We're going to be following up the meditation this morning, this day of Sunday, between the Ascension and Pentecost. Celebrating it as a day of recollection, we provide ourselves the life of the monk, his life, in the Holy Spirit. We may ascend to the Father, St. Leo satisfied, so that they, in the power of that same love by which Christ descended, most manage the way of the Christian. Now, they are here to take this life of spirit, the Holy Spirit, who is witness to Christ, and who is the continuation of Christ's presence in our ear, among us, and in our hearts.

[01:15]

Just pick out these three things instead of one, because here's the way in which the Holy Spirit works in us, is just through faith and man. Out of faith arises then that intimate intercourse, exchange, recall, prayer, and the consummation is in charity. Now, simply the first thing, remember, just say you were the origin, the religion of faith. light shining in darkness. Now, here, of course, it is, as you see, in our monastic life, practical life, it is what we call the constant obligation of the abbot, the doctrina about the word of the abbot, to heal, in that way, to heal the faith, to make

[02:24]

light shine out of darkness. I just wanted to remind you so that you will see that clearly that the course which we have followed during these years since our foundation, and which here and there, through one or the other, development might lose a little of its gravity, and might appear maybe vague or morbid or something. If for a day of recognition, would you just get the bearings again? You know, what have we been aiming at in our life of Mount Sinai. Of course, one can't possibly cover the whole thing, but one I wanted to say about the doctrina about this, of the... the course of teaching naturally. The abbot teaches not his own teaching but the teaching that he has received.

[03:30]

He does not resent himself but he is the servant of Christ. He does not Gloriful of faith he is. He is the servant of the joy of those who are entrusted to him. And there are, do you remember that? We'll just touch upon it. There are That light that shines upon darkness, by the way, it's so beautiful. We read the beginning of the first epistle of St. John. This great light, you know, this the church in the time of the transition from the first generation to that time where Catholics got accepted or set. And there he announces, you know, the out of the fullness of his wisdom, you know, combines the two things.

[04:37]

This one of your clear, detailed memory of the earthly walking with our Lord and the doubt of the apocalyptic future. But in this first epistle, you know, in this chapter that you read, you know, read this morning, you know, there he says, Now what we have seen, what we have touched, we cannot discover, cannot make more clearly, you know, that in a connection with the worldly flesh, That's then, that we give to you. And for what purpose would such a target be of this image? That you may be a community of yourself. That you may be a family of yourself. That's the gathering word, you know, that St.

[05:40]

John has. And what is his message then after Deus luxus? God is light. That's the beginning of all teaching. That's faith. It's God making light shine out of darkness. And that is for us too. What I wanted to do is, knowing from my own experience, And monastic life is a time which is many ways threatened not only by power, by darkness. Many ways to be in darkness. And we don't know what the circumstances of the future will be. In these days, nobody can predict anything. So, in this specific situation, I want to help that, you know, that light may shine out of time.

[06:46]

Now, what is the first thing that makes light shine on the darkness? It is the message of the joyful acceptance of the message that God longed for. The agape is sending it on. That the Father took the initiative. That he sent the Son. That the light came into the world. That is the first step. Now, what we do with the first step of the school is just this basic act of faith, which light shines on of darkness. And therefore, it debates the tremendous importance of that. And in that way, too, our community, as it were, is, you know, it has there, it seems to me, a specific possibility, a chance, you know, like members, all members of this community kind of gather around and ground themselves firmly on that stone, basin of stone,

[08:00]

Like Jacob putting his head on the stone. No, he would not. So that is that. That is that. Believe in charity. That's the beginning. Believe in charity. First point. Then the second point is this. It is the announcement of our joys. The announcement of the curious. Christ is curious. He is with us, and we know the power of his resurrection, the Lord. It's the same concept. Therefore, I always have the great joy of acting in that way as the herald of the feast, to announce the feast, to announce the fact that we... As Christians, that we have here in ourselves, we have an anchor. That is the anchor of faith and of hope.

[09:02]

But the end of this anchor, the other end of the chain of that anchor, is in the sanctuary, the heavenly sanctuary, where Christ, the curious, the high priest, intercedes for us. That's the other thing. Therefore, to see our life constantly in the light of Christ's resurrection, to experience all mortification and all renouncement which the monastic life entails, to see it as having in itself already the power of the resurrection, to see it in other words, not in a negative, but in a positive way, night of the resurrection. Christ is with us. What a wonderful message today of St. Caesarius in this sermon. Christ, proceed with him.

