Krepusculum wrote: ↑Sat Mar 14, 2020 9:49 pm
So to this end I do not see Christianity to be an incomplete theological or even philosophical system. It is more up to the student to discern the right path for themselves and how they apply their understanding of the material.
Yes! I came to the conclusion once that it might be that Christianity ”works best” in monasteries, where it is followed ”strictly” and consistently enough. And especially in such places, at best, it also seems that the boundaries of what ”Christianity” actually is, widen. Maybe it goes both ways and Christianity works best either when taken seriously enough, to for example devote oneself to monastery life, or when taken
lightly enough, so that the whole church is seen more as a humanitarian institute and not so much as a spiritual one.
Krepusculum wrote: ↑Sat Mar 14, 2020 9:49 pm
Preferably it will be situated in a rural area with at most a village nearby in a foreign country where the surroundings are unfamiliar to me.
At least so far I have felt this differently. Based on my – admittedly limited – experiences regarding monastery life, I've felt that it's good that the surroundings are somewhat familiar. The short stays I've had at monasteries have been very intense (though definitely positive and inspiring), and it's possible that having had those experiences in an unfamiliar milieu could have been ”too much to handle” at times, so to speak. I feel it's good to have something surrounding you that makes you feel somehow ”home”. But this is surely different for a different temperament, and maybe would be for me too in some other situation.
At this time of a global crisis, the idea of the Inner Monastery has been on my mind a lot. It is giving me some comfort. In these Saturnal times the ”seriousness” of our world views and practices are put to test, and I feel like concentrating on the ”heart's chamber” helps me stay awake. To resist those other forces trying to pull me into cynicism, despair and the very wrong kind of ”let it burn” mentality.