Those who hand in their math books after graduation without any orientation can gain their first experience in professional life during a voluntary social year, for example in kindergartens or with the emergency services. The offer is popular, there were 4,262 participants in Bavaria from 2020 to 2021 – despite the pandemic. For two years now, young people have been able to orient themselves in a completely different direction after school – and go to the monastery for a certain period of time.
The Catholic Church has adapted the concept of the Voluntary Social Year and created its own offer: During the Voluntary Year, 18- to 75-year-olds spend three to twelve months in the monastery – to pray, work and live with monks or nuns . Participants do not have to join the order. Do not belong to the Catholic faith either. In Austria, the church has been offering the project for almost five years, and Germany followed suit in July 2019.
Sister Maria Stadler is a member of the Missionaries of Christ in Sendling-Westpark. The now 53-year-old joined the community at the age of 24. She does not wear the typical costume of the nuns, a FC Bayern fan scarf hangs from the open window of her room. Stadler coordinates the voluntary religious year for the German Conference of Superiors. So far, she has had 340 initial discussions with interested parties in order to explain details and find the right community for the stay in the monastery.
There are 55 orders to choose from across Germany, twelve in Bavaria, four of which are monasteries in Munich. But the number of participants is limited. The offer has only been taken up 33 times across Germany since it was introduced two years ago. It looks even worse in Munich – and not because of the corona pandemic.
SZ: Ms. Stadler, in Munich only one person took part in the Voluntary Year of the Order in two years. Did the project fail?
Maria Stadler: No, it got off to a very good start. At the beginning we were almost run over with inquiries. Now it is leveling off. Currently there are between eight and twelve inquiries per month for all of Germany.
How do you explain the small number of participants?
The Munich orders are not monasteries as many imagine. Sometimes only four or five sisters live there. Especially when the participants are older, they want to work within the company. But that’s difficult in Munich. We can’t hire anyone here because we don’t have any work in the house. This is only possible in larger monasteries. Many of them then work directly in geriatric care or in housekeeping, for example in the kitchen. You can help out in the garden. Some orders also have their own monastery shop.
So do older people usually take part?
The largest percentage of inquiries are from 60 to 70 year olds. But those who actually take part are mostly younger people, i.e. 17 to 30-year-olds.
Are you surprised?
I found it conspicuous. But I think that the demand of the younger generation has increased because of Corona. A year abroad is not possible. And the year of the Order is not a bad alternative. Because it’s basically like going abroad. If I am interested, I come into a different culture, most nuns and monks look different and speak a different language. And it is the same for us members of the Order.
What do you mean?
For us as a community it is an asset when someone comes in from the outside. Our structures are expanding and are being partially broken up.
The Catholic Church has had to contend with a number of scandals in recent history, and exit rates are at an all-time high. Is the religious year a project to make the church more modern?
I wouldn’t say the church needs to become more modern. But she has to be with the people. We will not get more Catholics or baptized people with the offer. But it is a way of making the church tangible. The goal is to open up. If someone lives with us for more than a week, they will see who we really are. We are not saints. That is exactly what people want to get to know. They want to get to know what everyday life is like in the monastery.
Strictly?
There are of course very different communities with different rules. From the outside, some orders have more rules than we have here. For example, there are orders with areas that no one except the sisters is allowed to enter. If I go to this community, then I have to accept that and I am not allowed to take anyone into my room. There are also orders of silence without telephones and radio. If I decide to do so, I also accept these rules. That’s why I find out in the selection process what expectations, ideas and needs the participants have.
Prayer is also part of everyday life in the monastery. How often do you meet for church services?
There is a morning prayer in every community and usually a service every day. Then a noon and an evening prayer. Maybe you pray at night before you go to sleep.
In the application process, you will get to know the prospects for the time in the monastery. Have you ever had to decline some?
Yes, for example due to the lack of a visa. It is also important that there is at least some mental stability.
Isn’t the year of the Order created just for such situations? Eventually, in times of crisis, some people turn to faith.
The religious year is also there to consider how life should go on. But it’s not therapy.
The Catholic faith is not a requirement for the application?
It is desirable to participate in monastery life, in prayer, work and study. You can do that even if you are not bound by any belief. Some participants have free church or Buddhist experiences. But if I can’t do anything with the way I pray and it’s torture, then there is no point in participating.