About

In a busy, uncertain world, SEASEM is a place of peace and of silence. We are a small Christian monastic community tucked into the forested hills of Northland, Aotearoa, dedicated to Christ, and the quiet, steady transformation of the human heart through sanctification towards union with God. As the Apostle Peter declared, that through Jesus’ divine power He ‘has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness. Through these He has given us His very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature…’ 2 Peter 1:4 

We believe in One Triune God: the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Our life is shaped by Scripture, prayer, sung Psalms, the morning and evening liturgy, our Celtic heritage, Anglican, Scottish Episcopal and Orthodox formation, and the wisdom of the early Desert tradition. We live in harmony with the natural world as much as possible. Ko Punhanga Tohora te Maunga, ko Punakitere te awa, and ko Pākeretū te manga—our mountain is the Punhunga Tohora; our river is the Punakitere, and our stream is the Pākeretū. The bees we tend, the gardens we grow, and the forests we walk and protect are all part of an ecology of our prayer life. 

While we make lay promises of righteous financial living, of celibacy and stability in obedience to the monastery rule, we are not an institution or priested community. SEASEM is a Christian charitable trust and a home of prayer—a place where the liturgy is the prayerful move of a creative and dedicated community in Christ. Whether you stay for a day or a week or for months, you are free to simply be in Christ. Here, in the silence, all manner of worldly garments are shed as purity of heart and illumination that emerges by grace helps the soul to remember its true home in God. †