From Wikipedia:
An
anchorite or
anchoret (female:
anchoress, signifying "to withdraw", "to retire"
[4]) is someone who, for religious reasons, withdraws from secular society so as to be able to lead an intensely prayer-oriented, ascetic, and—circumstances permitting—
Eucharist-focused life. Whilst anchorites are frequently considered to be a type of religious
hermit,
[5] unlike hermits they were required to take a vow of stability of place, opting
instead for permanent enclosure in cells often attached to churches. Also unlike hermits,
anchorites were subject to a religious rite of consecration that closely resembled the funeral rite, following which—theoretically, at least—they would be considered dead to the world, a type of living
saint. Anchorites had a certain autonomy, as they did not answer to any ecclesiastical authority other than the bishop.
[6]
The anchoritic life is one of the earliest forms of
Christian monasticism. The anchoritic life became widespread during the early and high
Middle Ages.
[9] Examples of the dwellings of anchorites and anchoresses survive. A large number of these are in England. They tended to be a simple cell (also called
anchorhold), built against one of the walls of the local village church.
[10] In
Germanic-speaking areas, from at least the
10th century, it was
customary for the bishop to say the office of the dead as the anchorite entered his cell, to signify the anchorite's death to the world and rebirth to a spiritual life of solitary communion with God and the angels.
Most anchoritic strongholds were small, perhaps no more than 12 to 15 ft (3.7 to 4.6 m) square, with three windows. Viewing the altar, hearing
Mass, and receiving the
Eucharist was possible through one small, shuttered window in the common wall facing the sanctuary, called a "
hagioscope" or "squint". Anchorites would also provide spiritual advice and counsel to visitors through this window, as the anchorites gained a reputation for
wisdom.
[12] Another small window would allow access to those who saw to the anchorite's physical needs, such as food and other necessities. A third window, often facing the street, but covered with translucent cloth, would allow light into the cell.
Anchorites were supposed to remain in their cell in all eventualities.
Some were even burned in their cells, which they refused to leave even when pirates or other attackers were looting and burning their towns.
[13] They ate frugal meals, spending their days both in contemplative prayer and interceding on behalf of others. Anchorites' bodily waste was managed by means of a
chamber pot
In addition to being the crucial physical location wherein the anchorite could embark on the journey towards union with God and the culmination of spiritual perfection, the anchorhold also provided a spiritual and geographic focus for many of those people from the wider society who came to ask for advice and spiritual guidance. It is clear that, although set apart from the community at large by stone walls and specific spiritual precepts, the anchorite also lay at the very centre of that same community. The anchorhold was clearly also a communal 'womb' from which would emerge an idealized sense of a community's own reborn potential, both as Christians and as human subjects.
Anchorite - Wikipedia
anchorite cell:
View attachment 18798
Does this form of life appeal to anyone? I'm trying to recruit some anchorites. Living in a cell and praying all the time? It kind of appeals to me. I may soon go to a homeless shelter called "higher grounds" where I'm given my own cell, and I think I might become an anchorite. In the meantime I find that there is an inner cell in my heart that I can retreat to anytime to pray and seek enlightenment. A funeral rite was given to the person at consecration because they were essentially receiving a voluntary death sentence of solitary confinement for the rest of their lives.
I was told by a Franciscan Friar that sometimes they would build the walls around the recluse so that he/she had no escape.
Could you imagine though, there were people who permanently chose to live in a cell by themselves and never leave? (not even to go to Church. Holy Communion was brought to them.) That sounds like a hard life eh? Some of them must have gone crazy!
Anyway, maybe you can be a part time anchorite...just be a recluse at times finding solitude and seeking enlightenment and union with God through prayer, penance, suffering, meditation, and study of sacred texts?
