The monastic practices of Meteora
Throughout the centuries, the monastic life of Meteora includes the different types of monasticism practiced within Orthodox Christianity. For over a thousand years, Meteora gave shelter to those who wished to retreat, forming a monastic community that at its peak had over 24 monasteries. Today, only six of them remain active, perched on the massive sandstone cliffs. Meteora remains the second most important monastic center of the Eastern Orthodox church after Mount Athos. Monasticism makes Meteora not just a natural wonder or an archeological site for tourists to visit. Nor is it yet another Instagrammable place to share pictures.
Meteora, above all, it’s a spiritual site! An official holy place of Greece that still has, to this day, an active, centuries-old monastic life practicing the different types of monasticism.
What is the Eastern Orthodox Church?
The Eastern Orthodox Church, often referred to simply as the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian denomination, boasting over 250 million members. Many people consider this church to be the historical church, as its line of bishops traces back to the Apostles. As one of the oldest religious institutions in the world, it has significantly influenced the history and culture of Eastern Europe and the Near East, particularly among Slavic and Greek peoples.
Eastern Orthodoxy emerged in the Greek-speaking eastern portion of the Roman Empire, which is now known as the Byzantine Empire. During the early centuries of the Common Era, many significant intellectual, cultural, and social developments within the Great Christian Church occurred in this region. The Greek language was commonly spoken and utilized for theological writings. Due to this heritage, it was sometimes referred to as “Greek Orthodox.”
What is Christian monasticism?
Christian monasticism is the practice of individuals living ascetic and typically cloistered lives dedicated to the worship of Christ. This tradition began to develop early in the history of the Christian Church and is modeled on examples and ideals found in the Scriptures, including the Old Testament. While not mandated as an institution in the Scriptures, monasticism has been regulated by religious rules and, in modern times, by the canon law of the various Christian denominations that embrace monastic living.
Individuals who lead a monastic life are commonly referred to as monks (for men) and nuns (for women). The term “monk” comes from the Greek word “monachos,” which means “alone,” derived from “monos.” Monasteries are typically designated for either men or women; thus, Christian monks and nuns do not coexist in the same monastery.
Are there many different types of monasticism?
Within Orthodox monastic life, there are no religious orders as in the West and the Roman Catholic Church, so there are no formal Monastic Rules; rather, each monk and nun is encouraged to read all of the Holy Fathers and emulate their virtues. Within the Eastern Orthodox Church, there exist three types of monasticism: eremitic, cenobitic, and the skete. The eremitic or the so-called hermit-like (Greek word eremos, meaning the desert) is a name derived from the first Desert Fathers who withdrew from society to live in isolation in the deserts of Egypt during the 3rd century AD.
The first recorded Desert Father was St. Anthony from Egypt. The skete is a very small community, often of two or three, under the direction of an Elder. They pray privately for most of the week, then come together on Sundays and Feast Days for communal prayer, thus combining aspects of both eremitic and coenobitic monasticism. The cenobitic or community-based monastic life, where the monks or the nuns live in individual rooms or cells but work, eat, and worship in shared space within a well-organized compound called the monastery.
It is a form of communal religious life where monks or nuns live together under a shared rule and spiritual leadership. They dedicate themselves to prayer, work, and ascetic discipline. Derived from the Greek words “koinos” (meaning “common”) and “bios” (meaning “life”), this tradition prioritizes collective worship and mutual support over solitary contemplation.
What types of monasticism exist in Meteora?
Interestingly enough, for the past 1000 years, all three different types of monasticism mentioned above were present in the monastic life of Meteora. Today, we have Orthodox monks and nuns who still practice the cenobitic and skete types. At a place called Badovas, hidden between the giant rocks, one can still see the evidence of these three types coexisting in the ruins of the last hermit, the skete of St. Anthony, and the small monastery of Agios Nikolaos of Badovas.
How do the monks earn their living?
Monks and nuns still work hard to earn a living, with hard labor being an integral part of the monastic way of life. Each brotherhood in a monastery shares the workload, with each monk contributing according to his skills to produce goods for sale or to maintain the monastery’s property. The monasteries aim to be as self-sufficient as possible. Another important source of income comes from donations made by pilgrims. Pilgrims contribute money, goods, services, and other items that help support the monks’ lives.
Over the centuries, many monasteries have accumulated donations of land and today rank among the larger landowners. In the past, the exploitation of the land and other properties owned by the monasteries served as the primary source of income. Although monks cannot sell any of the monastery’s property, they can financially utilize it, such as leasing it for a specific period. Currently, the main source of income for the monasteries of Meteora comes from the 3-euro entrance fees that visitors pay to enter the monasteries.
What are the differences between the Roman Catholic and the Greek Orthodox churches?
The two churches used to be the one single Catholic Church, but in the year 1054 AD, amid growing disputes and differences accumulating for centuries between them, the “Great Schism” took place. The biggest and most fundamental difference, though, between the two churches is a cultural difference that permeated the Roman Empire since the beginning of Christianity. In the Western part of the Roman world, the dominant language and culture were Latin, while in the East, people endorsed mostly the Greek language and culture.
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The cultural differences between the East and West became particularly pronounced during the Dark Ages, which followed the West’s isolation from the Greek-speaking world. Over centuries, the two regions of Christianity diverged and developed under vastly different conditions, ultimately leading to the “Great Schism” of Christianity in 1054 AD. This event resulted in the establishment of the Roman Catholic Church, led by the Pope in the West, and the Greek Orthodox Church in the East. To this day, the Greek Orthodox Church does not recognize the Pope as the supreme leader of Christianity and views the Roman Catholic Church as a schismatic institution.
I want to be a monk under the Roman Catholic church