Many
Are Called, But Only A Few Are Chosen?
Article
written by Brother Sean about his personal experiences and reflections as to ‘Why so many are called and only a few remain
in service to God.’
How many times have you
heard this statement, ‘Many are called but only few are chosen?’
As we approach the New Dawn of Aquarius in 2012, Jesus, known as the ‘Hound of
Heaven,’ together with the support of His Mother Mary and the promptings of the
Four Spheres of Angelic Beings of Love, the Messengers of Source, are
continuously inviting each person, regardless of their color; ethnicity;
affiliation to any religious family; sexual orientation or disability, to
accept God’s call to their hearts to ‘Come Follow Him as a child of God in service
to Sananda Jesus. This invitation is not only for Monks, Nuns who have
trained for ministry in a particular Church or religious family. No! The invite is for all mankind to
reawaken the Divine within their mind, body and spirit empowering their souls
breathe in the very breath of God through every muscle fiber, bone, tissue and
organ, so that it can become a living spiritual person within the whole of
God’s creation.
Yes, many have indeed
been called by God to enter a particular ministry in His Church. Though many
accepted that call from God, many also decided to walk away from their chosen
path down through the centuries. It would appear that their decision not to
proceed in God’s service was not taken lightly for reasons I will explain
further on. Sadly, of the many monks I had personally known who decided that
their ‘Call from God,’ jeopardized by certain religious egoists who acted
inappropriately and abused their positions of authority. Because of ‘man’s
inhumanity to man,’ many devout monks and nuns were forced against their will
to leave their vocation. A large number have left their Church, and have
abandoned any contact with religion. In Catholic countries, many families have
also rejected their loved sons and daughters who abandoned their vocation in
God’s service. In my case, whilst I did leave the Catholic Church, my faith in
God continued to the present day albeit with less restrictions and guilt.
When I first heard that
saying as a very young boy some fifty plus years ago, I had a deep desire to be
a missionary nursing monk in Africa . On a mere
practical level I had reservations that I would ever see this vision become a
reality. Having to abandon my education when I was only eleven years old to
care for my younger brothers and sisters, I was aware that I did not have the
required academic qualifications to be accepted for nurse training least of all
as a potential nursing monk. The God of surprises had one special present for
Sean despite his feelings of hopelessness and abandonment. God made a way
through the barriers and I was given the ‘push by God’ to apply for admittance
into the monastic life anyway.
On June 6th 1966 , I entered a
monastic nursing order hopefully for my remaining years but as events took over
in my life my religious vocation was terminated by me after only eight years in
service to God and His Church. The decision to leave religious life by
abandoning my vocation as a monk was most definitely not taken lightly. Much
prayer and soul searching finally guided my heart to abandon what I treasured so
dear to my heart. I guess, like so many other younger monks who had left the
order prior to me, there was a lack of common decency and respect for the
person who had given their all to be a member of that community. Like many of
my brother monks who also departed religious life, we all shared the same sense
of betrayal from our communities. Yes, there were many monks who came together
to pray, to eat at the same table but who rarely engaged in close fellowship.
There was an unhealthy attitude of being oneself with one’s fellow brothers for
fear of breaking rules, etc. in religious life, the rules prohibited any form
of contact of two persons meeting up for conversation as that would be
considered a ‘sin.’ To safeguard a two monks from any form of human closeness,
often misconstrued as “sexual closeness,’ the rule stipulated that when out
walking together there must always be three monks present to avoid any
particular friendships. In community, it was really difficult to bear one’s
inner turmoil through sharing openly and honestly with a member of the
community. Consequently, brother monks would often overreact to situations
showing signs of real emotional stress as a result of bottling up their
feelings and burying their emotions.
