Published Monday, August 22, 2004
Silence Is Golden
Harvard Graduate Students Enjoy A Dose of Solitude
Special to The Appian

FEBRUARY 2004—“Silence is golden.”  We’ve heard it since we were children.  When is the last time you were among friends and remained silent during an entire meal? Come to think of it, why would you want to?

This semester, resident monks of St. Benedict’s Abbey welcomed two dozen Harvard Christian believers from several of the professional schools, including the Graduate School of Education, the Medical School, the School of Public Health, and the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, for a contemplative (silent) retreat.  Singles and married couples spent a long weekend at the monastery on the Nashua River about an hour away from urban and urbane life -- 75 acres of lawns, fields, woodlands and trails, with a view of Mount Wachusett to the west.

An Apostolate of Hospitality, the monks open the monastery and invite visitors to attend (Roman Catholic) Mass and other praise and worship services held at the hours of prayer throughout the day and evening (6 a.m., noon, 6:00 and 9:00 p.m.)   The custom is in obedience to the words of sixth-century   monk, St. Benedict, the worldwide order’s founder: “Let all guests who come be received like Christ,” who is quoted in the Book of Matthew as saying, “I was a stranger and you invited me in.” 

There is a story that, back in the days when the abbey was located in Cambridge, the monks would host spaghetti dinners to feed hungry college students (many of whom were, alas, poor, then as now). 

When one thinks of a “monastery,” one might envision the huge, castle-like edifices of Europe.  But St. Benedict’s is located in a rambling 17^th century farmhouse.  The grounds and buildings (most of which are connected by enclosed passageways) include St. Thérèse House (the visitors’ accommodations), St. Joseph House and St. Catherine Hall (accommodations), dining rooms, a tiny but well-stocked bookstore, the Abbey Chapel, and Our Lady of Guadalupe, an outdoor stone chapel closer to the river.

The brothers perform almost all of the work and secular chores such as grounds and building maintenance, repairs, house cleaning, meal preparation, bookstore operations, and guest services, among others. 

A widely-held impression about life in a monastery is that its residents have absolutely no contact with the outside world and that they never break the vow of silence.  However, the Benedictine monks not only speak with one another for mundane matters, but they also, for example, can be found chatting with or answering visitors’ questions.  Such occasions are, of course, during times other than the hours of prayer.  The “Great Silence” is observed from after evening prayers at 9:00 o’clock until approximately 9:00 o’clock the following morning after Mass.

Mass and the praise and worship services (matins and lauds, vespers and compline) are primarily in Latin, including Gregorian Chant intoned by the monks.  There are also regular services in English and in Spanish.

The monks do not offer directed retreats.  The weekend was organized by the Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship that hosts a ministry among Harvard’s various graduate schools.   Two leaders of the Harvard Graduate School Christian Fellowship, Serena Syme Hildenbrand and Kathy Tuan-MacLean, and Hallie Cowan, a Spiritual Director for Inter-Varsity, guided the Harvard group. 

Hallie suggested a number of spiritual themes that the visitors explored in varying degrees, such as not only living a lifestyle in God’s grace, but “basking in it”; the disciplines of silence and of solitude, that are not to be feared, but may be entered into, especially in such a “safe place” where a believer may be acutely aware of God’s presence. 

I was one of those believers.

In the bedrooms was a booklet about the Order and its Founder. I saw a quotation that profoundly touched me there within the silences of the monastery.  It read: “Bend close the ear of your heart [to hear God speaking to you].”

The silence was very personal for me.  It was wonderful, welcoming and calming.   The prospect of being in such an atmosphere was what drove me to find a way to be able to attend: the complete absence of stresses and stressors, and the anticipation of being where I could feel the presence of God.

Nearly everything about the experience of the retreat evoked these things – the cleanliness, the simplicity of the surroundings, the beauty, the natural bounty.  Peace was palpable.

Being in the midst of nature - although it was so cold outside - was uplifting and purging.  It was a beautiful, crisp, clear kind of cold.  Snow still lay on the ground, covered the roofs, weighed down bare tree branches.   The night sky was clear and blue-black.   Early mornings before the dawn matins were still and pale blue, a river of peace and serenity.  The only real “noise” or lively activity was in the dining room (when we elected not to observe silence during meals – silent meals worked only once!). In our joint gatherings, of course, we spoke, sang, prayed aloud or privately.  

Built into the retreat, in addition to tasty meals prepared by the monks, were opportunities for creativity in making art, song, and dance, as well as quiet times for strolling the grounds, meditating, prayer, fellowshipping with others, or just relaxing and unwinding from the stresses of school and work. 

When our three days of solitude ended, no one was ready to leave the embrace of the cloister.  But, alas, sirens of papers and classes pulled us out of that safe haven.  

For more information on Inter-Varsity: www.intervarsity.org.