The Legacy of Yorkshire Monasticism

Summer School 2022 in Yorkshire, Credit: Christians Aware

The ecumenical charity Christians Aware held its 2022 Summer School last week at Parcevall Hall in the Yorkshire Dales. The theme was 'The legacy of Yorkshire monasticism'.

The legacy of Yorkshire monasticism' is rich and varied and by the end of the week our list of what our society has received from the monasteries was long and challenging. It included:

COMMUNITY, VOCATION, A BALANCED LIFE, EDUCATION, MUSIC, ARTS & CRAFTS, WOMEN'S MINISTRY, PARISH MINISTRY, PILGRIMAGE, IRON WORKING, FARMING, SHEEP FARMING, MONASTIC COMMUNITIES TODAY

Gervase Phinn spoke about education - the greatest gift we have received from the monasteries. He brought a wide selection of his books for us to peruse. He gave us an evening of amusing entertainment which was also full of wisdom. A working life as a schools' inspector in the Yorkshire Dales taught him that a good teacher listens and watches the children and loves to learn throughout life. A good teacher empathises with his or her pupils/students and understands teaching as a way of life.

Steven Skinner also spoke about a way of life. He introduced the benefits of achieving monastic balance and harmony in our lives and talked about ways forward, including learning from Eastern religions. He referred to the 'World Happiness Report' which indicates that most people would like a balanced life and that most people in Finland and Malta are successful in enjoying this. He looked at ways of reaching balance and of enabling others in the Western Christian traditions, including mediation, healing ministries and in the Benedictine tradition.

No-one could have presented the monastic way of life as adventurous, challenging and sustainable as vividly and attractively as Mary Lewis did. She showed wonderful, inspirational photographs of her journeys in search of early monasteries in the Hebrides which left everyone asking how they might go there.

John Bennett introduced the Franciscans, mendicant friars who are always on the move and who came to England before the death of Frances of Assisi. John talked

about our rich inheritance from the Franciscans, including the Christmas crib, the valuing of children and young people and love of the poor.

Farming was a major legacy which has come down to us from the monasteries. We had two presentations on farming. Stephen Ramsden introduced his farms on Middlesmoor at the top of Nidderdale, and we enjoyed an afternoon visit. We drove high up onto the moors and after lunch in the churchyard with a wonderful view for miles around, we went even higher and walked on the sheep and red grouse moorlands. The road up was untarred and bumpy. The car drivers were challenged but successful and we all arrived back in the village safely.

The difficulties facing today's farmers are hard to overcome. The biggest difficulty is climate change. The challenge is to care for the environment, to produce more food and to maintain the rural population. It is a daunting challenge. Stephen Ramsden has recently written about the great gulf between rural and urban Britain and how therefore to bring new people into farming.

We spent an evening with Stephen and John Dawson. Stephen is a parish priest and John is a farmer. The brothers are both committed to keeping the rural communities alive by drawing them into lively and committed parishes and by excellent and environmentally-friendly farming. We saw photographs of parish life, we listened and we discussed how to be a farmer and an environmentalist. John talked about his role as a custodian, working to create a good future for farming and for the country. One important way forward is to nurture permanent pasture, grazed and fertilised by cattle and sheep, thus keeping the carbon in the good, healthy soil.

In Christians Aware we plan future resources and events which emerge from our engaging and compelling summer school.

Barbara Butler is Executive Secretary of Christians Aware

Christians Aware at: www.christiansaware.co.uk/