Where God Happens: Discovering Christ in One Another

The bland title of this book gives no hint of its powerful subject matter or of its important message. Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury and the leader of the worldwide Anglican church, introduces the Egyptian desert fathers and mothers of the fourth century in such a way as to show how and why they remain so relevant for today. I count this as one of the best books on Christian discipleship or formation that I have read in the past year. If you are unfamiliar with desert monasticism this book is an excellent place to start. An introduction situates the monastic movement in its day and age, suggests some of its salient characteristics and themes, disabuses us of superficial caricatures, makes liberal use of primary sayings and stories from the monastics, and, best of all, suggests specific contemporary applications for church life today. Williams is not only a notable scholar; he is an excellent writer with enviable pastoral sensitivities. In four chapters he examines Life, Death, and Neighbors; Silence and Honey Cakes; Fleeing; and then Staying. The book concludes with a substantial collection of the sayings of the desert fathers organized by theme--hospitality, obedience, modesty, charity, discretion, humility, and so on (pp. 123-161). An all too brief bibliography suggests further reading. Probably no one who reads this book will become a monk, but that is besides the point. One of the desert mothers, Amma Syncletica, explains: "There are many who live in the mountains and behave as if they were in the towns. You can be solitary in your mind even when you live in the middle of the crowd. And you can be a solitary and still live in the middle of the crowd of your own thoughts." For the desert monastics of the fourth century, and for us today, the interior geography of your heart is far more important (and complex) than the exterior coordinates of your address. Whether dealing with the prosaic boredom of everyday life, conformity to culture, our individualist impulses, our rosy romanticism that exudes naivety ("Expect trials until your last breath," advised one father), flight from responsibility, the terrors of temptation, discouragement and its concomitant lethargy, or the ego's endless quest for self-justification, these saints are competent advisors. Their wisdom comes from hard fought experience and is not arid theory. Contrary to common misperceptions, these faithful guides are people of tenderness, honesty, humor and humility. We Christians need their wisdom more than ever, and this book is a fine place to begin.

Reviewed by Richard R. Blake for Reader Views (08/06) Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, draws from the wisdom of "the Desert Monks" for their teaching from the monastic life to bring us this study on contemplation, community, and life with God. The Desert Father's understanding of issues on community and living together in an intimate meaningful way are central in the lessons we can learn from these teachings. Williams looks at fourth century Christian hermits living in the deserts of Egypt, Syria, and Palestine as role models for today's culture. Their teaching for dealing with the anxieties, uncertainties, and feelings of isolation are as relevant today as in their day. In the foreward Desmond M. Tutu, Archbishop Emeritus, states, "It is good to know that the desert mothers and fathers said we can all be contemplatives and that we can have our deserts in the crowded places where we live and work." The wisdom of the desert tradition provides many insights into the inner workings of the spiritual life. "If the motives of the desert mothers and fathers could be summed up in one aspiration, it would be to come to the state of continuous prayer...such prayer is not a matter of words or forms but an opening of consciousness to the life of the spirit flowing in the present moment of God, the making of our mind to be one with the mind of Christ." In the introduction to the book, Laurence Freeman, OSB, Director of The World Community for Christian Meditation, commented on what "pure" prayer should be, "That means that it is more centered in and characterized by the silence of the heart and less in the images and concepts of mental prayer or in external ritual." I chose to read "Where God Happens" as my focus for a period of renewal and contemplation. As I imagined myself in a monk's cell, in the African desert of the fourth century, I learned lessons on the habits of self awareness and the importance of working toward and ever greater honesty about self through a more constant exposure to God in Bible reading and prayer. I was challenged to continue the process until I become what I was meant me to become. While scholarly in approach this book is not a theological treatise but a call to humility and simplicity in living together in the twenty-first century community.