In the comment thread on the last post I wrote, there's a brief correspondence with beloved Greta, who has been an online friend for years now. We are invisible to each other, but I know she is there and that makes me happy.
But in those comments we were talking about William, and his remarks on something she said. Arising from this, a thought occurred to me.
Now, I know (because they've told me so) that many of my readers take refuge in St Alcuins as a place to be — a bit like a retreat — somewhere to go where people are kind and help one another straighten things out, and believe in the power of prayer and the presence of Jesus. And some readers keep going round the sequence of stories and start again at the beginning, just so they can stay in that place where people know how to lift one another up and listen properly, and help each other get up and start again when they stumble.
I am super-lucky of course, because I can go there every day. I see them and I know them and they get muddled up with my everyday life and comment on my thoughts and choices and what I do. It can be a bit more than I ever imagined at times. If Brother Theodore goes with you to the supermarket, how likely do you think it is he will let you go home without putting something in the Food Bank collection? Yes, you're quite right — no chance.
So I was wondering if you ever wish you could ask these men something? I wondered if you ever have a question or something bothering you, or even something you wish you knew about the 1400s in north Yorkshire, and you wanted to ask about it. I don't mean ask me, I mean ask them.
I hesitated to say this and write it down, for fear of people reading it and thinking it was a silly idea and no, they never wondered and aren't interested. But I asked Abbot John, and he was a bit busy, but shrugged and said he didn't know but if I wanted to give it a try then I have his permission.
So if there is something you wanted to ask, or to say, tell me in the comments and tell me which brother you want me to ask, and I will. I'll find out what he says, and if it's quick I'll put it in the comments, but if he goes off into a long thoughtful ramble, I'll blog it.
And if nobody at all wants to know anything and it's just a stupid idea, I'll know to just delete this post and keep my questions and conversations with them in my own private world.
Blessed be.
x Pen
36 comments:
I think I need to read the whole series again with the idea of asking questions in mind! :) I LOVE your idea!
I will meet you and the brothers soon in the warming room!
How I would love to sit with these wonderful men and soak in their love of Jesus and each other. I would like to ask our beloved Abbot John how his theology has changed over the years in the monastery and how it has changed the way he oversees the Abbey.
ooh, wonderful idea. i shall have to ponder this. as i get more deeply acquainted with the community through br. cyril's fledgeling book, i know questions will arise.
I love this so much. I pretty much just loop around your books all the time because exactly that. It helps me actually live as if Jesus is with me.
This is such a wonderful idea (Jen)
Waving to you, Jen. Big hugs. And he is, of course. xx
I love this idea. I loop round the books too, and find different things speak to me on each reading in my walk with Jesus through how the men ( and women ) relate to each other in their faith walk. I too , will ponder this .
Thank you
Hiya — waving to you. Blessed be.
Hello, I would like to hear what the brothers think about what it means to lead and influence in the way of Jesus. Of course we are not meant to seize power and influence nor do we need to clamor for our voices to be heard. But many people around me (in the church and outside) expect me to lead and influence and speak. And I do feel I have ideas and words that ought to be shared—but to whom and when? Perhaps Abbot John would be willing to speak about leadership that is humble and self-giving like Jesus. (He and Father Peregrine and the rest have already taught me so much, and I am grateful).
Thank you, Abbie. I have both your messages safely, and will see what he says. x Pen
An initial response: Abbie, could you give me a clearer idea what you mean by: "But many people around me (in the church and outside) expect me to lead and influence and speak." Are you a preacher/minister . . . or? Is your work a leadership role, or did you mean the expectations arise within your friendship group or your family? Who are the "many people", and in what context do you feel their expectations? If you would prefer the reply to this question to be confidential, say so in your reply to this comment, and I will let you know it has been received but I without publishing it here.
Thank you for your response, Abbie. I have deleted it so it cannot be made public.
*bursts in in a flurry of joy and glee* I LOVE this!
I was checking your blog for the first time in ages (because I was thinking about your books and the great glee and anticipation of still having many of them left to get and read for the first time), and man, I have missed a lot! I kept scrolling down and finding these posts like "What So-and-So wanted to ask Brother So-and-So," and getting more excited as I saw more and it looked like this must be a series. So here I finally found the post at the beginning of it, and I think it's a brilliant idea. I'll have to think about whom I want to ask what, now, because there are so many options.
This is so cool, and so is the fact that you continue writing St Alcuins books. It literally makes me SO happy when I think about the loveliness I have yet to encounter in reading the rest.
