Silence and Work in the Rule

Resumen

“Marginality places people on the margins in a particular field of tension: “they belong to the dominant culture, but at the same  time they live at the borders or even beyond the borders of that society.” The author believes that Albert, the author of the  Carmelite Rule, looked at those to whom and for whom he wrote the Rule and saw them in their marginality. The article explores  the meaning of marginality and suggests that the marginality which is built into the context and content of the rule that Albert  wrote is a mark of Carmelite life to this day. Marginality produces tension. Work bridges this tension. Work is a demand of the Rule.  The kind of work is not pre-defined. It is work that overcomes idleness and is the difference between destruction and construction. This work is to be done in silence that suggests discernment and the strength of hope. Titus Brandsma offers a very clear example  of making marginality  a place of grace by his ability to continue to do “some kind of work” even in the most difficult days of  imprisonment in Dachau. The Carmelite Order in the eight centuries of its history has reached a stable position, (...) Carmel has  become a name, a prestigious name, an order of prayer with famous mystics, something to be proud of. But, the Formula of Life is our ‘dangerous  memory’. It makes us aware of our marginality, and challenges our creativity to find ways to live out this God-given position and to live through it.