<p><a target="_blank" title="Vocations Brochure" href="images/stories/nc_vocations_2.pdf"><img style="margin-right: 10px; border: 1px solid #000000; float: left;" alt="nc_vocations" src="images/stories/nc_vocations.gif" height="305" width="117" /></a>Thank you                  for your interest in our life here at New Camaldoli Hermitage.                  The following is some descriptive information about us.</p>
<p>We are                  a monastic and contemplative community, in the Benedictine tradition,                  with an emphasis on both solitude and community. This is a difficult                  balance, and requires specific human skills and a certain level                  of spiritual development.</p>
<p>We ask                  that individuals considering our way of life be in a process of                  spiritual direction with someone to help discern the mysterious                  call that is the call to religious life. This is best done locally,                  that is, with someone near your home. We ask too that this process                  be an extended one, not just one or two visits. As the work progresses                  and the life of prayer increases, and if it seems that God is                  calling you to consider a monastic and contemplative vocation,                  we would be happy to explore the possibility of a call to our                  way of life with you.</p>
<p>The following                  issues come up often, so we want to address them early on for                  prospective candidates.</p>
<p>Our life                  is challenging, and different from many other ways of life         (<a target="_self" href="index.php?option=com_content&amp;view=article&amp;id=15:some-information-about-life-at-new-camaldoli-hermitage&amp;catid=9&amp;Itemid=9">see description</a>).          We can only accept candidates who are under age 45. In addition,                  we have found that those candidates in their late teens and early                  to mid twenties do not persevere. Therefore we encourage people to                  wait until their mid to late twenties before seriously considering                  our way of life. Those who have experienced a life on their own,                  supporting themselves, have done well here.</p>
<p>We are                  a Roman Catholic order, and as such, candidates must be Catholic.                  Those considering converting to the Catholic faith are strongly                  encouraged to become involved in a local parish RCIA program.                  Recent converts are asked to be involved in their local parish                  for a couple of years before considering us, in order to distinguish                  the call of conversion from the call to religious life. In addition,                  those who have been away from the practice of the Catholic faith                  for a period of time should become re-acquainted with the Catholic                  faith and involved in the life of the local church. There are                  programs in parishes to help in this process. Your spiritual          director can help you.</p>
<p>The process                  begins by initiating contact with our vocation director. After         some correspondence, if it seems appropriate, an invitation                  to visit the Hermitage is extended. There are normally a number                  of visits of varying lengths over a number of months. You would          be staying within the cloister with the monks, getting to know          the community and their way of life. This is then followed by a          two to three month Observership.</p>
<p>Prior to                  beginning the Observership (the last stage of discernment before                  beginning the Postulancy) you will need to be free of all financial                  obligations, including all school loans.</p>
<p>If                  you have any further questions, or are interested in pursuing                  the possibility of a vocation with us, please feel free to write                  me:</p>
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<p style="padding-left: 60px;"><strong>Father Isaiah<br /> c/o New Camaldoli Hermitage <br /> 62475 Coast Highway 1 <br /> Big Sur, CA 93920-9533</strong></p>
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<p>Or send an e-mail to me at:<strong> <a href="mailto:vocations@contemplation.com">vocations@contemplation.com</a></strong></p>
<p>You may also leave a telephone message at:<strong> (831) 667-2456 x108<br /></strong></p>
<p>Please                  know of our prayers for you in this important search for a clearer                  sense of God’s call.</p>
<p><strong><span style="color: #800000;">Each month, Fr. Daniel Manger, director of formation, will be writing a short article related to the discernment of a monastic vocation. <a href="mailto:frdmanger@contemplation.com">Click here to contact Fr. Daniel directly. </a></span></strong><br /><br /><strong>Intentio Cordis: Reflections On Monastic Vocation <br />November 2011, #3</strong><br /><br /><strong>A Monk’s Bond With Listening</strong><br /><em>Fr. Daniel Manger, OSB Cam</em><br /><br />Here at the Hermitage, retreat guests often remark on how the grand silence of our Hermitage allows the retreatant to reclaim a sense of themselves. This is not unanticipated since we live with the noise and constant flow of data, information and commercial appeals that no doubt have an affect upon us. In contrast then to this potential toxicity, time here at the Hermitage offers an encounter with the natural world’s beauty and listening to and experiencing God’s eternal grace. <br /><br />As monastic hermits in our Camaldolese tradition, we give ourselves over to this listening quest, both as individual hermits and in community with one another, and in so doing, we recover a deeper understanding, a perception; and we discover an intelligent thought or a new reflection on the ordinary. We acquire the stamina for discerning a range of examples of the divine presence within our personal lives and that of the community and creation around us.  <br /><br />When each of us practices turning down the volume and tuning out the multiplicity of media chatter, expositions and noise of commercial messages, we are able to better listen to God, self, and others. We then awaken to the wonder of being alive in a beautiful world of relationships. For the monk, this opens a doorway to thrive and relate this discovery in dedication to God who really sustains all beings and things for His greater destiny and purpose.  <br /><br />God - the mystery without origin, out of love in Christ and the Holy Spirit - has shared and created for each of us a sustaining relationship that will bring us into an eternal fullness already unfolding which gives the monk and our world a solid hope. This hope is worth living for in the midst of a world where hope is noticeably lacking, replaced by desperation and anxiety. <br /><br />The monk enters into a bond with God to be vigilant in listening within the silence. This listening recovers a capacity for spiritual practice, reminding us that all human beings were designed by our Creator. When we listen in the silence, we are better able to hear the message of peace, of loving, of life-glowing hope that sustains a just mercy, and a just peace that produces humane communion.</p>
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