(Only now I wonder, as you're republishing, which versions I should buy! The two I personally own are from the previous publication, so if I were to get all to match, it would be those; but your new versions look lovely too. Do you think you would ever sell the entire series [both one and two] as a boxed set, or a couple of boxed sets? I would love to get them all matching in that way. Once they're all published under Humilis Hastings, will the previous publications be discontinued, anyway?)
Hello Em! Waving! Sadly, boxed sets are no longer a Thing in the modern world (except maybe children's books?)
Everything except our gradually appearing new edition is no longer available except that companies like World Books etc, who have a presence on Amazon, probably sell odd copies they've got hold of.
Everyone has a budget, so probably don't bother replacing the ones you already have, but if future books you buy are from our Humilis series, then we get the money for them (after Amazon's cut) which we split 50/50 with the Carthusian monks in West Sussex — a well worthy cause. xx
Waving back at you! Ah, that's too bad. Alas for the demise of boxed sets.
That makes sense, and the books only being available in the new editions makes it easier for me to decide which ones to buy. 😄 So yay! And yes, it's so good to know when money spent is being used for a worthy cause. That makes me glad.
~Emma (my comment posted it oddly as "Em" ;P)
👍
Something I want to ask is about healthy introspection/self-examination vs. obsessive and damaging introspection. I want so much to always do what's right and do it in the right way, without hurting any people or doing anything wrong in the process. It's such a strong desire, though, that it leads to what I've learned is a very unhealthy perfectionism, which keeps me terrified to take steps forward if they're not guaranteed to be the right ones, and then keeps me second-guessing beforehand and ever afterward about whether I did the right thing (in the right way, at the right time, to all the right effect—especially when other people are involved and will be affected).
It also manifests in the area of what I believe, not just steps I take. Say I've searched the Scriptures on a particular matter and come to believe this is what God is saying; well, how can I be sure I have the right interpretation, especially if others have also searched the Scriptures and come to a different conclusion? How will I ever know which one is right? How can I ever believe and live in confidence regarding matters that aren't black-and-white this-or-thats?
I wondered if Father John could speak to this. How can I self-examine without vortexing into a spiral of uncertainty and fear that maybe I did wrong (with no way to unequivocally prove the rightness or wrongness of the action either way)? (Or, in regard to beliefs/interpretations: a spiral of uncertainty and fear that maybe I believe something wrong, and therefore might live wrongly because of it.)
It seems like it would have to be either all or nothing: either I self-examine—to infinity and unsatisfied compulsion—or I don't self-examine—leading to blindness and arrogant self-assurance. What's in the middle? I truly don't know how to land there, and I drive myself and sometimes others crazy with this need to KNOW that I'm doing right / believing right. I would love to hear any thoughts / insights / advice Father John could share about this.
~Emma
Got it. I'll see what he says.
Many thanks!
❤️ All done. x
Yay! Going to check it out.
Мне кажется, это очень милая идея и довольно естественная. Помню одного автора, который ее вполне успешно использовал. Сад Воображения - прекрасное место для убежища, ведь оно всегда открыто. Главное не переселиться туда совсем :)
Конечно, монастырь св. Алкуина для этой цели прекрасно подходит. Я провела там изрядную часть этого года с огромным удовольствием и даже некоторой пользой. Перечитывала книги так часто, что местами помню почти дословно, особенно первые две и четвертую, они понравились больше всех. Вообще я прочитала девять, остальные не смогла раздобыть.
Но вопрос будет не к братьям, а к автору: говорят ли они с Перегрином? Конечно, он умер, но они же верят в общение святых? Мне кажется, они должны говорить с ним, я бы на их месте обязательно так делала. И они могут увидеть его в видении или хотя бы во сне. Конечно, видения - очень сложная тема, где трудно отличить воображение от мистического опыта... Но, с другой стороны, кто сказал, что все должно быть ясно? ;)
Извините, что пишу не по-английский, для меня это очень трудно. Надеюсь, автопереводчик вам все переведет более-менее верно.
Спасибо за вопрос, Мария. Правда в том, что первые три рассказа были написаны так давно, что я сейчас очень редко разговариваю с отцом Перегрином. Но я очень часто разговариваю с аббатом Иоанном и с отцом Уильямом. Как будто Перегрин переместился в пространство за пределами того места, где я мог до него добраться.
Я полагаюсь на Google Translate как для вашего вопроса, так и для моего ответа, поэтому надеюсь, что это имеет для вас смысл!
Еще следует упомянуть — впервые я встретил отца Перегрина во сне.
Thank you very much for your reply! It was very nice to receive it, especially so soon. It is simply a gift.
Happy first day of Advent. Do you light candles? Or is that not your practice?
