Ireland - IRISH
MONKS Nov 2001 DUR 12'40" LANDSCAPES AND FIELDS INTERIOR OF GLENSTAL ABBEY GLENSTAL ABBEY GIFT SHOP EXTERIOR OF GLENSTAL ABBEY PAINTINGS FROM GLENSTAL ABBEY CHAPEL IRISH LANDSCAPE IRISH PUB MONKS ENTERING GLENSTAL ABBEY CHAPEL MONKS EATING A MEAL WOOD WORSKHOP DAIRY FARM CHAPEL BEEHIVE IRISH STREET SCENE GLENSTAL ABBEY CHAPEL |
In its own way it is heaven on earth, a patch of
Ireland of such beauty, such tranquility it hints at the hand of a divine
garden. But, at Glenstal Abbey, County Limerick,
home to Ireland's only order of Benedictine monks, nothing is exactly as It
seems. The grand Abbey itself is a fake, a Disneyland version of a gothic
castle built just 80 years ago complete with phony sentry. The monks of Glenstal live
as pious and reflective a life as one would imagine, committed to prayer and
to God. But, they are monks with a mercenary streak in whom the commercial
spirit moves strongly. Already they've released a bestselling CD with
Gregorian chant, this year it's a small prayer book which is currently
racking up unholy sales. (MONKS CHANT IN ABBEY) Their Dublin publisher Brian Lynch has never seen
anything like it. SYNC BRIAN LYNCH: The man with the plan was Father Peter, who runs the
Abbey gift store. He noticed strong sales for an English prayer book. SYNC FATHER PETER: SYNC MAN: SYNC WOMAN:
What the Glenstal monks
did was produce a handy, pocket sized book of great beauty featuring some of
these images from the Abbey's Icon chapel. The prayer book showcases
Christianity’s ancient devotions. It gives readers prayer stops throughout
the day, it honors the old language of worship SYNC WOMAN: GIVE ME THE
STRENGTH AND THE COURAGE TO CHOOSE THE RIGHT COURSE EVEN WHEN THE SEA IS
ROUGH AND THE WAVES ARE HIGH, KNOWING THAT THROUGH ENDURING HARDSHIP AND
DANGER WE SHALL FIND COMFORT AND PEACE. Most significantly, the book reminds Irish readers
of their Celtic roots, their pre-Christian spirituality manifest in the power
of nature. Celtic scholar Father Shaun. SYNC FATHER SHAUN: (TRADITIONAL MUSIC BEING PERFORMED) The Irish prefer their culture, like their God, to
be very close, worn on the sleeve. Just as traditional Irish dance and music
emerge from the soul rather than imposed from above, so Irish believers put
their faith In folk prayers, short, humble prayers that belong to ordinary
people. The prayer book has resurrected the folk prayer. SYNC FATHER SHAUN: SYNC INTERVIEWER: SYNC FATHER SHAUN: After fifteen hundred years, the Benedictine order
is as strong as ever. Each Monk takes, among others, a vow of stability, but
the curious thing is that these are not stay at home monks. They travel far and
wide and that's very expensive. Father Simon carries the weight of Glenstal's finances on his shoulders, the Abbey and
attached secondary school cost more than half a million pounds a year to run.
The budget is tighter than ever, today even the communion wine is under
scrutiny While prayer book royalties are helping put bread,
each member of this cloistered community contributes what he can, displaying
talents both wondrous and varied. There's Brother Kieron, an internationally acclaimed
wood turner with three hundred or so bowls sculpted each year in his workshop
from cherry wood, ash, birch and walnut, reap many thousands of pounds and
spark bidding Father Brian runs the dairy and tends the milking
herd.
SYNC FATHER SIMON: SYNC INTERVIEWER: SYNC FATHER SIMON: But dreams of solvency persist. Among the more
creative money making schemes was Father Simon's plan for large scale honey
making but Ireland's cold turned the bees sluggish. He found the solution but
was handicapped by his own vocation, a niggling matter of morality standing
between the entrepreneurial monk and his profit. SYNC FATHER SIMON: SYNC INTERVIEWER: SYNC FATHER SIMON: There's no doubt the Catholic church in Ireland,
religions establishment, Is fighting to regain credibility and spiritual
authority. By contrast, Glenstal
Abbey is a community without hierarchy offering connection to God without the
trappings of religion. The prayer book is proving a tool more useful in the
search for God than a priest. SYNC WOMAN: The prayer book wasn't designed to bypass the church
yet the monks of Glenstal Abbey, by staying
faithful to the Benedictine traditions, have played something of a spiritual
trump card. Prayer, work and respect for harmony and the rhythms of nature,
Brother Anthony, keeper of the ten thousand year old oak forest sees it as
keeping to the basics. SYNC BROTHER ANTHONY: For this year at least, thanks to a small book of
prayer that's struck a chord with the Irish people, the monks of Glenstal Abbey can count on robust spiritual and
financial health. SYNC FATHER SIMON: SYNC INTERVIEWER: SYNC FATHER SIMON: |