Chapter 7 pt. 4
The Rule of Benedict September 28
Turning away from our own will is what follows from turning our attention to God in the moments of life. It is not a once and for all event, but a perpetually present opportunity to listen and obey.
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
September 27
Chapter 7 pt. 3
The Rule of Benedict September 27
We must live in the eternal Now with respect to God because God lives in the eternal Now with respect to us. The option to turn our thoughts/attention to God is always available because God, at each moment, inhabits our consciousness. Wrongful thoughts are those that make this option difficult to choose, not because God is further away, but because they overwhelm our perception.
The Rule of Benedict September 27
We must live in the eternal Now with respect to God because God lives in the eternal Now with respect to us. The option to turn our thoughts/attention to God is always available because God, at each moment, inhabits our consciousness. Wrongful thoughts are those that make this option difficult to choose, not because God is further away, but because they overwhelm our perception.
Monday, September 26, 2011
September 26
Chapter 7 pt. 2
The Rule of Benedict September 26
As I read this first step again I am drawn to the notion that our various sins and vices require our resistance "at every moment," which is a corollary to keeping awe of God "before [our] eyes." In other words, one takes the first rung of this ladder in the moment, in the eternal Now, not once and for all.
The Rule of Benedict September 26
As I read this first step again I am drawn to the notion that our various sins and vices require our resistance "at every moment," which is a corollary to keeping awe of God "before [our] eyes." In other words, one takes the first rung of this ladder in the moment, in the eternal Now, not once and for all.
Sunday, September 25, 2011
September 25
Chapter 7 pt. 1
The Rule of Benedict September 25
From January:
Chapter 7 on humility is the longest in the Rule. Today's selection is a sort of introduction to the chapter wherein Father Benedict makes a case for humility as the means by which we reach our home with God, or, differently put, the means by which we become a place where God is at home. I see Benedict's path of humility as akin to the kenotic path (self-emptying) of Jesus as described in Philippians 2. To follow the steps along this path, or "climb" the rungs of this ladder, is the work of a lifetime done in an intentional and supportive community.
The Rule of Benedict September 25
From January:
Chapter 7 on humility is the longest in the Rule. Today's selection is a sort of introduction to the chapter wherein Father Benedict makes a case for humility as the means by which we reach our home with God, or, differently put, the means by which we become a place where God is at home. I see Benedict's path of humility as akin to the kenotic path (self-emptying) of Jesus as described in Philippians 2. To follow the steps along this path, or "climb" the rungs of this ladder, is the work of a lifetime done in an intentional and supportive community.
Saturday, September 24, 2011
September 24
Chapter 6
The Rule of Benedict September 24
Rarely do words ring truer in my life than Benedict's quote from Proverbs 10:19: "In much speaking you will not escape sin."
To "hold silence," as Gil calls it, is to listen for direction in a conversation or a group from somewhere other than my own thoughts and words. It is to be fully present and engaged without reaching for the steering wheel.
The Rule of Benedict September 24
Rarely do words ring truer in my life than Benedict's quote from Proverbs 10:19: "In much speaking you will not escape sin."
To "hold silence," as Gil calls it, is to listen for direction in a conversation or a group from somewhere other than my own thoughts and words. It is to be fully present and engaged without reaching for the steering wheel.
Friday, September 23, 2011
September 23
Chapter 5 pt. 2
The Rule of Benedict September 23
In our context, it seems to me that murmuring, or grumbling, occurs whenever feelings of opposition to our community's leadership rise up in our hearts and are given a bed and a seat at the table. Appropriately addressing those feelings directly to the leadership is not murmuring, nor is acknowledging them and showing them to the door. But when we welcome, feed, and house them in the privacy of our hearts, they keep us from being formed in the likeness of Christ on the Benedictine path.
The Rule of Benedict September 23
In our context, it seems to me that murmuring, or grumbling, occurs whenever feelings of opposition to our community's leadership rise up in our hearts and are given a bed and a seat at the table. Appropriately addressing those feelings directly to the leadership is not murmuring, nor is acknowledging them and showing them to the door. But when we welcome, feed, and house them in the privacy of our hearts, they keep us from being formed in the likeness of Christ on the Benedictine path.
Thursday, September 22, 2011
September 22
Chapter 5 pt. 1
The Rule of Benedict September 22
From May:
Before we are able to obey, we must be able to perceive that which is being asked of us. John the Baptist says that Jesus comes as one with a winnowing fork in hand to separate the wheat from the chaff. On a personal level, I have experienced this to mean that Jesus, my Master, comes to separate that which is true from that which is false within me. Obedience for a Benedictine is to act in accordance with what Jesus reveals to be true with regard to Holy Scripture, the Rule, and the instructions of one's Superior.
The Rule of Benedict September 22
From May:
Before we are able to obey, we must be able to perceive that which is being asked of us. John the Baptist says that Jesus comes as one with a winnowing fork in hand to separate the wheat from the chaff. On a personal level, I have experienced this to mean that Jesus, my Master, comes to separate that which is true from that which is false within me. Obedience for a Benedictine is to act in accordance with what Jesus reveals to be true with regard to Holy Scripture, the Rule, and the instructions of one's Superior.
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