Chapter 73
The Rule of Benedict August 31
Benedict reminds us here at the end of the Rule that means to do not equal ends, and it is the end, the goal, the telos of our life that is the priority. We are formed by our Benedictine practices to find our true self at home with God, and to find God at home in our lives. We are all beginners. And we will always need to begin again.
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
August 30
Chapter 72
The Rule of Benedict August 30
I find it helpful that Benedict refers to good zeal as a practice and not simply as a happy phenomenon. His list of actions are, then, something that we can choose to do.
I ask you to spend some time with this list in your prayers today. Listen for what the Spirit has to say to you. Ask for the grace to practice this good zeal in our life together as we move forward.
The Rule of Benedict August 30
I find it helpful that Benedict refers to good zeal as a practice and not simply as a happy phenomenon. His list of actions are, then, something that we can choose to do.
I ask you to spend some time with this list in your prayers today. Listen for what the Spirit has to say to you. Ask for the grace to practice this good zeal in our life together as we move forward.
Monday, August 29, 2011
August 29
Chapter 71
The Rule of Benedict August 29
From April:
Benedictine obedience comes down the point at which we, in the thick of our emotions, desires, and will, submit to another. It is a painfully difficult practice. It requires the laying down of whatever story I tell myself that places me in the possession of what is right. And at no time are the feelings of being right stronger than when I am in conflict. Yet it is precisely at this point that Benedict instructs us to quickly and decisively put aside excuses and blame.
Next time you find yourself being offended, imagine what it would take to extend a blessing rather than a rebuttal or a curse. And next time you find yourself having given offense, imagine setting aside explanations and asking for unqualified forgiveness. This is the inner freedom that Benedict seeks to cultivate in us.
The Rule of Benedict August 29
From April:
Benedictine obedience comes down the point at which we, in the thick of our emotions, desires, and will, submit to another. It is a painfully difficult practice. It requires the laying down of whatever story I tell myself that places me in the possession of what is right. And at no time are the feelings of being right stronger than when I am in conflict. Yet it is precisely at this point that Benedict instructs us to quickly and decisively put aside excuses and blame.
Next time you find yourself being offended, imagine what it would take to extend a blessing rather than a rebuttal or a curse. And next time you find yourself having given offense, imagine setting aside explanations and asking for unqualified forgiveness. This is the inner freedom that Benedict seeks to cultivate in us.
Sunday, August 28, 2011
August 28
Chapter 70
The Rule of Benedict August 28
I find it so easy to set myself up as judge and executer. So often my perspective is trapped behind my two small eyes, and I succumb to the temptation to act as though I see Reality. Benedict seeks to prevent this very impulse in this chapter.
As a non-cloistered community, let us consider carefully how we posture ourselves with each other and with those we encounter in our daily lives. As much as it appears at times to be the case, God has not set us up as vigilantes for God's own Truth.
The Rule of Benedict August 28
I find it so easy to set myself up as judge and executer. So often my perspective is trapped behind my two small eyes, and I succumb to the temptation to act as though I see Reality. Benedict seeks to prevent this very impulse in this chapter.
As a non-cloistered community, let us consider carefully how we posture ourselves with each other and with those we encounter in our daily lives. As much as it appears at times to be the case, God has not set us up as vigilantes for God's own Truth.
Saturday, August 27, 2011
August 27
Chapter 69
The Rule of Benedict August 27
From April:
An unspoken assumption in this chapter provides a key to understanding its deepest meaning. The assumption is that God is the one against whom any act of defense is undertaken in a monastery. Each monk has handed himself over totally to being formed by God, a sacred relationship that must not be compromised by even the best of intentions.
It takes true discipline both to submit to being formed and to keep from stepping in when we perceive the struggles of another in her formation.
The Rule of Benedict August 27
From April:
An unspoken assumption in this chapter provides a key to understanding its deepest meaning. The assumption is that God is the one against whom any act of defense is undertaken in a monastery. Each monk has handed himself over totally to being formed by God, a sacred relationship that must not be compromised by even the best of intentions.
It takes true discipline both to submit to being formed and to keep from stepping in when we perceive the struggles of another in her formation.
