I’ve been thinking about caves lately. Yes, I’m talking about the open chambers located beneath the surface of the earth, sometimes on the sides of mountains. Specifically, I thought about four caves related to Christian history and spirituality. This reflection made it possible to realize that the caves and the retreats that take place there are essential to the Christian mission.
The first is Plato’s allegorical cave, which he spoke of in The Republic. By including this allegory, Plato seeks to illustrate the influence and impact of philosophy on individuals and, therefore, on civilization. A man who engages in the disciplined act of philosophy will make an “ascension to the higher world,” that is, to the intellectual realm of forms. During this ascension, Plato declares, he will come to know the highest reality that can be known, “the form of good” and “all that is just and precious in all things.” For Plato, the cave therefore symbolizes a limited existence in which men are not free to pursue all the excellences that their nature allows. Philosophy and a just social order make the pursuit of such excellences possible.
Even though Plato’s cave is allegorical, it is nonetheless a great help. This allows us to visualize an important reality: a human person with an uneducated intellect cannot access the fullness of reality. Philosophy is therefore the discipline that elevates the mind of man to the essence of things and helps him learn virtue, which is the source of human and social flourishing. Therefore, for the Christian, the cave of shadows must be overcome. Philosophy thus becomes an indispensable element of Christian life because it allows us to engage effectively in the rest of the Christian mission. This is the way by which the intellect that God has given us becomes robust and alive.
But what about real historic caves? Five centuries before Plato, a cave was important in the life of a Hebrew prophet. After receiving a message from the Lord, the prophet Elijah retired to a cave at the foot of Mount Horeb (Sinai in Egypt). While he was lodged in this cave, the word of the Lord spoke to him again: “Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” » It was the place of the famous theophany in which the Lord was present, not in the wind, nor in the earthquake, nor in the fire, but in a whisper. After Elijah heard the voice of the Lord, he had the courage to speak even more boldly. Specifically, he sought out Ahab, the wicked king of Israel, crying out, “I have found you, because you have sold yourself to do evil in the sight of the Lord.” » Elijah’s prophetic message, made possible by the clarity and courage he received in the cave of Horeb, was ultimately a call to conversion. Ahab’s humble response earned God’s promise not to bring disaster upon Israel (see 1 Kings 19-21).
Another important cave is La Sainte Baume (“the Holy Cave”, in French). Legend has it that Mary Magdalene was the sister of Martha and Lazarus, whom Jesus raised from the dead. These three were expelled from the Holy Land after the death of Saint James, first bishop of Jerusalem; and they found their way to the region around present-day Marseille, in the south of France. Instead of staying in the towns, Madeleine walked almost an hour into the mountains and found a cave. There, for the last thirty years of her life, she would have lived in solitary contemplation and penance, nourished by the Eucharist brought by the angels. Legend also has it that she was carried by angels upon her death to be buried in the local town, where her tomb and other relics were known and revered as early as the second Church century.
Finally, a cave in Subiaco, Italy catches our eye. Benedict of Nursia went to Rome at the end of the 5th century to complete his education, particularly to study philosophy. Scandalized by the debauchery of the Eternal City, he found a cave in the nearby mountains. He went to the Sacro Speco, as it is called in Italian, to pray and do penance, much like Elijah and Magdalene, and in the style of Eastern monasticism. After a certain time of penance and contemplation, young men began to come to Benedict for advice, and then they wanted to join him in his monastic life. It was from this movement that the first Benedictine community was established at Monte Cassino, Italy. After a few centuries of quiet prayer and work, the Benedictine monastery system was one of the principal vehicles for Europe’s renaissance in the medieval period. Monasteries became the seat of cities. Trade routes between monasteries developed into a system of roads. And of course, the gospel message became the foundation of a thriving culture.
From each of these historic caves we learn relevant lessons. A cave, literal or metaphorical, is a place of retreat and shelter from the dangerous or scandalous conditions of the world around us. Sometimes we must exercise caution and courage to step aside, especially when faced with situations that could lead to our destruction.
Since Elijah and the Cave of Horeb, God has spoken most often in hushed tones and not in earth-shattering or pyrotechnic events. Any message that God would like to speak to us, or that He would like us to speak to others, is most often given to us in silence. If La Sainte Baume was Madeleine’s home for three decades of silent prayer, we can conclude that she chose “the better part” of contemplation; and we can find inspiration for our own choice. From Saint Benedict we can also learn that separating ourselves from the world, even for a short time, constitutes an attractive witness to those who want to join us for the same reasons. In Élie and Benoît, we see that the silence of a cave will ultimately inspire us to the mission. Time of silence and penitence provides the abundant graces necessary for our missionary work of transforming the culture around us.
So let us all find a cave, a time and a place to retreat, to be transformed into intellect and will by the grace of God. So let us embark on our mission with humble zeal. This is how we will push back the darkness of Plato’s allegorical cave.