'Monastic Spirituality'

Benedict drew different strands together…show his extraordinary skill in selecting and blending elements to form a balanced, positive and complete unity…because he lived it.

In the best of monasteries music, architecture, language, gardens and libraries flourish. Community life is the object of central concern. Learning, study, reading and the preservation of books are all integral to spiritual practice.

Until her death in 1239, the Lady Jacopa continued doing whatever needed doing, with the freedom of movement of a laywoman, yet the personal disciplines of a religious. “The Legend of Perugia”

A Third Order:  a canonically approved society of lay people stirred by the same ideals that inspired the founders of traditional Religious Orders:  the Franciscan ideal of peace, justice, prayer and respect for nature; the Benedictine longing for stability, equality, community, and conversion; the Dominican thirst for scholarship; the Carmelite goft of contemplation and meditation…A Third Orders provide a way to pray, learn and act with like-minded people. “This is not a club. It’s a way of life. We want to live in God’s presence all the time.”

When your needs are limited, your vessel is easily filled and you can delight in the overflow!