Isn't "Solitary Hermit" Redundant?

[[Sister Laurel, why do you say "solitary eremitical life"? Isn't that redundant? I mean hermits are solitary aren't they, so why both words, solitary and hermit?]]

Good questions!! No, it's not redundant. Canon 603 was created for solitary hermits, not hermits in a community of hermits. The Church has other ways to establish communities, whether of hermits or not. Solitary hermits under c 603 write their own Rules of Life and they may live in lauras of hermits, that is, colonies of hermits so long as these do not rise to the level of a community with a single Rule, single purse, community superior, single spirituality, etc. There are a number of posts about this under the labels "lauras" and "solitary eremitical vocations", so please check those out! One of these includes comments from a canonist, Therese Ivers, so that is especially helpful, I think.

Followup on Why God Wills Many Forms of Hermit Life in the Catholic Church

 [[Sister Laurel, you wrote that there will always be non-canonical hermits and that they would likely always outnumber canonical hermits. What makes you say that, especially about the numbers of them?]]

Thanks for following up. I say what I do in part because I know in my own diocese the number of people they get (or have gotten in the past) petitioning for admission consecrated eremitical life under c 603 is many times the number of c 603 hermits we have (a ratio of about 120 to 1). I also belong to a couple of groups of hermits online, the majority of members of which are lay or non-canonical. The membership of one of these groups is more than 300 -- though I would guess about half are just curious about hermits or maybe "wannabes". Even so, that leaves @150 lay or non-canonical hermits in the group. The second one is drawn from Catholics and I am not sure of the number of members, but several hundred -- only a handful of which are canonical. The first group mentioned above then, are from a single diocese in this country, and the second group is drawn from many dioceses from more than one country. That alone suggests to me that there are far more lay hermits out there throughout the world than there are consecrated hermits and that the numbers will remain that way for the foreseeable future.

Partly my guess in this comes from the rarity of consecrated diocesan hermit vocations. Dioceses, rightly I think, don't profess everyone who comes in the door seeking to be professed. There are many reasons for this. Most are valid while some few are not. Many of those refused admission to profession will continue to live as hermits in the non-canonical state; it is what God calls the person to be. Some of these will re-petition in several more years, after living the life and gaining the experience needed to live this vocation in the name of the Church; they may be granted admission to profession at that time; others will remain lay or non-canonical hermits for the rest of their lives --- that is, they will be hermits living this life by virtue of their baptism and standing in the baptized (lay) state, without admission to a second consecration (or to standing in the consecrated state) as the language goes today.

I also know because I hear from non-canonical hermits mainly in the US and Great Britain or, because I see the numbers of non-canonical hermits from all over contributing to publications like Raven's Bread. Some dioceses don't profess c 603 hermits, but they do allow non-canonical hermits to commit or dedicate themselves at Mass (Archdiocese of Seattle is one of these and may be a pioneer in this arrangement). Regina Kreger, whom I've written about in the past is a non-canonical hermit who writes some beautiful reflections. Joyful Hermit, with whom I have mainly disagreed over the years, is also a known dedicated lay hermit with private vows and a significant online presence. For every canonical hermit I meet or hear of, I meet or hear about several, even many, others who are non-canonical. Thus, I believe there are more lay or non-canonical hermits out there than canonical ones --- and after all, that is how it has always been, particularly since the days of the Desert Abbas and Ammas!!

Finally, because I know eremitical life to be a significant and prophetic vocation that militates against the individualism epidemic in our time and speaks in a particularly vivid way to the chronically ill, disabled, or those who are otherwise marginalized, I believe that God calls people to it in real numbers and in every state of life (except marriage). A tiny minority of these are c 603 hermits, and that is as it should be. There "must" be a greater number of lay hermits, not least because the lay state is so critical for the healthy and vibrant life of the church, but also because rare as hermits are, the vocation is radically Christian and every state needs the modeling hermits provide! It is a rare and focused vocation, but it is not meant to be an esoteric or an elitist one!! This is one reason I was very pleased to hear what the Archdiocese of Seattle is doing with lay hermits there! When I answered your original question, I remarked on the appropriateness of God calling people to be hermits in lay, consecrated, and clerical states. I definitely find that fact both inspiring and humbling! Those c 603 hermits I know personally, feel similarly.

