Now we read in opening, you know, it's really an adaptation of Solomon's prayer for wisdom. O Lord, thou hast commanded us to build a temple on thy holy mount, an altar in the city of thy dwelling place, a resemblance of thy holy tabernacle, which thou hast prepared from the beginning, and thy wisdom with thee, which knows thy works, which then also was present when thou madest the world, and knew what was agreeable to thy eyes, and what was right in thy commandments. Send her out of thy holy heaven and from the throne of thy majesty, that she may be with us, and may labor with us, that we may know what is acceptable with thee. for she knows and understands all things, and shall lead us soberly in our works, and shall preserve us by her power. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. So, we are certainly very glad and grateful to Joe Shanley Knight Sturges to come here and to give their time to this project of our monastery which has vexed us for such a long time and so many different ideas have come up and have been

[01:50]

altered and changed and so on, and it really is a great praise of the patience, you know, of our architect that you have given out to this moment. Now, I would like, maybe it would be helpful for all to, if I would first sketch out a little the history of our... building the octagon and of the present plans which we had arrived at, as you know, the diamond shape and all these things. The first thing which was very close to my heart right from the beginning was, as you know, the idea of the octagon as the form of the monastic chapel, and we have spoken about that very often, and I think the philosophy of it is clear to all.

[03:00]

First of all, we wanted to express by this octagonal shape the concentric order of the monastic community which lives in the New Age. The symbol of the New Age is the octagon. We know it architecturally from the Church of the Resurrection, the first church that was ever built in Christianity in Jerusalem, and which was an octagon. Also from the first church that was ever built outside Jerusalem, the first cathedral, which was the Church of St. Peter, I mean, the first see of St. Peter in Antioch. We have the same scheme also in the famous San Vitali in Ravenna. It was one of the most representative churches of the Eastern Christianity. And this was copied later on by Charlemagne in his Octagon and Exvashapir.

[04:06]

So the octagonal form certainly is not strange to Christianity. On the contrary, it has a very definite meaning. has an inner relation to the idea of the resurrection and emphasizes that, as we can see also from the octagonal baptistry, which we find in Milan, various other places, and which were by the Fathers, as for example, St. Ambrose explained in exactly the way in which we understand it here. So this octagonal church was intended to make it clear that a monastic church is not a parish church. A parish church is built in the rectangular form, usually, what we call the basilica form. The idea of that is that really this basilica represents a street in the New Jerusalem.

[05:14]

A street. where people walk in procession, where the congregation goes up to the altar, brings their crowns and bring their offerings, as we have it in Ravenna in St. Napolinari, where the row of columns and of arches leads from the entrance, which is in the west, to the altar which is in the east and which is really conceived as the throne of the curious, of the gloriously risen Christ. So the rectangular shape therefore cannot be separated from the idea really of the street. The octagon, on the other hand, is a concentric thing and is essentially a circle of that the order is the center.

[06:15]

Therefore, that form rather represents, say, the contemplative idea, while the rectangular shape is more a shape which reflects the idea of the... purificatio, the eater, the wandering towards the goal. So another thing which was connected with this idea of the octagon was that in this way the monastic congregation, the monastic community would be gathered around the altar, but in such a way that also those who joined this monastic community would be equally drawn under the influence and come into the very range of the sanctuary. And that were the oblates of the monastery and that were the guests.

[07:21]

And that has always played a very important role in all our considerations. We didn't want to have, say, the beauty and the grace of the new age as an exclusive privilege of the monks. We wanted that those who come to the monastery and seeking for that new life and the splendor of that new age, especially in our draft times, would feel not in any way excluded, but included in that life. And that, to my mind, is a right which is inherent practically in every baptized Christian, because through his baptism he is put into this octagon. There is no getting around. Now, this octagon then, let us say, is the nucleus, the ideal nucleus of Monseigneur's ability.

