During a lunch break in a Tesco distribution centre, Anthony along with his father started to talk about what has become a shared dream. The dream was to see the development of a centre for the teaching and ‘passing on’ of monastic spirituality to anyone interested. Monos has become a major part of this joint dream.
Over the last few decades we have seen an explosion in the popularity amongst the Christian community regarding the benefits and fruits of monastic spirituality. Fuelled by an emerging deep human concern for spirituality, it has resulted with an increased development of so-called lay or new monastic communities, churches, web based discussion rooms, courses and books, all forcing their ideas and agenda's into Christian thinking and expression.
To this end, it is being suggested that we are in the middle of the development of a Christian sub-culture called Secular, Neo, New, Re, Domestic, or Worldly Monasticism; the spiritual and theological aspirations and manifestations evolving through non-monastic groups and individuals allowing their lives to be shaped according to desire and understanding, by monastic spirituality and culture. Obviously this is not an exclusive occurrence to our age; monasticism has interacted within Church organization, laity and society ever since its conceptions in the deserts of the near-East.
Within the midst of this fusion between monastic spirituality and contemporary society, Monos, ‘a centre for the study of monastic culture and spirituality' has been formed, as an attempt to offer a facility for the on-going dialogue between monastic spirituality, society, culture and church, and to begin to ask serious questions concerning the relationship between Secular Monasticism, Church and society, both historically and contemporarily. Monos also provides a facility for individuals and groups to explore monastic spirituality in terms of a lived Christian experience.
After a period of 6 years in preparation, Monos was launched in the spring of 2004 and is a limited company by guarantee, therefore all profits go back into the company in order to fulfil its aims which are listed below:
Aims of Monos
- To enable individuals and organisations to access, understand, study and appropriate monastic culture and associated spiritualities in terms of life, work, business, values and culture.
- To promote, support and publish the study of monastic culture.
- To provide a platform and consultatory facility for individuals, communities, churches and organisations in their pursuit of a monastic ethos within their respective way of life.
- To build relationships between traditional and new types of monasticism.
If there is any information that is not contained here, which you would like to know more about, please feel free to write and we will try to answer all questions.
Anthony Grimley
Director of Monos