To the outside world, all
would appear normal, happy and peaceful at surface level but deep down many of
the community appeared distrusting of each other. It was impossible to be human
in a non communicative, compassionate environment and still remain in love with
God as a committed monk. As a monk, I tried to alleviate the stress by going in
on myself and creating an artificial world to the exclusion of others in the
community. Over the years I have had the opportunity and maturity to reflect on
why such a situation prevailed and always came to the conclusion that it was
down to an unhealthy fear of rejection by the superiors. Now, I have reached
the conclusion that many monks were totally unfulfilled as people as they
carried grudges and resentments towards family, etc for being there in the
first place. Many joined for the wrong reasons and those who did so, came to
regret their decision to remain on as monks as they realized that they too
should have left the order sooner rather than later when they were old.
One important reason why
many choose to remain was the negative religious teachings from superiors who
regularly reminded each monk that to have a vocation is a gift from God. Monks
were also reminded that ‘He, who puts his hand to the plough and leaves God’s
service as a monk, will incur the wrath of God for squandering their religious
vocation. This quote would put the fear of God in so many of us that we dared
not think about leaving and suffering for eternity in hell. I guess that
another important reason why so many of us were deeply unhappy was due to
ancient rules and regulations that stipulated how we should behave as monks
referring more to a bygone era. The inability to be oneself and allowed to be
normal and accepted not as a ‘number, or thing’ but as a valued member of the
community had an unhealthy blood flow that saturated the minds and hearts of
the community leaving one cold, disinterested and disengaged from reality or
from feeling anything. Most definitely,
I believe that many of the causes for our lack of basic human compassion and
understanding did have its roots in an ancient teaching of religious rules
governing how monks should live out their vocation, dating as far back as the
14th century when the order came into existence in Germany
I remember an old, but
very wise monk in the Novitiate house of studies asking me about my
understanding of ‘Many Are called but only a few are chosen’ and his reply was, ‘Many
are cold and few are frozen,’ I didn’t get it then but I am wiser now
as to the implications of why so many enter the monastic life but instead of
being alive, they become frozen after years of living a life devoid of love and
light. Surely, that philosophy goes against all that God represents as a God of
Love. Clearly, this is not what God asks of His children to live a life where
there are no love only deep negative mindsets that eventually corrode the soul.
I guess this is yet another painful reminder of man’s ego at work.
Like so many of my
peers, many were called but only the few remained. Of those, many who had been
a monk for some thirty years or more would quietly advise the younger monks to
‘get out’ and serve God outside the monastery walls where there was happiness
and less restrictions causing so many deep emotional pain within. Many of us
were challenged by the attitude of the older monks who had given the best part
of their lives to God and instead of being fulfilled they were advising us not
to ‘waste our life in the monastery,’ but to get out whilst we are still young
and live life; possibly get married and have a family. As young inexperienced
monks in training, many of us were confused by these statements. But as time
passed by, we soon began to realize what the older monks meant. There were many
occasions when we, the younger monks in training at the local hospital, would
return home cold, tired, weary and hungry after a long shift of duty to find
that we could not get a warm meal from the dining room because of a monk who
decided to teach us all a lesson in penance! We discovered that this monk was
jealous of us been allowed out to train as qualified nurses when he was denied
the opportunity years ago. He decided to vent his feelings on us and so many
times we would go to our beds hungry, annoyed and disillusioned with religious
life. Finally, after a period of twelve months, the situation came to a head
when ‘all hell broke loose’ during the monthly gathering of the community. It
was an amazing experience as it appeared that two divisions were fighting their
corner, the younger monks verses the older members. Eventually, the designated
superior who was weak willed and courted the popularity of the older members as
they were all friends of many years unlike the younger monks who were new and
not yet ‘broken in’ so to speak.
The lack of real
community came to a final head on clash when the younger monks decided to
report the superior but our correspondence was blocked and the choices left
were to leave the order or be disgraced for causing trouble and upsetting the
older members. Though we all knew deep inside our being that we were called by
God to be monks, yet, we knew that ‘tradition’ could not be fought when so many
older monks were reluctant to accept positive changes for the best. The legacy
of guilt that we each were to face individually did cause serious illness for
some of the younger monks as the parting words from the Superiors when we
considering a release from our vows were, ‘He
who puts his hands to the plough and turns back, is not worthy of the kingdom
of God.’ It took me best part of twenty years to finally eradicate the
guilt from that final reprimand.