Friday, August 26, 2011
August 26
Chapter 68
The Rule of Benedict August 26
Let us renew our resolve to follow the clear instructions of our true Superior, the Spirit, and face the difficult task assigned to us of establishing a practice of prayer in our daily lives. This is the basis upon which all else that God has for us will be built.
The Rule of Benedict August 26
Let us renew our resolve to follow the clear instructions of our true Superior, the Spirit, and face the difficult task assigned to us of establishing a practice of prayer in our daily lives. This is the basis upon which all else that God has for us will be built.
Thursday, August 25, 2011
August 25
Chapter 67
The Rule of Benedict August 25
From April:
This chapter is the reason why we remember all our absent members before the closing prayer on Thursday evenings.
Our Father Benedict acknowledges and seeks to deal with a spiritual reality here that I have experienced often during that last year or so. Gil has talked for a long time about the fact each person brings with her to church an invisible crowd of other people that affect the spiritual climate of the gathering. Benedict is wise to make this explicit and establish a protocol for returning monks whereby the spiritual climate of the monastery can be cleansed from any unintended negative effects. Let us pay attention to who we bring with us to our gatherings [and what we bring spiritually to our common life of prayer], and let us pray for each other that we may ourselves be free and present to our community.
The Rule of Benedict August 25
From April:
This chapter is the reason why we remember all our absent members before the closing prayer on Thursday evenings.
Our Father Benedict acknowledges and seeks to deal with a spiritual reality here that I have experienced often during that last year or so. Gil has talked for a long time about the fact each person brings with her to church an invisible crowd of other people that affect the spiritual climate of the gathering. Benedict is wise to make this explicit and establish a protocol for returning monks whereby the spiritual climate of the monastery can be cleansed from any unintended negative effects. Let us pay attention to who we bring with us to our gatherings [and what we bring spiritually to our common life of prayer], and let us pray for each other that we may ourselves be free and present to our community.
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
August 24
Chapter 66
The Rule of Benedict August 24
I'm struck this time through by the second to last paragraph in this chapter. Benedict believes very strongly in the enclosure. He warns that going outside of the enclosure is bad for the soul of the monastic.
Clearly we cannot follow his instructions on this matter, but I wonder what we can learn from the spirit behind the teaching. If our monastery is "in the world," as many subsequent religious orders have functioned, how do we orient our hearts towards our identity as members of a Benedictine community and away from the dominant cultural identities we are pressured to assume? The answer, it seems to me, is in establishing a practice that connects us in time and spirit to each other and to God in the Benedictine tradition.
The Rule of Benedict August 24
I'm struck this time through by the second to last paragraph in this chapter. Benedict believes very strongly in the enclosure. He warns that going outside of the enclosure is bad for the soul of the monastic.
Clearly we cannot follow his instructions on this matter, but I wonder what we can learn from the spirit behind the teaching. If our monastery is "in the world," as many subsequent religious orders have functioned, how do we orient our hearts towards our identity as members of a Benedictine community and away from the dominant cultural identities we are pressured to assume? The answer, it seems to me, is in establishing a practice that connects us in time and spirit to each other and to God in the Benedictine tradition.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
August 23
Chapter 65 pt. 2
The Rule of Benedict August 23
Benedict goes to great lengths in this chapter to make very clear that the Abbot is in charge--that there is no confusion whatsoever about under whom the Prior serves. Let us remember, though, that the authority exercised by the Abbot is in the spirit of Christ, not in the spirit of the world around us. Christlike authority can hold in tension the two statements: "All authority on heaven and on earth has been given to me" and "not my will, but yours be done."
The Rule of Benedict August 23
Benedict goes to great lengths in this chapter to make very clear that the Abbot is in charge--that there is no confusion whatsoever about under whom the Prior serves. Let us remember, though, that the authority exercised by the Abbot is in the spirit of Christ, not in the spirit of the world around us. Christlike authority can hold in tension the two statements: "All authority on heaven and on earth has been given to me" and "not my will, but yours be done."
