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How do you imagine one becomes a monk? Is it something you plan or something you discover? Do you have to be religious your whole life before joining a monastery?

Truth be told, there is no one answer. Our own sister’s community at Holy Wisdom Monastery have an array of unique stories that led them to their lives here in Middleton.

In this episode, we sit with Sister Denise West and listen to her journey from a non-secular home in Tennessee to her life in New York as a teacher and eventually, through her search for spirituality, becoming a sister at our monastery.

Sister Denise’ story is a beautiful example of the unexpected turns in life that can lead us to our place in the world. Listen in to this episode and tell us in the comments below: What are the unexpected parts of your journey that have led you to where you are today?

Where to Listen?

You can listen to The Holy Wisdom Podcast at any of these online locations:

Our Blog, under the “Podcast” Category

Anchor.fm

Apple Podcasts

Breaker

Google Podcasts

Spotify

RadioPublic

PocketCasts

The post How Did You Become a Sister?, Ft. Sister Denise West appeared first on Holy Wisdom Monastery.

Not at Holy Wisdom Monastery. Our Benedictine community welcomes single women of any Christian tradition. Here, you can become a Benedictine sister and share the richness of your religious background.

We are an ecumenical monastic community, seeking God through a life following the Gospel and the Rule of Benedict. We live, pray and work together and welcome other single Christian women to explore life with us.

We honor diversity among our members and in the communities we help create: the sisters’ community (Benedictine Women of Madison), Benedictine Sojourners, Oblates of Holy Wisdom Monastery, coworkers, volunteers and our Sunday worshipping community (Sunday Assembly).

Pictured above: Sister Lynne Smith, also an ordained Presbyterian minister, serves as one of the presiders for the Eucharist in our ecumenical Sunday Assembly.

Learn more and come for a visit.

Come live, work and pray with us for 6 months as a Benedictine Sojourner.

To learn more contact Sister Lynne at lwsmith@benedictinewomen.org or 608-831-9305.

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See how we address other myths about monastic life at Holy Wisdom Monastery: Living in Community – Myth busting.

The post Myth #12 – All nuns are Catholic appeared first on Holy Wisdom Monastery.

Not necessarily. Benedictine Women of Madison prefer green.

On October 15, 2014 we posted a link to an article about the newest solar panels on our “green” monastery building and retreat and guest house, but the story begins much earlier:

“Benedictine women in Wisconsin are practicing new (and ancient) ways to save the earth, starting with the home front. New growth has a history of springing to life at Holy Wisdom Monastery in Madison, Wisconsin — and that’s just fine with the Benedictine sisters there.”

These lines introduce Sister Act, an article by Betsy Shirley, published in Sojourners Magazine, which details the history of our “green” monastery and our mission to weave prayer, hospitality, justice and care for the earth into a shared way of life. Pictured here, the sisters and a volunteer enjoy the results of prairie restoration at Holy Wisdom Monastery.

Interested in experiencing this way of life?
Consider our Benedictine Sojourner program.

Interesting in working with us and support our care for the earth?
Consider joining the Friends of Wisdom Prairie.

Interested in other myths we like to dispel?
See our Myth Busting series.

The post Myth #209 – All nuns prefer black appeared first on Holy Wisdom Monastery.

Does your heart long for something more? Come work and pray with us for 6 months as a Benedictine Sojourner.

Learn more at an Experience Benedictine Life at the Monastery retreat.

Contact Lynne at lwsmith@benedictinewomen.org or 608-831-9305.

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Follow the series: Living in Community – Myth busting.

What other myths need busting?  Send your suggestions to membership@benedictinewomen.org.

The post Myth #233 – All nuns have beautiful voices appeared first on Holy Wisdom Monastery.

Years ago after I had first visited Holy Wisdom Monastery, someone in a book study group where we were reading The Cloister Walk, by Kathleen Norris, said, “I don’t know why anyone would want to live in a monastery!” Needless to say, I didn’t share the fact that I was considering the possibility of living in a monastery. I had a hard time articulating my desire at that time other than to say that I was drawn to the values I saw lived in the monastery.

Seventeen years later, I can say more about why someone might want to live in a monastery.

First, we don’t come to the monastery to be holy, unless being holy means becoming extraordinarily human. When an old monk was asked what he did all day long in the monastery, he said, “We fall and get up. We fall and get up.” Life can make us holy when we live it prayerfully, attentively and humbly in communion with others.