Looking back, there were
times when certain superiors made monastic life a living hell for their
religious communities by imposing their own particular likes and dislikes and
encouraging favoritism. Within the inner circle of monks, there existed a core
group of monks who ruled with an iron fist and those who voiced their concerns
were soon relocated to different communities to keep them quiet. After many
months of soul searching, I finally came to the conclusion that in light of all
that transpired it was best for my sanity that I apply for release from vows
from Rome
When all of us arrived
at the Nurse’s Residence, there was a sense of shock on our faces as the place
was heaving with young female nurses going in and out of the Male Residence. It
was a real culture shock and a quick introduction to living in the fast lane
having spent eight years living in sedate surroundings where silence was the
norm. That first night away from the monastery was tearful, lonely and
challenging for me as I have always known deep within my heart that I had a
vocation as a monk but trying to live to the numerous regulations in a less
than friendly community was not conducive to my spiritual growth in the service
of God or His Church. When I met up with my fellow ex brother monks a few days
later, though several of us felt a deep sadness that our lives as monks had
come to this point where we were all grappling with trying to get used to money
for the very first time since we entered as religious and wearing plain clothes
all seemed surreal to us. On a positive note, we all felt that a great weight
had been lifted and the relief was amazing. We later expressed our innermost
personal thoughts about how we each felt that first night away from our beloved
monastery and we all agreed that we were best out of that ‘hell hole we called
a loving religious community. Later in our training we came across a Mercy
sister who was training as a nurse in the same hospital and I caught her crying
on the corridor. I politely tried to comfort sister but she was clearly frightened
on having male contact (The curse of
religious life) for fear of another sister also in training from seeing the
two of us consoling each other. Sister knew that I had been a monk and now an
ex monk. She eventually came clear as to why she was crying and it appeared
that she was deeply unhappy by the way this sister was forever reporting back
to her superior’s negative comments that were making her life a real misery.
After two years of trying to deal with this, sister too left her order and soon
began to make a life for herself in the female nurse’s residence. There were
many other unreported scenarios of religious men and women who fell foul of
Holy obedience dished out in the name of God from fanatical superiors.
It is my personal
understanding that God invites all of us to come and join the Holy Father
Mother God in what I can best describe as a closer personal and intimate
relationship of Divine Love. I accept that as children of God, we were born for
this and our sole purpose of living in this incarnation is to experience the
pure, unconditional joy be being at ‘One with the Father Mother God.’ Whether
the story of Adam and Eve is actually true or just a fictitious historical
event really doesn’t matter. The important issue here is the analogy given for
us to accept in our limited capacity because of our finite mind. What really
does matter today is that we are all challenged each day to ask the simple
questions:
1.
Who Am I?
2.
Why am I here
on earth?
3.
What is my
purpose being here?
4.
How can I
learn from my life experiences?
5.
How can I
serve God without having to become a monk or nun?
6.
When can I
put them to good use?
7.
Where can I
learn about such matters
8.
What is my
understanding of my spiritual pathway?
9.
Have I need
to nurture my relationship with God?
10. How can I do this?
Embracing the
Divine through living out one’s vocation or embracing a spiritual relationship
based on love and truth is not complicating like many have predicted. The real
truth is that one connects with one’s heart and there we will hear the voice of
God speak volumes about Divine Love inside the recesses of our soul. The head
center always tries to seek it’s own way in these matters and forever demands
answers like, ‘what’s that saying to me,’ or ‘what’s that all about.’ The ego
has no time for simplicity or humility in service with God. Ego prefers
conflict, fear, disillusionment and chaos.