Monday, August 22, 2011
August 22
Chapter 65 pt. 1
The Rule of Benedict August 22
Benedict was no stranger to the nitty gritty of institutional authority dynamics. Clearly he had seen enough trouble around the issue of appointing a Prior that he saw fit in this passage to shed light on the primary circumstances surrounding that trouble. But as I said in April, the root of this trouble is deeper and more basic to the human experience than the circumstances described here. The root is self-interest attached to a position of leadership. When leadership is exercised in the interest of the leader, it is not leadership in the spirit of Christ.
The Rule of Benedict August 22
Benedict was no stranger to the nitty gritty of institutional authority dynamics. Clearly he had seen enough trouble around the issue of appointing a Prior that he saw fit in this passage to shed light on the primary circumstances surrounding that trouble. But as I said in April, the root of this trouble is deeper and more basic to the human experience than the circumstances described here. The root is self-interest attached to a position of leadership. When leadership is exercised in the interest of the leader, it is not leadership in the spirit of Christ.
Sunday, August 21, 2011
August 21
Chapter 64 pt. 2
The Rule of Benedict August 21
Again I am struck by how full, wise, and beautiful a picture of leadership Benedict paints in this passage.
A couple lines that stick out to me today:
. . . let her know that her duty is rather to profit her sisters
than to preside over them.
She must therefore be learned in the divine law,
that she may have a treasure of knowledge
from which to bring forth new things and old.
The Rule of Benedict August 21
Again I am struck by how full, wise, and beautiful a picture of leadership Benedict paints in this passage.
A couple lines that stick out to me today:
. . . let her know that her duty is rather to profit her sisters
than to preside over them.
She must therefore be learned in the divine law,
that she may have a treasure of knowledge
from which to bring forth new things and old.
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Notes and reflections #2
Here is the answer I can give at this point to the first question I posed in the last "Notes and reflections."
What is the spiritual nature of a call to a religious life?
I believe a call to the religious life is not distinct from the Gospel call that is upon all Christians. It is, rather, one way (or, more correctly, many various ways) that the Spirit gifts and moves within the Church to bring about the Reality of the Beloved Community.
All four canonical gospels place the story of John the baptizer at the beginning of the narrative about Jesus' ministry. Picture this: John stands in the river Jordan, the symbolic border to the Land of Covenant Promise. It is at the Jordan where Jacob wrestles with the Angel of the LORD and is named Israel. Whenever the Jordan is crossed, by Jacob, by Joshua, by David, the issue of the Covenant and what it means to be God's people is front and center. So here is John, an outsider to the established political and religious structures within the land, calling people "out" to the wilderness to reset their participation in the Covenant in a way that fully realizes God's dream for the Beloved Community.
This is what is at play in the beginning of the Gospel story--the relational Reality of God with the Beloved Community enacted within the Community itself (see Luke 3: 10-14).
Like John's message, the Prologue to St. Benedict's Rule calls us to reset our participation in the Covenant. Benedict paints a beautiful picture of the relational Reality of a soul fully at home in God's house, and of God fully at home in a soul. In order to realize this relational Reality, Benedict states at the end of the Prologue that it is his intention to establish a school for God's service, which is enacted within community.
A call to a religious life, I believe, is a call to enroll in one such school in order to reset our participation in God's dream for the world.
August 20
Chapter 64 pt. 1
The Rule of Benedict August 20
from April:
This passage calls to mind the need for any Benedictine community to be in transparent relationship with the wider Church in which it finds itself. Although Benedict's vision for a monastery is non-diocesan, he clearly intends that each community will be intimately connected to the life of its diocese and to other monasteries. In our situation, Gil provides the oversight to which Benedict alludes, although I suspect that opportunities to expand our relationship with a wider portion of the Church will be in our future.
An OSBCn community needs the approval and blessing of the bishop in whose diocese it is located. It is also necessary for an OSBCn community to be hosted by a parish with the approval of the priest. Benedict's call for oversight in Benedictine communities is heeded by these structures.
