Skip to main content

Please, consider joining the Monastery!

 



Here is one of the videos advertising the monastery idea in an urban setting: 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=1LaplYL1P-E


If you thought any of these blog posts were useful and insightful to your life, in any way, please consider joining the LWC Monastery. Inquire by emailing: lwcmonastery@gmail.com

The reasons for this monastery:

- To follow Christ's command: to love one another. We can do this better if we practice it while living together.

- To help one another: If one monk becomes sick or injured, the others can care for them. If one has a goal or a project, then the teamwork available will definitely get that goal fulfilled sooner, and faster, better, more efficiently... As one monk needs something, the other monks might help them obtain it or find it.

- To study the teaching, the words of Christ. As Christ said in John 15:15: EVERYTHING (in biblical Greek "panta") that He heard from the Father, He has made known to us, His disciples. Since it is everything, this does include how He does His miracles, such as healing the sick and like expelling unclean spirits. We can do miracles too. Read John 14:12 to confirm this.

If EVERYTHING we need to do miracles is within the guide of the Gospels, and in the scriptures that it references (the Torah, the Prophets, Book of Job, Book of Enoch, etc.), then we should be able to develop many practical, life-changing techniques from them, if only we spend time and effort in studies and meditation to develop them, and to develop our skills, and at this monastery, it can be with a collaborative effort.

Of course, it would be much easier with more eyes, minds, and ideas and conversations, about any useful scriptures and personal inspirations. Living together in a monastic situation allows us to do this much more frequently, than if we were living separately. And we would definitely not be alone, so in this way we will defeat our loneliness.


FAQ:

This is NOT a conventional monastery, neither Catholic nor an Orthodox rite. Neither a Buddhist monastery nor a Jain, nor any kind of traditional monasticism. Instead, we solely follow Christ and do and study whatever is practical and what is allowed by Him.

We will NOT take any vows! That's none whatsoever. The Messiah commanded His followers not to swear at all. We  will attempt to not add to our affirmations or negations in a obligating or binding way. If you would like to accompany us, do so. If you would like to leave, do so. If you would like to be silent for a month, there's no need for a vow. If you would like to be poor, there's definitely no need for a vow. If you would like to be chaste, then begin to be chaste without vowing!

We do NOT have a fixed schedule. Although, it may happen that, we may temporarily adopt routines.

We WILL take time to: find interested potential monks. There is now a set location for this monastery. However, we can define "monastery" to be wherever monks live together.

Each monk WILL do some kind of work or job, while they are able. But not every monk has to do the same kind of work or job. We prize usefulness and practicality, so we need to BE useful and practicing.

We will not call any human man a "father". Even our male parent here on earth. If you want, you can refer to him by his name. Isn't he another fallible human? The Messiah commanded His followers to avoid this. We are all brothers, and Christian women are our sisters. So we call each other by names or nicknames as siblings would. We do NOT have to entitle someone like "Brother James" nor "Venerable John" if those are our brothers.

We WILL be studying Torah, the Prophets, the other Biblical Scriptures, the Gospels, and extra-biblical writings, and even "non-Christian" records, to extract any useful or insightful things from them.

We will NOT incorporate anti-Christian beliefs, NOTHING contrary to words of Christ. Only things that accord with His teachings, words, and lived examples. We also will not be stupid enough to purposefully ignore insightful ideas and models and important concepts from anything or anyone who has developed or thought deeply for a long time, at any place on earth, at any period of time, not contradicting Christ. In the Bible, weren't even some shepherds (like David) and dreamers (like Pharaoh) and youths (like Samuel) and men of other countries (like the Magi who visited Christ) divinely guided or inspired? We can find expected or unexpected things that strengthen us to follow Christ better, as we draw techniques, ideas, and ways of thinking, from any useful sources and resources, while discarding useless and deceptive ones.

Popular posts from this blog

Chapter 6 - LWC Book 3 - The Fifth Jhana

This starts out after the previous Jhana .  The Fifth Jh āna  ( ākāsānañcāyatana ): "And at this point it is said: With the complete surmounting  of perceptions of matter, with the disappearance of perceptions of resistance, with non-attention to perceptions of variety, [aware of] ‘unbounded space,’ he enters upon and dwells in the base consisting of boundless [infinite] space." The fifth Jhana was described in this way by Buddhist scriptures by meditators much later than the Buddha. So, while I take objection with the exact quote above, the core idea is the same. You will see what I mean. Anyway, in my theory, the  Fifth Jhāna  involves: Opening the doors between alternate spaces ( tank!s ). Dividing pressures and focus between momentary spaces practiced from the previous Jhana , are used to stack onto each other sort of like Lego blocks in space (with a main space as a reference). This allows the meditator to stack spaces to make a large composite space that s...
Read more

Chapter 4 - LWC Book 3 - The Jhanas 1 to 3

If you've meditated, you've probably have heard about the Jhānas. They are unique mental states of consciousness. They are described in old Buddhist scriptures. In the Sanskrit, they are called  dhyāna . And for LWC theory, I interpret each Jhana uniquely. Notes for the interested: Buddha’s teachings on the jhānas appear in the Majjhima Nikāya (e.g., MN 8, MN 111, MN 119), Dīgha Nikāya , and others.  The Visuddhimagga, by Buddhaghosa (5th century CE), gives a systematic explanation, and adds  technical elaboration. ⚠️ Note on the Use of Jhanas in LWC Theory While LWC Theory uses the terms “Jhana” and “Jhanic Masses,” it does not pursue the same goal as classical Buddhist meditation systems. In Buddhism, the Jhanas are progressively used to dissolve the ego and reach a state of no-self , especially by the 7th and 8th Jhanas, where entitial identity is vaporized through full opening of all internal and external doors. LWC Theory differs. The goal is not egolessness , ...
Read more

Chapter 5 - LWC Book 3 - The Fourth Jhana

-This chapter is a continuation from Chapter 4. You can find more about the first 3 Jhanas there .-  The Fourth Jhāna  ( catuttha-jhāna ): "With the abandoning of pleasure and pain, and with the previous disappearance of joy and grief, a bhikkhu enters upon and abides in the fourth jhāna, which has neither-pain-nor-pleasure and purity of mindfulness due to equanimity." In my theory, the  Fourth Jhāna  involves: Opening the doors between moments.  Mixing focus between the moments by opening the doors between them. During some meditative states, and especially in the first 3 Jhanas, time is not really a factor. It is hard to tell if a second has passed, an hour, or a day -  because the emphasis is not really on any physical reference. It is like meditating in one big long moment. In the visual terms of the previous chapters, Jhāna 1, 2, and 3 are in the big long rectangular shape without significant internal or external borders.  Non-meditation...
Read more