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THE MONKS (Neo-Monasticism, Neomonasticism)
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Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906-1945)
'...the
restoration of the church will surely come only from a new
type of monasticism
which has nothing in common with the old but a complete lack of
compromise in a life lived in accordance with the Sermon on the Mount
in the discipleship of Christ. I think it is time to gather
people together to do this...'
-Dietrich Bonhoeffer (January14, 1935)
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origins and
History of New Monasticism:
 Apr.
26, 1935: Dietrich Bonhoeffer founds a Seminary to
train Pastors for the underground Confessing Church (Evangelical
Christians persecuted by the Nazis); putting into practice his
teachings of a New Monasticism. In 1937 Himmler declared
the Seminary illegal. By the following November 27 of its former
students had been arrested.
Both the term itself, and the actual
existence of the new and ever-expanding Christian movement called New
Monasticism actually had its origins in the writing, teaching, and
practice of
Dietrich
Bonhoeffer.
It began
on April 26,1935 when Bonhoeffer into
practice his interest in monastic teaching in the founding of an
illegal seminary in, Zingst, Germany, during WWII. In June of
that year it moved to Finkenwalde. State Security police closed
it down in 1937, imprisoning 27 of its students.
The same year
Bonhoeffer wrote his most famous book, The Cost of
Discipleship. Dietrich was executed by the Nazis on Apr. 9, 1945 at Flossenburg
prison, just a few weeks before the end of WWII. He was 39 years
old.
Brother Roger left his home in
Switzerland and moved to France to help refugees escaping the Nazi
occupation. He founded the monastic community of Taize in
France.
Although at first glance and in many ways seemingly a
part of "Old Monasticism", his was the first monastic
Community to institute many of the "milestones" of current
"New Monasticism" in effect creating a "bridge"
between the two.
An independent monastic Community, it was at
first an Interdenominational Protestant Monastic Community.
Currently, Monks also include members of the Roman Catholic and
Eastern Orthodox Communions.
 3
Milestones of New Monasticsm:
1964:
R.A. Torrey III Founds Jesus Abbey in Korea
Around
1964, Reuben Archer Torrey III, an Episcopal Priest and
Missionary to Asia (he had been raised in China, his parents were
also missionaries), grandson of Dwight Moody's fellow servant of
the Lord, R.A.Torrey,
founded Jesus
Abbey as a missionary community in Korea.
It is affiliated loosely with the Episcopal Church. They are very Evangelical and sound in doctrine. They seem in actuality to be a Lay Monastic Community, but they do not call themselves that, or use the term "monks" in referring to themselves. 1994:
Northumbria Community
The Nether Springs Trust was formed in
the mid-eighties, out of the spiritual journey in the late seventies
and early eighties of John and Linda Skinner and Andy
Raines, who
began attempting to follow Dietrich Bonhoeffer's ideas of a
New Monasticism---ordinary people learning and practicing in their own
lives, aspects of traditional monastic spirituality. In 1989
Nether Springs merged with Northumbria Ministries, and in 1994 became
Northumbria Community (a dispersed community). It is strongly
influenced by both the early Franciscans
and the early Celtic
Monks.
1998:
S. G. Preston (Monk Preston) and his wife Linda (Monk Linda)
Co-Found The
Prayer Foundation and the Knights of Prayer Monastic Order
First 100% Born-Again Christian Monastic Order
In 1998, S.
G. Preston, (Monk Preston) and his
wife Linda (Monk Linda)
founded The Prayer
Foundation , an
Interdenominational Evangelical Christian ministry to promote and encourage
prayer in the Body of Christ. Believing that all Christian
ministries should also preach the Gospel, their emphasis was very strong
evangelistically, also.
As a parachurch organization, they do not take stands on non-essential (to Salvation) Doctrine. Currently (as of Oct. 2007) they have Registered Monks in 6 Countries in North America and Europe and over 1,600 volunteers in 34 Countries worldwide. At the same they founded the Interdenominational (Monks all remain in their own denominations) Knights of Prayer Monastic Order as one of the ministries of The Prayer Foundation . It was the first 100% Born-again Christian Monastic Order in the world, and in fact, in the history of Christianity. (see also their Statement of Faith including the Plan of Salvation also posted on this Site). The First Monastic Order to Allow Women Monks Teaching that monasticism should have been put to the test of the great Doctrines of the Protestant Reformation, as the institutional Church had been, they came to the conclusion that monks should be allowed to marry. Later they learned that the Celtic Christian Monks (400-1100 A.D.) also held this view, and were also very missionary minded, traveling as missionary monks to Britain and Continental Europe. The Prayer Foundation re-defined the term "Monk", stating: " all we really mean by the term "monk" is a Christian especially dedicated to the Word of God and prayer". On July 19, 1999, The Prayer Foundation's Monk Linda also became the First Lady Monk: the first woman to officially receive "full monk status" in the history of Christianity. They are a post-modern Religious Order of Celtic Monks in the spirit of St. Francis.
Between 2004 and 2005 dozens of Evangelical Protestant Monastic groups were formed, mostly in the U.S., but also in the U.K. These usually combine both single and married couples, some with children. Missionary/Evangelism minded to their own localities, and generally zealous to help the poor. The idea is to go beyond accepting Christ to living out the Gospel in your daily life. The terms New Monasticism and Neo-Monasticism and came into general use to describe what is now a movement beginning to influence the entire Christian communion.
___________________________________________________ Related Pages:
Copyright © 2008 S.G.P. All rights reserved. Next PRAYER FOUNDATION Category FEATURES
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Brief
History
of
New
Monasticism
New Monasticism:
"The
Boston Globe" Articles (Feb. 3, 2008):
