Laboure Society
“Listening, I felt God asking something of me. So, I prayed. The words ‘Follow me’ spoke directly to my heart.”
Meet the rest of my class
My name is Joshua Kleinman. I am called to work for Christ and pray for His Church as a monk with the Tarrawarra Abbey. This is my story.
Though I attended Jewish school up to age six, which instilled in me an early sense of identity, I was raised in a home without much religious conviction. My father is a secular Jew, and my mother was raised Catholic but not actively practicing during my childhood. We celebrated Passover, Hanukkah, Christmas and Easter in a cultural way growing up, but faith simply wasn’t something we talked about.
Secular, modern culture taught me to find worth in achievement, and I eventually entered medical school. Yet inwardly, I longed for a connection to something greater. I took a leave from medical school and moved to Australia to do graduate research in philosophy and mental health. At the time I viewed this as an academic endeavor; looking back, I know I was seeking to fill the spiritual void in my life.
On a long drive through rural Australia, I providentially happened upon a podcast about St. Teresa of Avila’s “Interior Castle.” Listening, I felt God asking something of me. So, I prayed. The words “Follow me” spoke directly to my heart. Jesus was inviting me into a personal relationship with Him.
Something changed after that trip. My inner life became steadier and more joyful. I joined RCIA, and was baptized into the Church. When my sponsor heard I’d been reading St. Teresa of Avila, she said, “You should visit Tarrawarra!” I booked a retreat at the Cistercian abbey, where I encountered monastic life and found myself drawn to the peace of prayer and work (Ora et Labora).
To me, Tarrawarra conveyed a sense of home. The brothers are loving, kind, and joyful. I found that the Cistercian way – the Divine Office, obedience through the Rule of St. Benedict, and working alongside others – met my longing for simplicity and communion and drew me into an experience of grace that lifted my heart to the Lord.
Additional visits and conversations with the vocation director aided my discernment. I found that I seek to follow Christ with my whole being, letting go of attachments and traveling with others on the journey to God.
The Cistercians of Tarrawarra Abbey serve the world simply through the quiet, monastic life of prayer, work, silence, and community, oriented entirely to seeking God and following Christ. It is, no doubt, an ordinary life – yet paradoxically that’s what makes it beautiful. It has been described as a royal road for seeking God, time-tested for over 1,500 years. The vows of stability, obedience, and conversion of life; the silence and community; and the central place of the liturgy in the monastic day all converge into a way of following Christ not only spiritually but concretely. It is a moving reminder that our Risen Lord is present, enduring, and worth living for.
Tarrawarra helps bring people to Christ by being a sign of God’s presence, love, joy, and peace in a distracting and disoriented world. Visitors are “received as Christ,” as the monks provide hospitality in the form of private retreats, spiritual direction, and an invitation to join in daily Mass and prayer. Christ is also made present through the monks’ distribution of altar breads to parishes throughout Australia.
What inspires me most is knowing that the abbey, above all, is a school of love. To dedicate my life, through hidden fidelity to the Gospel, for the sanctification of the entire Church, would indeed be a matchless privilege.
Please pray for me and for my fellow Labouré classmates on our vocation journeys. Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have at: joshuakleinman@rescuevocations.org
Download a PDF of my story
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