In my monastic community, the House of Initia Nova, our Abbot likes to refer to us as “monastics on mission.” Whether a monk, a nun, a conversi, or an oblate, we are to live out our commitments (or vows if we have taken them) where we are. For some, this is in our Motherhouse, Genesis Abbey. For others, it is wherever we happen to be planted. Some are in the UK, some are in Puerto Rico and Cuba, and some are in the USA. We are spread abroad and return to the Abbey twice a year. We also gather each Sunday via Zoom for prayer, reflection, and fellowship.
What does it look like to be a monk that doesn’t live in a monastery, though? While no day is the exact same, I will share a rough outline of my usual day and highlight different aspects of it. I say a “rough outline” as this is the ideal schedule, but it is often a bit more flexible with the times than I would care to admit.
6:30-6:55 Wake up some time before 7:00
7:00 Vigils
7:30 Lectio Divina and Assigned Reading of the Rule
8:00 Matins (also called Lauds), Praying for my patients, and Te Deum
8:30 Begin my work day and plan out the day (each day looks slightly different as I go to different facilities, funerals, homes, etc)
8:45-9:30 Solvitur Ambulando Prayer (when I pray this depends on what time I arrive at my first visit)
12:30 Midday Prayers
5:30-6:30 Dinner usually falls sometime in this timeframe
7:00 Vespers
7:30 Take Medication
9:00 Compline and Te Deum
9:15 Reading before bed
10:00 Bedtime and Prayer
Each morning, the first words I say are, “O Lord open our lips. And our mouth shall proclaim your praise.” It is right, especially for one whose life is dedicated to prayer and the praise of God, to begin each day acknowledging the day will be an act of praise to God. It is after this time of prayer that I say goodbye to my wife as she leaves for work.
After Annie leaves for work, I grab a pack of chocolate chip mini muffins and a V8 energy drink. I’m a monk, so, of course, I’m a creature of habit. Pun slightly intended. I read the assigned section of the Rule of Saint Benedict and then open the Bible to where I am doing lectio. Since January 1, I have been in the Gospel of Luke. It will likely take me until at least August or September to fully finish this particular book of Scripture. Usually after this, I spend some time getting ready for the day and then move into Matins and praying for my patients and their families.
Then the workday starts and each day looks different. The day always consists of visiting with patients, their families, facility staff, co-workers, and others in some variety. Some days I have meetings. Some days I lead nursing home patients in worship. Some days I attend funerals. Some days I officiate funerals. Some days I do marriage vow renewals for patients celebrating their anniversaries. Some days I sit with the dying. Each day, I follow Saint Benedict’s rule to “keep death daily before your eyes.” Some days this is more literal than others. Each day, I find a few moments to step aside and pray my Midday prayers.
When I arrive back home in the afternoon, I finish up my work and look over the next day’s schedule (which is always subject to change!). I then try to spend some time in quiet and stillness. This usually transitions into a nap. Once I wake up, either Annie or I will begin making dinner. We feed the cats and the fish. We spend time together catching up on how the day went, watching tv, and doing chores. We have been going through Survivor, so that often is a part of our evening recreations. Sometimes it’s Ballykissangel or something else. Oh, and we almost always watch Good Mythical Morning!
Annie and I do a few chores each evening as we recognize that it is an act of prayer to care for one another and the place we have been entrusted with. As the great Brother Lawrence reminds us, God is not only found in chapels, but also in the washing of dishes and taking out the trash.
After some time watching tv or relaxing, I pray Vespers. This is also the third time of the day that I pray the Angelus. Historically, monastics would pray this prayer at 6am, noon, and 6pm. For me, it translates to when I pray Vigils, when I pray Midday, and when I pray Vespers.
Each evening, I receive the grace of God tangibly through medication. There are several ways that the grace of God is received: the Eucharist, time spent in nature, a hug from a dear friend. For me, one of the ways it is received is through taking my medication that helps with my anxiety and depression. Live. Laugh. Lexapro.
Before going to bed I pray Compline and pray the Te Deum. These prayers are prayers for the night and then a prayer of praise. I pray the Te Deum at this point as a way to reflect on the day and give God thanks for it.
I try to not speak after I finish this prayer and enter into the “little silence” of night where I am quiet until I utter those first words again. “O Lord open our lips. And our mouth shall proclaim your praise.”
At nighttime, I fall asleep in prayer (not spoken aloud). Sometimes I make it to the “amen,” but not always. I try to end my day the same way I begin it - giving thanks and praise to God. My first thought and my last thought, hopefully, are praises.
Some days have other things included, such as writing (hymns, a breviary project, devotionals, sermons, etc), visio divina, audio divina, time in nature, meetings, time with friends, class, and more. Each day also has “extemporaneous” prayer throughout the day as well.
While no day is the exact same, they all follow a similar Benedictine structure of “Ora et Labora,” prayer and work.