[10:03]

Therefore we, let us proceed with him. And if our mind is not there, then we have ought to rest and quiet here on this earth. So that was the second thing. And again, that is indefinite and specific teaching which is Christian, basically Christian, essentially Christian, universally Christian, absolutely Catholic. The first word of it is condemned down to the last. But the tenets of the apocalypse, one thing absolutely clear, therefore a firm foundation. And again, you know, if the community as such, you know, takes that as I'm sure that you do, then you have a common spirit, you have a common attitude. in that common spirit, in that common attitude, deeply Christian, but not identical with anything that is otherwise, you know, here and there, preached about in church in our days, let us say, out of secondary sources.

[11:17]

And then the third is, and that concerns the Holy Ghost, and that is... what you may call, and put it together in this one word, disponibility, disponibilitas, that we become and are disposable. Maybe you say there are disposable, because that's a wrong English expression, but that we are at the disposal of, not disposable, but everybody is disposable. That's what it is. But they were at the disposal of the Holy Spirit. That was the third thing. Now this thing to be at the disposal of the Holy Spirit, that may entail in reality, in the practical life, that may entail It may be here and there appear as a certain way. Yes, you know, we may try this.

[12:20]

We may try another thing. But where does it come from? It's not simply and only a kind of way we're bound to. But it is that comes out of the inner, of the deliberate inner openness. to answer the call to live up to the sacrament of the moment, not to fix, let us say, the monastic life. And right in the beginning, the reason why we didn't start with the congregation, that's the reason why we didn't start with the Constitution, That we keep, you know, that inner being at the disposal. The Holy Spirit, it's always, you don't know where it comes, you don't know where it goes. And our, in that way, our canon, our general orientation in that life of the Spirit is always the Holy Spirit.

[13:27]

And we kept ourselves open, we kept ourselves open to the principles of the world, let us say. We turned to the original spirit of the world. And we kept at the same time ourselves also open to certain adaptability, the possibilities of adaption. and so on, but always in this way, not to be up to date, not to be modern, not to be, you know, to say the voices of the time, but any development always from within, from the essential rhythm, and from there then, to turn to a practical application in our text. And that's, of course, a great art contestant. You know it all too well in those shades of video. You know that that may require from the individual to create, let us say, elasticity, maybe a constant invitation, you know,

[14:42]

to attempt to justify this direction financially. But I think today it's a very important point, and I think the whole situation which has come into the open of the Council justifies this kind of approach. The Council itself is for the meeting at the disposal of the Holy Spirit. but not without roots in tradition. That's certainly not. Not without roots, certainly, in the essence of Christianity. But just our idea was always then you return to the sources would make it contribute to our simplicity, the simplicity of our being, and then the simplicity of our being will also prompt itself to a greater adaptability to various circumstances.

[15:44]

So there, that is only concerning the saviors. Some are concerning the doctrine. This is first thing. Make light shine out of darkness. Then comes the second thing. And our connection to that. The Holy Ghost established in our hearts. Look wise with God. That's our prayer line. That's our prayer. Now concerning this prayer line, let us just mention a few points here in this afternoon. I don't want to make it too long, and therefore not launch out a great long theory. This Holy Spirit is spirit of prayer. He is there, we have said so often, in this whole line of processions. Not the Father as the origin.

[16:47]

Through Christ the Son of the Holy Spirit as the end and as the return. He descends and he takes us with us. He is the return as he descended from the Father to the Son to us. So also he takes us with us and leads us to the Son of God. of course, through the Curios Christos, and through the Curios Christos to the Father. Now, the connection with the Holy Spirit, and the time of prayer. The Pentecost just mentioned one thing there. The Holy Spirit gathers together. The Holy Spirit gathers together. He gathers the people together. He constitutes a unity, unity of that worshiping body.

[17:49]

And there comes the very critical point. which I put, you know, to your consideration, to also to your serious self-searching, and that is the first condition without the prayer life in a community cannot flourish, and that is, of course, the problem of attention. Look at that, you know, just look at that square. I do that myself. I know that that is one, to me, is one of the great inner factors which constantly cause tears, as it were. However, in considering this thing, what I can do is just offer myself to the Father's judgment, and realize that if I do the wrong thing, then I just can't do the other thing.

[18:59]

Possibly they are simply limited. And I think that in this time, especially in the summer, this is, to us, a very critical and important time. I think it's very important for me, first of all, to be there. be as much as possible members of the community, and then to have the possibility to speak to the community, not improvisation, but to speak to the community in a systematic, good, well-founded way. This is a very difficult summer. There are many things, you know, many things that are happening around, loops, and all sorts of pressure. So I know, on the other hand, that the members of the community have a real understanding, you know, and that their judgment, in that way, is not a condemning one.

