enclosure and stability

~ a solitary

Eremites, or “inhabitants of a desert,” from the Greek ἔρημος, sometimes called solitaries, recluses, or anchorites, were men and women who retired into the desert to live a spirituality of contemplative isolation. Taking their inspiration from the forty years that Israel spent wandering in the desert and the forty days that the Lord spent fasting and battling with temptation in the desolation, hermits embraced a spirituality of on-going conversion, spiritual combat, penance, and solitude.

Anchorites and anchoresses were a related form of consecrated life during the Middle Ages. These urban hermits (frequently women) lived in the solitude of an “anchorage,” or “anchor hold,” a small cell built against the wall of a church. Stability and enclosure as a means of protecting contemplative prayer are hallmarks of this form of consecrated life, much more so than in the more generic eremitic way of life. The door of the anchorage was sealed by the bishop in a liturgy resembling a funeral, signifying that the anchoress who enclosed herself therein had died to the world. A tiny window called a “squint” allowed the anchoress to listen to Mass and receive holy Communion. Another window led out to the street, enabling benefactors to deliver food and receive spiritual advice. The anchoritic way of life persisted until at least the sixteenth century, notably in England.

Hermits and Consecrated Virgins, Ancient Vocations in the Contemporary Catholic Church:
A Canonical-Pastoral Study of Canons 603 and 604 Individual Forms of Consecrated Life

So, the “marks” of the urban recluse are

  1. on-going conversion
  2. spiritual combat
  3. asceticism
  4. solitude
  5. stability
  6. enclosure

I do not like the term penance in this context—I think asceticism is closer. (Penance is a part of asceticism, but not all ascetic practices are penitential.)

I think there is a sense in which 1, 2, and 3 can be summarised by the term asceticism.

So, as a starting point, these are the marks of the enclosed solitary life:

  1. asceticism
  2. solitude
  3. stability
  4. enclosure

Any thoughts?