Saint Gregory has written that Saint Benedict, in entering his solitude, had no other desire than "to please God alone", "soli Deo placere desiderans." These simple words, better than any others, explain the monastic vocation.
A crucial confessor and teacher for Ignatius very early in his spiritual journey was a French monk, Fr. You can order a free copy of Give Us This Day, published by Liturgical Press, by clicking here. What is Benedictine Spirituality? The rule did not become a text of the past or a dead document; rather it continued to live and to vivify, but its very fecundity, its inexhaustible youthfruits of its discretionexplain how it was able to inspire different realizations. Prayer is the foundation to the monastic life and calling, and can be a constant part of the life of non-monastics as well. Only in later centuries and especially since the 19th century has it occupied a more important place in monastic life than in the observance of the majority of non-monastic religious congregations, with the consequence that it is usually considered a special feature of monastic life and spirituality. Among the many available lists of core Benedictine values, I find that of Saint Johns Abbey to be one of the most helpful. Gymnasts do routines, yoga students practice poses, swimmers practice strokes, and tennis players practice their serves. Even the Cistercians, who in the 12th century had intended to return to a faithful observance of the rule itself, added numerous statutes. If a monk's life is not grounded in God, he is tempted to put himself in the place of God. The website of Subiaco Abbey in Arkansas tells us, Modern monks like to point out that first word in the Rule is to Listen,which cant be done while talking! Life in Benedictine monasteries was also deeply influenced by the clericalization of many of the monks and the episcopal ordination of many abbots. On the constitutional level, Benedict's supreme achievement was to provide a succinct and complete directory for the government and the spiritual and material well-being of a monastery. People are seen as an integrated whole: Body, Mind, and Spirit. It evokes the name of St. Benedict, who lived in the 6th century, together with all those who have been inspired by the Rule of Benedict and associate themselves with the Benedictine spiritual tradition. He entered the Dominican novitiate c. 1315 in his na, Benedictine College: Narrative Description. Father Mandonnet then lists three characteristics that are concerned more especially with the will. The abbot, elected for life by his monks, maintains supreme power and in all normal circumstances is accountable to no one. He is author of Ice Break: A Collection of Poems (Aetos Publications, 2019), Enduring Ministry: Toward a Lifetime of Christian Leadership (Liturgical Press, 2017), and The Gospels in Poem and Image (Aetos Publications, 2016-2019). That is why the ministry of hospitality is such an important part of the Benedictine heritage. Brother David Steindl-Rast of the Gut Aich Priory monastery in St. Gilgen, Austria, is the founder and senior advisor for A Network for Grateful Living. The Rule revolves around five practices: Prayer, Work, Study, Hospitality and Renewal. These prayers, which included the saying or chanting of the psalms, can be experienced in our Daily Office. Benedictine Spirituality It may seem odd that some of the best guidelines for achieving balance in our world today, where stress has become the norm, come from a sixth-century Italian monk who at one point chose to live by himself in a cave. 0000000820 00000 n
New Catholic Encyclopedia. (February 22, 2023). Learn more at www.samuelrahberg.com. It is my experience that the simplicity of this message oftentimes seems just too difficult to accept. Ive drawn this list of 22 (+ 1 = 23) Benedictine practices (arranged alphabetically) from Stepping into the Oblate way of life, published by St. Benedicts Monastery in 2017, when Laureen Virnig OSB served as Director of Oblates. We are moved to profound respect for the ways the Creator puts resources at our disposal to further the kingdom of God. Francis consulted her, especially when he was discerning between becoming a hermit and being an itinerant preacher. Within the Cite this article tool, pick a style to see how all available information looks when formatted according to that style. Emerging out of the high middles ages, it emphasizes the humanity of Jesus Christ as the mystery of God's presence in human flesh. The Sisters of St. Benedict in Ferdinand, Indiana explain the importance of community life in Benedictine practice on their website. In monastic life public prayer is only one observance among those which help the monk seek God. ." In this, affective piety and the contemplative study of the mysteries of God were no longer so strictly united as in the preceding centuries, in which the patristic tradition had been preserved. Seeing the Face of Christ in the Poor. Near the end of his life in 547 AD, Benedict of Nursia wrote a a guide to living, in the company of other humans, the kind of good days that add up to a good life. 540-604 CE), who praised Benedict for his discretion and moderation. 0000000742 00000 n
Romey is the driving force behind "Being Benedictine in the 21st Century: Spiritual Seekers in Conversation," a conference planned for June 2020 at Mount St. Scholastica in Atchison. To be empowered by anything less than the God of love is to risk evil zeal in the name of vengeance. Lets make ours a truly humana listening and reverentconnection. The Benedictine tradition has frequently presented examples of spiritual men and women, many of them venerated as saints, who in the line of their monastic vocation have sought to unite themselves to God by the eremetical or solitary life, normally in dependence on their superior and in the neighborhood of their monastery. In a. 0000000556 00000 n
God gave us two ears and one mouth, so we should use them in that order. Brendan Rolling, OSB of St Benedicts Abbey of Atchison, Kansas, Sister Joan tells us that a Benedictine lifestyle is an an oasis of human peace. It continues today as an institute for Benedictine students and others who wish to obtain graduate degrees in philosophy, theology, liturgy, and monastic studies. He is called to witness in a materialistic world to the dependence of all men and women on God, and to their need and destiny for a happiness that lies beyond material fulfillment. a. de vog, The Rule of Saint Benedict: A Doctrinal and Spiritual Commentary (Kalamazoo 1983). Ancient Tradition. Co-Director of the Spirituality Center. d. rees et al., Consider Your Call: A Theology of Monastic Life Today (Kalamazoo 1978). Her muscular Christianity is grounded in the spiritual practices of the Rule of Saint Benedict, such as silence, hospitality, humility, and peace. Catholic spirituality includes the various ways in which Catholics live out their Baptismal promise through prayer and action. [], [] Learn more about Benedictine spirituality. As. Mauritius