FROM MOUNT MELLERAY TO MOUNT ST. JOSEPH.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XIX, Issue 28, 10 April 1891, Page 27

FROM MOUNT MELLERAY TO MOUNT ST. JOSEPH.

(Concluded.} (F.om the Irish Catholic.')

Dr Johnson s^ii •' he envied not that man waose piety did not recieve a new glow when standing amidst the ruins of lona " — and why 1 Was it from its being the sepulchre of to many kings and heroes, or as being a profaned shrine, whence issued, age after age, the "perennial praise of the monks." He certainly wrote very strongly of the monastic institute as tending to solace the cares of man's life and as a balmy retreat in which to end one's day's. Thus he writes :— " In mon<ißticism the weak and the timid may be easily sheltered, the weary may repose and the penitent may meditate. Those retreats of prayer and contemplation have something so congenial to the mind of man that perhaps there is sctrcely one tbat does not propose to close his life in pious abstraction with a few associates eerious as himself." Very orthodox all this, but rather poetic from tne of his temperament, if history belies him not. Another Protestant gentleman describes his sensations of unfeigned delight in traversing the deserted aisles an i corridors of a ruined abbjy, and expresses a desire to visit it at lonely midnight hour that he may be favoured with a view of tbu spirits of the old monk?, its former inhabitants, who must yet haunt the spot at that uncanny hour. To disabuse many of their erroneous notions regarding the life led in a Trappist monast' ry, it may be well to shear off its romance and to give it as it is in daily practice at Mount S\ Joseph. Le cue picture a low-caved building, with a lon^ row of couches lunnmgat right angles to one wall, ami parallel with each other, but separated by a wooden paitition seven feet high, and allowing about four feet in width to each ceil, which is fumifchu'l witn an nun bedstead, a straw mattrea* and bolster, a bine feige coverle 1 , an,l a blanket or two. The entrance is scicjned off by a thin curtain of cotton, and beneath the coverlet is a. m>'ik, lv ly >iiess • 1, bn: w tho it she*,h >c*, enjoyijg the slec pof the just. Fancy that it is two o clock, a.m., and tbat the reveille has broken in upon the slumbers of ttiat reclining; figure, when behold, he springs to his feet like a vigilant sjldier, arms himself with the sign of the Cross, slips on his shoes, draws back thj screen, and silently proceeds from the dormitory on through the cloi-tji, keeping close by the wall. Receiving holy water at the church-door, he glides slowiy up the aisle to the crushing, where he salutes our Lord in the Blessed Bicr*meat with a, profoun 1 bjw, seeks his sa lt ia the choir, and there, at that solemn hour, in ih 1 dim bat levo ional light of the sinct .ary lamp, he m kes ms morning oblation, renews on his knees the sacrirL-e ot nis life to his Maker, adores and blesses Htm Figure after figure steals in till the stalls are occupied by their sjveral owntrs in less than thr 3 e mmu'es from the reveille, an I ihea ot the ttiHy night air somes the booming of the churc i-bell, waking echoes throug'i the woods and deUs. and inviting the whole world to praise the Lord, " tor He is good, for 'us me icy endureth f-jr ever." At the sound cf tin bell, the- m inks aian 1 in choir facing the alar till the abbot's s gnal :s heard, then with tne impulse they all fall 0:1 their knees a n), like Daniel of old, place their knuckles on the ground and in this ievi rential pobture salute the Queen of Heaveu by responding to the Angelic Si.v at ion (Aye Maiu;, which the abbot intones The Little Office of ihe IJieseed Virgiu coutiuues until half-past two when a half hour is devoted t>) meditation, ih.t spiritual f x>J which recreates and .nvigoiates fie houls of the devout. Let the worldly man appioHch thit sacred temple then, with, perhaps, the etorm howling without and bigi.ing through the aisles, deip an 1 lasting will be tbe lmpn^b'oo. ''Verily," he will exclaim, ''the Lord is here, aud tms h the portal of heaven 1" Evm in summer the timo is tqualiy calculated to rill tie miad of man with h(.iv»'uly thoughts. At the close of the meilita'ion or towards ihiee o'clock, the firsL faint rajs of morning light break iv through ihe s'aiued glajs windows, ami fill the church with fantastic shapes ani colours. Tbe Canonical Office commences atthiee, during

