55. Men of that age have enough life experience to know they want to join the monastery⁷.

Candidates must pass a background check, said Father James. They live at the abbey for three months to see if it’s right for them. They participate as active members for one year, but are not formal members yet. Then they are considered novices⁸ for two years.

They finally take “simple vows⁹,” then “solemn vows.”

Lastly, they have to sell all their possessions before they are formally monks in the Trappist brotherhood¹⁰.

Adapting to Modern Realities

Because fewer men have entered the monastic service, the abbey has taken some innovative¹¹ steps to ensure its survival.

“We are changing our relationship with the society around us,” said Father James. “There is an inter-penetration and an interaction with non-monastic people.”   

For example, Holy Cross Abbey has launched “Monastic Immersion¹² Weekends” for both men and women. Those have been “wildly popular,” said Aschermann.

During the immersion weekends, you can spend 48 hours living the life of a Trappist monk. People of any religion – or no religion – can come.

“There are lots and lots of people who find monastic life to be an interesting lifestyle,” said Aschermann. “But they have wives and children and jobs. Very few have the capacity to give up everything and go to the monastery.”

The immersion weekend gives people a taste of monastic life.

Last year, the abbey offered a free event on the 100th birthday of Thomas Merton, a famous Benedictine monk. All 50 tickets were claimed in just two hours, said Aschermann. 

The Holy Cross Abbey also rents rooms in a retreat house where up to 16 guests can come for weekend or weekday visits. No religious study is required. Guests can come to enjoy the scenery and quiet around the Blue Ridge¹³ Mountains and the Shenandoah River.

Englishman Ralph Wormeley, a friend of George Washington, bought the property in 1730 and named it the Cool Spring Estate. There is an historic house on the grounds that was built around 1784. It was built by the Wormeley family and sits next to the abbey.

The monks also raise money by selling fruitcake and creamed honey in their gift shop. In addition, they sell hooded¹⁴ T-shirts with the Abbey logo, scented¹⁵ soaps and biscotti. 

The monks are self-sufficient financially. And they’ve become innovative about raising income from the estate. They rent pasture to a local farmer, who grazes black Angus cattle on the property. They lease land to another farmer who is growing organic vegetables.

And they offer “eco-friendly” burials that are less expensive than usual burial methods. You can be buried with a monument made out of local rocks.

“Last November, we won a Lord Fairfax award for an outstanding farm since 2010,” Father James noted¹⁶ proudly.

History of the Benedictine Communities

The first Benedictine monastery in the U.S. was St. Vincent, in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1832 by Bonifice Wimmer, a German monk. He brought Benedictine nuns¹⁷ from Germany to serve in Pennsylvania and other states.

Today, there are more than 2,000 Benedictine monasteries¹⁸ on six continents, according to “Christian Spirituality: The Classics.” Holy Cross Abbey is one of 12 Trappist monasteries for men, and five for women in the United States. Trappist monasteries are also called Cistercian monasteries, and they follow the Rule of St. Benedict.

Deep prayer is practiced in other religions, as well. Zen Buddhists¹⁹ emphasize meditation²⁰ as a path to spiritual enlightenment. Sufism explores an inner mystical dimension of Islam. And Kabbalah is a branch of Judaism that promotes spirituality through mysticism.

Words in This Story

estate – n.  a large piece of land with a large house on it

monk – n.  a member of a religious community of men who usually promise to remain poor, unmarried, and separated from the rest of society 

motto – n. a short sentence or wording that expresses a rule guiding the behavior of a particular person or group

charity – n. the act of giving money, food, or other help to people who are sick or needy²¹

medieval – adj. of or relating to the Middle Ages; of or relating to the period of European history from about A.D. 500 to about 1500

recruit – v. to find suitable people and get them to join a company, an organization or the armed forces

immersion – n.  complete involvement in some activity or interest

fruitcake – n.  a very sweet baked good that contains nuts, fruits, and spices

T-shirt – n.  a shirt that has short sleeves and no collar and that is usually made of cotton 

biscotti – n. an Italian food containing almond biscuits.

mystical – adj.  having a spiritual meaning that is difficult to see or understand

1 monk   

n.和尚，僧侣，修道士

参考例句：

• The man was a monk from Emei Mountain.那人是峨眉山下来的和尚。
• Buddhist monk sat with folded palms.和尚合掌打坐。

2 monks   

n.修道士，僧侣( monk的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The monks lived a very ascetic life. 僧侣过着很清苦的生活。
• He had been trained rigorously by the monks. 他接受过修道士的严格训练。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 vow   

n.誓(言)，誓约；v.起誓，立誓

参考例句：

• My parents are under a vow to go to church every Sunday.我父母许愿，每星期日都去做礼拜。
• I am under a vow to drink no wine.我已立誓戒酒。