My previous religious
experiences of the teachings re: Pre Vatican
Having tried to
comprehend why God would call many into His service and see them disappear from
our midst did cause me great disquiet as it left one thinking why? There was
never any closure as so many answers were left unanswered by our superiors. All
they had to say was that one realized the call to religious life was not for
them. Instead, religious superiors took the superior attitude that the Church
was better off without such weak-minded individuals.
I have many vivid
memories as a young novice monk in training that highlighted many inaccuracies
of the cruel system that was enforced upon one who was in service to God. It
was not uncommon to find at breakfast the following morning a postulant or
junior novice absent from table. Many times I would often presume that the
person/s were poorly or taken to hospital. As the years rolled by, I would
discover to my own personal cost that this was how the monastery deselected
candidates from their midst. Often it would be down to a minor misdemeanor of
some rule, etc. Initially, I wondered where they had gone too and why the
silence over their ‘disappearance’ from the community. In time, some members of
the professed community, who were privy to such secrecy, would explain the
reasons and always conclude with ‘they
did not have a vocation! On the other hand, we, novices knew these persons
as our friends having shared a lot of anxious moments together and found their
departure in that manner traumatic and questionable. Many of my closest friends
who felt that they had a vocation to serve God and give their all to Divine
service were now gone. Their sudden departure always left an ache in our hearts
and had we had the opportunity to say goodbye, then we would have had closure
instead of worrying and often wondering why they left in a cloud of secrecy.
From a personal observation, the Church has treated individuals who left their
orders with a sense of ‘great distaste’ for abandoning their God given
vocation. I know from first hand experience both as a monk and as an ex-monk,
that many men and women who did have a genuine vocation in the Church, but,
like all human families, if your face fits, you will succeed regardless. Many
of my colleagues were forced to abandon their vocation for a minor breach of
the rules or were castigated by ‘well meaning superiors’ who took an instant
dislike to them for daring to be uniquely different and or, speak their truth
from a place of decency.
Many superiors, in my
opinion, failed in their duty of care to find out the real truth behind many a
rumor that was spread maliciously by other members of the community about a
brother monk. Fellow experienced monks, who took an instant dislike to a
brother or sister did so because they disliked the fact that they perceived as
being a ‘trouble maker’ in their midst. There was indeed a price to be paid if
a brother or sister would dare to speak out their grievances at the grave
injustices and religious intolerances that lived beneath the veil of holiness.
Amazing what appearances can do especially when you see a parade of monks or
nuns in their habits walking in a procession. Be assured that under the habit
are real people dying to get out and live a simple life for God without all the
trappings and negativism. So why don’t they? Many were afraid to do so for fear
of bringing shame on their family. In Ireland
I am of the school of
thought that believes, ‘that man’s ego
actually does get in the way of God.’ Could this negative theology be one
of the reasons why so many who have the call of God to commit their lives to
Source decide against a closer relationship with God? The Great Saint Theresa
of Avilla, a Doctor of the Catholic Church, had something to say to God when
she was thrown off her donkey, ‘If this
is how you treat your servants then its no wonder why you have so few.’ Brother
Sean accepts that based on his own personal journey in search of God that, ‘Religion is for those who live in fear of
hell whereas; Spirituality is for those like himself who have come through
hell.’
Jesus said to His
followers, ‘I came that you too may have
life and have it to the full.’ What did He mean exactly? I sense in my
heart that here Jesus was inviting our brothers and sisters into a closer
personal relationship with Him so that they would have spiritual life to the
full. If you sense in your heart that Source is calling you, or that you have an
unfulfilled burning ambition to let your faith journey or spiritual life come
up for some air and breathe in the very breath of God as a ‘Mystical Bride of
Jesus or, say, as a member of the Tau Spiritual Interfaith Community of Saint
Francis, then one needs to pray long and heard before making that final
commitment. As Saint Benedict once said to his novices, ‘It takes only a minute
to recite your vows to God but a lifetime to live them.’
