Married Monastic Communities

[ArmyMatt]

Perhaps what I'm envisioning just isn't in the cards for elderly married folk who want to pursue God together as a couple, even once they are older and no longer caring for a family.

no I think it is, again, if I am reading you right. it's just an elderly Orthodox couple.

 

[E.C.]

I recently heard about a practice of the Orthodox Church with elderly married couples. I have a few questions about it.

1. Marriage is for our salvation, yet the Church allows elderly couples to separate for the sake of pursuing monasticism. Why does the Church allow that?

2. I always liked the idea of the Catholic order for married couples to live a life dedicated to God in a community, while not separating to pursue that. I forget the name of the order...I heard about it a long time ago. I've always heard that the Orthodox don't have that. Then, I recently found this Orthodox Monastic community - http://www.newskete.com/married_monasticism.htm. Is this a legit community?

Well, there was a time in some Communist countries where they forced many monks and nuns to marry each other, so maybe in a modern situation it is to reverse what some Communists did.

But at the same time, I do remember that Elder Cleopa's original abbot was married to the abbess of a woman's monastery. Since that was pre-Communism it would be fair to say that it was just the way their lives worked out. I believe they were married and both had a desire to pursue the monastic life.

 

[Gxg (G²)]

Thank you for this...I really do appreciate reading it and learning about it. This is something that for some reason has been on my mind a lot lately - and this helps. I will read those links now and become more familiar with the Church tradition of incorporating that into our lives today.

As a side note - a village dedicated to a monastic style of life, though perhaps not monastics in the traditional sense (like in the early Celtic church and also in some communities in Alaska, etc) is pretty much exactly what I'm referring to. That said, I'm going to read some of these about incorporating it into our lives wherever we are.

Thank you again!

Glad to know the information came in handy for you - and cool I was on the same page with what you were referring to.

 

[All4Christ]

no I think it is, again, if I am reading you right. it's just an elderly Orthodox couple.

If it is the same, why do we have retreats to monasteries?

It is true that we are called to the same spiritual values and are held to the same spiritual standards. But it is a different perspective and approach to life, by very virtue of withdrawing from the worldly cares. We do that as much as possible, but there is a reason why monastics now gather together as a community rather than the early monastic life in the earliest times of the Church, is there not?

Though support to continue celibacy is one of those reasons, to simplify the reasons for it and the differences in how people live their lives to the one area of being celibate is not accurate, in my humble opinion.

 

[ArmyMatt]

If it is the same, why do we have retreats to monasteries?

It is true that we are called to the same spiritual values and are held to the same spiritual standards. But it is a different perspective and approach to life, by very virtue of withdrawing from the worldly cares. We do that as much as possible, but there is a reason why monastics now gather together as a community rather than the early monastic life in the earliest times of the Church, is there not?

Though support to continue celibacy is one of those reasons, to simplify the reasons for it and the differences in how people live their lives to the one area of being celibate is not accurate, in my humble opinion.

sorry, but I am not following. could you clarify?