[20:08]

But there it is that you hear the odds of these war garages in this novel. But one thing of course would be absolutely fatal. Let us put it that way. The barren example I give concerning the attendance would make inroads and corrupt and in that way destroy the attendance of the community. It would discourage the attendance of the divine office If people in that room would say, now if you're gonna stay away, why can't I stay away, and so on. But I'm sure that that is really only And you may hear here and there of the inside stirring in that direction because the devil is always there and the devil is busy to confuse you in all possible directions. But I know that that is not the essence of the thing. However, the attendance is a basic thing.

[21:12]

And the attendance, I would say, first of all, is vigorous. If less than half the community is in the morning at rituals, then that is a great and serious threat to the presence of the Holy Spirit in the community. Those who are there and are regular in their attendance cannot help but compare and they cannot have the material need to ask themselves, why are so many people again missing? I would say one thing in that direction, and that is that all those who are there, you know, should, for heaven's sake, not allow the devil to, let us say, deprive them of the fruits of their goodwill. And the roots of their labor and their attendance by, as I say, kind of interiorly souring up because so many other people are not there.

[22:23]

Don't do it. Don't give in to them in that way. Say thanks to God that you are real. And take the opportunity. and dive into the sacrament of the moment that you are there, and sing the praise of God, and be grateful that you can do it, that you are strong enough, you know, to be there, that you don't have any other obligations that may hinder you than to be there, but thank God that you are there, and pray for the rest of you. That's one important don't doubt them. However, those who are not there, they really should ask themselves in all seriousness before God, why are they not there? There should be also all the prescribed rules should be followed.

[23:26]

First of all, the rule that people should, whenever God has But as far as it is possible, before God, in all kinds, make up their minds. Are they coming? Can they attend to bishops or bishops? Or do they, for an important reason, reason of life or great tiredness, do they have to do that already in time or it would require, you know, informing the superior rather greatly or when this ever would be sent to the novice master or the junior master in time to say no. So, then in some way maybe a word also is possible of saying, yes, but dear mother, I have

[24:33]

call your attention to that already tomorrow. Quite a few people have asked me to be absent, you know, from it. And maybe you could, you know, then, and wasted and deferred time. So, then, also to not present the superior constantly with the theta complete. It's much better to be there and also to come in to be there, so you stay away with permission when the situation is clear. If that is not possible, you see, then to inform the superior and then also to indicate the reason why not. And it's also a matter for the superior himself in some way to keep some track, you know,

[25:41]

who is there, who is not there, in that sense, you know, multiply to pull up after the individual and to ask, you know, and talk to see if this is necessary or maybe is it not necessary. So I think we need presence, you know, because it's a great... I would say that that is of greater importance than any of the other offices. but there certainly is a difference between visuals and hours. Little hours is such a no man's world. In the day and so on, but the way in which little hours are placed by us in the course of the day, they come up kind of naturally. They are at the beginning of the day's work, they are when people come together for lunch, and they are later on as the work is being taken.

[26:43]

up again after the siesta so that they have kind of their place you know but that is the one thing you see that I wanted really very much to put that before you emerge. We have good examples here in the community and these good examples should be a real inspiration for all. Then the other thing is, the second point, is the way in which the If I may just add, you know, specifically, that's one direction that comes to my mind, is to, for example, also be attentive to the particular hours, you know, that there's the question of the intensive time.

[27:44]

And I would say there, too, we have said that, you know, that the doctors may take advantage if they have to, say, private matters in the morning on top of the conventional matters. Some people also may be serving in the morning as miracles. Then things, you know, get a little tight. Then there is also the problem of the giving of teaching, and sometimes just in the late moments of the morning, a piece of reparation still is needed, and therefore in this, you have been there to say, convenient concerning time. I would, however, not like, you know, that would be simply taken, you know, as the law would never, We have never, and I have at least to my surprise, I remember, never proclaimed any principle like that for the whole, nor have I said that for any individual in the community.

[29:03]

And I think we cannot simply take, you know, and so the council have brought upon so it hasn't got published anyway. But what it certainly hasn't got published for, with the explicit statement, you know, black and white, in the motor book, we have those who are here to the global office, are absolutely also obliged to publish and to write in there. in common or to make up for it if they cannot so i would therefore say that it's not you know and nobody in the community should simply make it a law to see that the next thing is the way in which we celebrate the finals. The way in which we celebrate the finals.