[08:29]

Now, we had originally, or I must say I had originally thought that the best place for the monastery in this environment that we have here would be the hill which you see over there, which has a very central position geographically, according to the landscape here, which has a very beautiful view, which therefore has many advantages. And in thinking of that hill as the place where the monastery would be, That hill is, as you know, a triangle, roughly triangular shape, pointing to the south. And then it seemed, you know, that the idea of our monastery here would be most logically, and also according to the whole landscape, be developed in this way, that the octagon chapel would be the southern hub of it.

[09:41]

And then from out of that southern hub grows the cloister, following the triangular shape of that piece of land there. And in that way, I write it as the diamond shape, as the natural growth of that seed idea, so to speak. Then, however, in the beginning, when we looked into things more closely, we found that the site there would be a very expensive proposition to build on, that the access to it and accessibility is not too good. It would entail the building of a rather long road which was entirely beyond our means at the time.

[10:43]

So that idea was given up and instead of that we settled down to build at a place which was the easiest accessible to us at the time. That was here at the end, the upper end of Madigan Road. Now that to make that decision was kind of easier for us because then at the time we were thinking of this place here at the north end of Madigan Road as an intermediary state. We were not thinking of it as the final monastic building. But there were dreams about building up on that hill where we have the most beautiful view that is available here and which would also offer a certain to say, look far into the countryside and the building that also could be seen from far away, as you know, and you approach Mount Xavier from the big flats,

[11:59]

airports, then this Mount Saphir mountain and especially that place where we had thought of putting the monastery would be really a very prominent and very magnificent place would remember in of great European imperial monasteries like Mircos or Monte Cassino, etc. And so, therefore, here now we settled, say, here at this place, the end of Madigan Road, but as a kind of intermediary state so that later on whatever we built here could be used, for example, either as a place for obelisks or it could be used then also as a place for the gifts. while the real monastery would be in quite a distance away from it eventually. And so also for reasons then of economy, the octagon was planned in such a way that it should have a cloister added to it in that diamond shape.

[13:20]

and, as I say, as a means also of economy, because we could only and we wanted only to build in the very least expensive way. Now then, in the meantime, however, in the following years, it became clear that after the chapel had been built as the beginning of this plan, that we were not able in any financial material position to build even that small and very modest little cloister. On the other hand, the community was growing and it became necessary to close to another intermediary step. And the result of that thinking and planning then was here this St. Joseph building we have now, which was planned in such a way that it could house the increase of the community and at the same time could serve then later on as a place for retreats.

[14:39]

Now that's what we are now, you know, and one can see already from this history that really the viewpoints, you know, that played a part, you know, were rather haphazard and were in many ways maybe too hasty and so on and for that I have to take the blame myself, you know, that maybe it was a little over hasty to build the chapel right there at that time that we did it. not knowing yet, let us say, not having enough to feel of the whole country, but we wanted the chapel as soon as possible and of course that had its advantages too. Then this building here, St. Joseph, was built again with other ideas and so We are now in a situation which, certainly from the architectural point, is very difficult and is not ideal at all.

[15:45]

It would be certainly easier for any architect to start without having to contend with these relics of past thinking that we have done. Now, in the meantime, then, we have thought about it more and with the time of a definite solution coming closer and closer, it was necessary to kind of revise our, to say also our, to say the philosophy of it, or at least develop it and make that clearer. Now, what we have done, the ideas which came into prominence, let me just explain that a little. What I do now, I simply do it starting merely from the idea, and I think that was one of the good lessons that these past months have given to us,

[16:52]

that maybe we were trying, you see, to attach, let us say, to the present sector. Maybe we were trying too easy and fast a solution on the grounds of what we have now. Maybe it would be better just to, for a moment, forget about everything we have and start all over again. Or maybe that way, we arrive at a better solution. So that's what we did. We kind of dropped everything that is here, and we took a completely new look on two things. A new look, let us say, at what we wanted, say, from the spiritual, monastic, let's say, philosophical point of view, And then also, let's say, a new look at the whole locality. What is the place?

