Chapter 1
Rule of Benedict January 8
Benedict's harsh condemnation of sarabaites and gyrovagues stems from his strong beliefs about spiritual formation. We are formed in community, Benedict insists, and not just any community, but a community gathered around the instructions of the Lord put into practice under a rule and an abbot or abbess. I hear from this chapter a clear call for us, as members of the Benedictine Sisters and Brothers of St. Brigid, to prayerfully inquire within ourselves which vices of the sarabaites and/or gyrovagues we tend toward in our fledgling neo-monastic practice. And in response to that inquiry, let us each resolve to expel those vices from our hearts.
Saturday, January 8, 2011
Thursday, January 6, 2011
January 7
Prologue pt. 7
The Rule of Benedict January 7
In these final words of the Prologue to Benedict's Rule, he declares that his intention is to establish a school for God's service. In Benedict's school we learn how to obey the commands of the Lord so that our souls might be a place that God would call home. So, as a Benedictine order, what does our school look like? How do our roles engage Benedict's intention of shaping a community wherein souls find true union with God, both in this life and beyond?
The Rule of Benedict January 7
In these final words of the Prologue to Benedict's Rule, he declares that his intention is to establish a school for God's service. In Benedict's school we learn how to obey the commands of the Lord so that our souls might be a place that God would call home. So, as a Benedictine order, what does our school look like? How do our roles engage Benedict's intention of shaping a community wherein souls find true union with God, both in this life and beyond?
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
January 6
Prologue Pt. 6
The Rule of Benedict January 6
In a sentence, Benedict states the purpose of the monastery: to "prepare our hearts and our bodies to serve [God] under the guidance of holy obedience" (translation by Patrick Berry OSB). It is my prayer that our order grows into and embodies this very purpose as well. Therefore, "Conscious in this undertaking of our own weakness let us ask the Lord to give us through his grace the help we need."
The Rule of Benedict January 6
In a sentence, Benedict states the purpose of the monastery: to "prepare our hearts and our bodies to serve [God] under the guidance of holy obedience" (translation by Patrick Berry OSB). It is my prayer that our order grows into and embodies this very purpose as well. Therefore, "Conscious in this undertaking of our own weakness let us ask the Lord to give us through his grace the help we need."
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
January 5
Prologue pt. 5
The Rule of Benedict January 5
Father Benedict begins this passage by connecting the actions of the wise builder on the rock of Jesus' instructions to those who attribute all good in themselves to God (from yesterday's reading). It is to the rock, not to our actions, that Benedict desires to fix our attention. And it is our clear perception of God as the wise, patient source of all goodness that frees us to become who we are called to be; i.e., to obediently act in response to Jesus' instructions.
The Rule of Benedict January 5
Father Benedict begins this passage by connecting the actions of the wise builder on the rock of Jesus' instructions to those who attribute all good in themselves to God (from yesterday's reading). It is to the rock, not to our actions, that Benedict desires to fix our attention. And it is our clear perception of God as the wise, patient source of all goodness that frees us to become who we are called to be; i.e., to obediently act in response to Jesus' instructions.
Monday, January 3, 2011
January 4
Prologue pt. 4
The Rule of Benedict January 4
Benedict continues here to demonstrate from Scripture the conditions in which God is at home, both in the human soul and in a community. But, Father Benedict instructs, it is vitally important that neither the soul nor the community develop pride as a result of its purity. Yes, let us cast temptations from the sight of our hearts before they take hold in our soul and/or community, but let us also cultivate a humility that keeps God in God's place and us in ours.
The Rule of Benedict January 4
Benedict continues here to demonstrate from Scripture the conditions in which God is at home, both in the human soul and in a community. But, Father Benedict instructs, it is vitally important that neither the soul nor the community develop pride as a result of its purity. Yes, let us cast temptations from the sight of our hearts before they take hold in our soul and/or community, but let us also cultivate a humility that keeps God in God's place and us in ours.
Sunday, January 2, 2011
January 3
Prologue pt. 3
The Rule of Benedict January 3
To God's call for workers who desire true life that lasts forever we have, in taking our vows, answered that we are such workers. God's response to our answer, Benedict indicates, is gentle encouragement to create the conditions in which God is at home. Let us, then, seek after peace in our order by ridding our tongues and lips of evil and deceitful words so that we are able to know God's, "I am here," in our prayers.
The Rule of Benedict January 3
To God's call for workers who desire true life that lasts forever we have, in taking our vows, answered that we are such workers. God's response to our answer, Benedict indicates, is gentle encouragement to create the conditions in which God is at home. Let us, then, seek after peace in our order by ridding our tongues and lips of evil and deceitful words so that we are able to know God's, "I am here," in our prayers.
Saturday, January 1, 2011
January 2
Prologue pt. 2
The Rule of Benedict January 2
Father Benedict seeks here to inspire a disposition of urgent attention in the hearts of his disciples. This urgency is set against our own lethargy and tendency to harden our hearts to the light and voice of God. Benedict strikes this tone at the outset of the Rule because one's disposition at the beginning of a journey sets one's course. As we begin again in this new year, let us do so with earnest, eager, urgent attention to what the Spirit is saying.
The Rule of Benedict January 2
Father Benedict seeks here to inspire a disposition of urgent attention in the hearts of his disciples. This urgency is set against our own lethargy and tendency to harden our hearts to the light and voice of God. Benedict strikes this tone at the outset of the Rule because one's disposition at the beginning of a journey sets one's course. As we begin again in this new year, let us do so with earnest, eager, urgent attention to what the Spirit is saying.
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