which the monks stand, except that at the " Gloria " at the end of each psalm they step out of the stalls and bow profoundly in honour of the Adorable Trinity. They eit during the leseona. Practical self-styled earnest workers condemn as old fashioned a life of intercessory prayer like this— a life tbat year by year imposes on those) who adopt it the obliga ion of tinging God 'a praise* in his temple in atonement for the sins of the world which neglects »nd offends Him. Picture a boty of men at that early hour calling in unison on all creatures to bless the Lord, the heavens and earth to exalt him ; and ignore if you can, their services to the Church of God which ever taa <*,tion* and safeguards such institutes. Toe Lands are finished al four uuießS the Office of the Dead is to be recited, which with them is of frequent occurreuce, for deceased members of the Order, their relatious and benefactors. Lauds over, some of the priests vest for Mass ; two being especially appointed weekly to say Masses at tha Blesßed Virgin's and Bt. Joseph's alters for living and deceased benefactors. The lay brothers serve trie Masses and generally hear four or five each morniug. Those not engaged in sty ing Mass either prolong their devotions in the church or retire to the Ohapter-room to study the Sacred Scriptures. Masses succeed each other until half-past five o'clock, when the choir brethren assemble for the Office of Prime, which, with all the other hours of the day, is sung. The Little Office of the Blessed Virgin, too, is recited in public and precedes the Canonical Office. Brer since the foundation of the Order she is I onoured with special devotion, and wonderful is the protection accorded to the institute and its members by tbia benign mother. When giving the white habit to Saint Allieric she promised to defend and protect the Order to the end of time ; and when a Pope was bent on suppressing it, she appeared to him and threatened to remove him from his dignity if he persisted in his design ; " for," said this august Mother, " this Order iB very dear to me." Prime is over at six, and all proceed to chapter, where the abbot explains the Holy Rule of St. Benedict, receives the public accusation of faults committed against it or against the customs of the Order, and enjoins suitable peuancea. Mass is then said in the secular church, and again at seven o'clock, at which many people assist and go to Holy Communion. At a quarter past seven a collation, consisting of some bread and coffee, or milk, is partaken of in the refectory, and at a quarter to eight all enter choir for Tierce and High Mass, after which they proceed to the Cowl Hall, where they put off their cowls, tie up their robes, put on 6troDg shoes, and go out to the fields in single file, following the Superior. There they work till recalled by the bell nt half-past e^ven to the charch for Bert. In early spring they P'cpare the ground for the reception of young trees, which they cultivate in large numbers. They have already planted on the abbey Unds about c ghfy thousand trees of differeit ki»ds of timber. After Sext there is another interval for work, duriDj» which the juniors have their classes, humanities, philosophy, etc., and the priests apply themselves to study ia their cells. At two None is sing, and all go from the church in procession to the refectory for dinner. Vegetables, pea-9oup, milk and b-ead, without any seasoning or butter, constitute tnts, their principal, and during seven months of the year their sole meal. Dinner is followed by an interval for reading and prayer until a quarter past four, when Vespers are sung ; then a quarter of an hour's meditation and arjother interval till six, when the lecture is rend in the Chapter-room for another quarter of an hour, and all go to the church for the Office of Compline and the Salve. The Angelus concludes this well-9pent day, and after a short examen all leave th) church, receiving holy water at the door from the abbot, aad withdraw to th>; dormitory to rest their weary bodies. Needless to say, no narcotics <*ro necessary to promote sleep, for scarcely have their head 1 * touched the pillow, hard though it be, than " Nature's nurse " puts in an appearance. This is the daily life of a choir monk from September 14th to Easter Sunday, when the exercises vary somewhat, and two meils ate allowed, owing to the additional amount of outdoor work to be done.

Where were tt.e lay brothers all the time ? The tradesmen in their tie it, tidy shops plying their craft till the bell summons the choir monks to the torones in th ; church, then they, either singly or m groups, say their office, which is a certain number of Patera and Ayes recitei on the beata. Their workshops have many pions objects hung on the wall?, and often in the course of their toil will their eyes catch B'ght of the nous symbol of salvation, reminding them of Him who died for ihtir sakes and who beholds witb complacency the professitn of their fai'h in Him, and their love for Him, accentuated in no mistakahle manner by the life they have adopted. Others are employed in domestic aff uri, for at monas'eiiea of the Order there are occupations found a lapted to every capacity. Tradesmen have ever been in r quisition, and skilled hands in any department, from the agricultural labourer upwards, find there a haven of rest, and that peace which the world cannot give or take away.

(Such is a brief outline of tha Ufa datly practise 1 in TrappUt monastenes at tha present day as at the very infancy of tha Order wi'h a few slight moiifications to suit the altered times. Now, as then, 8 . Bernard's defi jition of the Order holds good. " Our Order," says the saint, '• is humility, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost. Our Older is silence, fasting, prayer, labour ; and, above all, to hold the

more excellent way, which ia charity,." And again tbe saint asks, " is not that a holy state in which a man lives more purely, falls more rarely, rises more quickly, walks more cautiously, is bedewed more frequently, is purged more Bpeedily,and rewarded more abundantly.' 1 To those wbo expressed their wonder at the austerities of the rule, he replied :— " You see cur cross, but yon do not see the unction which accompanies it;" and he added that a powerful incentive to embrace this painful manner is the reflection tbat "no seenrity is too great when eternity is at stake." " What are you doing, young men,' he was went to exclaim, " who offer the flowers of your youth to the devil, and the dregs of old age to God 1 It is more secure, with Abel, to offer the first fruits to God."

