Woman Monks...

edited September 2006 in Coptic Orthodox Church
who is their spiritual guide?

Comments

  • in the women monestery, their is a monk specified for confession and spitual guid
    he can make the litergy if he is near to the monastery, if he far the monastery can call any priest to make the litergies,
    pray for me
  • Wait, but in each convent isnt there an abottess or anything of the sort?
  • Hey all,

    Christ4Life, to answer your question, yes, you're right, there is an abottess for a monastary (i believe they care called "tamav" in coptic)...

    MarMar91,

    Spiritual guidance is limited to coming from priests/monks... the nuns can turn to each other for guidance, or to the head nun for guidance...
    Obviously, confessing and recieving absolution has to come from a priest, but if they just need some encouragement or advice, they can turn to other sources for help

    Usually, there is a monk who is dedicated to doing litrugies (along with other monks to serve in the alter, etc) and other services... and is dedicated to taking their confessions....

    As well, i believe, a monk would come every so often and give a spirtual talk, so really, they always have resources in order to grow spritually...

    Besides, if they've left the world to dedicate their lives to Christ, we can be sure He's taking good care of them and will provide them with a source of guidance when they need it, one way or another...

    Hope i made sense

    Take care and God bless
  • Hey,

    As mentioned before, the spiritual guide does not have to be a FOC or a monk...

    The convanent has an abottess for many resons, one of which is to be a spiritual guide to the nuns....
    So therefore, like the monks have their male spiritual guide, so do the nuns have their female spiritual guide, right there at their fingertips...
    The head nun is usally very spiritual and usually leads an awesome spiritual life, so she is a great source for the nuns that need guidance....

    Hope that clears things up a bit...

    Take care and God bless
  • I surfed this great site and liked it:
    http://www.stirene.org/index.html

    Read here all about the great Saint Irene, from the source:

    Title: OUR HOLY MOTHER IRENE
    Most Gracious Abbess of the Sacred Monastery of Chrysovalantou
    http://www.stirene.org/StIreneChrysovalantou/StIreneChrysovalantou_index.htm

    May the great St Irene pray and interced on our behalf. Amen
  • as Crazy said their is a nun dedicated for spritual guide, she may be the abbess or another one of the elderess, it is not a wisdom to speak with the other nuns about the special private spritual life
    if their is no guidance, the Mighty God have many ways to Guide u according your honest heart
  • the sayings of the fathers is one of the most important and pure source for guidance in the women monasteries and this is protected by the silence of your mouth
  • be careful as in the women'monesteries specially the spritual guidane on one of the nuns may be a sort of transport of news, ant divisions into groups, may be the concentration with the father of confession be more safe
  • I think the women tend to speak more than men,
    if the nun kown how to discipline her feminine nature with honesty I think she will be as monks
  • according to the the earnest and the purity of the nun's aim god will Guide.
    also the monks not speak with each others about their spritual life they speak with the elder only which is nearly one of the solitude old monks.
    I think the divil make great war with the nuns by making them use their time in speaking
    if you read the saying of the fathers you will reach to what you want
    truly their spirt not leave the honest where he is.
  • their is an elder monk dedicated to take the confession of nuns, if the abbess want to be the spritual Guide no problem, but the most importent is to be wise in your relation as u leave your mother not to find a new mother to support u over all nuns
    u can read this search if u want:
    [www.monachos.net/monasticism/ascetic.shtml]
    [www.pelagia.org/htm/b01.en.a_night_in_the_desert_of_the_holy_mountain]

    p.S. I am coptic but I Like these searches
  • the only measure as I know:
    what the the monasticism mean for the monk or the nun?

    Is He/she serious or not?

    Is He/she try to keep the firest fire as it is if not increase or not?

    Finally I feel the women tend generally to speak and speak when their is free time, more than men
    over this in the close media may be she return to the wak nature of women if she not serious in her struggle
  • Spiritual guidance is limited to coming from priests/monks... the nuns can turn to each other for guidance, or to the head nun for guidance...

    We have to differentiate between adminsitering the sacraments of the Church, which is solely the taks and responsibility of the priesthood ranks, and between spiritual guidance that can actually come from anybody.
    Both have to go together, but everybody (not necessary monks and nuns) have to learn from the spiritual lessons God is giving them along their spiritual journey.

    In a nun's monastery, there is an abbess and she is not necessarily the spiritual mother of the monastery, like the case in many monks monasteries. For example, the monastery of Abu Sefen in old Cairo has the great mother Irene as the spiritual mother for the whole monastery, but she was not the abbess for quite some long time. The father of confession is the also a guide, and there can be more than one guide. It is also not an office or a position, for we all learn and are encouraged to learn from each other. The important issue, among other things, to watch out for is not to learn from a corrupt source.

    From administrative point of view, each nuns' monastery follows the Bishop in which the monastery is located and he sends priests and comes by himself to follow up with the spiritual progress of the monastery and their needs.

    I
  • [quote author=theomariam link=board=4;threadid=3518;start=15#msg51428 date=1143692194]
    the only measure as I know:
    what the the monasticism mean for the monk or the nun?

    Is He/she serious or not?

    Is He/she try to keep the firest fire as it is if not increase or not?

    Finally I feel the women tend generally to speak and speak when their is free time, more than men
    over this in the close media may be she return to the wak nature of women if she not serious in her struggle



    I am sorry but I have to say that I completely disagree. As far as I see, men talk just as much as women and sometimes even more. In fact, the way I see it, most women tend to be more serious about their spiritual life more than men.

    The equivalent of a monk monestary is a convent. The only difference is that the abess isn't your confession father... for the sole fact that she isn't a male.
  • with all respection to u christ4
    If I am not mistaken the age and the close media may be help in appearing the nature of women also, the men have a negitives in their nature I think they can discove it in the monastery in silence
    it is just a mind may be wrong
  • If men can find their negatives and solve them in the monestary, women can do the same in the convent. I'm sorry but what do you mean the age and close media may help in the nature of women?
  • forgive me christ, may I can not be obvious more, but I think the egyptian not as American,
    here in egypt, the young girl tend to be silent more the the elder --this not a low, but the majority, as women become old her she speak freely,
    from other side in the women monestery, if their is no spritual wisdom, the nun work and speak without limits in every thing even if some nuns not speak but this may be apparentaly she may have many nuns as a group and speak by many ways other than mouth and tongue,
    also, if a nun not tend to enter in gps may be they other said she is abnormal or she not love the nuns

    but these things differ from monastery to other according to the lows of the monastery and the personality of the head and the spritual father
    finally the egyptian not as american and europian

    this is my mind may be right amy be wrong
  • i have a Q. theomariam, i dont get what u meant to say in your last two posts?
Sign In or Register to comment.