Christ is not simply a historical figure but a present reality. Today men and women are still driven by
St Benedict's desire to 'prefer nothing to the love of Christ'.
The monastery in St Benedict's Rule is therefore the 'household of God', 'the school of the Lord's service'
where the monk learns to read the will of God in the Scriptures, in the ancient writings of the Church
Fathers, in his prayer both common and personal, in the teaching of his abbot, and in the lives of his
brother monks. All the monastic life is a kindling of a generous love for God, lived out in a monk's daily
love for his brothers.
The life of the monks at Farnborough is influenced by the two-fold tradition of their community. From the
monks of Solesmes they have inherited a love for the Sacred Liturgy - the solemn performance of the Prayer
of the Church, and for the Gregorian Chant whose reflowering today owes so much to the Abbey of Solesmes.
The Farnborough Community is also part of the international Benedictine Congregation of Subiaco, a grouping
of monasteries established over 100 years ago to discover the ancient simplicity of the monastic life which
had become clouded by centuries.
Thus the style of life at Farnborough might be called a 'classic' or 'continental' form of monastic life,
where the emphasis is on what is specific to the monastic vocation, rather than on pastoral work in a school
or a parish, which is part of the English monastic tradition.
To learn more of the
current monastic community and the
community of yesteryear, please click on the appropriate
links to your left.
ommunity