The Rule of Benedict August 20
from April:
This passage calls to mind the need for any Benedictine community to be in transparent relationship with the wider Church in which it finds itself. Although Benedict's vision for a monastery is non-diocesan, he clearly intends that each community will be intimately connected to the life of its diocese and to other monasteries. In our situation, Gil provides the oversight to which Benedict alludes, although I suspect that opportunities to expand our relationship with a wider portion of the Church will be in our future.
An OSBCn community needs the approval and blessing of the bishop in whose diocese it is located. It is also necessary for an OSBCn community to be hosted by a parish with the approval of the priest. Benedict's call for oversight in Benedictine communities is heeded by these structures.
Friday, August 19, 2011
August 19
Chapter 63 pt. 2
The Rule of Benedict August 19
The practice of the OSBCn communities is for canons to take on the title of sister or brother when they take their vows. As awkward as this might seem initially, it brings the reality of the community very close to home, as Benedict indicates in this passage. We take on a formal identity in our relationships with each other when we enter into religious life, and it is appropriate for our names to reflect it.
The Rule of Benedict August 19
The practice of the OSBCn communities is for canons to take on the title of sister or brother when they take their vows. As awkward as this might seem initially, it brings the reality of the community very close to home, as Benedict indicates in this passage. We take on a formal identity in our relationships with each other when we enter into religious life, and it is appropriate for our names to reflect it.
Thursday, August 18, 2011
August 18
Chapter 63 pt. 1
The Rule of Benedict August 18
I experienced the system of community ranking at St. Gregory's during my time there. What I said in April, that the effect of such a ranking is egalitarian given the class system outside the monastery, seemed to ring true. The places in choir and the seats in the refectory were the only two applications of the ranking that I experienced as a vocationer, and I remember an immediate sense of comfort in knowing that my seats were assigned, that I didn't need to jockey for position. As other vocationers left, I went from the 9th position, to the 6th, to the 3rd, which had the effect in me of deepening my sense of belonging at the monastery rather than any feelings of superiority over those in lower positions.
The Rule of Benedict August 18
I experienced the system of community ranking at St. Gregory's during my time there. What I said in April, that the effect of such a ranking is egalitarian given the class system outside the monastery, seemed to ring true. The places in choir and the seats in the refectory were the only two applications of the ranking that I experienced as a vocationer, and I remember an immediate sense of comfort in knowing that my seats were assigned, that I didn't need to jockey for position. As other vocationers left, I went from the 9th position, to the 6th, to the 3rd, which had the effect in me of deepening my sense of belonging at the monastery rather than any feelings of superiority over those in lower positions.
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Notes and reflections
* I would like to begin sharing with you all thoughts that are arising from my ongoing process. Since we met there has been much stirring and moving and unsettling, and I want to be transparent and collaborative as things unfold. Please feel free to engage the discussion.
8.17.11
*The emphasis on one central location for prayer is unhelpful. It is inevitably exclusive. Instead of 1112 W. 10th St. being THE place where the canon community prayers are centered, perhaps it can be simply the first instance of a home oratory where the schedule (Lauds and Vespers) is followed. One central task that each canon takes on, then, can be setting up her/his own oratory in which to join in the community prayers each day.
*The vision document does not contain much by way of charism or inspiration, which is really the place where the discussion should start. What is the spiritual nature of a call to a religious life? Why would the Spirit be moving in this way in our community? How will entering into a religious life by way of a Benedictine canon community bring about the deepest longings of my soul?
August 17
Chapter 62
The Rule of Benedict August 17
This chapter underscores much of what I am discerning personally right now as well as some important issues our order will face together as we move forward. Benedict is dealing here with matters of calling and identity--what constitutes my sense of self and my place in the community, the Church, and the world--that we all must face.
The Rule of Benedict August 17
This chapter underscores much of what I am discerning personally right now as well as some important issues our order will face together as we move forward. Benedict is dealing here with matters of calling and identity--what constitutes my sense of self and my place in the community, the Church, and the world--that we all must face.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
August 16
Chapter 61 pt.2
The Rule of Benedict August 16
The spirit of hospitality in this chapter is not separated from the spirit of discernment. The welcome is of the visiting monastic as she is, and the ear of the community is tuned to hear what God has to say through the presence of the visitor. Benedict makes it clear, however, that the community is likewise responsible to perceive clearly whether that presence is helpful or harmful and to act accordingly.
