The Assisi of the South: A Hermitage in the Forest

Greccio: a place that is simultaneously a chapel, a library, and dormitory

Thanks to the invitation of Fr Christopher John, Minister General of the First Order of the Society of St Francis, we travelled to Stroud, Australia, from 26 May to 1 June, to the Hermitage of St Bernardine, popularly known as the ‘Assisi of the South’. The visit became a week-long retreat, and an opportunity for us to experience Franciscan monastic life.

Contemplation or Evangelisation?

St Francis of Assisi was inspired when he gazed upon the crucifix at San Damiano, leading him to rebuild the Church for the Lord. He gathered an increasing number of brothers who were willing to live a life of prayer and monasticism according to the Gospel. The growth of the monastic community was a good thing, but faced with this growing community, Francis began to question whether the Lord wanted him to focus on the brothers before him and establish a secluded monastic community, or whether he should continue to preach the Gospel, proclaiming Christ’s great love and rebuilding the Church.

Faced with such a dilemma, the humble Francis knew he could not rely on his own judgment to determine the path ahead. In obedience, he asked his companions to pray for him, seeking the Lord’s will, so that the Lord’s plan would not be hindered by his own selfish desires. Through the prayers of Brother Sylvester and Sister Clare of Assisi, St Francis chose to continue being sent out with his brothers to preach the Gospel, living an active life of evangelisation.

However, even until his death in 1226, Francis did not abandon the contemplative life. While striving to bear witness to the vibrant life of the Gospel in various cities and towns, he began to spend several months each year in a prayer retreat with a small group of brothers, living in seclusion in caves. Near these caves, they built simple dwellings later known as ‘hermitages’ to focus on prayer, where they could feel God’s presence, draw strength from silence, and continue their evangelistic mission. Many modern scholars have pointed out that most of the hermitages built by St Francis are within eyesight of nearby towns or villages, indicating that St Francis always balanced inner prayer with the external mission of evangelisation, allowing him to live out the true essence of the Gospel life in both stillness and activity.

In the late 20th century, the tradition of hermitage life was revived in the Franciscan orders of the Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion. The hermitage we visited this time, established in 1979 and named after the early Franciscan saint Bernardine, is located in a forest (not beside a cave) but adjacent to the town of Stroud. This allows the Franciscans to maintain their daily contemplative life while also engaging in fellowship and exchange with local believers on Sundays.

The Franciscan Prayer Life

From this week’s experience, we can see that the hermitage’s prayer life is primarily divided into three forms: the daily office, contemplative prayer, and the Eucharist.

The Daily Office

Every day, Brothers Bruce-Paul and Alfred led us in prayer according to the Franciscan liturgy at dawn, noon, evening, and night. During this time, the monks invited us to listen to one another, adjusting the volume and pace of our voices so that we could pray together in unison to the same Lord. They maintained brief pauses between each verse of the Psalms and hymns. These pauses may have been longer than what we are accustomed to in church worship. The monks reminded the retreatants not to rush, but to relax their minds, breathe slowly, and let the monks guide and lead everyone in prayer!

Contemplative Prayer

The monks welcomed us to participate in contemplative prayer. After morning prayer and communion, we could engage in contemplation in any place of our choice, whether it be the chapel, the library, or even a spot in the forest. The forest is particularly noteworthy, as the Franciscan spiritual tradition allows us to break the usual limitations of human perception of the sacred. In the forest, the entire world can be the Lord’s sanctuary, including nature, the various birds, owls, and kangaroos in the forest, which can also serve as mediators for contemplating the Lord.

In the evening, the monks gather in the chapel for a half-hour of contemplative prayer before proceeding to the evening prayer. On Sundays, the monks lead everyone to the altar to ring the bell, inviting all to pray in silence before the Eucharist. On Thursday evenings during the Eucharistic celebration, the contemplative time follows immediately after receiving the Eucharist and before the concluding prayer. On Saturdays, the contemplative time takes place before the Blessing of the Light and the Vigil.

Br Bruce-Paul tending to the fire, keeping us warm in the library

Experiencing the Sacrament of Eucharist within the Liturgy of Holy Communion can be seen as the starting point of St Francis’ faith. In other words, he first learned how to live out his faith through the Eucharist. In those days, the Eucharist was only celebrated on Sundays, but Francis made every effort to receive the Eucharist as frequently as possible, partaking of both the Body and Blood of Christ. For through the moment of receiving the Eucharist, Christ’s redemption becomes concrete, personal, and tangible for each recipient of the sacrament.

