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Brother Lawrence
Brother Lawrence (c. 1614–1691). Born Nicolas Herman around 1614 in Hériménil, Lorraine, France, to a peasant family, Brother Lawrence became a Carmelite monk and lay brother renowned for his practice of God’s presence. Wounded as a soldier in the Thirty Years’ War and later serving as a footman, he experienced a spiritual awakening at 18 upon seeing a barren tree, reflecting on God’s renewing power. Entering the Discalced Carmelite monastery in Paris around 1640, he took the name Lawrence of the Resurrection and worked humbly in the kitchen and as a sandal repairer. Despite no formal education, his simple faith and constant communion with God drew many to seek his counsel. His teachings, recorded by others, notably Abbé Joseph de Beaufort, were compiled posthumously in The Practice of the Presence of God, a collection of letters and conversations emphasizing continual prayer in daily tasks. Lawrence’s life exemplified joy in mundane duties, influencing spiritual thinkers across centuries. Unmarried, he remained in the monastery until his death on February 12, 1691, in Paris. He said, “We ought not to be weary of doing little things for the love of God, who regards not the greatness of the work, but the love with which it is performed.”
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Brother Lawrence emphasizes the belief in the communion of saints, highlighting the universal oneness of experimental Christianity throughout all ages and lands. He points to the shared experiences of various spiritual figures like Thomas á Kempis, Tauler, Madame Guyon, John Woolman, and Hester Ann Rogers, showcasing the remarkable agreement and harmony in their spiritual journeys. Brother Lawrence himself, a lay brother among the Carmelites, exemplified the practice of the presence of God in a secular and skeptical environment, contributing to the growth of household and evangelistic piety in the eighteenth century.
Preface
“I believe in the ... communion of saints.” SURELY if additional proof of its reality were needed, it might be found in the universal oneness of experimental Christianity in all ages and in all lands. The experiences of Thomas á Kempis, of Tauler and of Madame Guyon, of John Woolman and Hester Ann Rogers, how marvellously they agree, and how perfectly they harmonize! And Nicholas Herman, of Lorraine, whose letters and converse are here given, testifies to the same truth! In communion with Rome, a lay brother among the Carmelites, for several years a soldier, in an irreligious age, amid a sceptical people, yet in him the practice of the presence of GOD was as much a reality as the “watch” of the early Friends, and the “holy seed” in him and others was the “stock” (Isa. vi. 13) from which grew the household and evangelistic piety of the eighteenth century, of Epworth and of Moorfields. “When unadorned, adorned the most” is the line which deters from any interpolations or interpretations other than the few “contents” headings which are given. May the “Christ in you” be the “hope of glory” to all who read.
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Brother Lawrence (c. 1614–1691). Born Nicolas Herman around 1614 in Hériménil, Lorraine, France, to a peasant family, Brother Lawrence became a Carmelite monk and lay brother renowned for his practice of God’s presence. Wounded as a soldier in the Thirty Years’ War and later serving as a footman, he experienced a spiritual awakening at 18 upon seeing a barren tree, reflecting on God’s renewing power. Entering the Discalced Carmelite monastery in Paris around 1640, he took the name Lawrence of the Resurrection and worked humbly in the kitchen and as a sandal repairer. Despite no formal education, his simple faith and constant communion with God drew many to seek his counsel. His teachings, recorded by others, notably Abbé Joseph de Beaufort, were compiled posthumously in The Practice of the Presence of God, a collection of letters and conversations emphasizing continual prayer in daily tasks. Lawrence’s life exemplified joy in mundane duties, influencing spiritual thinkers across centuries. Unmarried, he remained in the monastery until his death on February 12, 1691, in Paris. He said, “We ought not to be weary of doing little things for the love of God, who regards not the greatness of the work, but the love with which it is performed.”