4 celibate   

adj.独身的，独身主义的；n.独身者

参考例句：

• He had defended the institution of a celibate priesthood.他捍卫了独身牧师制度。
• The instinct of the celibate warned him to hold back.单身汉的本能告诫他回头是岸。

5 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

6 psalms   

n.赞美诗( psalm的名词复数 )；圣诗；圣歌；(中的)

参考例句：

• the Book of Psalms 《〈圣经〉诗篇》
• A verse from Psalms knifed into Pug's mind: "put not your trust in princes." 《诗篇》里有一句话闪过帕格的脑海：“不要相信王侯。” 来自辞典例句

7 monastery   

n.修道院，僧院，寺院

参考例句：

• They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
• She was appointed the superior of the monastery two years ago.两年前她被任命为这个修道院的院长。

8 novices   

n.新手( novice的名词复数 )；初学修士（或修女）；（修会等的）初学生；尚未赢过大赛的赛马

参考例句：

• The Russians are such novices in Africa. 在非洲的俄国人简直都是些毫无经验的生手。 来自辞典例句
• Where the primary track all novices, screams everywhere, ha ha good terror. 那里的初级道上全是生手，到处都是尖叫声，哈哈好恐怖的。 来自互联网

9 vows   

誓言( vow的名词复数 )； 郑重宣布，许愿

参考例句：

• Matrimonial vows are to show the faithfulness of the new couple. 婚誓体现了新婚夫妇对婚姻的忠诚。
• The nun took strait vows. 那位修女立下严格的誓愿。

10 brotherhood   

n.兄弟般的关系，手中情谊

参考例句：

• They broke up the brotherhood.他们断绝了兄弟关系。
• They live and work together in complete equality and brotherhood.他们完全平等和兄弟般地在一起生活和工作。

11 innovative   

adj.革新的，新颖的，富有革新精神的

参考例句：

• Discover an innovative way of marketing.发现一个创新的营销方式。
• He was one of the most creative and innovative engineers of his generation.他是他那代人当中最富创造性与革新精神的工程师之一。

12 immersion   

n.沉浸；专心

参考例句：

• The dirt on the bottom of the bath didn't encourage total immersion.浴缸底有污垢，不宜全身浸泡于其中。
• The wood had become swollen from prolonged immersion.因长时间浸泡，木头发胀了。

13 ridge   

n.山脊；鼻梁；分水岭

参考例句：

• We clambered up the hillside to the ridge above.我们沿着山坡费力地爬上了山脊。
• The infantry were advancing to attack the ridge.步兵部队正在向前挺进攻打山脊。

14 hooded   

adj.戴头巾的；有罩盖的；颈部因肋骨运动而膨胀的

参考例句：

• A hooded figure waited in the doorway. 一个戴兜帽的人在门口等候。
• Black-eyed gipsy girls, hooded in showy handkerchiefs, sallied forth to tell fortunes. 黑眼睛的吉卜赛姑娘，用华丽的手巾包着头，突然地闯了进来替人算命。 来自辞典例句

15 scented   

adj.有香味的；洒香水的；有气味的v.嗅到(scent的过去分词)

参考例句：

• I let my lungs fill with the scented air. 我呼吸着芬芳的空气。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The police dog scented about till he found the trail. 警犬嗅来嗅去，终于找到了踪迹。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

16 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

17 nuns   

n.（通常指基督教的）修女， （佛教的）尼姑( nun的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Ah Q had always had the greatest contempt for such people as little nuns. 小尼姑之流是阿Q本来视如草芥的。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Nuns are under vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. 修女须立誓保持清贫、贞洁、顺从。 来自辞典例句

18 monasteries   

修道院( monastery的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• In ancient China, there were lots of monasteries. 在古时候，中国有许多寺院。
• The Negev became a religious center with many monasteries and churches. 内格夫成为许多庙宇和教堂的宗教中心。

19 Buddhists   

n.佛教徒( Buddhist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Jesuits in a phase of ascendancy, persecuted and insulted the Buddhists with great acrimony. 处于地位上升阶段的耶稣会修士迫害佛教徒，用尖刻的语言辱骂他们。 来自英汉非文学 - 历史
• The return of Saivite rule to central Java had brought no antagonism between Buddhists and Hindus. 湿婆教在中爪哇恢复统治后，并没有导致佛教徒与印度教徒之间的对立。 来自辞典例句

20 meditation   

n.熟虑，（尤指宗教的）默想，沉思，（pl.）冥想录

参考例句：

• This peaceful garden lends itself to meditation.这个恬静的花园适于冥想。
• I'm sorry to interrupt your meditation.很抱歉，我打断了你的沉思。

21 needy   

adj.贫穷的，贫困的，生活艰苦的

参考例句：

• Although he was poor,he was quite generous to his needy friends.他虽穷，但对贫苦的朋友很慷慨。
• They awarded scholarships to needy students.他们给贫苦学生颁发奖学金。