Thoughts on Seminary Life So Far
It has only been 3 days into orientation week and Nashotah House has already surpassed my expectations. Life here is just so marvelously different from anything I have ever known. It is by no means perfect. However, the Holy Spirit is animating this place in ways that I have never quite encountered before and the people here seem to be responding to the Spirit's work in ways that I have never seen before either. There is a real unity here and things have only just begun.
Our exposure to the faculty so far has been fairly limited (compared to sitting in on class with them). However, since we are all bound together by a common rule of life, the Rule of St. Benedict, there is much time and space that is shared with them. We eat together and pray together twice daily. Furthermore, many of the faculty have led some of our orientation sessions.
Even though I am just getting to know all of the faculty, I can already tell that they are of the highest quality. They seem to embody that ethos which is quite unique to the Anglican way, the way of via media (middle way). They are some of the most well-balanced people I have ever met; utterly brilliant, deeply compassionate, socially engaging and hysterically funny. To prove the point: we have been sitting in orientation basically from 9am-5pm each day this week. The faculty have been lecturing us in study tips, citation tips, financial aid tips, and liturgy tips and they haven't lost my attention yet. It is more than safe to say that most of these categories are not topics which keep folks on the edge of their seats by any means. Yet, the faculty have kept me engaged even while talking about the most boring of things. This alone speaks to their caliber.
I have yet to meet all of the residential students. I have met all of the new students who are in my class, though. It is kind of crazy, we only met 3 or 4 days ago but we are already beginning to form a tight bond. The amazing thing is that none of us have anything in common, really (other than our calling to religious orders). Some of us are young, some are old. Some of us are Episcopalian, some are ACNA (Anglican Church in North America). Some were cradle Anglicans, some, like me, have yet to fully become Anglican. Others are from other countries. One man is already an ordained priest who has lived in Ireland, Scotland, Australia and now here. Another man is from Poland.
Despite the differences it is already evident that there is a strong bond between us and that our unity will only deepen over time.
Then there is the chapel. My goodness. The reason why I wanted to come to the House originally was because of the chapel life. I am already beginning to observe the transformative presence of God within it. The sanctifying mysteries of Mass each morning and the Spirit's power in our common prayer during each service is already stirring my soul much more quickly and radically than I anticipated. You would think that one would grow tired of the chapel after going there twice a day every single day and praying the same prayers with the same people. Nothing could be further from the case, though. I am finding Christ and myself (once again) in the liturgical flow of each day. I think a few students have deemed me to be exceptionally devout or pious because I have been showing up 15 to 30 minutes early for each service this week. I can attest to the fact that it is not my devotion or piety which drives me. I am so weak in these areas anyways that such a thought is absurd to me. No, I just can't wait to get there and pray. God is doing something in me and I am eager to let him continue his work.
I am finding my home both in the school and in Anglicanism. I sensed my heart saying "finally" after we made this transition into the Anglican way, as if it has been the form of faith that my soul has been eagerly expecting all of this time.
Even though I still feel out of place I have never felt so much at home.
Many people have been asking me what it was like to transition from the Reformed tradition into Anglicanism. I thought of a metaphor yesterday as Jason and I were swimming at the beach on campus. I have been on two kinds of float trips in my life: on the rivers in Missouri and on the rivers in Colorado. In Missouri, we always inevitably got stuck somewhere along the stream where the water was shallow. Just whenever you think you are trekking along just fine, your raft/canoe hits a shallow spot and you have to get out and carry your gear off of the rocks. In Colorado, however, I never experienced this. The current always flowed consistently and smoothly.
The Reformed faith felt a bit like rafting in Missouri. There were times when I cruised right a long and everything was truly awesome. I just kept hitting too many shallow spots, however, and bottoming out. It became too laborious to keep getting out of the boat and carrying things along by my own power. I won't labor the point or clarify the spots that I perceive to be the shallow ends of the Reformed faith. People have simply been asking me about the subjective; about how I have been feeling about this whole transition. All that I can say is that I have never cruised along so well before.
A vital and perhaps odd to mention aspect of the "cruising" that I am speaking of is repentance. Repentance is coming easily, albeit painfully, for me. Being so immersed in the rhythms, the culture, and the presence of God here has simply made me have no desire for sin, The things and temptations that used to appeal to me just seem silly to me now. I am sensing the disparity that I have created within myself over the years but, as I mentioned before, I am also sensing the overwhelming restorative power of God.
