The Cell and the Cubicle

I facilitated a discussion about acedia at small group this week.  One of the quotes we discussed was from John Cassian’s The Institutes, and I think it is very relevant for today:

[Acedia is] a wearied or anxious heart. It is akin to sadness and is the peculiar lot of solitaries and a particularly dangerous and frequent foe of those dwelling in the desert. . . . Once [acedia] has seized possession of a wretched mind it makes a person horrified at where he is, disgusted with his cell, and also disdainful and contemptuous of the brothers who live with him or at a slight distance, as being careless and unspiritual. Likewise it renders him slothful and immobile in the face of all the work to be done within the walls of his dwelling: It does not allow him to stay still in his cell or to devote any effort to reading.

I think this is relevant for today because like monastics, many of us are modern workers who dwell alone.  Not in cells praying and studying under a vow of silence mind you, but we have our own cell: we just happen to call it a cubicle. The modern workplace, with its cubicles and corner offices and communications technology, can be a place where things get done without personal, face-to-face interaction with our coworkers. We sit at our desk, toss around emails, call people, complete documents, e-fax, scan, copy, print, and type our way to a successful workday—all while never having to get up from our cubicle and talk to someone else.  We can even eat at our desks!

This can be a situation rife for acedia. I encourage you to read Cassian’s words above, but replace the word cell with cubicle or desk, and see how it speaks to you.