Calling
To live a Christian life is to pick up one's cross and follow Christ, exchanging our wounded and fallen lives for the fullness of a life restored to the fullness of the love of God.
Historically, Christian Monasticism emerged in the wilderness or desert places out of the experience of early Christians in Egypt and the Near East struggling with themselves to live faithfully in response to this primary calling, establishing a pattern repeated many times in places as diverse as Russia and the British Isles.
Whether in small groups or large monasteries, Orthodox Christian Monasticism strives to adhere to the monastic regulations and principles of life articulated by St. Basil the Great and his sister, St. Macrina the Younger, living as fully as possible according to both the liturgical practices of the Church and to carry forward in spiritual warfare the deeply personal prayer life of the Jesus Prayer and stillness of the heart hidden in God.