This documentary records the daily lives of the Trappistine Sisters at Mount Saint Mary’s Abbey in Wrentham, MA. Although I am a Brythonic polytheist not a Christian witnessing their monastic lives and devotion touched me deeply.
The story begins with one of the sisters lighting the candles in the chapel at 3am prior to vigils at 3.20am which is followed by the Great Silence – a time for silent prayer. This resonated with me very much as an early riser who gets up at 4am to pray to my Gods and spends time meditating in the sacred hours before the rest of the world wakes up and the bustle of everyday life begins. Sadly I can only imagine sharing it with other polytheistic monastics.
The sisters are Benedictines and keep the seven canonical hours of prayer (1) with compline at 7.20pm. This is coupled with private prayer and study including lectio divina ‘Divine Reading’. In accordance with the motto of Saint Benedict ora et labora ‘pray and work’ this is balanced with physical labour. The nuns work in a ‘state of the art high tech candy factory’ and also on a farm where they look after animals including keeping sheep for wool. I related strongly to the sister who found spiritual fulfilment in her compost duties. The sisters see no difference between the two – “Life here is a continual prayer.”
Although the nuns come from differing places and backgrounds and admit getting on isn’t always easy they are united by one thing – their love of God. “Everything is centred on fostering a deep personal relationship with Jesus Christ.”
Several of the nuns share their moving vocation stories, speaking of how they were called by God and came to recognise Him as “the one before all others”.
“Why did you come?”
“It’s Him.”
“What do you seek?”
“It’s Him.”
“Why do you stay?”
“I can’t live without Him.”
Their words echoed exactly how I feel about my patron God Gwyn ap Nudd.
The functioning of this monastic community is made possible by the silence. One of the sisters says their lives are “100 per cent community and 100 per cent silence not 50 / 50”. Their “silence”, in which they commune with God in everything they do throughout the day, “is part of the conversation.”
As somebody who struggles with idle chatter but enjoys quiet company I can imagine the only way I could live with others would be if life was mostly silent.
The documentary records one of the younger sisters making her solemn profession, her life long vows. This was very moving to watch and left me with a yearning to be able to make my lifelong vows with my monastic community.
I came away from this video feeling I identified with the sisters in all ways except for being a polytheist rather than a Christian and feeling I’m closer to monotheists than most other Pagans in centring my life on my patron God and in believing that God/the Gods are real and are worthy of worship. (2)
I’ve watched it a few times now and always return to it when I feel alone in my devotion (although this is less now since founding the Monastery of Annwn).
(1) Matins / vigils (nighttime), lauds (early morning), prime (first hour of daylight), terce (third hour), sext (noon), nones (ninth hour), vespers (sunset), compline (end of the day).
(2) In Paganism the views on Deity range widely and include:
*The Gods don’t exist (atheism).
*We imagined up the Gods or they are parts of our psyches (psychological).
*The Gods are archetypes (archetypal).
*The Gods are real but we shouldn’t bother them – “I’’m not a God-botherer.”
*The Gods are real and we can work with Them and celebrate Their festivals but They don’t demand our worship (non-Polytheistic Witchcraft, Wicca and Druidry).
*The Gods are real and are worthy of worship (Polytheism).
*The Gods are real and we should centre our lives around Them (Devotional Polytheism).
*The Gods are real and we should withdraw from the secular world as far as possible to centre our lives on Them (Polytheistic Monasticism).
The Sanctuary of Vindos 