Postscript (04 October): please note that non-canonical does not mean illegal or that one is an illegal hermit!!! No one baptized as a member of the Church is illegal!! Non-canonical is a shorthand way of saying that one is not bound by additional canon laws beyond those that come with baptism. This is especially the case when there is the possibility of canonical solitary hermits. When a person becomes a c 603 hermit, new canons (norms) apply to them that did not apply simply because they were baptized. When a person becomes a religious or priest, new canons apply to their life that did not apply to them in their baptismal state alone.  The same is true of hermits now under c 603. These persons have been granted and embraced rights and obligations a person does not have by virtue of baptism and the other Sacraments of initiation alone.

Also, please note well, being non-canonical as in a "non-canonical hermit" especially does not mean that one is not a hermit and cannot call oneself (or be!!) a Catholic. It does mean that one cannot call oneself a Catholic Hermit (i.e., a hermit living this life in the name of the Church) because the Church has not called and professed her to do this. Instead, one remains a Catholic AND (is also) a hermit. For those looking for language to describe this identity, we say one is a non-canonical or a lay hermit. This causes no difficulties in being understood by other Catholics and makes no unwarranted claims! cf Illegal or Illicit? Canon 603 is normative of solitary consecrated eremitical life in the Church, but (as the above post demonstrates) one can be a hermit in the baptized or lay state as well. Just ask the Archdiocese of Seattle!!!

Meaning of Living Hermit Life (or any good life) for God's Sake

Sister Laurel M O'Neal, Er Dio
Diocese of Oakland

[[Hi Sister Laurel, I read the article in OSV on you on 20. September.2024. It's a great article!!** [links found at the bottom of this post] One of your responses made me want to hear more. You were talking about the life you live, and you said that eremitical life is lived for God's sake, for the sake of the hermit's wholeness, and for the sake of others in a way that gives hope and promises a full and meaningful life. The phrase that surprised me was "for God's sake". I think the other two phrases of that sentence are expected, but living a vocation for God's sake? This sounds like God needs something from us just to be God. I definitely have never heard that idea before and wonder how God can be God and need anything from us. Could you explain what you were saying here?]]

I was hoping someone would ask about that. Thanks for doing that and for the compliments! This is the first question I have received about the article, so good place to start.  What does it mean to live life for God's sake? In thinking about this I begin with what God wills always and everywhere, namely to be God and even more, to be God for and with us, that is, to be Emmanuel. That is the will of God. In every moment and mood of creation to be Emmanuel is the will of God. What people who pray are about is letting God be God, and that is certainly what hermits are about! We pray to love God, for to love God really is to let God be God.

Sisters Angela and Fiachra OSCO, Glencairn Abbey

It does sound a bit strange to say that God needs our prayer if God is to be God, but there it is! In the beginning, God determined not to remain alone. God decided to create the cosmos outside of himself and, in fact, was in search of a counterpart, one who would respond fully and exhaustively to God's love and in doing so, truly let God be God. After all, as I have written recently here, the way we each truly love someone is to find ways to let them be all that they are called to be. And who God wills to be is not simply Creator or redeemer --- though absolutely these are part of who God ultimately desires and wills to be --- but Emmanuel, the One who is with and in us, the one who makes our world his own and takes us and the whole of creation into himself so that heaven and earth may eventually become one reality, what the Scriptures call a new heaven and a new earth.

Prayer is always about lifting our minds and hearts to God so that God may be God and that he may be God within and through us. We recognize that prayer is always God's own work within us and that even the act of raising our minds and hearts to God implies God is already at work in this way. It is a small but still rather startling step to acknowledge that prayer is something we do for God's own sake. After all, we have been taught that God is entirely self-sufficient, that God possesses "aseity", and that God is all-powerful. What could God possibly need from us? But one piece of theology not everyone has been taught or heard before is that to create a world outside himself, and especially a world that will evolve so that at some time there will come a being who could respond in a conscious and whole-hearted way to this creative impulse of the God who is love-in-act, for God to find a counterpart, God must limit Godself and become vulnerable to his own creation. Anyone, including God, who turns to another in love must become vulnerable to that other and to the possibility they will not return that love, not let them become or be themselves with and through God. This is the decision God made on our behalf and on behalf of the whole of creation. I suppose you could say it is the decision God made and the risk he took in deciding to be Emmanuel.

