INTERVIEW
amenities do have their place in an existence
that does not appear to have changed for many
centuries. A former English literature teacher,
Father Luke revealed that alongside the prayers,
reflections, readings and silence that are the
integral parts of Benedictine monk lifestyle,
there are also facilities within the monastery
that enable its eight residents to keep abreast of
what is happening in the outside world, if they
so wish.
Perhaps the biggest surprise to me was the
fact that there is a place in the monastic way
of life for laptops, emails and even a television.
There is also a daily newspaper available for
those who may wish to browse through it, and
almost inevitably Quarr Abbey does have its
own website.
Father Luke smiled: “I wouldn’t say we live
in the 21st century – I thought laptops and
websites were more 20th century. We can use
modern technology because it is useful to
us. Monks kept writing alive be copying out
the ancient text in what I feel were wrongly
called the Dark Ages – I prefer the Monastic
Ages. Monks were at the forefront of writing
technology, so it is perhaps appropriate that
we should be at the forefront of modern
technology, and use whatever software is
available for writing.
“What doesn’t fit in is this mania for being
distracted. We don’t have smart phones because
if you are being disrupted all the time you are
not focussed and cannot be centred on God.
We like to keep a certain apartness; not to be
unfriendly but to be open to God, and that
is why we have silence and move away from
distraction. But we experience changes in the
world the same as anyone else would. With
being a monk there is a sense of tradition, but
not a sense of living in a time warp.”
Despite the impressive size of Quarr Abbey,
Father Luke says: “The monks’ accommodation
is not that well appointed. We don’t have en
suite facilities or big rooms. It is the private
space for a monk, and basically we just need a
place where we can read, pray and reflect.
“But then you could ask how many people
have such a wonderful garden as ours? There
is a private wooded area, with beautiful trees
and walks leading down to the sea where we
have our own beach and can go swimming. So
in some ways we have rather more than most
people have.”
As for the communal TV, Father Luke said:
“I have only watched it twice in the last year –
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