Jenny Dawson describes how Cistercian Associates live a monastic spirituality in their daily lives.

As I turn off Kopua Road, car radio now silenced, driving very slowly (not only to avoid the chooks), I relish again the embrace of the big, old trees and anticipate the quiet presence of the monks. A few days later, I exit Southern Star Abbey from the same driveway carrying a peace and gratitude that many thousands of people have experienced. But for those of us who are Cistercian Associates there is something a little different.

Associated with Benedictine Spirituality

Associates are similar to “Tertiaries” or “Third Order” or “Oblates” of Religious Orders. They are people who share in the charism of a Religious Order or Congregation. Throughout the history of Religious Life, people have been attracted to and want to be part of the spirit of a particular Religious Congregation but do not necessarily want to become a professed sister, brother, nun or monk. In response religious communities have established various ways for these people to share more formally in the spirit of the Community. These formal relationships with a Community usually involve mutual responsibilities, a renewable or life-long commitment and a rule of life. From the very beginning in the Middle Ages the Cistercian Order received lay members, called conversi. In New Zealand the monks of the Trappist Southern Star Abbey in the Hawke's Bay have fostered a growing Associate community in the Benedictine-Cistercian spirit since 2002.

We Associates, 43 very diverse women and men from around New Zealand, have committed ourselves to living the Cistercian life outside the monastery walls, beyond the driveway, in the world in a missional manner. So each time I leave the monastery I am not only refreshed but also refocused towards the values of simplicity, balance and contemplation — the well-known Benedictine values.

Relationship of Lay and Monastic

Our Associate group is related to the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance, or Trappists — the Benedictine tradition of the monks at Kopua. (Trappists are a reform of the Cistercian Order which, in turn, was a reform of the original Order of St Benedict. Trappists, Cistercians and Benedictines all follow the Rule of St Benedict.) Cistercian Associates practise in their everyday lives constant conversion to the way of Christ, meditative prayer, praying the Psalms (although not usually all 150 every fortnight as the monks do), being community in the way that we can and, above all, silence.

Cistercian Practices

I find silence possibly the most challenging practice in my daily life. It means monitoring the impact of social media in my life, not filling my diary, cultivating the awareness that comes when chatter is removed even temporarily. I think Brother Paul Quenon puts it best in the title of his memoirs In Praise of the Useless Life (2018) — “unused” time is truly counter-cultural in a world that equates busyness with goodness and value.

As Associates we develop community among ourselves by daily prayer for one another, sharing study materials and, for those who are able, gathering in local groups for prayer and support. We have annual retreats together at the monastery. Perhaps the retreat aspect of spiritual companionship is more aspirational than a reality for some of us who are isolated by distance. However, part of the role of the Coordinator of the group is to keep us connected and supported, especially through regular newsletters. These are available to anyone who is interested in the Cistercian life. We also have the support of an international organisation linking Cistercian Associates around the world.

We have community with Fr Niko Verkley and the Kopua monks as we recognise each other’s call to the “School of the Lord’s Service” which may be lived within the monastery, or in teaching, farming, family, parish work or wherever Associates are engaged.

I am most conscious of being a Cistercian Associate when, from time to time, I awake about 4am and think lovingly of the monks gathering in the dark church to sing Vigils — the first “hour” of the monastic day. St Benedict in his Rule said that monks are “to arise at the eighth hour of the night”. This was around 2am at the time when the day was calculated from sun-up to sun-down. Making this early start and keeping the other six times of prayer that punctuate the monastic day may not be possible for lay people with the demands of our day. But I find the discipline of going to bed early enough to be able to get up to enjoy the presence of God in the hours of first light is rewarding.

Inclusive Hospitality

We also cherish the ecumenical nature of our community. Our Associate group has an almost equal mix of Anglicans and Catholics and a few members of other denominations. I believe this aspect of Associate life has come about through the hospitality of the monastery, as we are all made welcome there — true to the Rule of St Benedict. We express this hospitality outside the monastery in diverse ways: getting to know neighbours, giving genuine attention to our human encounters, working to make the world a more inclusive place.

Exploring New Relationships in Spirituality

In the 21st century many Religious Orders and Congregations are exploring unnavigated waters in their relationships with groups who share the charism. In New Zealand most Religious Orders have groups associated with them and identifiying the charism as their spirituality. Our Cistercian Associates of the Southern Star Abbey at Kopua Leadership Team will be meeting with international representatives of other oblate and associate groups expressing the Benedictine charism this year.

Associate life holds us in a spirituality that is of and for the long haul. We remain “lovers of the people and lovers of the place” through our prayer, through Eucharist and through our cherishing of silence and solitude. We are linked deeply to Southern Star Abbey wherever we find ourselves.

Tui Motu Magazine. Issue 246 March 2020: 20-21