Sister M Beverly Greger, Diocese of Boise

So, a hermit gives her life to let God be God. That is what he became in and through Jesus. It is what Jesus reveals as the very meaning and vocation of being human. In the power of the Spirit, we persevere in prayer and penance, in stricter withdrawal and hiddenness, in poverty, chastity, and obedience for God's own sake and thus too, for the sake of all that God loves and wills to love into wholeness. This is our way of living a life of faith, our way of glorifying God!!

**Original Article (here on this blog)  OSV: What is the Vocation of a Diocesan Hermit? (Sept 20, article, Our Sunday Visitor) Note, the OSV Article is taken from the print version of the Fall Vocations Guide which comes out in late October or November.

Why does God Will More than One Form of Eremitical Life?

[[Sister Laurel, if c 603 is willed by God, then is it the only way to be a hermit? I know you have written that the majority of hermits will be non-canonical or not consecrated hermits, but if c 603 is willed by God, then why wouldn't it be willed for everyone who wants to be a hermit? Is c 603 the only way of being a hermit today?]]

Thanks for your questions. You know, you have managed to reprise the position I held when I made final profession, but it is a position I came to reject pretty quickly. It seemed to me then that non-canonical hermit life would be a temporary context for living one's hermit life until one was admitted to profession and consecration. Fairly quickly I came to understand 1) that not all hermits would (nor should they) seek to be consecrated, and 2) not all hermits would (nor should they) be accepted for admission to profession and consecration. I looked at the examples of non-canonical hermits beginning with the Desert Abbas and Ammas and came to appreciate the vocation more adequately than I had previously. That involved coming to appreciate more than I had that lay hermit vocations were significant in and of themselves (not as a mere stepping stone to something else), that they were truly eremitical, and, at the same time, that they were somewhat different than consecrated hermits (whether communal or solitary). What this meant was I came to see that God called people to more than one kind of hermit life within the Catholic Church, and God called others outside the Church as well.

As I consider why God might will three different forms of eremitical life (not counting lauras composed of those from each of these groups)

• solitary canonical  (consecrated under c 603),
•  communal canonical or semi-eremitic life (consecrated under various canons but not c 603), and
• non-canonical or lay hermit life (lived in the baptismal state* under the canons that apply to all the baptized), 

what strikes me now is that the values and praxis of hermit life are particularly universal in truth, scope, and applicability. We need hermits from all states of life so the unique witness of this life's share in the Gospel is seen from every perspective. At the same time, we needed a canon that established solitary consecrated eremitical life in universal law for the first time ever**, and simultaneously we need one that provides a normative vision for all eremitical life in the Church. Canon 603 serves in this way. I believe that the diversity of eremitical life in the Church is incredibly edifying and inspiring. I have written many times now on whether c 603 is the only pathway to being a hermit today and the simple answer to that is no, it is not. There will always be lay or non-canonical hermits, and I believe they will always outnumber consecrated hermits, both solitary and communal. I think there will also always be communal consecrated hermits. To speak of the diversity and universality of eremitical life or the beauty of that diversity and universality is to affirm indirectly that even as it provides a normative vision, c 603 is not the only way to live eremitical life! We are a many-membered body and the heart of that body is revealed or made manifest by hermits from every state of life.

Because this is true, it is important to stress that the Church esteems every form of eremitical life and no one should feel constrained to become c 603 hermits if they truly feel called to non-canonical (lay or clerical) eremitical life, or to become a member of a congregation of religious hermits if they feel called to solitary consecrated eremitical life (which can also include lauras), for example. By the way, the image at the top of this page is of a Carthusian at prayer. I tend to love this picture not only because of what it captures with the starkness of the prayer desk, etc (we exist as complete human beings only in communion with God and live this in the silence of solitude), but also because it is iconic of every form of eremitical life. Every hermit, canonical and non-canonical, can find themselves in this iconic image and see that God has provided diverse forms of eremitical life that correspond to and reveal the unity, diversity, and freedom of eremitical life under the power of the Holy Spirit. The Church embraces them all. Thanks be to God!!