Let us seek to embody these spirits of hospitality and discernment as we consider together what God has in store for our order.
The Rule of Benedict August 16
The spirit of hospitality in this chapter is not separated from the spirit of discernment. The welcome is of the visiting monastic as she is, and the ear of the community is tuned to hear what God has to say through the presence of the visitor. Benedict makes it clear, however, that the community is likewise responsible to perceive clearly whether that presence is helpful or harmful and to act accordingly.
Let us seek to embody these spirits of hospitality and discernment as we consider together what God has in store for our order.
Monday, August 15, 2011
August 15
Feast of St. Mary, the Virgin
Chapter 61 pt. 1
The Rule of Benedict August 15
from April:
I love the posture of humility that this passage instructs the community to assume with regard to the visitor. The community is instructed to listen to and learn from the visiting monastic. Benedict desires open hearts and receptive minds to whatever God brings to the communities that bear his name.
As we move forward, let us open ourselves to hearing and learning from others who have walked the path of a vowed religious life. I believe that in this way we will discover profound blessings as we enter the next stage of our life together.
Chapter 61 pt. 1
The Rule of Benedict August 15
from April:
I love the posture of humility that this passage instructs the community to assume with regard to the visitor. The community is instructed to listen to and learn from the visiting monastic. Benedict desires open hearts and receptive minds to whatever God brings to the communities that bear his name.
As we move forward, let us open ourselves to hearing and learning from others who have walked the path of a vowed religious life. I believe that in this way we will discover profound blessings as we enter the next stage of our life together.
Sunday, August 14, 2011
August 14
Chapter 60
The Rule of Benedict August 14
Benedict's question from the Gospel of Matthew, "Friend, for what have you come?" is a question we would all do well to consider as we take our next steps. Regardless of how the particulars of a Benedictine way of life are brought into our world through this community, our soul's answer to this question looks no different than the answers of those to whom Benedict posed the question in the sixth century.
The answer to Benedict's rhetorical question is found back in the Prologue. We come to be formed in the likeness of Christ--as souls in which God is fully at home--by means, as Sr. Joan writes, of "a way of life immersed in the Scriptures, devoted to the common life, and dedicated to the development of human community . . . simple, regular, and total, a way of living . . ."
The Rule of Benedict August 14
Benedict's question from the Gospel of Matthew, "Friend, for what have you come?" is a question we would all do well to consider as we take our next steps. Regardless of how the particulars of a Benedictine way of life are brought into our world through this community, our soul's answer to this question looks no different than the answers of those to whom Benedict posed the question in the sixth century.
The answer to Benedict's rhetorical question is found back in the Prologue. We come to be formed in the likeness of Christ--as souls in which God is fully at home--by means, as Sr. Joan writes, of "a way of life immersed in the Scriptures, devoted to the common life, and dedicated to the development of human community . . . simple, regular, and total, a way of living . . ."
Saturday, August 13, 2011
August 13
Chapter 59
The Rule of Benedict August 13
The term, "oblate," originally described children whose parents offered, or made an oblation of, them to a monastery as described in this chapter. Laying aside the manifold cultural and religious problems that our perspective perceives in such a practice, the tangible image of this exchange can help us make sense of what it is to be an oblate in our context. As I said in my Summer Letter, a Benedictine oblate offers her "secular" life to God by means of a particular "monastery" by endeavoring to give the practice of that "monastery" an expression in her own life.
The Rule of Benedict August 13
The term, "oblate," originally described children whose parents offered, or made an oblation of, them to a monastery as described in this chapter. Laying aside the manifold cultural and religious problems that our perspective perceives in such a practice, the tangible image of this exchange can help us make sense of what it is to be an oblate in our context. As I said in my Summer Letter, a Benedictine oblate offers her "secular" life to God by means of a particular "monastery" by endeavoring to give the practice of that "monastery" an expression in her own life.
Friday, August 12, 2011
August 12
Chapter 58 pt.2
The Rule of Benedict August 12
Here are pictures of the very ceremony described in this passage. These occurred on June 28 of this year at St. Gregory's Abbey when Stephen Briggs became a novice and took the name, Brother Joshua.