Secondly, living in a monastery is not about getting away from the world. There is much we might identify as being wrong with the world, but running away from it won’t help it. Besides, when we come to live in the monastery, we soon find that the world has come with us. We find consumerism, pride, individualism, to mention just a few “worldly” matters, are alive and well within us.

So why would anyone want to live in a monastery?

• To live her deep commitment to Jesus Christ through prayer and service in the company of others with the same commitment
• To make a difference in the world by learning to love open-heartedly and to give of oneself more than one knew one could
• To witness to the fact that a joyful, balanced life of prayer and work, service and study is possible in this world
• To let others into her life and become part of others’ lives as we fall down and get up again and again on the way to becoming fully human together

Of course, one need not live in a monastery to do any of these things. But if a community life of prayer, work, service and study appeals to you, living in a monastery might not be all that strange – or scary.

Try it for six months and see for yourself. Benedictine Sojourners at Holy Wisdom Monastery – for single, Christian women ages 21-50.

Learn more at an Experience Benedictine Life at the Monastery retreat. Contact us at membership@benedictinewomen.org or 608-836-1631, x198.

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Follow the series: Living in Community – Myth busting.

What other myths need busting?  Send your suggestions to membership@benedictinewomen.org.

The post Myth #35 – Making a commitment to live in community is scary appeared first on Holy Wisdom Monastery.

Ours is a community of women seeking a deeper awareness of God’s presence in our lives. Living in community is about living life together. In community, everyone works hand in hand, sharing meals, prayer, work and conversation.

While Benedictine spirituality is communal, it recognizes the uniqueness of the individual. The monastic value of respect for the person is an essential element of community life. Each member holds a privileged and equal place. Her special gifts, needs and differences are not only accepted, they are celebrated.

An inclusive spirit and an interest in the environment are signs that Holy Wisdom Monastery may be a good place for you. Come find out. Live and work with us for 6-9 months as a Benedictine Sojourner.

Learn more at an Experience Benedictine Life at the Monastery retreat. Contact Sister Lynne at lwsmith@benedictinewomen.org or 608-831-9305.

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Follow the series: Living in Community – Myth busting.

What other myths need busting? Send your suggestions to membership@benedictinewomen.org.

The post Myth #391 – Living in a monastery limits who I can be appeared first on Holy Wisdom Monastery.

Holy Wisdom Monastery welcomes people into sacred space and our community of communities to pray, study and nourish one another. Compelled by the Gospel and rooted in the Benedictine tradition, we support personal and community growth as we live out our mission and values in a changing world.

Can you imagine yourself in this picture? Experience our life in community.

Learn more at an Experience Benedictine Life at the Monastery retreat.

Come live, work and pray with us for 6-9 months as a Benedictine Sojourner.

Contact Sister Lynne at lwsmith@benedictinewomen.org or 608-831-9305.

_________________________

Follow the series: Living in Community – Myth busting.

What other myths need busting?  Send your suggestions to membership@benedictinewomen.org.

The post Myth #468 – Living in a monastery is an escape from the world appeared first on Holy Wisdom Monastery.

Are you a single, Christian women, 21-50, interested in an extraordinarily human experience of living in community? Learn more at an Experience Benedictine Life at the Monastery retreat.

Come live, work and pray with us for 6 months as a Benedictine Sojourner.

Contact us at membership@benedictinewomen.org or 608-831-9305

_________________________

Follow the series: Living in Community – Myth busting.

What other myths need busting?  Send your suggestions to membership@benedictinewomen.org.

The post Myth #272 – Living in a monastery means being holy all the time appeared first on Holy Wisdom Monastery.

Come and see for yourself. At Holy Wisdom Monastery, we are smart and persistent. We changed the rules about monastic living when we became the first Benedictine community in the US to welcome single women of any Christian tradition.

We have built a “green” monastery where we meet most of our energy needs through solar power and geothermal heating and cooling. We are restoring native prairie lands, saving needed green space and protecting our local lakes.

We balance our work with prayer. We know how to make change and we know how to weave prayer, hospitality, justice and care for the earth into daily life and ministry.

Come experience for yourself as a Benedictine Sojourner…it could be the smartest thing you ever did!

To learn more, contact Sister Lynne at lwsmith@benedictinewomen.org or 608-831-9305.

_________________________

Follow the series: Living in Community – Myth busting.

What other myths need busting?  Send your suggestions to membership@benedictinewomen.org.

The post Myth #263 – Smart women don’t live in monasteries appeared first on Holy Wisdom Monastery.