If you accept that we
are all children of the same loving God, then we also accept that God invites
all of us into fellowship with Divine Love. Many are indeed called by God to go
the extra mile by dedicating their life in service whether it is as a teacher,
doctor, nurse, bank manager, dustbin man or whatever. It does not really matter
what we are called to be. What really matters is whether we use the gifts that
we have been given to glorify God in every situation that manifests itself for
us. We know from listening to others that many people are status conscious as
it does carry enormous prestige in certain circles. But, as a follower in
service to God, there is no status as we are all equal in the very eyes of God.
Yes, I accept that each person is given a specific talent to use for the whole
community of God and not to abuse it or misuse it for self glory.
Unfortunately, in our modern world, that is now no longer the case as so many
who are called to share their talents take a different view to God and decide
to hoard their talents for personal gain or for vainglory. There is a downside
to having freewill as we will all be held to account what we have actually done
with our talents. If we have used them for the whole family of God by investing
wisely, then, I believe that we shall inherit the Kingdom of God
I hold the simple view
that many are still being called by God to be the ‘Hands and feet of Jesus’ in a modern world that has lost sight of
God. A society that is living in poverty consciousness and destroying it’s very
self through selfishness and greed. In saying that, I also believe in the power
of prayer, ‘That whatever we ask from a
heart filled with God’s love, then we too shall inherit the Kingdom of God
The words that Jesus
spoke to my heart on 6th
June 1966 . ‘Sean,
I called you by your name, you are mine.’ Today, these words still ring
loud and clear to my heart and resonate within my very soul. I don’t have to
re-enter a monastic order to be what I’m not only be what I know I am. That is
a special child of God who is loved unconditionally and where it is an honor to
be called back into Divine service. I accept that I too have a choice to say
yes or no to that personal invitation. Despite all that has happened in my
former life as a religious nursing monk, I have learned to heed the words of
Saint Theresa of Avilla who said, ‘Shed the skins of your former religious
family and live your new life in God, for God and with God.’ I know that my
journey to God has taught me many a salutary lesson having learned so much from
my lack of wisdom as well as from the many mistakes that I have made.
Today, I believe that
Mother Mary is calling her children from all faiths and none to return to a
simple life of daily prayer and lead not by loft words, but by example. Yes,
many are indeed called but only the few reply yes, because they are know in
their hearts that they are ready to embark on a journey that is pure sacred
mystery. Are you one of them?
In my conclusion, you
will probably be thinking that I am somewhat ‘anti Catholic’ from my personal
account of how things were for me as a nursing monk. You’re wrong! Despite all
that has happened to me whilst growing up as a Catholic Christian, I am
extremely thankful for the religious formation that I was introduced too as a
child by my patents. Whilst I accept that they had my best interests at heart,
there may have been other pressures unfairly imposed upon them by the local
Parish Priest. In the early fifties, the Parish Priest was perceived as God as
he yielded considerable power over ordinary families, No one would dare
challenge him as to go against the Parish Priest, would be like standing before
Judge and jury without a brief, waiting for sentencing. The end result would be
total rejection and a living hell from fellow devout parishioners in one’s
local community.
As with all of life’s
wonderful experiences, we have to make the best of what life throws our way.
Instead of winging and complaining about how unfair life is, let’s turn our
negative experiences into positive challenges and stop depending on others to
make us happy. I know that there are many who continue to enjoy living in the ‘Nanny State Vatican 11 in the
mid sixties when many souls had become disillusioned with the Church. Today,
souls are hungry for access to practical spirituality that does not shackle the
already overburdened soul with restrictive ideologies. Hence the advances in
New Age Theology that opened up a ‘Pandora’s Box’ of surprises. Many of these
authors have expressed a new way of life embracing Angels, spirituality, easy
fixes that are more focused on massaging the Guru’s ego, and generating cloned
disciples than embracing a God of love.