The Rule of Benedict August 12
Here are pictures of the very ceremony described in this passage. These occurred on June 28 of this year at St. Gregory's Abbey when Stephen Briggs became a novice and took the name, Brother Joshua.
The Father Abbot
with crosier in hand
The postulant approaches with the Novice Master
one skilled at winning souls
The clothing of the novice
action shots!
"From that day forward let him be counted as one of the community."
The novice receives the blessing of his Abbot.
Thursday, August 11, 2011
August 11
Chapter 58 pt. 1
The Rule of Benedict August 11
Let us seek to maintain within ourselves a spirit of deliberation regarding our life together and our individual places within it. We are still very much at the beginning of things--newcomers to a way of life that is coming into being as we live it.
The Rule of Benedict August 11
Let us seek to maintain within ourselves a spirit of deliberation regarding our life together and our individual places within it. We are still very much at the beginning of things--newcomers to a way of life that is coming into being as we live it.
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
August 10
Chapter 57
The Rule of Benedict August 10
This a rich chapter of which any substantive application is still premature in our life together.
The Rule of Benedict August 10
This a rich chapter of which any substantive application is still premature in our life together.
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
August 9
Chapter 56
The Rule of Benedict August 9
A chapter like this makes me wish I could report from my time at St. Gregory's about how an active Benedictine monastery puts it into practice. But I am unable to do so because, during my two weeks there, I never witnessed the Abbot at table during lunch or supper. I arrived during the week he was serving as the kitchen server, which means he didn't eat during the meal times, but silently cleared our plates and cups and utensils as we finished. The second week I was there it was his turn to be the reader for the week, so he sat in the lectern and read to us while we ate lunch and supper. Both duties entail eating alone after everyone has left the refectory.
The Rule of Benedict August 9
A chapter like this makes me wish I could report from my time at St. Gregory's about how an active Benedictine monastery puts it into practice. But I am unable to do so because, during my two weeks there, I never witnessed the Abbot at table during lunch or supper. I arrived during the week he was serving as the kitchen server, which means he didn't eat during the meal times, but silently cleared our plates and cups and utensils as we finished. The second week I was there it was his turn to be the reader for the week, so he sat in the lectern and read to us while we ate lunch and supper. Both duties entail eating alone after everyone has left the refectory.
Monday, August 8, 2011
August 8
Chapter 55 pt.2
The Rule of Benedict August 8
from April:
In this passage I can't help but see the scenario described through the lens of Julie and Monty's experience of attachment disorder with Mila. Attachment disorder occurs when a person does not form the normal attachments to a parent or primary caregiver during early childhood. The result is a human being that believes, on a primal level, that she must fend for herself in a hostile world that does not meet her needs.
I don't think it's a stretch to say that the Rule is therapy for a soul that has lost its attachment to God. Benedict's instructions can seem harsh until you realize the nature of the illness that needs to be cured. The sort of love that is willing to bear the bruises of a screaming, striking child in a calm, firm, four-limbed embrace is the kind of love displayed here by our Father Benedict.
Awakening to those things we keep hidden in our bed and facing, forgiving, and healing the child within who does not trust God is among the most difficult and beautiful work a human being can do. And it is work we do from the midst of God's firm, unyielding love.
The Rule of Benedict August 8
from April:
In this passage I can't help but see the scenario described through the lens of Julie and Monty's experience of attachment disorder with Mila. Attachment disorder occurs when a person does not form the normal attachments to a parent or primary caregiver during early childhood. The result is a human being that believes, on a primal level, that she must fend for herself in a hostile world that does not meet her needs.
I don't think it's a stretch to say that the Rule is therapy for a soul that has lost its attachment to God. Benedict's instructions can seem harsh until you realize the nature of the illness that needs to be cured. The sort of love that is willing to bear the bruises of a screaming, striking child in a calm, firm, four-limbed embrace is the kind of love displayed here by our Father Benedict.
