We live in hectic times where doing seems to take precedence over being. We are not what we are, but we are what we do or even what we have.
In reality, we are what we are. Our being consists in our participation in the supreme being, which is God. St. Paul says in his speech at the Areopagus, "For in him we live and move and are, as also some of your poets have said, 'For of him we also are the seed'".
An important manifestation of our being lies precisely in our ability to reconnect, through prayer and contemplation, with the One who created us. What about those who dedicate their lives to contemplation? They should certainly be praised.
The monastic and hermit life has always been highly valued in the Church, as Pius XII teaches us: "If we wished to penetrate into the profound mysteries of the monastic life, who could enumerate and evaluate the treasures of religious perfection hidden in monasteries? Who could enumerate the flowers and fruits of holiness that these enclosed gardens …More