[17:54]

That is the other important thing. There are two things which come together. One is, let us say, the vision, and the other is the concrete place where this vision is clicking. It is going to take its incarnation. There are two, say, the ideal element, and there is the real. And there is obedience in two directions. There is obedience, let us say, in the vertical line towards God, in the idea, and there is an obedience in the horizontal line towards the, in the plane, in the set of that we find here, which nature has prepared. So let us start with the vertical. Now there is everything. thought about it and also consulted the rule of Saint Benedict and consulted monastic tradition. Then in studying the monastic tradition, one thing came to the fore and that is that the rule of Saint Benedict has led to a certain scheme.

[19:10]

which became traditional and also the same time seemed to be a good help to the strict preservation and the living of the vita regularis. And the idea was that the monastic life consists of inner basic activity is we call the Opus Dei. The Opus Dei is the inner form of the monastic life. Nothing should be preferred to the work of God. Therefore the church takes the predominant part, is the accent in the monastery. while then the other realms of life, of monastic life, are orientated and in closest possible connection with this place where the Opus Dei is being celebrated.

[20:24]

The concrete outcome of that idea was that in most medieval monasteries, And this quadrangle has at its northern side the basilica, the rectangular basilica, the northern side, which also then serves, for example, as a windbreak for the rest, which is really added towards the south. Now then, with the big basilica in the north, And this basilica then orientated towards the east, so that the altar is east and the entrance is west. For the simple reason that west is the region of the world, and then the darkness, and east is the region of the rising light, that is, from where Christ is expected.

[21:32]

So that the altar where the Eucharist is celebrated, where the Son of the Lord rises every day over the fanatic communities in the East, their altar is the choir of the box under the figure of the risen Savior. There is that community of those who are completely, with their entire life, pledged to the new age, the Then at this eastern part, there where the monastery, where the monastic community is, around the altar, then towards the south, but in the eastern part, here's the dormitory. The dormitory, which the idea there is that the monk is by day and by night in God's service, by day and by night. The night for that matter is not an interruption of the service, is not an interruption of community life, it's continuation of the community life.

[22:43]

In that way, the monk or the order of the monastic life to a certain extent one can say ignores the sleep or turns night into day. Beautiful symbol of that is, you know, that the light is burning in the dormitory according to the rule of St. Benedict. That's all the monks sleep in their habits. They don't get undressed, you know, and put it over a chair and get a nice pajama and then roll themselves up, you know, in their comfortable beds, you know, but they sleep in their full uniform. soldiers of Christ by day and by night. So that when the sign is given, that now is the hour where the bridegroom comes, that they all just jump out here and go into the chapel. And they take their place right away in the choir.

[23:48]

and therefore they are always under one roof with the chapel where the curious is present, you know, with this communication. So then in the same, towards the south, in the same cloister, we have the new refectory. That is the other important thing. The meal or the community life in the basilica is parallel to the earthly nourishment. from which the monastic community derives its revival of its bodily powers and energies, just as in the north it revives the spiritual energies. Then remains the western side of the cloister. In the western side of the cloister That part takes its place, which is our common fate after the fall of Adam, that in the sweat of his blouse he would, in the spirit of penance, not work the ground.

[25:09]

Therefore, there is on the western side, there is the ear. the big building in which all the tools and all the working instruments for work are being kept under the custody of the proprietor or the seller, and there is then also further towards the west, outside of the cloister, is then the contact with the world, storing houses, storage houses, shops, At the furthest periphery there is the guest house and the porter's lounge. While on here towards the east and outside of the central cloister are those appendages to the monastic life. which, out of weakness, but not out of, let us say, position or intention, but out of weakness, cannot take part in the fullness of the monastic life, the vita regularis.

