The Monk Within: Embracing a Sacred Way of Life

by Beverly Lanzetta

THE MONK WITHIN is written for the person seeking a deeper, contemplative orientation to daily life. Yearning for inner realization of divine wisdom, this “new monk” draws on four interlocking embodied spirituality grounded in the sacred web of life; the mystical path of the feminine, inspired by women’s monastic communities; the archetype of the monk that is the deep truth of every person; and the interdependence of the world’s wisdom traditions, expressed through interfaith, interspiritual dialogue.

Genres: Spirituality, Philosophy, Nonfiction, Religion

402 pages, Paperback

Published October 3, 2018

About the author

Dr. Beverly Lanzetta is a theologian, spiritual teacher, and the author of many groundbreaking books on emerging universal spirituality and new monasticism, including Radical Wisdom: A Feminist Mystical Theology, Emerging Heart: Global Spirituality And the Sacred, Nine Jewels of Night: One Soul’s Journey into God and most recently, The Monk Within: Embracing a Sacred Way of Life. Dedicated to a vision of theological openness and spiritual nonviolence, her work has won praise for its wisdom, eloquence, and mystical insight and is considered to be a major contribution to what theologian Ursula King called “a feminine mystical way for the 21st century.”

Dr. Lanzetta is also a vowed monk of peace living in the world and an interfaith chaplain. She has formed a community of new monks—single, married, partnered, celibate, etc.—dedicated to the universal mystical heart and to the spirituality of nonviolence. She has devoted much of her life to mentoring people who seek a deeper contemplative commitment and who wish to take personal monastic vows. She has taught theology at Villanova University, Prescott College, and Grinnell College.

Reviews

[Elizabeth Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a monk-wanna-be from a very early age, I appreciate Lanzetta's reframing of monastic life and practice for the contemporary world. As a queer Christian contemplative feminist mom, I need this type of inclusive vision, deeply rooted in faith tradition but able to meet modern sensibilities, ethics, and social issues:

"This centering of attention performs a spiritual repetition in our world of the intimacy between the soul and the Divine. Thus, the new monastic--through study of wisdom traditions and self-reflection--is called to redefine monastic virtues, among them silence, solitude, poverty, chastity, and obedience, in a contemporary context."

Lanzetta's broad vision is also this book's weakness--it's so sweeping, it doesn't have much practical application for my path. Better to hunker down within the wisdom of my particular tradition. She's also erased all personality and personal anecdote from her voice, I suppose as a gesture of inclusivity or an attempt at authority, but I found the result cold and uninviting. I wish writers of spiritual texts didn't shy from colorful details. The world's a beautiful place; why erase it with academic distance?

[Ari · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is by far the most personally relevant book of theology I've read in many years. I strongly identify with a lot of what author Beverly Lanzetta proposes here. This is a book written for people who are seeking deeper contemplative connections with the Holy One, not because of what the world is around them, but because of who they are, deep down, and regardless of what religious background they find themselves a part of: monks. Lanzetta comes from a Catholic background but speaks to (and proposes) an inter-spiritual community based on calling. Highly recommended, there's not much else like it out there.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this for a book club that goes more in depth than other clubs I have been involved in. I must say I liked parts of this work, but there were many chapters that I labored over or gave up on. Lanzetta is at her best when she speaks of her personal experience on the matter. She over intellectualizes on a topic that doesn't lend itself well to an academic book.
Our club thought she confused monasticism with mysticism, and from there we picked apart her thesis. It's too bad because the idea that we all have the capacity to experience the deep spiritual life that monks aspire is an idea worth pursuing.

[Siobhan Hypatia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Monastic heritage from different religious traditions converges and is greater than the sum of its parts in Lanzetta's exploration of what it means to lead a contemplative life today. It's clear from her writing that she has devoted a lifetime to developing these ideas, and they provide a wholehearted, profound, and liberating roadmap to new monasticism. If you're drawn to solitude; if you're highly sensitive; if you need to reconnect with the deeper truths inside you; if you're beginning to think that social transformation is not only about Action - it's worth a read.

[V K · Rating 5 out of 5]

An engaging, insightful, and practical guide for anyone who feels pulled to inner stillness and silence as well as a deeply moving meditation on the call to the sacred, the archetype of the monk, and the simultaneously beautiful and painful experience of being alive at this moment in time.

[Marianna · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some of this was helpful, but I got very bogged down by the chapters on mysticism. There are almost two books here-the one about inter religious, contemplative life and one about the authors mystical interpretation of religion.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved this book; a complete vision and overview of what it means and looks like to cultivate the monastic archetype beyond the monastery alone.