Rule of Life

Members of the community will commit to the following 3 vows, prayer disciplines and ways of being and living:

I commit to a new monastic rhythm of life: 

  • Meditate daily on scripture and the writings of our tradition’s spiritual masters.

  • Pray the Daily Office (morning prayer and evening prayer or compline).

  • Daily participate in or celebrate the Eucharist when possible.

  • Daily hold two 30 minute periods of contemplative prayer when possible. As St. Teresa of Avila says, “contemplative prayer is nothing else than an intimate sharing between friends”, where we take time every day “to be alone with the One who we know loves us.”

  • Practice a form of remembrance of God when possible during the day (Jesus Prayer, Christian Mindfulness or Recollection advocated by Brother Lawrence of the Resurrection).

  • End my day with a Nightly Examen.

  • Designate one day a month as a “desert day” dedicated to rest, reflection and contemplative prayer.

  • Have a week-long retreat each year.

I commit to an “ongoing conversion of life:” 

  • Live in obedience and trust knowing that obedience means to listen and that it requires proper discernment to be done in the context of my community and its rule of life.

  • Study classical and contemporary writings on spiritual growth.

  • Commit to a vision of reciprocity and justice that goes beyond my personal change and encompasses the need for social, structural and ecological healing and transformation.

  • Adopt the 12-steps as a method of conversion of life, specifically by working the steps in a small group.

  • Meet with a spiritual director on monthly basis.

  • Engage with a therapeutic healing modality (like psychotherapy or co-counseling) to ensure holistic growth and prevent spiritual bypass.

  • Annually during Lent conduct a comprehensive examination of my life (including my choices, attachments, places of growth), receive feedback from fellow community members and trusted friends, and develop a personalized list of commitments as part of our rule of life.

I commit to live my spirituality in the context of “hearing and responding to the cry of the poor  and the cry of the earth”: 

  • Commit to teaching contemplative prayer as a way of addressing spiritual impoverishment in church, culture, and society.

  • Practice works of mercy: feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, visiting the sick and the imprisoned, sheltering the homeless, giving alms to the poor, burying the dead, and caring for creation, knowing that “what we do to the least of our brothers and sisters, we do to God.”

  • Strive to move beyond charity into justice by advocating for change in the structures that produce social and environmental injustice, and by modeling an ethic of God’s Kingdom.

Download a PDF of our Rule of Life