Chapter 7 pt. 6
The Rule of Benedict May 31
It's one thing to love not my own will, it's another thing to be able to distinguish between my will for myself and God's will for me. This is, I believe, the crux of what we refer to as discernment. I envision our order to have the capacity to function as a discernment committee for its members. How often would the significant decisions I face in life benefit from a patient listening in community to the Spirit's voice?
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Monday, May 30, 2011
May 30
Chapter 7 pt. 5
The Rule of Benedict May 30
If we join Benedict in this countercultural rejection of self-will and our own desires, let there be no misunderstanding: it will require everything from us, day after day after day. We must, as Gil says, persevere in keeping our stone in the water if there is to be any hope of it becoming smooth.
The Rule of Benedict May 30
If we join Benedict in this countercultural rejection of self-will and our own desires, let there be no misunderstanding: it will require everything from us, day after day after day. We must, as Gil says, persevere in keeping our stone in the water if there is to be any hope of it becoming smooth.
Sunday, May 29, 2011
May 29
Chapter 7 pt. 4
The Rule of Benedict May 29
I am unable to think of a value that is held higher in Western culture than that of self-determination, or freedom of will. Yet this paragraph sets Benedict in diametrical opposition to such a value. Benedict instructs us, in light of scripture, to distrust our own will because what seems right to us may lead us to utter destruction.
It's hard to be more countercultural in our context. How willing are we, really, to follow Benedict on a path that begins with rejecting one of our society's most treasured dictums?
And a comment to the above from our sister, Ruth:
I won't pretend to have an answer that, Chad. Just to say that in my experience, finding that my life is not all about the pursuit of my own desires attained by the strength of my will was an idea easy to accept after repeated failures and disappointments. More often than not I never did succeed at the things that were to put me on the path toward my dreams. I was driven by a sincere desire to cultivate my intellect, but I've never been a stellar student, never scored well on tests, never got into elite programs. Moreover, when I did succeed, it wasn't enough. So I got into this or that program or got to do research on this or that...no matter what it was I was never satisfied.
Our own wills are hopelessly fickle and will never satisfy us. Unless, that is, we work to align our own will with that of God. Which is, of course, a lifetime's work.
The Rule of Benedict May 29
I am unable to think of a value that is held higher in Western culture than that of self-determination, or freedom of will. Yet this paragraph sets Benedict in diametrical opposition to such a value. Benedict instructs us, in light of scripture, to distrust our own will because what seems right to us may lead us to utter destruction.
It's hard to be more countercultural in our context. How willing are we, really, to follow Benedict on a path that begins with rejecting one of our society's most treasured dictums?
And a comment to the above from our sister, Ruth:
I won't pretend to have an answer that, Chad. Just to say that in my experience, finding that my life is not all about the pursuit of my own desires attained by the strength of my will was an idea easy to accept after repeated failures and disappointments. More often than not I never did succeed at the things that were to put me on the path toward my dreams. I was driven by a sincere desire to cultivate my intellect, but I've never been a stellar student, never scored well on tests, never got into elite programs. Moreover, when I did succeed, it wasn't enough. So I got into this or that program or got to do research on this or that...no matter what it was I was never satisfied.
Our own wills are hopelessly fickle and will never satisfy us. Unless, that is, we work to align our own will with that of God. Which is, of course, a lifetime's work.
Saturday, May 28, 2011
May 28
Chapter 7 pt. 3
The Rule of Benedict May 28
When I truly know that God is intimately aware of my inner life, my ability to harbor wrongful thoughts is threatened. How can I, when I know there is no secrecy, hide my wickedness from God? Yet I often find myself trying to do just that. I am forgetful. I operate from an egocentrism that focuses my attention on the walls and darkened corners within my mind. And this is the first step of humility, to replace this small perspective that harbors my darkness with God's vast light that drives all darkness away.
Gil's sermon on Thursday about abiding--the notion of divine intimacy--provides a helpful perspective on Benedict's words in this passage.
The Rule of Benedict May 28
When I truly know that God is intimately aware of my inner life, my ability to harbor wrongful thoughts is threatened. How can I, when I know there is no secrecy, hide my wickedness from God? Yet I often find myself trying to do just that. I am forgetful. I operate from an egocentrism that focuses my attention on the walls and darkened corners within my mind. And this is the first step of humility, to replace this small perspective that harbors my darkness with God's vast light that drives all darkness away.
Gil's sermon on Thursday about abiding--the notion of divine intimacy--provides a helpful perspective on Benedict's words in this passage.
Thursday, May 26, 2011
May 27
Chapter 7 pt. 2
The Rule of Benedict May 27
Benedict chooses troublesome language to describe the first step of humility. Words such as "fear" and "hell-fire" seem to fit better in a Flannery O'Connor story than in the Rule. So what is Father Benedict getting at with such a vocabulary? I don't want to dismiss or explain away his harsh words, but it's important, I believe, to peer through them to what lies deeper than the literal. When I do this, I see the essence of the first step of humility to be a shifting of focus from the egocentric to the theocentric. Of course, this first step is itself the ongoing work of a lifetime.
The Rule of Benedict May 27
Benedict chooses troublesome language to describe the first step of humility. Words such as "fear" and "hell-fire" seem to fit better in a Flannery O'Connor story than in the Rule. So what is Father Benedict getting at with such a vocabulary? I don't want to dismiss or explain away his harsh words, but it's important, I believe, to peer through them to what lies deeper than the literal. When I do this, I see the essence of the first step of humility to be a shifting of focus from the egocentric to the theocentric. Of course, this first step is itself the ongoing work of a lifetime.
May 26
Chapter 7 pt. 1
The Rule of Benedict May 26
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 May 26
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.
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
May 25
The Feast of St. Julie's birth
Chapter 6
The Rule of Benedict May 25
The "spirit of silence" that Benedict instructs the monastic to cultivate is of a particular character. Benedict's silence is chosen for the sake of spiritual formation in oneself and in one's sister or brother. The spirit of silence is kind and generous, not stingy or hostile. In other words, it's safe. Safe silence, held in common, is a great gift, and it's one that we, as an order and as a community experience together regularly.
Chapter 6
The Rule of Benedict May 25
The "spirit of silence" that Benedict instructs the monastic to cultivate is of a particular character. Benedict's silence is chosen for the sake of spiritual formation in oneself and in one's sister or brother. The spirit of silence is kind and generous, not stingy or hostile. In other words, it's safe. Safe silence, held in common, is a great gift, and it's one that we, as an order and as a community experience together regularly.
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