A Vision for Celtic New Monasticism
In the long, sweeping shadow of Chanctonbury Ring, where ancient beech trees crown the high chalk of the South Downs, there is a particular kind of silence. It is a silence that does not feel empty, but expectant. For those of us in the Society of St. Columba, this landscape is more than a scenic backdrop; it is our cathedral, our laboratory, and our primary spiritual director.
To stand on the crown and look out over the Weald is to understand the “thinness” of the Celtic spiritual tradition. It is a place where the distance between the mundane and the divine seems to evaporate. It is here, rooted in this soil and breathing this Sussex air, that we seek to embody a Celtic New Monasticism—a way of life that is ancient in its bones but radical and inclusive in its heartbeat.
If you are reading this as a curious seeker, welcome. You are not joining a historical society or a closed cloister. You are joining a “rhythm of return”—a community of pilgrims seeking to live out an “ancient future” centred on the Person of Jesus, the restoration of Creation, and an unwavering commitment to the poor and the marginalised.
1. The Call to a “New” Monasticism
In the mid-20th century, from the cold isolation of a Nazi prison cell, the theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer looked toward the horizon of a crumbling Western Church and saw a necessity that few others dared to name. He wrote:
“The restoration of the church will surely come only from a new type of monasticism which has nothing in common with the old but a life of uncompromising adherence to the Sermon on the Mount in imitation of Christ.”
Bonhoeffer wasn’t calling for a retreat into stone walls or a flight from the complexities of modern life. He was calling for a disciplined life of presence. Celtic New Monasticism is our answer to that call. We are “monastics in the world”—people who walk a ‘;rule of life’ and serve in our workplaces, our local pubs, our gardens, and our dinner tables.
We believe the future of the Church or Christian community isn’t found in bigger programs or more polished branding, but in deeper roots. It is found in small communities of resistance and hope who live by a different “Rule”—the Rule of Love. In the shade of Gods wings, we practice this resistance by refusing to hurry, refusing to exclude, and refusing to forget the “least of these.”
2. The Way of the Beatitudes: A Heart for the Marginalised
Our foundation is not built on religious duty or moral superiority, but on the radical, upside-down inversions of the Beatitudes in Luke’s Gospel. While the world chases power, accumulation, and “curated” perfection, Luke’s Jesus looks at the hungry, the weeping, and the rejected and declares them the primary citizens of God’s Kingdom.
“Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God” (Luke 6:20).
In the Society of St. Columba, we aspire to this “blessed poverty.” This isn’t merely a romanticisation of lack, but a commitment to dependency and solidarity. We prioritise the poor and the marginalised because Jesus did. (let us not forget Jesus was poor). Our community is not a place for the “spiritually elite” to gather; it is a hospice for the broken and a home for the homeless.
We find our joy not in what we possess, but in the “woe” Jesus gives to those who are full now (Luke 6:25). By intentionally loosening our grip on status and wealth, we make room to hold the hand of our neighbour. In the shadow of Chanctonbury Ring, we seek to be a community where the last are truly first, and where the marginalised find a seat at the head of the table.
3. Radical Inclusion: Welcoming the “Other”
To be a truly inclusive community means more than just putting a sign on the door. It means committing to a life without judgement. We are an inclusive community, welcoming of everyone and all, because we know that every human being carries the Imago Dei—the Image of God—regardless of their background, belief, or lifestyle.
In welcoming the stranger, we commit to something even more difficult: welcoming those with whom we do not agree.
We live in an age of silos and echoes, where we curate our lives to avoid friction. Celtic New Monasticism calls us to the “uneasy table.” Jesus says, “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them” (Luke 6:32). True hospitality is found when we sit with the person whose politics, theology, or life choices challenge our own.
When we welcome the stranger without judgment, we are acknowledging that our own perspective is not the sum total of God’s truth. We believe that Christ speaks to us through the voice of the person we are most tempted to ignore or correct.
4. The Only Authority: The Power to Serve
In a world obsessed with “taking back authority” or climbing ladders of influence, the New Monastic path leads consistently downward. Within the Society, we recognise only one form of power. We have only one authority bestowed upon us, and that is the authority to serve.
This is the “Kingship” of the Basin and the Towel. In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus disrupts the disciples’ arguement about who is the greatest by pointing to Himself as the one who serves (Luke 22:27). For us, this means:
- Authority is not Control: We do not seek to manage people’s lives or dictate their journeys.
- Service is our Identity: We are most like Christ when we are at the feet of the community.
- The Power of Vulnerability: Our authority comes from our wounds and our willingness to be present, not from our credentials.
There is no higher calling in this Society than the mandate to wash the feet of the world. Whether we are tending the soil or tending a broken heart, we do so as servants, not masters.
5. The Imitation of Christ: Our North Star
At the centre of everything—our hospitality, our service, our environmentalism—is the Imitation of Christ. The Celtic saints understood that the Christian life is not a philosophy to be debated, but a life to be lived. St. Columba, our patron, was a man of fierce action and deep contemplation. He famously prayed:
“Alone with none but Thee, my God, I journey on my way. What need I fear, when Thou art near O King of night and day? More safe am I within Thy hand, than if a host did round me stand.”
To imitate Christ is to follow Him into the “wild places”—the physical wilderness of the Downs and the inner wilderness of the human soul. It means practicing the Hospitality of the Cross, welcoming the stranger as if they were Christ Himself. We don’t just study the Gospels; we attempt to inhabit them.
6. Creation: Our Primary Spiritual Director
One of the most distinct markers of our praxis is our relationship with the natural world. We do not see “nature” as a resource to be exploited or a backdrop for human activity. We see it as a living liturgy.
The Celtic saints believed in two “books” of revelation: the Book of Scripture and the Book of Creation. In the rustle of the beech leaves at Chanctonbury Ring and the turning of the seasons across the Weald, we hear the voice of the Creator. Creation is one of our primary spiritual directors. It teaches us:
- Rhythm: The land reminds us that there is a time for death and a time for resurrection. We cannot force the harvest.
- Interconnectedness: Nothing in the ecosystem exists in isolation. When the poor suffer, the land suffers; when the land is healed, the community is healed.
- Humility: Standing before the vastness of the horizon corrects our ego and reminds us of our true scale.
As members and participants of the Society, we are called to be “Earth-Keepers.” Our monasticism is green; it involves getting our hands in the dirt, protecting the vulnerable habitats of our local landscape, and recognising that the Spirit of God breaths through all living things.
7. A Community in the “Thin Places”
As you begin your journey with us in the shadow of the Ring, remember that Celtic New Monasticism is not about achieving moral perfection. It is about stability of heart. It is about staying put—in this landscape, with these people—long enough to see the glory of God in the ordinary.
We invite you Join us on one of our Friday Community days from 10am. These days are an important rhythm of our Society—a time for shared work on the land, shared prayer, and shared food. There is no requirement for entry, no test of “orthodoxy,” and no judgement—just a place for you at the fire.
Greg Valerio – Founder
How to find us: To preserve the stillness of the farm, we ask that you park at the Chanctonbury Ring Car Park (located just off the A283) What Three Words fillings.rods.unloaded. From there, enjoy the short walk to the farm entrance (on the left) where the sign for the community is.
Address: St Columba’s Community Farm Chanctonbury Ring Road Wiston, BN44 3DN