[26:19]

And there are two classes. There are the young ones who are not yet monks, if that's the novice shape, and there are the old ones and the sick ones who can't be monks anymore. out of physical, out of physical. So that the novice shared that the infirmary, as we have it in the idea of St. Gall, are on the eastern side, but outside the cloister. So what comes out clearly there is that there is this inner nucleus. In this inner nucleus, the essential elements of the community life are represented. And that is the opus Dei, and that is the sleeping, and that's the eating, and that's the working. And that makes the communion. Why anything else is outside the cloister. Novitiate, because the novices cannot yet keep the whole rule, they learn it.

[27:20]

The sick and the old, because they cannot physically do it anymore. And then on the western side, the contact with the world in its various gradations. Now, that is, as I say, the traditional, and there is a good, you know, there are good plants here, Cistercian monasteries of, I think, Haigville or Fontainebleau. Now, there is, as I say, the traditional scheme of things. However, the question is, do we follow completely the traditional scheme? And then, of course, not being trappist, we don't have to do that. And then immediately, of course, things come. Now, where do I have things developed? What direction?

[28:22]

Now, I don't go there into any details. I don't go and I leave out at this moment, for example, the question of the dormitory, because there is the question comes, yes, but in our days, and so on, and everybody is accustomed, and the individual cell is no luxury anymore, and so on. I leave that out. And I think this, also this meeting, is not the place to discuss that and make any decisions. So about that, yes. But I wanted to limit here my little explanation to the things which affect the general scheme of things. That means to develop, you know, ideologically, philosophically, the order, let's say in an abstract way, the order of the various areas. Now, in the Christmas Chronicle I explained this idea which is crystallized in that sentence, the Old Testament, all around in every direction, holy of holies.

[29:36]

That is, of course, a messianic prophecy. That is the vision for the messianic age. Now, in this vision, messianic age, certainly there is The temple, the house of God. Now this house of God, that's what I try to point out, you know, is in the New Testament not as it was in the Old Testament. The Old Testament conceives of the house of God as a system, one can say, of exclusions. because the dwelling place of the Divine Majesty is absolutely exclusive. Only the High Priest once a year is admitted into the presence. And then in front of that Holy of Holies and outside of it you have the Holies. And outside of the Holies you have the court.

[30:39]

And then outside of the court you finally have the others, the women and the children. It's a system of exclusions. The idea, it seems to me, of the New Testament, also I would anticipate in saying the New Testament enclosure, is not to erect a system of barriers, but is a system of inclusions. However, we shall see that. The first, I would say, it is absolutely evident already in the first pages of the Acts of the Apostles, that there the worship is divided into two things. One is the traditional, let's say, synagogal Old Testament worship for which the Christians, still being members of Israel, go to the temple and take place and take part there in the prayer temple, in the temple prayer.

[31:46]

Then there is the other front where the Christians as Christians gather together and that is in the houses, from one house to the other. And there they celebrate the breaking of the bread. Now that breaking of the bread, that's the typical New Testament thing. And of course that breaking of the bread immediately has the character of the home. Breaking of the bread is done in the homes. So instead of the idea of having one central temple as a system of exclusions and of protection, of the presence of God against, let us say, the interference of man, we have in the New Testament the home, really, of the family as the seed idea, as the ideal nucleus.

[32:49]

Not in any way locally, in that way, limited and unique, but spread everywhere. This house is the temple today. Another house or home is the temple tomorrow. Because the essential thing in that home is the family table where the children of God gather together and where a meal is held. And this meal is, and that's again the important thing, let's say, partly sacramental and partly absolutely the ordinary meal. Every Eucharistic celebration is connected with what we call the agape every year. So that in that way, the ordinary functions, you know, of the children of God are not excluded from the temple, but taken as the idea of the messianic age all around in every direction, holy of holies.