For this reason, the monks at the monastery welcomed us to join them in the celebration of the Eucharist. They even made the conscious choice of selecting us to serve as celebrants on the Feasts of the Ascension and of the Visitation, allowing us to participate more deeply in the sacrament. They also practised the ‘brotherhood’ emphasised by St Francis, with everyone standing around the altar during the Eucharist, with the host distributed by passing it to the one next to you. This form of receiving the Eucharist gave us a concrete experience of the Lord’s presence in each person’s salvation, and that we are all members of Christ’s body, mutually dependent on one another.

These seven days of new creation

Before we knew it, we had spent seven days in retreat. This was truly a precious grace from the Lord, allowing us to temporarily escape the hustle and bustle of daily life, rediscover the purity and beauty of the faith, and have space to reflect on our pastoral experiences and seek the Lord’s will. This was indeed a rare and precious opportunity.

During our retreat at the hermitage, we experienced the ever-changing weather here — sometimes gentle rain, sometimes heavy downpours, all of which nourished the flowers, plants, trees, and animals around the monastery; sometimes bright sunshine, casting the most beautiful golden light over the simple architecture. Whether it was rain or sunshine, it did not hinder the monks and us from praying, meditating, and gathering together. This helped us understand that true silence is not the absence of sound, but an inner calm that is not shaken by external circumstances.

What moved me most was the monks’ warm hospitality. The cleanliness and tidiness of the rooms were clearly the result of their careful preparation in advance. They also prepared each meal with great care, using simple ingredients that were not only delicious but also displayed their hospitality and friendship. What was even more precious was that they made special efforts to arrange for us to get to know the area. Besides taking us into the Stroud town centre to participate in the local Sunday worship service and meet the clergy and church members there, they also took us to the cathedral in the nearby city of Newcastle. Though one monk sometimes struggled with mobility and the other was already in his eighties, they consistently looked after us and served us. Their humble and selfless hospitality deeply moved us.

During our time with the monks, I noticed that they all had keen observational skills. No matter when, they could always spot scenery we might overlook, such as different animals — birds in the trees, or small kangaroos in the distant grass. They not only accurately pointed out these animals but also enthusiastically described their habits to us. This love for nature showed me, like St Francis, their intimate connection with creation.

During this seven-day retreat, we observed three precious spiritual qualities amongst the monks.

First is simplicity—their lives are free from elaborate adornments, with simple dwellings and a frugal lifestyle, yet they are filled with genuine beauty and goodness.

Second, joyfulness—even while working, their faces always bore genuine smiles. The arrival of us two as visitors undoubtedly disrupted the monks’ regular rhythm of life. They had to prepare extra meals, tidy the rooms, and accompany us. Yet in every conversation and gathering, we deeply felt their ‘presence’: a presence of ‘being with them’, rooted in friendship and joy.

Finally, there is stillness—no matter how the external environment changes, their hearts remain spiritually at peace. Although they were busy hosting and caring for us, they always maintained inner calm. They were busy but not chaotic, and every action was filled with peace and composure.

Perhaps the monks are telling us through their lives: that faith lived out according to the Gospel does not require eloquent words or luxurious dwellings; it only requires living out the example of Christ in daily life. Their simplicity shows me the purity of faith, their joy lets me feel the sweetness of being with the Lord, and their stillness teaches me to maintain inner peace even in the midst of our daily hustle and bustle.

Near the Franciscan hermitage in Stroud stands an old monastery. This monastery was built between 1978 and 1980 for the Poor Clares (the Second Order of the Franciscans) from England. The superior, Sister Angela, was a sculptor who not only created sculptures for Franciscan seminaries but also collaborated with architects to encourage local residents to build this beautiful monastery in the forest using mud bricks. In 1997, the convent built a structure named ‘House of Light’ to host large gatherings, referred to in Australian Aboriginal language as Gunya Chiara. Unfortunately, by March 2000, the St Clare Sisters decided to leave Stroud. The trustees of the old convent authorised the Stroud Monastery Friends Association to operate the old convent and House of Light for retreats or workshops.

Our visit this time was not only to experience the precious spirit of Franciscan monasticism and explore how to root it in the Hong Kong Anglican Church to deepen the spiritual lives of believers, but also to prepare for the upcoming 800th anniversary of St Francis’ death. We plan to organise a group to visit this monastery during next year’s Lent, allowing parishioners to experience monastic life for about a week. Due to the limited number of rooms available at the monastery, we discussed with the monks and hope to arrange for retreatants from Hong Kong to stay at the Old Monastery. There are over ten rooms there, complete with a chapel and library, and it is very close to the monastery, making it convenient for participating in prayer gatherings.

Whether Benedictine or Franciscan, conversations with different monks led us to the same conclusion. Monks are not superhuman heroes of faith or spiritual elites; they are simply people who take seriously the promises they made to God at baptism, strengthening their vows to the Lord through monastic life. We hope to draw from the wisdom accumulated in the monastic tradition to cultivate spiritual habits rooted in the Gospel.