[30:05]

Now, the way in which we celebrate it is, of course, again, you know, we must start and we must, and I think we are making maybe a progress, so we try at least in this direction. And we have always there do we have naturally, let us say, the basic difficulty, you know, is that, of course, the divine office, also the divine office which is elevated in common, should be an individual and personal inspiration and experience. Certainly, in one way it is what we say, duties, pensum servitudes. However, the essential meaning of all prayer in the Holy Spirit of Christian prayer is not that we become in any way by our wills. I mean, I don't know what church, you know, wants to move that, go that place in Buddhism and so on, but in Christianity it doesn't.

[31:19]

Therefore, the prayer should be, also common prayer, should be an inspiration. It should have element, you know, of the presence of the Holy Spirit in it. Now we know very well what, element in a difficult element in that direction, very difficult is the question of the vernacular, the question of the datum. that there are, of course, many fictive elements there, that even actually, you see, that we might make it easier, really, that the mind would be the harmony, the voice, that is the way in which St. Benedict expresses the spiritual character of any of us, the whole, the whole diviner. The mind should be in harmony with the voice. That's, of course, easier. However, again, you know, I would say that in that way we should follow in a volcanic way.

[32:23]

We cannot rush, you know, while all these things are being discussed. We will get there, but there are many questions in that direction that have to be solved. I know I'm in favor, but the practical, the transition itself must be organic. So the reason why I did not in these last weeks and months when the question came up, join the petition, you know, of the stuff that happens. You want to write a petition right away, you know, to have things in an action, the opposite of an action, but to block time and to block two of the... of the canonical hours, you know. So for the monks, I just can't bring myself to banter.

[33:25]

I think that's the best moment in my conviction. It's not the moment, you know, to... In time, I think any jumping ahead, you know, concerning dropping this hour or dropping the other hours or little hours, it's not the time, it's not, it seems to me, it's not rightfully that we should be as long as, especially in our situation where things are not so pleasant, you see, we should be careful. The other much more important question to me in this whole liturgical question in my office is really the structure of the office and there you have the opportunity to make some experiences, you know, in the line of the relatively, let's say, conservative line of the the Psalms, but in the distribution of the Psalms, you will make certain changes, and that's still, you know, it's of course also now in discussion, but as you know, the privilege has not been prolonged for us, and we have taken that and accepted that, and still, as you know, in that way, the whole

[34:46]

development, evolution of the monastic office may be done in the spirit of peace and of obedience to the ecclesiastical authorities. However, there is still another way, and that is the methods. There are various ways in which to say, in which to perform parts of the and also of the past. If you remember, we had a period here, and he has given us some concrete ways in which to do or try things, and we have followed that to a certain degree, and I think that many of the various things, at least, that he has told us have a good effect, and that they contribute to a certain degree into oppression, but not making the divine office for us more alive.

[36:00]

There are still other things, many other things that would be considered But there are, for example, a great, I think, a tremendous field for us, you know, is the way in which, for example, songs, you know, songs are, that's the term that's in the word, is important, the way in which they are brought forth. way in which they are presented. For example, just the other day, Pastor and I were speaking about it a little, for example, in Psalm 135, you know, that we have on Wednesday, in eternal misericordiae, as clearly the form, let us say, of the psalms, clearly that they are also the way in which it could be presented, you know, that Carter would say, for example, in that case, you know, the invocation,

[37:21]

the announcement, and the whole community comes in with a burden for the idea of what we say called the Acts. Just for example, the way that that's only one case, you know, many others within the whole psalter, you know, where the way in which the psalm is presented in public, the way it is sung, you know, as there may be the possibility and we know now the structure of the thought much better. For example, the Bible of Jerusalem has provided us also with new possibilities in that direction. So there I would, for example, see a great number of possibilities because while the alternating one side to the other, you know, has a good... and to say it's a kind of staple, a food of staple way.

[38:27]

It's a kind of a good way. Still, one may ask, what's it very much? This is not in other ways, especially in the case of certain psalms, a kind of levelling thing, levelling things out in a way which may not be fully corresponded As I say to the original life of the psalm, every psalm is always being said. It has somehow its own law in their form also. They all can see that so clearly. They're in Jerusalem on that famous Passover feast for us there, you know, there. A rabbi standing by the street, you know, with his face turned towards the temple. And there he sings a song, you know, an important song, you know, and then people stand around and just listen to him the way in which he puts it forward.

[39:29]

That is, for example, in pictures, there's more and more commentators of the Holy Book say that an important example is means really not to say the first half of the first verse of the sonnet started off but important example means really to present the whole song to the community community would be listening there is of course a way in which you know, could gain effect. I just say that, you know, it's a matter of possibility. To my mind, I could gain much in a certain complicated atmosphere and also more personal atmosphere. I think what we do, for example, As we do it at last, you know, and maybe at other moments, give the person, for example, the person of the canter, the possibility to act for the whole community according to the charism that is given to him.

