Finding Sanctuary: Monastic Steps for Everyday Life (Hardcover)

~ Abbot Christopher Jamison (Author)
Key Phrases: classic religion, finding sanctuary, modern spirituality, Father Christian, Atlas Martyrs, Catholic Church (more...)

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Product Description

In Finding Sanctuary Abbot Christopher Jamison, host of the BBC television series "The Monastery," suggests the teachings of St. Benedict are a tool for everyday life—for those who are religious and for those simply searching for spiritual guidance.

"The Monastery" involved five non-monks living the monastic life for forty days while TV cameras tracked their progress. The sight of monks responding thoughtfully and helpfully to ordinary people’s struggles was a surprise to millions of viewers who had presumed that monks were "out of touch."

St. Benedict wrote his Rule for monastic living 1,500 years ago when he was abbot of Monte Cassino, the monastery that sits atop an inspiring mountain to the East of Rome. The name, "The Rule of St. Benedict," often misleads people into thinking that Benedict wrote "a book of rules." In fact, he wrote insights for Christian living, with practical suggestions for daily practice. The insights still guide people today and many of the rules have been adapted to local conditions as Benedict requested.

In every generation monastics integrate modern realities and the wisdom of the Rule in a new fusion. That fusion is the spiritual energy enabling monasteries to be places of sanctuary today as they have been for centuries. And that sanctuary can be recreated in the hearts of people of good will. This book explains how St. Benedict’s wisdom can be applied to busy modern lives, and how sanctuary, peace, and insight can be achieved by people living inside and outside of monasteries.

About the Author

Christopher Jamison is abbot of Worth Abbey, a Benedictine monastery near London. He was the host of the surprise hit BBC documentary series "The Monastery."

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Liturgical Press (October 20, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0814631681
• ISBN-13: 978-0814631683
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #271,029 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

62 of 64 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Absorbing Benedict's Insights, November 28, 2006

By	Carol Blank (USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

In this work, Christopher Jamison, abbot of a Benedictine monastery near London and host of the acclaimed BBC documentary series The Monastery, offers monastic steps for "people of all religious beliefs and those with none." Few will be able to simply read this book, but instead will find themselves absorbing it.

Jamison explains that the Rule of Benedict is not a rule book at all, but "a book of insights about Christian living, with some practical suggestions (rules) about how to put those insights into practice." Jamison's book is organized into seven steps for overcoming the busyness of modern life in favor of finding sanctuary: silence, contemplation, obedience, humility, community, spirituality, and hope. In each chapter, he compares current cultural attitudes to Benedict's views on the topic, gives examples in monastic life, and suggests applications for the larger world.

In the chapter on humility, the abbot explains the discipline involved in separating our desires from our actions. If, when I am hungry, I wait before eating, he writes, the link between desire and action is slowed, and I learn to be more reflective in my response to desire and to contain my desire.

In the section on sacred reading (lectio divina), Jamison provides a model that is much more personal and less technique-based than that often used in groups. He defines lectio simply as God's speaking to the reader as "you," and your being moved to address God in response. At the end of the book he shares a personal lectio divina example based on the parable of the prodigal son.

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An instruction book for mindful living in the benedictine tradition., December 26, 2006

By	Respruiz (Las Vegas, Nevada (USA)) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This is a wonderful book on the rule of Benedict. Abbot Jamison does an excellent job in conveying a simple message of the realistic application of Benedictine spirituality in everday life. I finished the book in about 4 days, and I intend to re-read it again. A very thoughtful, peaceful and inspiring read. I highly recommend this book along with Mertons "New seeds of Contemplation."

25 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars finding monastic peace for lay persons, January 2, 2007

By	Henry Berry "Henry Berry" (Southport, CT) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Jamison is Abbot of the Benedictine monastery outside London that was the location for the surprisingly popular BBC TV series titled "The Monastery." He imparts commentary on the seven virtues the monastery's spiritual regimen centers on. "Before we can take the step into the sanctuary [of the peacefulness coming with higher spirituality], we have to find the doorway and that doorway is virtue," writes Jamison. The prized virtues are silence, contemplation, obedience, humility, community, spirituality, and hope. The daily regimen of the regular monks involves practicing them and seeking them to attain increasing levels of spirituality. The TV series followed five lay persons temporarily taking part in this regimen to gain better understanding of the spiritual life and how to grow in spirituality themselves.