It is a pity that Peregrine is now so far away from you! He is such a wonderful person! But does time matter? After all, you are the author of history and can enter into it at any moment. I think it is instructive: we live in time, but God, as the Author, sees everything at the same time. In this way we can understand a little what eternity is.
What saddens me is that William did not have time to make peace with Peregrine in life. Of course, for Peregrine, who is before the throne of God, this is unimportant, but for William it may be important. At least, it seems so to me. Or is there something about this in the last three books that I have not read? If so, then good. Otherwise, I am worried about him. For me, these people have become surprisingly real, as if they were my suddenly found relatives.
Google Translate does a great job, without it I would never have gotten here :)
So you didn't invent him? Amazing! And almost miraculous. I believe that the Garden of Imagination may be much closer to Heaven than is commonly thought. Although it depends on the person... But in my spiritual life it has always played a very big role. As far as I understand, there is a category of people for whom it works this way, and there are others for whom it doesn't work at all. But for them, there are probably other ways.
❤️ Я скажу вам это, хотя мне нелегко об этом упомянуть. потому что мало кто поймет. Я болею три года. Было много боли и до сих пор есть. Иногда ночью, когда я не мог заснуть, эти люди молились за меня. Однажды ночью пришел отец Перегрин. Отец Уильям был там, потому что он охраняет меня. Он наблюдает. Было самое искреннее извинение и настоящее примирение. Они нашли мир.
И Вас со Светлым Адвентом. Каждый день я ставлю свечу перед каждой иконой в нашем доме. Мои дочери — художницы, и они сделали эти иконы.
Great! I have icons hanging on the wall and only one of them is real - the one I brought from Nazareth. And all the rest are just images on paper, mostly from Italy. Although there is an altar on the shelf, there is a candle there, but I forgot about it... And I lit the one in the Advent wreath. It must be great to be able to draw, I always dreamed of it, but somehow it didn’t work out. In our community there is a woman who draws well, and she painted several sacred images for her home. And not only for hers. It is, of course, very beautiful.
Well, I understand. Firstly, I have never been truly healthy and regularly break down completely, and secondly, my favorite characters have always supported me. So I can imagine. Not completely, of course, but partly. When you can't get out of bed, all you can do is imagine, dream and pray... Well, and read, if you have the strength.
I am very glad that they made up. Reconciliation and forgiveness are wonderful things and they are so rare! Yes, but here's what else is interesting: why did they quarrel in the first place? After all, they knew each other before the book began. What did they disagree on? Of course, I have my guesses, but you know for sure.
Мария, мне нравится этот разговор, и я люблю тебя. Это такой хороший вопрос. Через истории проходит нить. Уильяма неправильно поняли. Это из-за травмы и опасности его ранних лет. Он ищет мира, но пытается создать его в материальном мире. Детство Перегрина было безопасным и обеспеченным. Он стремится покорить вершины духовности. Поэтому он презирает то, что Уильям пытается построить. Он не может признать это чем-то хорошим. А Уильям обычно занимает оборонительную позицию. Рассказ «Самое сложное» рассказывает о том, как увидеть чужую точку зрения. Во время этого перспектива меняется, и читатель начинает видеть точку зрения Уильяма. Перегрин никогда этого не делал.
How nice to hear that! What could be better than discussing your favorite book with someone who understands? Only a conversation with its author!
I got the impression that William envied Peregrine because everyone admired him. And he, in turn, despised him for his pretense, because William was essentially only pretending to be a believer. And this really looks very unpleasant, but for him it was the only way to survive. Or at least it seemed so to him. In fact, all this does not contradict one another, because there can be many reasons. It seems to me that hatred is a furious desire for recognition. I want a person to love me, but he does not love me, and I get angry and begin to hate him.
In fact, both points of view are close to me and I can’t find a balance between them. I really love earthly things, because they are beautiful and bring joy, and not only to me. But I also strive for spiritual things, because there is nothing better and more beautiful. So I got stuck in the middle. And Tom’s point of view is very close to me. I am ready to rush to the defense of loved ones or what seems fair to me, and I am not distinguished by prudence in such moments. But I try to become more prudent. I know that the desire for justice can be very dangerous if not accompanied by sober reasoning.
Что вы там говорите: «Мне кажется, что ненависть – это бешеное стремление к признанию». Да. Мне это нравится.
Спасибо за ваш другой комментарий, чтобы связаться с вами по электронной почте. Я сделаю это.
And it works! I mean mail.
And the idea is not mine, I read it somewhere. I borrowed almost all my thoughts somewhere. But I mastered them so well that now they are really mine. This is my secret of being smart :)
❤️ Да. Даже самый чудесный гобелен состоит из нитей, которые мы откуда-то взяли.
How well said! I will remember.
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