What we do today is ruled not by the past but by the adaptation of tradition to the needs of the present. History can only help us decide what the essentials of that tradition are, and the parameters of its adaption.
The Liturgy of the Hours in East and West, xv
I am reading Taft’s chapter on Egyptian monasticism and noticed that I marked this passage in the Introduction. The mindset that asks, “Why is what was right now wrong?”, is a temptation for me. Maybe even for others?
So two ways: the past is always right; the present is always right. Either way the word “Tradition” becomes a battle cry. Both miss that Tradition, like experience, can be used both as a verb and as a noun. It is a living Tradition, for me, that is important. (And, please, do not get me started on the Scripture vs Tradition debate!!!!)
Jesus speaks of the good scribe (Matthew 13). Words to think about.
Anyway …
this solitary life 