Accept places that are “suitable and convenient” to the observation of your Christian faith and Way of Life
Each of us, regardless of what our goals may be, what we want to get out of life, or what we may want to accomplish, needs to pay attention to our environment, to the people with whom we spend our time, the activities we spend our time doing, and whatever other influences which may be surrounding us. At its core, this chapter of the Rule is telling us nothing more than this: that we be attentive to these things that surround us and judge them according to how they influence and affect the life in Christ that we desire to live.
The first thing that we think about when considering places that are “suitable and convenient” to the observation of our Christian faith is the place where we live. Many of us, it must be recognized, do not have as much freedom to actually choose where we live as we, or others seem to often think. Whether it is a commitment to a job, the closeness of our family, our economic situation or even the cultural environment that we enjoy, one can’t simply say that we should all find a good house that is located in a good neighborhood to only live in places surrounded by other Christians and which offer quietness, silence and presence of nature that support this Carmelite Way of Life.
The first thing that we think about when considering places that are “suitable and convenient” to the observation of our Christian faith is the place where we live. Many of us, it must be recognized, do not have as much freedom to actually choose where we live as we, or others seem to often think. Whether it is a commitment to a job, the closeness of our family, our economic situation or even the cultural environment that we enjoy, one can’t simply say that we should all find a good house that is located in a good neighborhood to only live in places surrounded by other Christians and which offer quietness, silence and presence of nature that support this Carmelite Way of Life.
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