In the past ten years or
more, I have met up with former colleagues and others who have gone down routes
that appeared another escape route or easy option, offering commune living
where the ‘Happy Clappy Brigade’ were in abundance promising to heal all their
ills and put them back together as one whole person. Several clients of mine
found that in time, they soon realized that they were trapped in a cult where
brainwashing had changed their whole personality. I accept that today, despite
man’s insatiable thirst for pleasure, there are many souls who are so
disillusioned by materialism and trying to be what other’s want them to be that
they almost try and end their life by committing suicide. The reason for this
is sadly, that they are dying due to spiritual starving. Yes, many that I have
encountered have traveled far and wide running up debts to meet a famous Guru
or Angel teacher. Their expectations are often short lived as what they hear is
what they already know in their hearts! I have asked myself why people do this
to themselves and instead of chasing their famous Psychic, etc. why not switch
off the ego and reconnect with their heart and simply invite the Messengers of
God, the Angelic realms of Love to speak to them. Could this be too simple? Or
is it because the more money you spend on attending a seminar or course, the
more acceptable it is to their ego.
Too many souls go with
their heads and emotions and soon fall foul of religious bible bashing pranksters
who work with ego and not with God’s love. There are those who hear the call of
Ego, not God, and forfeit their own souls in the process. Unless a teacher uses
all the politically correct buzz words, they are not welcomed by the vast
majority of society. What has happened to simplicity? I always use the words,
‘K.I.S.S.’ when I am working with delegates. They represent, ‘Keep It Simple
Sean.’ I hold the belief that because so many of the designated chosen people
in the various Religions and Churches have closed down to practical
spirituality in their hearts, Mother Mary is speaking to our hearts to embrace
a God of Love not Hate. We are been nurtured to develop a spiritual life that
is simple and one that can be related out to all who are searching for God,
devoid of religion, fear, guilt, negativity and any reference to fundamentalism
or sin. I take heart from the words of Jesus who said, ‘Put on the armor of God and fight the good fight till the end.’ Jesus forever reminded His followers, ‘that if we are to enter the Kingdom of Heaven
In
July 2006, Sananda Jesus and Saint Francis actually spoke to
several of our nearest and dearest therapists in different ways at varying
times with a simple message to our hearts from Jesus and Saint Francis (Lord
Kutumi). We were all inviting to do something beautiful for God’s world and His
children by trying to unite all faiths to come and pray as one family of God.
Though many received that personal invitation, only a few has remained to see
the vision come to fruition. That vision is now ‘The Tau Community of Saint
Francis is an online Monastic Interfaith Community without walls.’ Inspired
by God, Brother Sean has taken up the gauntlet where "Religion and
Churches" have inadvertently failed to unite the whole Family of God to
come together and celebrate their uniqueness as children of the same loving
Father Mother God. The vision of the Tau Community is dedicated to Prayer
engendering a spirit of Unity, Peace, Forgiveness, Reconciliation, and
Spiritual Renewal, Healing Self/others and empowering society to protect and
safeguard the earth's resources. Members of the Tau Community can achieve this
and more with God's help from their own home. No one can say why so many
decided to go their own spiritual path but again, God has a plan and all we can
do is trust. Many who are called by God are as Kingdom Builders to do the
ground work first before the actual laborers join. Light workers are now been
called to share God’s burden by reawakening the Divine within their hearts and
in the hearts of their clients, families and friends to live exemplary
lives.
If you are searching for
spiritual guidance with training and regular support, then maybe Jesus is
guiding you to Brother Sean. Over the years, his life experiences have been
used by God with Divine Guidance to offer clients access to a range of courses
in both Holistic Energy Medicine and Spirituality together with a range of
publications and audio CDs and Videos to relax the mind, body and soul. Please
visit his website at: www.sean-bradley.com
Jesus said to His
followers, ‘Come you whom my Father has blessed and receive the Kingdom
prepared for you since the beginning of time, yours is the Kingdom of Heaven
Why
not come and join me on Livestream where we embrace the healing energies of the
Risen Cosmic Christ and Magdalene to reactivate the soul’s DNA to self heal.
Led by Brother Sean from 12 midnight (GMT ); 07.00pm (EST) 4 personal and global Peace and Insterspiritual Unity.
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