Hermit
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A hermit (from the Greek ἔρημος erēmos, signifying "desert", "uninhabited", hence "desert-dweller") is a person who lives to some greater or lesser degree in seclusion and/or isolation from society.
Originally the term was applied to a Christian who lives the eremitic life out of a religious conviction, namely the Desert Theology of the Old Testament (i.e. the 40 years wandering in the desert that was meant to bring about a change of heart).
Often – both in religious and secular literature – the term is used loosely for anyone living a solitary life-style – including the misanthrope – and in religious contexts is sometimes assumed to be interchangeable with anchorite / anchoress (from the Greek ἀναχωρέω anachōreō, signifying "to withdraw", "to depart into the country outside the circumvallated city"), recluse and solitary. However, it is important to retain a clear distinction.
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[edit] The Christian eremitic tradition
The life of the Christian hermit, both in ancient and in modern times, is a life entirely given to the praise of God for the love and service of all humanity.
In common Christian tradition, the first Christian hermit was the Egyptian Paul of Thebes (fl. 3rd century) – although in the Middle Ages some Carmelite hermits claimed to trace their origin to Jewish hermits organized by Elijah. However, an earlier antecedent for Egyptian eremitism may have been the Syrian solitary or "son of the covenant" (Aramaic bar qəyāmā) who undertook special disciplines as a Christian[1]. The best known of the very early hermits was Antony of Egypt (fl. 4th century), the subject of a biography by his friend Athanasius of Alexandria.
Christian hermits in the past have often lived in isolated cells, hermitages, caves, forests, or deserts. The early Christian Desert Fathers wove baskets to exchange for bread. In medieval times hermits were also found in or near cities where they might earn a living as a gate keeper or ferryman.
From the Middle Ages and down to modern times, eremitical monasticism has been practiced within the context of religious orders. For example in the Roman Catholic Church the Carthusians and Camaldolese arrange their monasteries as clusters of hermitages where the monks live most of their day and most of their lives in solitary prayer and work, gathering only relatively briefly for communal prayer and only occasionally for community meals and recreation. The Cistercian, Trappist and Carmelite orders, which are essentially communal in nature, allow members who feel a calling to the eremitic life, after years living in the cenobium or community of the monastery, to move to a cell suitable as a hermitage on monastery grounds. All of these orders have branches for both monks and nuns.
A variant of the traditional life of the hermit is that of the anchorite or anchoress. Common in the Middle Ages and almost unknown today, these are men and women who live the eremitic life in a hermit's hut or cell attached to a church: Medieval churches survive with windows in their walls built to allow the hermit to participate in the liturgy by hearing the prayers and receiving communion.
In our times an increasing number of Christian faithful feel again a vocation to live the eremitic life without passing through the cenobium first, whether in the remote country side or in a city in stricter separation from the world. The desert of the urban hermit is that of his own heart, purged through kenosis to be the dwelling place of God alone.
In addition to institutes of consecrated life, such as the aforementioned religious orders, the Roman Catholic Church (cf. the Code of Canon Law 1983, canon 603) therefore officially recognizes (a) the eremitic life "by which the Christian faithful devote their life to the praise of God and salvation of the world through a stricter separation from the world, the silence of solitude and assiduous prayer and penance" (cf. canon 603 §1) and (b) a hermit "as one dedicated to God in a consecrated life if he or she publicly professes the three evangelical counsels (i.e. chastity, religious poverty and obedience to the religious superior as the one holding the place of Christ in their life and in imitation of his example), confirmed by a vow or other sacred bond, in the hands of the diocesan bishop and observes his or her own plan of life under his direction" (cf. canon 603 §2).
In other words, Catholics called to hermit-style monasticism may live that vocation in an eremtically-oriented monastery, or as a hermit within a cenobitical monastery, or as an individual hermit under the supervision of the local bishop.
In the Roman Catholic Church the eremitic vocation does not include a call to corporeal works of mercy. In the Orthodox Church, however, hermits live a life not only of prayer but also of service to their community in the traditional Orthodox Christian manner of the poustinik. The poustinik is a hermit available to all in need and at all times.
In the Eastern Christian churches one traditional variation of the Christian eremitic life is the semi-eremitic life in a lavra or skete, exemplified historically in Scetis, a place in the Egyptian desert, and continued in various sketes today, such as in St Isaac of Syria Skete and several regions on Mount Athos.
