On the Establishment of Virtual Lavras (Lauras):

I've spoken of this in the past briefly (in May 2021 and again in 2023), and it is more strongly on my mind these days because of increased communications with other diocesan hermits. One of the ways dioceses have demonstrated a distrust for solitary eremitical vocations, and also a way they demonstrate key knowledge of something that is vital to authentic eremitical vocations is by turning to the concept of the laura or lavra. Lauras are colonies of hermits that do not rise to the level of juridical communities and provide personal support for solitary eremitical vocations. DICLSAL makes it clear that c 603 hermits can indeed join together in lauras for mutual support so long as they do not try to create a juridical community in this way or (it is implied) become a house of formation for diocesan hermits. Even so, some dioceses have formed lauras and made belonging to the laura a requirement for anyone seeking to be consecrated as a diocesan hermit. Unfortunately, this is contrary to the spirit, and in some ways (bearing what DICLSAL has written to clarify matters), the letter of c 603.

For a while now I have been thinking about how dioceses could foster the idea of lauras without creating physical hermitages where all c 603 hermits would be expected to go. In some ways this has not been difficult since most dioceses have no c 603 hermits anyway, and those who do tend to have only one or two at the most. Those with more tend to be real exceptions and often have made significant errors in at least one or two of the vocations they have professed! Hermits tend to live a unique kind of loneliness because we are rarely understood in our own neighborhood (yes, something we share with Jesus and the prophets!), and at the same time, for this and other reasons, we really do require the support of persons who truly understand what we have been called to and the nature of both the public and ecclesial demands it makes upon us. A laura would help solve this problem, but it would need to be a laura that required each hermit to write and live her own Rule, take care of her own expenses, find her own employment, become a vital (life-giving) part of a parish faith community -- in whatever way the individual hermit determines is appropriate --- and things like this. There would be no common purse, no common Rule, no superior, or common horarium, no common habit, no restrictions on employment or ministry contravening what is included in the individual hermit's approved Rule, and so forth. The laura is there to support solitary c 603 hermits, not to transform them into semi-eremites or to relieve the diocese from the task of discerning and assisting in the formation of such hermits' vocations.

even a virtual hug!!!

So, what could possibly allow a laura like that to come to be, particularly when, in the United States, for instance, there are only @ 100 or so canonical hermits within 196 dioceses?  What could allow deep bonds and friendships to form, and the discussion of mutual concerns and commitments -- including a commitment to "going deeper" into this vocation with other diocesan hermits who have determined to learn and share together (and possibly even to come together sometimes to worship and/or share a meal) --- all while avoiding the problems and pitfalls of a single laura with a physical campus located in a single diocese? The answer was given to us by the pandemic! It is the way many of us sometimes see our doctors these days, the way some must attend Mass or prayer services. It is the way I meet with clients and do spiritual direction. It is even the way some c 603 hermits now meet with diocesan formation teams and candidates for consecration, to assist in a solid discernment and formation process without requiring the creation of a hermit house of formation! Simply stated, it is VIRTUAL!!! (Yes, I know, obvious, isn't it?)

Recently, I mentioned coming together with other diocesan hermits to talk about a book we are reading together (right now that title is, The Eremitic Life by Cornelius Wencel, Er Cam). It is not a high-powered book discussion group (though the book mentioned is very significant and powerful regarding eremitical life!!). The way we proceed is that we each read the same text ahead of time and come together to share what it has meant to us. Maybe we'll share how it challenges us, causes concerns, or how it consoles and inspires us specifically as diocesan hermits. In this case, we have all read the entire book (maybe more than once!), so the chosen text is a jumping-off point and the conversations can be far-ranging. For me personally, it has been truly wonderful and incredibly enriching!! To have several (or even just 1 or 2) other hermits "out there," who pray for and with you, who know precisely what you are experiencing and what makes you tick because the same things make them tick, is an incredible gift of God! While a couple of us c 603 hermits began the Network for Diocesan Hermits @16 years ago, this idea of a virtual laura is different with very different dynamics despite perhaps meeting some of the same needs. 

Our little discussion group is very small and though we may get a bit larger (perhaps with 1 or 2 more hermits), we will keep it small. Right now, we are hermits from different ends of the US and from England so the hours we meet are early morning for some, mid-afternoon for others, and 2nd half of the morning for the rest -- so far! We have chosen to meet approximately monthly for @1.5 to 2.0 hours per meeting (depending on individual needs and energy levels); for now, that seems about right -- though we might also see each other at other points during the month for other reasons. At this point, of course, we do not consider ourselves a laura --- though in a few months, I suspect the term "intentional community" might fit who we have become for and with one another; we'll see how this grows, but it gives me a glimpse of what might be possible for us and for other diocesan hermits as well; it also suggests a return c 603 hermits might be able to make to the church that has entrusted this vocation to us. 

If this idea is intriguing to you, or if you are interested in finding ways to make it real for yourself, please let me know! Mainly I would like to hear how it goes for you, and if there is a way I could assist, then I offer that. Non-canonical hermits might want to consider this as a solution to their own relative lack of ecclesiastical support and their own form of "eremitical loneliness", for instance. (Non-canonical and canonical hermits could choose to join together in their own intimate intentional communities; authentic hermits really are that rare!) I have only begun to consider the possibilities and potential ways of nurturing this idea even if it grows entirely separately from the small group we have already begun (I have no desire to somehow wreck that nascent and providential community and its growth!), so having others chime in would be terrific! Thanks!