[33:52]

Now, this idea of including or of seeing the sanctuary taking shape in the home of the Christian, not in a reserved holy of holies, but making the home of the Christian holy of holies, identifying, therefore, one can say, the life of the cult of worship with the ordinary life and ordinary functions of our world. That idea has in the Middle Ages certainly suffered to a certain extent or cannot get around it. The Middle Ages also were very strong, also under the influence of the Old Testament, but other influences too, and especially the idea of the contemplative life as a life of withdrawal, essentially of withdrawal, has led to very extreme conclusions in the Middle Ages.

[35:02]

And the extremest of them was that the life of the monk and the monastic community is so exclusive and so separate from any, let us say, influences from the outside, that not even in the monastic church the monks and the Christians would meet. But that the monastic church was exclusive of any public and that the monastic services, therefore, were merely a matter of the monastic community. Now, this is not necessary to go into any reasons why this development took place, but we must state that one thing that, in my mind, the development and the inner maturing of the Church has taken place you realise I'm not talking about developments of a cultural nature or developments of civilisation, as, for example, this famous question of dormitory today as overcome by our present-day civilisation.

[36:20]

That is a questionable problem anyhow. I speak about a spiritual development which has taken place in these last centuries, one can say in the last century, or let us better say in this century, in the church for which Benedict and Moses have been responsible to a great degree. and which is constantly developing to more and more fruitful and evident conclusions. And that is the fact, you know, that with Abbot Guéranger and his monks, the guests and the public was taken into the monastic services, into the worship, the monastic worship. Certainly these ideas and new ideas in the concrete process of historic development never immediately jump in crystal clear form into the realm of realisation.

[37:32]

But that is always periods of compromises, of little steps, maybe not even realising them, steps which really But one thing is clear that Sollem, and especially Abbot Guéranger, wanted to make his monastery a centre of liturgical radiation into the whole of France, one can say. There's no doubt about it. He conceived of that certainly in a way which, you know, kept still many of the traditional elements. Cluny had a tremendous fascination on his mind. and therefore the admission, let us say, of the guests into the life of the monastery was done with utmost reserve and was really limited, let us say, to the mute assistance of the guests and their listening to the beautiful child

[38:35]

and then looking at the marvelous ceremonies, and then to receiving Holy Communion. That was the most, the highest degree of participation. Now, in the meantime, this idea, you see, of the... What I want to make clear is that, to my mind, with admitting the guests into the community worship of the monastery, an absolutely essential step has been taken, and that essential step, to my mind, will never be eliminated again, because that would be against the whole meaning of our present developments towards a greater fullness of the spirit of the messianic age. But there is a break, and the degree of that break, that, I must say, probably has not been, as yet, fully understood.

[39:40]

There is a departure from the tradition of the Middle Ages. Now, I think it would be our concern one of our aims here at Montsavier, to look into the further conclusions from this essential break that has been made, as it were, into the medieval enclosure wall, that system of exclusions. And there will be this, you see, that the relation to the guests in the monastic life should be thought over, rethought again. First of all, it is absolutely clear that the guests, of course, for that matter, cannot determine the monastic life. That's not what the guests want. The guests want to be determined by the monastic life. They don't want to impose their own on the monks.

[40:43]

But what they want is that the way of life of the monks may also inform them to a certain degree and become, as I say, become their own way of life while they are staying at the monastery. Therefore, the admission of guests into the monastic life is not in itself and cannot simply indiscriminately be considered as an intrusion of the world into the monastic sanctuary. I think that is a very bad concept, very bad concept. But on the contrary, it means derogation of the monastery. into the hearts and minds of those people who come to the monastery, not to bring the word into it, but to get, you know, the spirit of it. Now, the question is, of course, how can that be done?

[41:46]

There's absolutely evidence that it would be completely to my mind illogical to admit the guests to the communion table in the sanctuary and to exclude them from the agape table in the refectory. Seems to me absolutely illogical. If those, the communion, the fractio panis, the breaking of the bread, always has been as a traditional and messianic fact bound up closely with the ordinary. That is in the Acts of the Apostles, that is in The epistles of St. Paul are all over the place. Therefore, the admittance of the gifts to the main meal, the monastic meal, is only the logical conclusion from their being admitted to the holy table in the sanctuary.

