Dr. Caitlin Corning: Protestant Monasticism and Integrating Faith and History
Reported By: Sierra Reisman
Photo Courtesy: George Fox Journal
Caitlin Corning is a central figure in the George Fox University (GFU) history community. She is the chair of the History and Politics Department, director of the GFU Archives and Museum collections, and is in charge of overseeing public history internships. Corning is also a committed person of faith who has a unique background in Protestant monasticism.
Corning’s graduate education focused on the medieval period, as early medieval church history is one of her main teaching and research interests. Corning specifically focused on monasticism in her research and had always been interested in becoming an oblate, or a person who participates in monastic life without taking full vows. When Corning first arrived at GFU, she became connected with a local group interested in developing a Protestant monastic community.
According to Corning, there is no one-size-fits-all approach to Protestant monasticism: some communities are almost indistinguishable from traditional Catholic monastic communities, while others are structured very differently. Corning explained that these communities focus on “broader discussions for how Christians [can] be creative about living very intentionally in community, such as sharing meals together almost every night, and ways that families could support each other.”
The monastic community Corning joined was co-ed, and it incorporated both single individuals and families. Corning was able to take temporary vows and was involved in the community for four and a half years before it was shut down due to external circumstances.
According to Corning, there isn't anything “special [or] extra spiritual” about monastic practices; however, the ritualistic nature of monastic religious observance, such as scheduled prayer breaks, do empower a person to further incorporate faith in their daily life. Monastic life teaches a person how to make religious observance a crucial part of daily routine.
Anyone willing to commit themself to monasticism clearly has deep faith. Corning expressed that her faith is heavily integrated in both her teaching and in her work as a historian. “Sometimes, it can look like what we do as historians is just [spend our time] being in the library reading, but it’s always in relationship, in relationship with God who [is] present for everything, and also with our neighbor, who we learn about in the past, and also the audience we’re trying to convey that information too,” she said.
For Corning, the deeply relational nature of history makes her faith all the more important for maintaining empathy, humility and curiosity. She believes that it is important “to remember that everyone we’re dealing with as historians are people. We need to treat them with respect and try to understand them,” and “[a]s a Christian, there's a call to love your neighbor and that’s an important part of that,” she said.