Anyways, this is all that I will say for now (even though I can say much more).
Please continue to pray for me my friends.
I truly am the chief of all sinners.
God bless,
TJ
Our exposure to the faculty so far has been fairly limited (compared to sitting in on class with them). However, since we are all bound together by a common rule of life, the Rule of St. Benedict, there is much time and space that is shared with them. We eat together and pray together twice daily. Furthermore, many of the faculty have led some of our orientation sessions.
Even though I am just getting to know all of the faculty, I can already tell that they are of the highest quality. They seem to embody that ethos which is quite unique to the Anglican way, the way of via media (middle way). They are some of the most well-balanced people I have ever met; utterly brilliant, deeply compassionate, socially engaging and hysterically funny. To prove the point: we have been sitting in orientation basically from 9am-5pm each day this week. The faculty have been lecturing us in study tips, citation tips, financial aid tips, and liturgy tips and they haven't lost my attention yet. It is more than safe to say that most of these categories are not topics which keep folks on the edge of their seats by any means. Yet, the faculty have kept me engaged even while talking about the most boring of things. This alone speaks to their caliber.
I have yet to meet all of the residential students. I have met all of the new students who are in my class, though. It is kind of crazy, we only met 3 or 4 days ago but we are already beginning to form a tight bond. The amazing thing is that none of us have anything in common, really (other than our calling to religious orders). Some of us are young, some are old. Some of us are Episcopalian, some are ACNA (Anglican Church in North America). Some were cradle Anglicans, some, like me, have yet to fully become Anglican. Others are from other countries. One man is already an ordained priest who has lived in Ireland, Scotland, Australia and now here. Another man is from Poland.
Despite the differences it is already evident that there is a strong bond between us and that our unity will only deepen over time.
Then there is the chapel. My goodness. The reason why I wanted to come to the House originally was because of the chapel life. I am already beginning to observe the transformative presence of God within it. The sanctifying mysteries of Mass each morning and the Spirit's power in our common prayer during each service is already stirring my soul much more quickly and radically than I anticipated. You would think that one would grow tired of the chapel after going there twice a day every single day and praying the same prayers with the same people. Nothing could be further from the case, though. I am finding Christ and myself (once again) in the liturgical flow of each day. I think a few students have deemed me to be exceptionally devout or pious because I have been showing up 15 to 30 minutes early for each service this week. I can attest to the fact that it is not my devotion or piety which drives me. I am so weak in these areas anyways that such a thought is absurd to me. No, I just can't wait to get there and pray. God is doing something in me and I am eager to let him continue his work.
I am finding my home both in the school and in Anglicanism. I sensed my heart saying "finally" after we made this transition into the Anglican way, as if it has been the form of faith that my soul has been eagerly expecting all of this time.
Even though I still feel out of place I have never felt so much at home.
Many people have been asking me what it was like to transition from the Reformed tradition into Anglicanism. I thought of a metaphor yesterday as Jason and I were swimming at the beach on campus. I have been on two kinds of float trips in my life: on the rivers in Missouri and on the rivers in Colorado. In Missouri, we always inevitably got stuck somewhere along the stream where the water was shallow. Just whenever you think you are trekking along just fine, your raft/canoe hits a shallow spot and you have to get out and carry your gear off of the rocks. In Colorado, however, I never experienced this. The current always flowed consistently and smoothly.
The Reformed faith felt a bit like rafting in Missouri. There were times when I cruised right a long and everything was truly awesome. I just kept hitting too many shallow spots, however, and bottoming out. It became too laborious to keep getting out of the boat and carrying things along by my own power. I won't labor the point or clarify the spots that I perceive to be the shallow ends of the Reformed faith. People have simply been asking me about the subjective; about how I have been feeling about this whole transition. All that I can say is that I have never cruised along so well before.
A vital and perhaps odd to mention aspect of the "cruising" that I am speaking of is repentance. Repentance is coming easily, albeit painfully, for me. Being so immersed in the rhythms, the culture, and the presence of God here has simply made me have no desire for sin, The things and temptations that used to appeal to me just seem silly to me now. I am sensing the disparity that I have created within myself over the years but, as I mentioned before, I am also sensing the overwhelming restorative power of God.
Anyways, this is all that I will say for now (even though I can say much more).
Please continue to pray for me my friends.
I truly am the chief of all sinners.
God bless,
TJ
Sounds like you're having a blast! It's great that you're learning the ways of the Pelican. Keep that raft moving smooth.
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