Monastery Project

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Monastery Project

• A Lesson on Interdependency and Communal Living

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JE1 THE ELECTION OF THE LEADERSHIP TEAM

• 1st we need to elect our leaders.
• We need an abbot or abbes.
• We need two counselors for each leader.
• The abbot / abbes has absolute authority in the
  monastery.
• You may not make requests of the abbot / abbes
  directly without first going to one of the
  counselors.
• There is a chain of command that is strictly
  followed in the monastery.

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JE2 - ABBOT / ABBES MAKE THE FOLLOWING
APPOINTMENTS

• Abbot / Abbes supreme commander / judge
• Counselor upper management
• Counselor upper management
• Church place for prayer and safety during
  attack
• Dormitory place to sleep at night (latrine /
  toilet)
• Refectory the place where the community eats
  together
• Cloister (The Well area) the courtyard and
  water source
• Infirmary a hospital to take care of the
  wounded
• Kitchen plan the menu and cook the food
• Workshop What does your monastery need to make?
• Library Monk work on copying scrolls, etc.
• Fields, forest, vineyards source of food and
  supplies

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JE3 MASTER FLOOR PLAN

• TOP-DOWN view of your entire monastery on a large
  poster board.
• The abbot / abbes and the counselors are
  responsible for the completion of the floor plan.
• They may assign tasks to anyone they choose, but
  the buck always falls upon the leaders to get
  the job done.
• Your entire team needs one TOP DOWN view of the
  entire monastery grounds with all of the
  locations indicated on the poster.
• You may, if you are interested, turn this into a
  CHOICE POINTS project by erecting a 3D model or
  3D picture of your monastery rather than a simple
  flat blueprint.

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JE4 Individual Floor Plans

• Each student must produce a notebook paper sized
  floor plan for the part of the monastery to which
  he / she was assigned to manage.
• Turn these floor plan in to your counselors.
• Counselors will meet with the abbot / abbes to
  approve these floor plans.
• If not approved, the plans must go back to the
  managers for needed improvements.

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JE5 The BenedictineDaily Schedule

• NOCTURN - 2 AM NIGHTTIME VIGIL
• LAUDS- SUNRISE MORNING PRAYER
• TERCE - 9 AM MID-MORNING PRAYER
• SEXT - 1150 AM DAYTIME PRAYER
• NONE - 3 PM MID-AFTERNOON PRAYER
• VESPERS - 6 PM EVENING PRAYER
• NIGHT PRAYER - 9 PM

• SMALL BREAKFAST CREW
• MORNING WORK DETAIL
• MID-MORNING WORK DETAIL
• LUNCH CREW COOKS THE MAIN MEAL OF THE DAY
• AFTERNOON WORK DETAIL
• DINNER CREW MAKES A SMALL MEAL

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JE5 Write a maintenance plan for the WORK times
assigned to your office.

• What will your crew be doing?
• 6 am 1. MORNING WORK DETAIL
• 9 am 2. MID-MORNING WORK DETAIL
• noon 3. LUNCH CREW WORK DETAIL
• 3 pm 4. AFTERNOON WORK DETAIL
• 6 pm 5. DINNER CREW (a small meal)
• 9 pm 6. CHANTED NIGHT PRAYER

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JE6 Write one page of Memos to Other Managers
For Special Needs

• EXAMPLES
• To Workshop Master
• From Master Chef
• Our cooking pots are rusted.
• We need a 10 gal. copper kettle for boiling
  water.
• To Workshop Master
• From Dormitory Master
• We have 3 broken bed frames. Please send a
  brother to mend the beds. The broken frames are
  numbered 2, 12, and 13.

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Other Sample Memos

• To The Abbot
• From the Cloister Master
• We discovered a dead chicken in the well today.
• We need an alternate source of water this week.
• The brother responsible for the crime is in the
  dungeon. What shall we do with him?
• To The Dormitory
• From The Church
• Sister Insomnia is always late for morning
  prayer, please check her bed for lice or other
  vermon.

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JE7 PRAYER WORSHIP

• Your team needs to demonstrate to the class that
  you can all CHANT together at least ten verses of
  a Psalm prayer.
• Form two choirs
• Divide your team into two sides.
• Side 1 CHANTS the 1st verse of a psalm
• Side 2 CHANTS the 2nd verse of the psalm.
• Both Sides CHANT the Glory Be to the Father

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JE8 Monastery Drama

• Each Manager needs to write a scenario of
  something that is going wrong in their part of
  the monastery.
• Give a written account of any disputes that are
  happening to the abbot / abbes and the
  counselors.
• The leadership team will receive these scenarios.
• The leadership team must prioritize these
  concerns and call a meeting of the managers to
  settle the issues.
• 1 1st top priority! then 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th,
  6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, etc.

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JE9 Criminal Justice System

• Each manager will report a crime to the Abbot /
  Abbes.
• The leadership team will decide which case takes
  precedence and deserves attention.
• The Abbot / Abbes will hold a trial. Evidence
  will be presented.
• A judgment will be delivered by the council.

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JE10 Superstition Abounds!

• Research superstitions that date back to the Dark
  Ages.
• Write a one page short story that describes an
  imaginary event that lead to the creation of a
  superstition at your monastery.
• Examples Something to do with why the number 13
  is considered unlucky, or why black cats are
  treated mysteriously as harbingers of evil.