Linda, in that wonderful, crazy way that has been a prized feature of our marriage, almost immediately proposed that we go on a retreat: she had found a monastic order of Episcopal monks, the Society of St. John the Evangelist, who have a monastery in Cambridge, Mass., and a retreat center, Emery House in West Newbury, 45 minutes drive North of Boston.

The idea was to go, and be free to read, think and reflect on whatever we wished, in the company of the monks. Amazon had just shipped me William Gibson's Pattern Recognition, and Bruce Sterling's Tomorrow Now. Perfect! A sub-plot was that we had always wanted to learn to snowshoe or cross-country ski, and the monk's 120 acres are adjacent to Maudslay State Park which offered miles of trails and lots of snow along the picturesque Merrimack River.

And, it turns out, that the monks require recreation of their order: they believe that a person who fills every free moment with work is hiding from something (and the Brothers work and pray hard). So we figured it would be fine to work a couple hours a day of snowshoeing into the schedule.

We arrived this past Monday, on the last bus to make it out of Boston in the midst of what turned out to be one of the worst snow storms in the last 100 years. The Brothers were awaiting a snow plow, so we took a cab from the bus station to Emery House. The cabbie was afraid to try the last half-mile of the road, and asked us to pray for her as we set off on foot.

Brother Geoffrey met us half-way in a 4-wheel drive truck, and installed us in a hermitage, a small, spare but very comfortable cabin. It featured a desk, a chair, a bed and a prayer corner. We were given a binder that clearly spelled out the monk's routine, and what was expected of retreatants.

The Brothers pray 7 times a day: once alone, once in the company of the other Brothers, and 5 times when retreatants are welcome to join them. We passed on the 6:00 AM prayers, but joined the brothers the other 4 times a day for morning Eucharist, mid-day prayer, evening prayer and Compline. The prayers are held in a small, spare, very pretty chapel that has a beautiful view over the monks' grounds.

The Brothers keep silence as a norm, including at meals. During the days, the silence is informal, the monks and retreatants interact as needed, but casual conversations are not encouraged. From Compline until morning Office, the Great Silence is kept, a more serious silence where all but the most vital communications are discouraged.

So we settled into a routine of praying, reading, snowshoeing, reflecting and eating simple meals that featured bread, cheese and fruit, along with some hearty soups and other dishes. The Brothers played classical music during the meals: noit a word was spoken, even though there were often 9 or 10 of us at table (4 Brothers and the retreatants, most of whom were women).

One day, we met with Brother Timothy in a parlor of the almost 250-year old Emery House, for a session called 'spritual direction'. Brother Timothy is a hale, vibrant guy, 35 years old and half-way through the process of being a Novice in the order.

I told Brother Timothy I was completely turned off by the liturgy and most of the other trappings of church: no big deal, said he, "Don't confuse faith with religion". We talked about an essay I've been trying to write, called Knowledge, Faith and Rules. His thoughts were at turns profound and amusing: he talked about the struggle of becoming a monk and his life's journey. I took a lot away from what we discussed for 90 minutes.

Gibson and Sterling's books were a perfect fit. I found myself thinking of modern marketing and society, and the near future in the context of the lives and values of the monks. Linda and I connected in a way that surprised us both. We made a promise to read to each other every day something that we felt was important, spirtually, whetehr it be William Gibson od St. Augustine. Would we go back? Already planning on it...
Comments 10:54:25 AM    

Chris Gulker's view from Silicon Valley - in words and pictures