Lluc Torcal Sirera

How does your faith help you in times of struggle, change, and new beginnings?

I try to live all my life according to my faith and try to illuminate all the steps of life, changes, new beginnings, under the light of faith in Jesus of Nazareth.

How does your faith describe the relationship between all living things, the Earth, and the Divine?

As a Catholic, I believe that God created all beings, and that is why everything is interrelated. At the same time, all beings express the glory of God by the very fact of being. Therefore, the contemplation of nature helps us to approach God. For this reason, all natural species must be respected and protected.

What does your faith tradition teach about material consumption and simplicity?

The monastic life according to the Rule of Saint Benedict is a path of simplicity and discretion: everything must be, and must be lived according to the just measure and leaving aside the superfluous. Everyone gets what is necessary to live considering that all goods are common.

In what ways does your community provide you with a guide to life?

We are monks and therefore we try to live our lives following the Gospel, according to the Rule of Saint Benedict. For this reason, our faith is the true guide to our life.

Which sacred texts most inspire you to act for change?

The book of Genesis; the Gospel; the Rule of Saint Benedict and the writings of our Cistercian Fathers.

What have you done to improve the sustainability of your diet, transportation, and/or energy use?

The Poblet monastery, from which I come, began an ecological conversion process in 2007 that has led to the incorporation of solar energy to heat water and produce electricity. This process has also provided the monastery of a garden that serves for the feeding of the monks.

How would you describe the experience of making these lifestyle changes?

The work of ecological conversion has been quite easy because the entire community of monks has agreed and has collaborated in everything that has been agreed upon.