You can check out this link for the most recent prior article on this topic at The Only Way to be a Hermit? 

** While a diocese will implement c 603 in somewhat differing ways from a neighboring diocese, for instance, c 603 is a universal Church norm, not a diocesan one. In fact, it replaced diocesan norms and statutes used for governing eremitical life in some places in previous centuries. The vocation is a universal one, but the discernment and supervision of the vocation occur at the diocesan level. Thus, the guidelines for understanding and implementing c 603 come from DICLSAL and the Vatican. Each diocese will do as they can to prudently implement such guidelines and the canon itself, but they are implementing a universal norm or canon in doing so.

* sometimes clerics will live as non-canonical hermits as well.

Reexamining Motives

[[Sister, did you ever attack someone and say you disliked them so much you simply wanted to shake them? Why would you do such a thing? I would think a canonical hermit could control her anger better than that. In fact, I would think you wouldn't need to feel such anger at all much less write about it publicly. . .]]

Thanks for the question. The only time I have ever used the phrase about wanting to shake someone was in the following post from ten years ago. I was not angry but frustrated with and for the person and wanted something better for her than the pattern of complaints and broken and harmful relationships she was dealing with in an ongoing manner.  Eremitical life is not for everyone. Physical solitude can be destructive, while God truly wants us to thrive ("I have come that you might have life and have it abundantly!!"). I believe all that is especially true for hermits. The paragraph where I speak about wanting to shake this person is highlighted below.

[[Sister Laurel, how do what you have called the central or non-negotiable elements of canon 603 rule out people from living an eremitical life? Everyone is supposed to pray assiduously, live more or less penitential lives and I think everyone needs silence and solitude as a regular part of their spiritual lives. Wouldn't you agree? So what is it about c 603 that helps a diocese determine someone is NOT called to be a hermit? Am I making sense? Also sometimes people say that solitude is dangerous for people. Have you ever seen a case where a person is harmed by living in physical solitude? What happened?]]

Yes, I think this is a sensible and very good question. While all the elements of the canon would suffer in one who was not really called to the life, the one that comes to mind first and foremost for me is "the silence of solitude." I have treated it here as the environment, the goal, and the charism or gift of the eremitical life to the Church and world.  I have also noted that it is the unique element of canon 603 which is not the same as silence AND solitude and also distinguishes this life from that of most Christians and most other religious as well.  Just as I believe the silence of solitude is the environment, goal, and gift of eremitical life, I believe it is a key piece of discerning whether or not one is called to eremitical solitude. Perhaps you have watched the downward spiral of someone who is living a form of relative reclusion and who has become isolated from his/her family, friends, and his/her local parish. Often such persons become depressed, angry, bitter, self-centered, and anguish over the meaning of their lives; they may try to compensate in ways that are clearly self-destructive and/or lash out at others. Some turn to constant (or very significant) distraction (TV, shopping, etc) while others use religion to justify their isolation and wrap their efforts at self-justification as well as the self-destruction, bitterness, and pain in pious language. One expression of this is to consider themselves (or actually attempt to become!) hermits.

Whatever else is true about their situation it seems undeniable that such a person is NOT called to be a hermit, does not thrive in physical solitude and gives no evidence of living what canon 603 calls "the silence of solitude." In its own way it is terrifying and very sad to watch what isolation does to an individual who is not really called to eremitical solitude or actual reclusion. There is plenty of documentation on this including from prisons where such isolation is enforced and leads to serious mental and emotional consequences. At the very least we see it is ordinarily destructive of personhood and can be deeply damaging psychologically.