At the present day these words seem to find an echo and response in the hearts of many young men, and it is prognosticated that in the youngest Cistercian Abbey in Ireland, which in site (being on the right bank of tbe river BrosnaJ, and in construction resembles the beautiful and magnificent bouses of the Order long ago, the glories of the institute will be revived, and that history will, with unerring certainty, repeat itself at Roscrea once that abbey takes root. Ireland is a monastic nation, and as truly religions in ber tendencies now a 8 when St. Cronan ruled over Ely O'Carroll (for they contend he was a bishop;, and St. Kieran governed his numerous community in Bier Eieran. Of all the existing Orders in this country this one most closely resembles the old Columbian Bale; and how the rale of St. Bennet and that of St Columbanus became blended in France may be seen in " Mabillon'u Prefaces." Bat it will be alleged that the spirit of the age is opposed to monasticism.and even devout Catholics say that the Trappists are behind time. The spirit of the age chafes under every restraint from any quarter whatsoever, and the spirit of the Gospel reduced to practice is a constant unpleasant reminder of its delinquency ; therefore it is hostile to monks. The devout Catholic's answer may be given in trne Irish fashion — viz., replying to a question by putting another. Does this Order cleg the wheels of modern progress in science and art, or does the observance of the Gospel counsels jar upon their religious sensibility ? It boasts of antiquity like its mother, the Church, which has sanctioned it by the mouths of one hundred Popes, from Pascal II to Pius IX. inclusive. Still the sphere of its utility, which consists rathei in work than in woid, is not diminished ; for, like a city on a mountain top, it signals to men both near and afar to seek the things that are above, and to fly the things that are on earth. That they do not neglect the means of advancement, intellectual and otherwise, may be seen from the fact tbat in twenty-two houses of the Order printing presses are in full swing, and many have schojlp, principally of agriculture, attached. If tbe man who causes a blade of grass to grow is a benef ictor to his kind, how beneficent, then, is the avocation of those who Btudy anJ reduce to practice the most approved and remunerative methods of tillage, and by their example and encouragement give a stimulus to tbe advancement of others. In tbe matter of industries they do not lag behind. At Mount St. Joseph a steam engire has been get up which separates cream, churns, turns a butter-worker, while the steam is made to boil water in various offices, and in a short time will supersede the me of fuel in the culinary department.

Solitude, says Pere Ravignan, is the mother country of the stroDg, silence their prayer. Whilst the zealous missionary is being spent with toil, the prttyer of the retired Trappist strengthens his hands and often that irresistible force effects more conversions than the burning words of apostolic men. St. Theresa in her cell could number »s many neop-iytes as foil to the lot of the glorious apostle of the Inaiesi St. Francis Xavier. " Some eouls by nature pitched too high and by sufferirg plunged too low " will ever eee-t the calm security of the cloister, where, like Mary at tt.e Lord's feet, they can enjoy His more in imate conversation, and till the kingdom of heaven cease to have less attractions for men than tbe uacerUin ephemeral joys of earth, devout soul* who loii£ to be cruc fied with Jesus will embrace a Btate which tends to unite them even here with Him in a manner not given to the world-wise to fathom. Day by day, and several times each day, do their fervent prayers asceni for the needs of the Chuich, and in particular for those who by their alms assist them to carry on their charitable works to the poor, and to fellow out their calling. For their benefactors, living and dead, special Masses, Communions, Offices, and prayers are enjoined, bebijes making them participators in all their good works, according to Bt. Bernard's expre39 wish : " We eat i heir bread," said the saint," we ought also eat their tins." The poor have at every Monastery of the Order a Brother told off to wait on them exclusively, and to minister to their wants with ah cnarity and kindness. At present the community of Mount St. Joseph numbers foity, of whom twelve are piiests

T is notice might aptly conclude with Abbe Ratisbonne'n Vindication of the Cistercian Order in his Life of S\ Bernard :— " The merely rational man does not understand the spiritual man's aus'enties ; be see 9no further than the suiface of things, and condem-.s as blameable extravagances the mortifications which tend to purify his earthly life. Confounding in bis ignoranc-i human nature as it came out of the hands ( f God, wi h human nature now contaminated by fin, he asks if God endowed it with so marvellous a sensibility never

to know enjoymeat?— if God gave it organs neTer to be used 7 — if God can take delight in the sufferings of man ? This is to aik why Christianity was founded on (he Gross ? Why Christ Himself suffered and died ? The doctiine of suffering and tears is not an after-refinement of Christian morality ; it is the expression and promulgation of the very laws aud inevitable realities of our earthly existence. This mortal life which terminates in death is but a course of suffering neceasary for the destruction of our perverted nature. Blessed are they who give themselves voluntarily to this work instead of waiting for the last day to do by violence that which* ihould bare been the. gradual work of a whole life." " This mortal flesh, so prised, alas I Is called in Scripture flower of grass ; Oar life a leaf, the sport of wind, That flies and leaves no trace behind. Call not thine own what fades away , The world's creation are her prey ; How blessed whose heart is fixed above, Cleared of the world's corroding love.