Monastic Chanting: Monks of the Desert

abbot_lawrence

I came into choir one day. I had already been a monk for over 47 years. Someone had asked me about how it felt to chant. That question had never crossed my mind. In our tradition, a monk or a nun chants whether he or she feels well or ill, whether he or she feels good or bad, whether he or she feels anger or happiness. A monk simply chants. If a monk gives himself totally to the chanting, then all feelings begin to take second place. Neither monks nor nuns always give themselves completely to … [Read more...]