From what is known of their contribution to the Christian heritage, historically male hermits (e.g. Anthony the Great, St. Benedict of Nursia, St. Bruno, St. Romuald) were more common than female. As regards the anchorites, one that has left a lasting impression on Christian spirituality is the English anchoress Julian of Norwich. Catherine of Sienna, a Third Order Dominican "solitary" is also a significant figure in the history of Catholic spirituality, as is the 20th century poustinik Catherine de Hueck Doherty, foundress of the Madonna House Apostolate.
Other well-known religious hermits include Simeon Stylites, Herman of Alaska, Thomas Merton, Sergius of Radonezh, Seraphim of Sarov, Charles de Foucauld and Stafford historian James Johnson.
[edit] Hermits in other religions
From a religious point of view, the solitary life is a form of asceticism, wherein the hermit renounces wordly concerns and pleasures in order to come closer to the deity or deities they worship or revere. This practice appears also in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sufism. In the ascetic eremitic life, the hermit seeks solitude for meditation, contemplation, and prayer without the distractions of contact with human society, sex, or the need to maintain socially acceptable standards of cleanliness or dress. The ascetic discipline can also include a simplified diet and/or manual labor as a means of support.
Hermitism does not exist in Islam, as it is strictly prohibited by the Qur'an.
[edit] Hermits as religious founders
Religious hermits are often sought out for spiritual advice and counsel and may eventually acquire so many disciples that they have no physical solitude at all. Examples include Anthony the Great, who attracted such a large body of followers in the Egyptian desert that he is considered by both Catholics and the Orthodox to be the "Founder of Monasticism", and Gautama Buddha, who, having abandoned his family for a solitary quest for spiritual enlightenment, became the founder of Buddhism.
[edit] Other hermits
[edit] In philosophy and fiction
Diogenes the Cynic, an ancient Greek philosopher, led an ascetic life in a barrel. According to legend, when Alexander the Great came to him one day and offered to grant him a wish, Diogenes asked Alexander to step out of his sunlight.
In medieval romances, the knight errant frequently encountered hermits on his quest; such a figure, generally a wise old man, would advise him. Knights searching for the Holy Grail, in particular, would learn the errors they had to repent of, and have the significance of their encounters explained to them.[1] Evil wizards would sometimes pose as hermits, to explain their presence in the wilds, and to lure heroes into a false sense of security. In Edmund Spenser's The Faerie Queene, both occurred: the knight on a quest met a good hermit, and the sorcerer Archimago took on such a pose.[2]
Friedrich Nietzsche, in his influential work Thus Spoke Zarathustra, created the character of the hermit Zarathustra (named after the Zoroastrian prophet Zarathushtra), who emerges from seclusion to extol his philosophy to the rest of humanity.
The international literary journal, The Wandering Hermit, based out of Seattle, Washington, takes its name from the tradition of the hermit.
In Star Wars, Ben Kenobi, was first introduced to the audience as an old hermit, often seen by most of the in-universe characters at their surroundings as a very dangerous, crazy wizard. Later in the story it was to be revealed that he went into exile for political reasons, although it also served him for spiritual training since he was a warrior monk in his youth, and that his first name was actually Obi-Wan.
[edit] Non-spiritual motivations
In modern parlance the term "hermit" tends to be applied to anyone living a life apart from the rest of society, regardless of their motivation.
During the Romantic period of the 19th century some wealthy estate owners would pay imitation "hermits" to inhabit their properties, as living garden decorations.
This article incorporates text from the public domain 1913 Webster's Dictionary.
[edit] See also
- Monasticism
- Solitude
- Silence
- Recluse
- Poustinia
- Hermitage
- Hikikomori
- Shut-in
- Schizoid personality disorder
- Avoidant personality disorder
- Misanthropy
[edit] References
- ^ Penelope Reed Doob, The Idea of the Labyrinth: from Classical Antiquity through the Middle Ages, p 179-81, ISBN 0-8014-8000-0
- ^ C.S. Lewis, Spenser's Images of Life, p 87, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1967
[edit] External links
- Chapter 1 of The Rule of Saint Benedict re: the hermit as one of the kinds of monks
- Text of canon 603 of The Code of Canon Law (1983, Latin edition) re: Hermits as members of the Consecrated Life in the Catholic Church
- Text of canon 603 of The Code of Canon Law (1983, English translation) re: Hermits as members of the Consecrated Life in the Catholic Church
- Chart showing the place of the Consecrated Hermit (canon 603) among the People of God
- Immaculate Heart of Mary's Hermitage: Catholic, hermit, solitude, silence, contemplation
- Hermitary: the hermit, hermits, recluses, eremiticism, solitude
- Raven's Bread is a quarterly newsletter for hermits and those interested in the eremitical life
- anchorite?
