The Urban Hermit- Rob Marco
The subject of hermits is fascinating because it encourages
us to explore an alternative lifestyle, one that has existed for hundreds,
possibly thousands of years, and across several religions and cultures. It
makes us question why one would want to become a hermit and live on the
outskirts of society. To better understand this question, I did a little
research today. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary online entry for hermit is “one
that retires from society and lives in solitude especially for religious
reasons, a recluse.” The Life of Christina of Markyate: A Twelfth
Century Recluse gives a modern audience insight into why a woman would
choose this alternative lifestyle in the early twelfth century. While the
author of this biography is unknown, it is full of quotes that expose who
Christina was and why she chose to be a religious recluse. For example, the
author wrote that Christina “made such progress through the teaching and
encouragement of Sueno that she accounted all the things of this world as but a
fleeting shadow” (39). Christina may have had extenuating circumstances that
led her to become a hermit besides her religious views, such as her parents,
her forced betrothal, attempted rape, etc., however this quote and many others
in the book show us that she was divinely inspired from an early age. She was
not focused on this life or the earthly material world. Her connection to a
higher power and perhaps a greater understanding of that power is what lured
her to living a hermit’s life.
I feel
that the term “hermit” has a negative connotation in the modern world. Sometimes
it is associated with a person who lives in the woods or in a rural area
because they are anti-social or cannot get along with other people. After
studying Christina of Markyate and researching the history of hermits, it seems
that in reality that was not the case. Hermits were not anti-social, and those
who sought a solitary lifestyle for religious purposes like Christina and some intellectuals,
such as Henry David Thoreau who lived a hermit like lifestyle for a short period of
time, were on a sort of pilgrimage to finding a greater truth and meaning of
life.
I found a few interesting articles about people
in the twenty-first century who have chosen to become hermits. These articles
reveal the Catholic Church’s stance on modern day hermits, such as Canon 603
which describes a hermit as someone who withdraws “from the world and devote(s)
their lives to the praise of God and the salvation of the world through the
silence of solitude and through constant prayer and penance'' (NYT). The New York
Times article discusses Richard Withers, of Philadelphia, who became a
hermit “to be alone with God.” Interestingly, Withers was born Jewish but later
converted to Catholicism in adulthood and took vows of “chastity, poverty, and obedience.”
He lives in a row house and spends his time reading scripture, praying, doing
basic chores, and one day a week he works at a local business in order to make
barely enough money to live on. It took several years of him applying to the
local church to become a canonized hermit, but after proving his lifestyle was
legitimate, he was finally able to take his “hermit” vows publically in church
with a cardinal.
The next article I discovered was published more recently and is
about a young man who was actually inspired by Richard Withers to become a
hermit. Rob Marco, pictured above, also lives in Pennsylvania and he began the Urban Hermitage Project in
2008. He was inspired by his faith as well as the Vatican's progressive views on environmentalism. The newspaper calls his lifestyle “eco-piety” because Marco was in the
process of making a sustainable living space out of a small bus with the intention of living in it as a hermit and devoting his life to God. It is
interesting to see how living in solitude for religious purposes was appealing
to people like Christina of Markyate in the 1100’s and it continues to appeal
to people in the 2000’s as the church adapts to the changing world.
Richard Withers article:
Rob Marco article:
2 comments:
Allison,
Really interesting read! I did not know people still took vows of hermitage or even wanted to live as hermits, especially in the United States. For as we are well aware the United States is moving away from religion and accepting more secular ideas in many parts of the country. My one question after reading this analysis is did you find any currently practicing female hermits? The reason I wonder is because of the world we live in today, I question whether it is really possible for a woman to safely live as a hermit without having many more problems to deal with than her male counterparts may face. Some of these problems include the possibility of rape, something Christina herself feared in the 1100s, granted that was from her “betrothed”. Either way it is still interesting that the church still approves of hermits.
Jenn, in a short answer to your question, there are modern female hermits in the US. They are called a hermitess. The issue with keeping track of hermits is that they live under the radar and don't want attention. According to my research, there is not a list of hermits kept by the Catholic Church however individual churches might keep records or be able to tell how many hermits live in the area. There seems to be a lot of people who claim to be recluses for religious and spiritual purposes but these men and women are not affiliated with the Catholic Church. The website Carmelite.org describes two current groups of women who live as communal hermits, both in New Jersey and Texas. They each live in their own modest house but are located close to other women. I agree with your statement that some women might be dissuaded from the hermit lifestyle due to vulnerability. I don't think they have anything more to fear than any other woman who lives alone, they might actually be braver because of their faith. Personally I think the reason why their are more male hermits than female are because many religious women probably feel the need to help other people in serving their God so they are more attracted to convents or places where they can help the sick and poor.
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