Awakening to those things we keep hidden in our bed and facing, forgiving, and healing the child within who does not trust God is among the most difficult and beautiful work a human being can do. And it is work we do from the midst of God's firm, unyielding love.
Sunday, August 7, 2011
August 7
Chapter 55 pt. 1
The Rule of Benedict August 7
Benedict's instructions on dress seem to be a part of his overall approach to life in common. It boils down to the point at which we each release our claim on Creation as one who must obtain, possess, and secure resources. I hear Jesus' words in Matthew 6 echoed here: "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear." This is a crucial and difficult process of inner transformation.
The Rule of Benedict August 7
Benedict's instructions on dress seem to be a part of his overall approach to life in common. It boils down to the point at which we each release our claim on Creation as one who must obtain, possess, and secure resources. I hear Jesus' words in Matthew 6 echoed here: "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear." This is a crucial and difficult process of inner transformation.
Saturday, August 6, 2011
August 6
The Feast of the Transfiguration of Our Lord
Chapter 54
The Rule of Benedict August 6
An application of this chapter to a community that does not share all resources in common is difficult. However, as I said last time around, the spiritual value behind a vow of poverty is to free one from the need to possess--that human need upon which the entire "system" is predicated.
Richard Rohr wrote in his daily meditation for today:
We are all complicit in and benefit from what Dorothy Day called “the dirty rotten system.” That’s not condemning anybody; it’s condemning everybody because we are all complicit and enjoying the fruits of domination and injustice. (Where were your shirts and underwear made?) Usually the only way to be really non-complicit in the system is to choose to live a very simple life. That’s the only way out!
Let us continue to listen for how our life together can lead us into simpler, less complicit ways of existing within the culture we inhabit.
Chapter 54
The Rule of Benedict August 6
An application of this chapter to a community that does not share all resources in common is difficult. However, as I said last time around, the spiritual value behind a vow of poverty is to free one from the need to possess--that human need upon which the entire "system" is predicated.
Richard Rohr wrote in his daily meditation for today:
We are all complicit in and benefit from what Dorothy Day called “the dirty rotten system.” That’s not condemning anybody; it’s condemning everybody because we are all complicit and enjoying the fruits of domination and injustice. (Where were your shirts and underwear made?) Usually the only way to be really non-complicit in the system is to choose to live a very simple life. That’s the only way out!
Let us continue to listen for how our life together can lead us into simpler, less complicit ways of existing within the culture we inhabit.
Friday, August 5, 2011
August 5
Chapter 53 pt. 2
The Rule of Benedict August 5
Niceness is a poor substitute for kindness. Kindness, not niceness, is a component part of hospitality. It is easy for some of us to confuse smiles and pleasant tones of voice with the things that make for true kindness and hospitality. If we continue in this confusion for long enough, we become unable to distinguish between kindness and unkindness, hospitality and inhospitality.
The monks at St. Gregory's Abbey are not nice, by most standards. But they are kind. My hope for our life together is that we will attune and live according to the essential difference between these two as well.
The Rule of Benedict August 5
Niceness is a poor substitute for kindness. Kindness, not niceness, is a component part of hospitality. It is easy for some of us to confuse smiles and pleasant tones of voice with the things that make for true kindness and hospitality. If we continue in this confusion for long enough, we become unable to distinguish between kindness and unkindness, hospitality and inhospitality.
The monks at St. Gregory's Abbey are not nice, by most standards. But they are kind. My hope for our life together is that we will attune and live according to the essential difference between these two as well.
Thursday, August 4, 2011
August 4
Chapter 53 pt. 1
The Rule of Benedict August 4
In order for one to serve as a host to a guest, one must be clearly in one's own home, in some significant sense. Think of yourself attending a party at a house you've never been to before, the host is far from the front door, and the doorbell rings. When you take it upon yourself to answer the door, you answer as a fellow guest, not as a host.
If we, as a community, are to practice Benedictine hospitality in any meaningful way, we must do so with a clear sense of being at home. This sense is arrived at by the cultivation of a clear identity as a community. And as a vowed Benedictine community, our identity is defined by the Rule and our common prayers. Our ability to be truly hospitable will flourish as we move toward clarity of structure and practice in our life together.