[42:49]

It is the agape, and those things go together, and St. Benedict also. He explicitly said that because, to my mind, the washing of the feet for the guests is a preparation that is always in connection with the meal. The difficulty, of course, at his time was that the monastery, his guests were not the type of guests that we have today, but they were pilgrims and they were travellers and they came at all times. And they could not, you know. At that time there were no trains, no buses, no planes. And one can say, if one walks on one's feet, one is never on time. So, I mean, the working in, you see, of the guests into the, let's say, the eating and so on was at that time a practical impossibility. Therefore, the monk, the abbot, as the representative of the whole community, was supposed to eat with the guests.

[43:56]

But one should make, one should have a clear idea of what that means. And what a tremendous honor that is to the guests. It's simply the best substitute that St. Benedict could give. That not somebody, that the guests are not being left alone when they eat, but that the representative of the entire community, the father, the head, goes to the guests. That means the monastery is there where the guests eat. So, I mean, that is the tremendous, the washing of the feet, the entire community washing the feet of the guests. Anybody who has the idea that meeting a guest is meeting the world and as such contaminates his contemplative dialogue with God is to my mind completely out of place. I would consider it as a greater distraction to wash the feet of the guests. So then what we do is we have the guests at the monastery, the refectory meeting.

[45:00]

What I wanted to say is that as a practical conclusion comes out that the refectory in the monastery, in our concept of the monastery, must have a place where as area belongs into that area where community and guests meet. Then the other one is that drawing in of the gifts into the monastic life has still another field, and that is the field of work, of active cooperation. And that is another thing that in my mind is of greatest importance and where really here also we can take advantage and should take advantage of natural developments which are inherent In American character and the American society, which is not a system of exclusions, but it's a system of cooperation, at least that's the way it's ideally conceived. And cooperation in work, for that matter, the principle is equal opportunity to all.

[46:11]

What opportunity? The opportunity to work. And there is another thing which is, again, I must say, would be, for example, foreign to the present day, the say of European thinking and opera that simply moves on another line. We already, however, have always experienced that one of the most important things in our relation to the guests and also in the relation of the guests to the monastery is the possibility of their concrete cooperation in, let us say, the works of the community, to, in that way, to be drawn into that daily service. Therefore, we should avoid, and I think that is, again, you know, in harmony with the general development of things that we have to face also for the future, The guests are not only allowed to be spectators at a beautifully performed liturgical ceremonial and listening to wonderful singing, but being strictly commanded not to spoil that artistic singing with their own rough voices.

[47:30]

That would just detract from the spiritual level of this performance. And we should not only consider the guests as people that are outside the fence and are just kind of allowed, you know, to take a look very close and where there is a little thing, look into the voice and hide that fence. And for the other time, when they are not allowed to go into the chapel, or and see the monks there, or to be, say, with them in the refectory for the rest of their time, just stand around, you know, doing some reading or just looking around. Nothing at which that does not give a feeling. that they are really taken in. Therefore, it all comes down to this, that I think it's of great importance that the guests have other opportunity to be taken into the rhythm of the monastic life, and that is the work, because the work simply forms from just us.

[48:41]

That is the idea of the monastic medieval cloister. There is the worship, there is the eating, and there is the work. So the best way, to my mind, of drawing the Gestion also into that work is to make use of a tradition which is not in the letter of the womb, but which in the course of time has taken a legitimate place, and that is the officium capitoli, the chapter. They are featured in Capitoli, chapter Augustus, as you know, an edition that has developed. It's not in the room. But it is an immensely practical thing. It is the time where the work is being blessed and is being drawn officially into the community life, and where the work receives that community stamp. So that just as the monks didn't retire into their private cells, you know, after the common worship, so also they do not retire each one in its own department, you know, for their own private work.