Regarding your questions about whether I have ever seen such a situation and what this looked like, the initial answer is yes. Over the past several years (about 7), but especially over the past 3 years, I have watched such a downward spiral occur in someone who wished and attempted to live as a hermit. Besides the signs and symptoms mentioned above, this person's image of God is appalling and has become more so in response to the difficulties of his/her now-even-stricter isolation; in trying to make sense of his/her experiences s/he has come to believe that God directly tests him/her with tragedies and persecution, causes him/her to suffer chronic, even unremitting pain, supposedly demands s/he cut him/herself off from friends, family, clergy, et al (which, at least as s/he reports it, always seems to happen in a way which is traumatic for all involved) and seems to encourage him/her to cultivate a judgmental attitude toward others whose souls s/he contends s/he can read. Tendencies to an unhealthy spirituality and self-centeredness in which this person considers herself to be directly inspired by God while everyone else is moved by the devil, where s/he is right and everyone else is wrong, where s/he is unhappy and feels persecuted when concern is expressed, etc, have hardened as s/he holds onto these "certainties" as the only things remaining to him/her to make any kind of sense of his/her life.

It is, for me at least, both saddening and incredibly frustrating. I want somehow to shake this person and say, "Wake up! When everyone else disagrees with you, when every parish finds certain regular occurrences disruptive and divisive while you contend these are of God, consider you may have gotten it wrong!! You would not be the first nor will you be the last! When the fruits of these occurrences are negative for everyone else and seem to lead to increased isolation and unhappiness for you, please at least consider they are NOT of God!! When physical solitude is a source of misery and desperation rather than joy and profound hope, when it leads to a "me vs the world" perspective (and I am not referring to 'world' in the sense canon 603 or monastic life uses it in the phrase 'fuga Mundi'!!) rather than to finding oneself belonging profoundly (e.g., in Christ or in one's shared humanity which is grounded in God)--- even when apart from others, consider that what you are living is perhaps not right for you. God wants you to be complete and fulfilled in him; more, he wills it! He sent his Son so that you might have abundant life, that you might know his profound love and experience true peace and communion -- even and perhaps especially in your daily struggles! Eremitical solitude can be destructive; it is apparently not the way for you! The personal "noisiness" (physical, emotional, and spiritual) of your isolation is NOT what c 603 is talking about when it refers to the silence of solitude. Please, at least consider these points!" But of course, this person will never hear any of that!

One of the things this ongoing situation has under-scored for me is the wisdom of canon 603's choice of "the silence of solitude" rather than "silence and solitude" as a defining element of the life. It also underscores for me the fact that eremitical solitude is a relational or dialogical reality that has nothing to do with personal isolation or self-centeredness. (Obviously, there is a significant degree of physical solitude but this is other-centered, first God and then other people and the whole of creation.) It also says that "the silence of solitude" is about an inner wholeness and peace (shalom) that comes from resting in God so that one may be and give oneself in concrete ways for the love of others. One lives in this way because it is edifying both to oneself as authentically human, and to others who catch the scent of God that is linked to this gift of the Holy Spirit.

A hermit, as I have said many times here, is NOT simply a lone person living an isolated life; neither is eremitical solitude one long vacation nor an escape from personal problems or the demands of life in relationship. In Christianity, a hermit lives alone with God in the heart of the Church for the sake of others and she tailors her physical solitude so that her needs (and obligations) for community and all that implies are met. Moreover, not everyone CAN or SHOULD become a hermit any more than anyone can or should become a Mother or a psychiatrist, parish priest, or spiritual director. Most people do not come to human wholeness or holiness in extended solitude; further, since extended solitude always breaks down but builds up only in rare cases, embracing it as a vocation can be harmful for one not truly called to it. As I have also written before, the Church recognizes the truth of this by professing very few hermits under canon 603 and by canonically establishing only a handful of communities that allow for either eremitical life or actual reclusion. (Only the Camaldolese and the Carthusians may allow reclusion.) In all of these cases the hermits or recluses are closely supervised and made accountable to legitimate superiors. Medical and psychological evaluations are generally required for candidates and are certainly sought in the presence of unusual or questionable and concerning characteristics.

Please note that the situation I described is unusual in some ways and generally extreme. In every case however, whether extreme or not, a diocese will use the characteristics of canon 603, but particularly "the silence of solitude" understood as Carthusians and other hermits do to measure or discern the nature and quality of the vocation in front of them. They will not use the canon to baptize mere eccentricity or illness and they will look for deep peace, joy, and convincing senses of meaning and belonging which have grown in eremitical solitude over at least several years. Similarly, they will look for personal maturity, spiritual authenticity and the ability to commit oneself, persevere in that commitment, and love deeply and concretely. Perhaps I can say something in another post about the other central characteristics of Canon 603 and the way they are used to discern when someone does NOT have a vocation to diocesan eremitical life. Assiduous prayer and penance and a life lived for the salvation of others, for instance, can certainly assist the diocese in this way.