The Rule of Benedict August 4
In order for one to serve as a host to a guest, one must be clearly in one's own home, in some significant sense. Think of yourself attending a party at a house you've never been to before, the host is far from the front door, and the doorbell rings. When you take it upon yourself to answer the door, you answer as a fellow guest, not as a host.
If we, as a community, are to practice Benedictine hospitality in any meaningful way, we must do so with a clear sense of being at home. This sense is arrived at by the cultivation of a clear identity as a community. And as a vowed Benedictine community, our identity is defined by the Rule and our common prayers. Our ability to be truly hospitable will flourish as we move toward clarity of structure and practice in our life together.
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
August 3
Chapter 52
The Rule of Benedict August 3
At St. Gregory's Abbey I witnessed the value of a space being set aside as the oratory in which nothing but prayer was done. The church stands soaked in the prayers of the resident community. For more than 70 years the monks have gathered 7 times a day to chant the Psalms, celebrate daily Eucharist, light incense and candles, read the Scriptures, and sit in silence within the wooden walls of the abbey church.
Although we may not be able to set aside a place in our home as an oratory in which nothing else is done or kept, I know that to live a life of prayer within our own walls has a tangible, lasting effect on us and on all who visit. May we seek to inhabit such spaces.
The Rule of Benedict August 3
At St. Gregory's Abbey I witnessed the value of a space being set aside as the oratory in which nothing but prayer was done. The church stands soaked in the prayers of the resident community. For more than 70 years the monks have gathered 7 times a day to chant the Psalms, celebrate daily Eucharist, light incense and candles, read the Scriptures, and sit in silence within the wooden walls of the abbey church.
Although we may not be able to set aside a place in our home as an oratory in which nothing else is done or kept, I know that to live a life of prayer within our own walls has a tangible, lasting effect on us and on all who visit. May we seek to inhabit such spaces.
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
August 2
Chapter 51
The Rule of Benedict August 2
This time through, I hear in this little chapter Benedict setting a guard against the overwhelming momentum to do what is convenient when one is physically separate from the cloister. Living within a structure that requires much from us in terms of the hours of each day is difficult enough when we're surrounded by people who are also abiding by that structure. To live according to Rule in our "secular" lives is a challenge that monks would be loathe to accept (at least the ones I've met recently). We are doing something very difficult in our life together.
This is a component part of what I've heard during July: that clear structures and expectations, held with mercy and grace toward each other, are invaluable as we seek to be formed by the Benedictine path.
The Rule of Benedict August 2
This time through, I hear in this little chapter Benedict setting a guard against the overwhelming momentum to do what is convenient when one is physically separate from the cloister. Living within a structure that requires much from us in terms of the hours of each day is difficult enough when we're surrounded by people who are also abiding by that structure. To live according to Rule in our "secular" lives is a challenge that monks would be loathe to accept (at least the ones I've met recently). We are doing something very difficult in our life together.
This is a component part of what I've heard during July: that clear structures and expectations, held with mercy and grace toward each other, are invaluable as we seek to be formed by the Benedictine path.
Monday, August 1, 2011
August 1
Chapter 50
The Rule of Benedict August 1
I commented last time around that this passage describes circumstances that are more similar to ours as non-cloistered Benedictines, and, in that way, it is an encouraging chapter for us in that it acknowledges the possibility of an ordered prayer life outside of a monastery.
This time through, having just come home from my time at a monastery, my attention is drawn to the fact that Benedict's instructions for the absent members are predicated upon their understanding of a common set of appointed Hours. The establishment of such a set of Hours is central to what I have heard during our quiet July about our path forward as a community.
The Rule of Benedict August 1
I commented last time around that this passage describes circumstances that are more similar to ours as non-cloistered Benedictines, and, in that way, it is an encouraging chapter for us in that it acknowledges the possibility of an ordered prayer life outside of a monastery.
This time through, having just come home from my time at a monastery, my attention is drawn to the fact that Benedict's instructions for the absent members are predicated upon their understanding of a common set of appointed Hours. The establishment of such a set of Hours is central to what I have heard during our quiet July about our path forward as a community.
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