[49:56]

But that this work also is a manifestation of the community life. And that chapter consists of a thematology and so on, I mean, the announcing of the feasts. It consists of the reading of the rule, and the little explanation that follows, and of the distribution of the work. And there, it seems to me, is another place where the guests, as guests, as members of the community, have an absolute legitimate and logical place, because there, as you know very well, St. Benedict clearly states in his rule that every guest who comes to the monastery should receive the bread of doctrine, not only the material bread, but also the bread of doctrine. That Holy Scripture should be read to him and should be explained to him. And that again should be done by an official representative of the whole community.

[51:03]

Therefore, as you see right away, the accent in the Holy Rule again is on that, that the ideal relation to the guests is not, you see, that the guest is being given into the hands, let us say, of a specially holy monk, a directeur spirituel, you know, and that therefore every individual guest The one has this father to go to, another that father to go to. Every father, every directeur spirituel has a little clientele of musky, of course, and pious ladies, because the men are more reserved in those men. And again, you see the community idea, the monk leaves his own area and goes into the parlour at the periphery and there has his tete-a-tete with that precious soul that wants to listen to his advice. Which to my mind is not, I wouldn't exclude that, that in many cases may have a good meaning, however,

[52:07]

The official, the real contact with the guests should be through the community life and with the community life. It is a matter of the community as such meeting the guests so that the guests in that way are drawn into the life of the monastic community as family life. It is for them not the place where Father so-and-so lives, and Father so-and-so is a wonderful confessor, and he's so understanding, and is just marvelous. Know that the community is, therefore, and that takes a shape, another concrete shape, in the chapter. And after five, I mean, there where the community as such gets together, where the abbot gives, as it were, the motto of the day, where he has the opportunity to give an explanation of doctrine, of the rule.

[53:10]

And, of course, that explanation of doctrine of the rule is aimed at the whole monastic community and the monastic community first, but it is of such a nature as our life, the Benedictine life, is simply a Christian life in simple terms, that the guests can certainly profit from that too. And that then, after they take part, let's say, in this breaking of the spiritual bread for them, And then, of course, they are eager also to take part and make their contribution in the work of the Swiss, you know, in our brows, in which we do our daily service. And that, again, corresponds so deeply, I think, to the temperament of the country. Thank God. So from that another conclusion comes that also the chapter, now I wouldn't define that, you see, that is that the chapter, you know very well that the chapter as such and the chapter room again is the product of a later development, you know, how absolutely

[54:20]

needed that chapter room is as a room where the members of the chapter meet, you know, for their waiting decisions. I mean, that comes, the chapter room comes from the fact, you know, of course, that St. Benedict asked for the counsel of the brethren, certainly true, It also comes later on that the chapter rights, you know, more and more became the privilege of a higher social class, which as members of the chapter, and to be a member of the chapter, really meant to take a part in that little principality that he was represented, he was a dominus. who belongs to the chapter. Now, how much we pay attention to that in our modern environments, that is, the chapter seat, you know, goes of course all together also with the stall, you know, where the same Dominus, you know, has his little throne and the

[55:30]

of the monastic community, while the lay brothers are, you know, also there. So, I mean, anyhow, it is certainly a good thing, in my mind, to see that we have in this meeting area also a room where the monastic community can meet, where the abbot is able to teach, and where the work is being distributed by the server, And we are also, and that is another consideration I think which is important for us, we are also the monastic community can receive a word and a message from the guests. because I think that there is another way of cooperation, of contribution, which we certainly in our day should by no means underestimate, and that's the fact that in our very developed and very complicated civilization, in advanced science and all these things, theology is not anymore the only science.