[40:52]

And in that way, there might be someone, you know, for example, who has a voice which is very expressive, which is rich in modulation. Therefore, it has possibilities to express the specific message and charism of a song or give room to it. And in that way, bring the divine of this to that level, you know, of a personal experience, which so easily, as I say, is maybe leveled out, you know, so that that's a good friend of mine, you know, that may say, Thomas was saying, Or what, you know, they said, you know, in these years when he looked around, when he saw all these stars, you know, it's like he was an old soldier and he went on that famous retreat of the German armies, you know, in 1918.

[42:00]

And all these people, you know, in this endless train after train, train after train, back, you know. to Germany and then lying, you know, everywhere, you know, on the benches or under the thing where the luggage was kept, you know, and lying there, you see, and then suddenly coming to a stop and waking up, you know, and this And he sometimes compared, you know, the hours of rituals that were trained right there. Of course, he had one coach, the psalm that he wrote right there. And then comes the versicle. It's kind of rough, you see. And then comes the lesson. And then you want to listen. Now... There is a great nature of calls and features. This whole method that I'm speaking on, of the corner of Salmo and Ashby, started, you know, by a dear fatherly friend, Emmanuel Hoisteller, the abbot of the Altai, who said, oh, it's so wonderful, we could never go back to the old way.

[43:11]

because it gives that possibility of personally preparing a psalm and of presenting it to the community. But what an art that is, it says. We experience that in every reading, that we go and inquire what an art it is to present things to the community. The divine inflections and the rites, they're not even wrong, So that's an art in itself. To do it that way gives two individual monks the possibility, for example, to have a translation present and follow the proclamation to speak of the psalm, you know, with a translation. I could very well think, you see, that especially younger novices or postures may

[44:17]

create an opportunity if they don't stand up, they'd be too afraid and they might, you know, doze out of existence. But I think many people, you know, if somebody is inclined to doze, he might doze, you know, during the alternating recitation of the psalm. Now, There is a matter simply of, maybe of experience, maybe of attempt, you know, and personally I wouldn't be opposed, you know, to trying it at all, you know, but it must be, of course, well thought out, the way in which it is done, you know, and of course also that those who proclaim the song, you know, should do it, of course, well prepared, so that the whole thing really, in that way, you know, it just might, in that way, take on a certain, again, atmosphere, catch, again, the atmosphere of early Christian worship, where you see, if you read in the first epistle to the Corinthians, take the 14th chapter,

[45:35]

And read it, the famous chapter where St. Paul describes, you know, one of these vigils, you know, these gatherings of the Christians. And the gatherings usually really were vigils in preparation for the Sunday Eucharist. And there he says, you know, now one has a psalm, another one has a candy. And the other one has stopped reading in tongues, speaking in tongues. But then he gets kind of nervous about tongues. Because you don't understand it, and therefore you should have an interpreter, you see, because it's all right to speak to God in tongues privately. But to speak to God in talks publicly, then of course presents difficulties, you know, because how can people say amen to something that they haven't understood, you know, which is part of our present problem with the canon of the Roman mass.

[46:45]

And there, of course, the, as I say, the immovable cycle may be a thing that worthwhile to try out and so in that way as for example also in mass you know I think simply to have this as we do it now this morning the school and the whole community seems to be that there is a way which under all circumstances and with the chapel as it is and being a kind of Rather than being beside, you know, for a small community with not too many strong voices in it, you know, maybe there is, again, it's a way which makes it, the singing easier, and the singing maybe much more effective, too. And as it was to them, Dr. David, being church, their community comes in with an alleluia.

[47:55]

And the second time he joined us, the Peter, then the whole congregation, you know, joins in. All these things are being held as ways and methods to make what we have of worship right now, to make it really in some way loosen up and make it really complex and closer. to that life of the Holy Spirit. But in all these things, again, you know, this whole, as you can see also, our divine office, whatever we do, the line of the Spirit, in some way, always for us Christians, it has its roots, you know, in the actual experience and our will in the life of Mount Saviour, have we experienced that, you know, the poverty, the small community like this, always confronted with that. It's poverty, but there is that wonderful inner conviction and the promise that we have that in our weakness, in this vacuum, into this void of our weakness, the Holy Spirit comes into us.

[49:19]

and he intercedes for us with his groanings, his unspeakable utterances, but his intention open and manifest to all human beings.

[49:46]

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