What About Psychological Testing?

[[ Hi Sister O'Neal, is it necessary to have psychological testing to become a c 603 hermit? If my diocese asks me to undergo such testing can I have my own doctor do it? Who pays for this? Do you work with candidates with or without testing?]]

Thanks for your questions. I think this is also the first time I have been asked these questions here though they do come up occasionally with candidates for c 603 profession. Generally, this requirement is left to the discretion of the diocese and they will consider a lot of things in making this a requirement if they have not already done so. Some dioceses may require such testing of every candidate either before or as a condition for accepting the candidate into a process of mutual discernment and formation. (Please note, acceptance for a period of discernment and formation is not the same as approval for admittance to profession and consecration.) Others require such testing depending on questions or concerns that arise in the beginning stages of getting to know a candidate and determining whether or not this person will be allowed to continue a mutual discernment and formation process. In all cases of which I am aware, the particular diocese has a psychologist or team who does this kind of testing and evaluation for them, and who tests all candidates for ordination, consecrated virginity, and c 603 eremitical life. (Religious communities may use the same psychologist or not, but they are independently responsible for how they approach the matter.)

If you are or have been under psychiatric or psychological care in the past, your diocese may want a report of that as part of your practitioner's recommendation; ordinarily, this will not replace the need for testing in dioceses that require testing. If your diocese requires testing on a case-by-case basis, the practitioner's report will be appreciated, but it will not necessarily prevent them from requiring testing if they have concerns. It could reassure any qualms they may have, but it may also raise them. Dioceses work with professionals they know and who, they believe, understand the vocations being petitioned for admittance. Ordinarily, they have a general history of successful evaluations and recommendations of candidates over the years and a relationship of trust has been built up.

You can always ask the diocese if your own caregiver can do the testing (if they are competent in this field), but my understanding is that most practitioners who treat clients or patients do not also do psychometry. Remember that what a diocese is usually asking for is not simply a report on therapy or a general evaluation of the person's merntal health (though, again, these may be helpful), but a battery of psychological testing to give the diocese a full picture of the person's psychological make-up. The issue of payment is also up to the diocese; I have heard of dioceses that absorb the cost because they are the one's requiring the testing, but others require the candidate to take care of the cost. 

This Dog May Be a Good Candidate!

If your last question is whether I personally recommend testing in every case, I do not. Testing may preclude individuals who might well have succeeded with solitary eremitical life were they given the chance and sufficient assistance during discernment and (initial) formation. However, I do recommend it to the diocese/diocesan team if concerns or questions come up as to whether the person is capable of living the life and working with diocesan staff in patient, open, relatively flexible, and transparent ways in the initial stages of working with a candidate. Some psychological problems militate against the vows; others are exacerbated in the silence of solitude. And some psychological conditions will not be a problem for any of these concerns so long as the person is adequately followed medically and directed prudently. For these reasons, I personally prefer to work with the person and consult with their own physician or psychologist first; I can also turn to this resource should questions or concerns suggest themselves. Since the work*** I and others do with a candidate tends to occur over a period of years, not months, and since it focuses on the person's growth and how they may negotiate the challenges of that in eremitical solitude, this approach to testing has been effective in most cases and eventuated in strong professions and consecrations.

** candidate is an informal term. C 603 does not have formal stages like candidacy/postulancy, novitiate, juniorate, etc. It does tend to require temporary profession at least two to three years before perpetual profession and consecration and a period of discernment where the person writes her own Rule. Because writing a liveable Rule requires experience of living the life, this process lends itself to both discernment and formation.

*** the work involves assisting a candidate to come to a place where they can write a liveable Rule. This involves the person gaining experience of all of the elements making up the Rule, reflection on how God is working in terms of these elements in her life,  and then too, the process of writing a text that is fully liveable. Generally this process takes anywhere from two to four years.