[56:42]

so that those who are the custodians of theology would be the only sources of wisdom. Today, it's much more a mutual give and take. And I think the monastic community should profit from that. We have in our own oblique group, we have laymen of highest qualifications, deeply Christian, from whom we can learn a lot. And again, I would say it's good if the monastic community had a place where they can eat in Israel. Then finally, therefore, we come if we consider these things. And then, and especially these, and I emphasize that, in order to get the, you know, to say, order of the areas which our life consists. And we come then to the following conclusion that the center is the chapel.

[57:49]

Around that chapel we have one, and I would there insist very much on the compactness of it too. At least that's my personal feeling, but that approaches the field of architecture, and I don't want to interfere in that. I think I have made a mistake in the past, you know, interfering with that too much. Maybe imposing or demanding, or it's so architectural fault, that may absolutely, from the architectural point of view, not be the ideal or the right thing. Therefore, there's the nucleus. Then with that, see the living quarters, sleeping quarters of the monks. That is very traditional. I think it's a beautiful idea that the service is going on day and night. I only hope that that comes out clearly also in whatever architectural realization we have.

[58:51]

And then there is also there, I would say, is to my mind a departure, possible departure, from the medieval scheme, and that is that under present conditions, it may be possible that the novices also would belong into that, let us say, central nucleus. But it's a question, a question. Certainly, it belongs also, in my mind, into that central nucleus. And that again is not medieval, but there is, to my mind, a legitimate and beautiful development, and that is the development of Lectio. And therefore that Lectio is simply a fact. We cannot get around it. You know that at St. Benedict's time, the library was not and could not be what it is today.

[59:55]

And I think there's an advantage, there's a legitimate way of taking account of the developments that have taken place, and that is the Bible. And those things, you see, I think, belong, you know, into that inner center, the quiet center of the storm, so to speak. Then we have other things. Here you see the main chapel. Of course, to the chapel also belongs the sacristy. But you understand that. Then there is the, and of course, one can say the chapel and sacristy, which we consider as, and I say chapel area, you see, that's to say as ideally, but very close that we have seen to the monks area, of the monks area, the sleeping area, the dormitory or cells, we'll keep that open.

[60:57]

Then in the monks area also the study or lectio area, I would say. The lectio area. To this lectio area belongs the library and belong classrooms and also studios. I would say, however, than any studios, you know, which involve as I say, extraordinary noises, you know, should be pushed a little more out of that, you know, as, for example, typewriter rooms, you know, or music rooms, you know. I mean, that, I think, is perhaps a danger, you know, to hear something fiddling around, you know, I mean, in that area. But there also belongs the area, for example, laboratories, of course, Rooms, you know, bathrooms and so on. The showers, whatever it is, you know, that's into it.

[62:06]

Another question, perhaps also to set here a good room, you see, let's say a change room. No, that's another question. That's not there. Then we have finally, you see, after that, let's say we come to the mixed area. And in this mixed area, we have the refectory. Of course, together with the refectory, somehow goes the kitchen and goes the dishroom and the pantry and things like that. It's interesting that in the medieval schemes, we see the refectory, yes, forms a part of the inner cloister. The kitchen is built in such a way that the kitchen, in some instances, has a door into the central cloister. In many instances, the kitchen is built out of the vertical angle to the cloister.

[63:10]

And then in this mixed area, also ideally belong the parlors. There is here then an other question which comes up and that is the abbot's area. Now I wouldn't, in my present way of thinking, I wouldn't pay too much attention to that as a special area. It seems to me that the average should live with the community, and that is where he belongs according to the rule, but of course the abbot has to have some possibility of meeting, you know, say, with the special guests, also with companies, you know, and so on, maybe also a place where they can eat with some guests at times, but I don't think I would urge that to be. Then there comes then the, let us say, the guest area.

[64:17]

And in this guest area we have first, we wanted to make a distinction between clergy guests and lay guests. Now, I think that is an important thing, because that, again, is a completely new development in our age, but it's a development which should by all means be encouraged, and it's in the Holy Spirit. Medieval monasteries had, one can certainly say,

[64:51]

@Transcribed_v005
@Text_v005
@Score_92.82