Wilde O.S.B explains that obedience means, , Fr. 22 Feb. 2023 . In The Rule of Benedict for Beginners, Wil Derkse reveals how elements from Benedictine spirituality and the Benedictine lifestyle may be . The Rule of St. Benedict (RB) became a foundational text for monasticism in the West, having emerged in the sixth century as the Roman civilization was collapsing. Spirituality is the broad concept of a belief in something beyond the self. Listen to the Holy Spirit speaking through scripture and through the insights of others. Certainly the rule does not see material privation as an end in itself; it is in no way part of the Benedictine tradition to assess everything economically by materialistic standards or to override aesthetic or other values for the sake of cheapness or squalor, for such a mentality narrows the monk's horizons and even creates those very evils accompanying destitution which all Christians have duty to banish from the earth. He was the son of a noble and grew up in Rome. praying the Divine Office) as well as regular silent . These three characteristics refer especially to intellectual activity. Every four months, we begin again at the beginningso we read the Rulethree times every year. (61.6). Contact. c. smith, The Path of Life (Ampleforth, England 1995). The Benedictine practice of hospitality is radical. You can read more about the Liturgy of the Hours by clicking here, but the best way to learn about Liturgical prayer is to find a monastery and experience it. Jesus said "Whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me." (see Matthew 25: . If he gets the grandeur of God in place, he is apt to get the rest of monastic life in place too. It is a spirituality that transcends ecclesiastical divides because it is rooted in religious sources that antedate the sometimes . Kyle T. Kramer explains in his 2011 article for America Magazine that hospitality, for a Benedictine, means to welcome all others as Christ, to recognize that despite vast differences, the diverse human family is part of the same God-given belonging, and we need one another to survive and thrive. This means facing our fears, letting prejudice and certitude die in us, and rooting ourselves in the love of God, the alpha and omega of the entire creation, the force that pulls everyone and everything toward a center that can hold. Benedictines hold strong convictions, but experience shows strident, uncompromising voices tend to foster arguments, tensions, and hostilitiesnot peace and love. According to monastic scholar Fr. This sounds like the universal call to holiness, the theme that began this article. This listening is not merely an intellectual or rational activity; it is intuitive, springing from the very core of the monk's being where he is most open to God and most open to the word of life that God speaks. is an herbal liqueur produced in France. Mauritius Wilde O.S.B explains that obedience means to listen. Benedictines are called to strive for silence and have a love for silence. For Benedictines, being in right relationship means that we treat everyone we encounter with loving kindness and patience. It is regular, converting, reflective, and communal. This model of [], [] rather than continually traveling on to somewhere else. Because each style has its own formatting nuances that evolve over time and not all information is available for every reference entry or article, Encyclopedia.com cannot guarantee each citation it generates. The Rule of St. Benedict, written in the 6th century AD, still holds great relevance for our lives today. As time went on we decided that we needed a clear focus on the values. 1. The meaning of stability in our day and time refers to staying rooted where we arein relationship with ourselves and with others, in order to grow in the spiritual life. Successful organizational leaders practice self-mastery and teamwork. The Cistercian Order reinforced the eremetical character of the cenobitical life itself. Thus when St. Benedict appeared, monasticism was already solidly implanted in Egypt, Syria, Palestinethe whole East and in Ireland, Gaul, Italy, Spain, and Africa in the West. xb```f``x(80 In this article, I have merely collected and summarized what other, more experienced Benedictines have taught and published. 1. The root of the word obedience means "to hear" and is about making a commitment to listen for God's voice in the world and respond when you hear the call. Stewardship of resources, as a Benedictine practice, flows out of the commitment to stability, explain the monks and oblates of Saint Meinrad Archabbley, in this post on Environmental Stewardship on the blog Echoes from the Bell Tower. This is not simply a change in my opinion or even in my ideological stance, but a much deeper change in my attitude, a real change in my way of being and doing. Listening is integral to the practice of conversatio, indeed to all the practices, which, as Laureen Virnig OSB teaches to Oblates in formation, are inseparable woven together to make of our spirituality a living tapestry. It is rooted in faith, and like Christ's own simplicity of life must be an outward expression of trustful dependence on God. He was born on March 2, 480 AD, in Norcia, Italy. The Benedictine motto, "Prayer and Work," highlights this simplicity of obedience to our daily duties. It is rather the fact that monastic existence is a form of religious life having not secondary or ministerial purpose. Benedictine monks have often received freely from their families and educators, from the rich Benedictine tradition, from the abundant life of their own communities, and from the many mercies of God. Recommended titles: Michael Casey, A Guide to Living in the Truth, 2001; Anselm Grn, Benedict of Nursia: His Message for Today, 2006. Thus prayer and community, to borrow again from Stewart, are at the heart of the Benedictine school of spirituality. It includes reading, reflecting, responding to and resting in the Word of God not in a scholarly way, not to make a sermon to preach to others, but simply to nourish and deepen our own relationship with the Divine. They are all intertwined. 2019Encyclopedia.com | All rights reserved. It is only in a secondary sense that Benedict himself, speaking through the rule, and the abbot of the community are masters. Obedience is an act of letting go of the egoistic will. ." If there is anything that everyone of us in the whole world needs more of right now, its peace. Vincentian spirituality is centered around this concept. Im interested in connecting person-to-person with others who share my values, who want to participate with me in building a meaningful network of relationships that will serve to support us on our spiritual journey. The Benedictine practice of Moderation in All Things is another that is trending today, under the word balance., Obedience is a concept 21st-century souls dont generally like to consider. We stumble through being in right relationship. It is God who is the primary author of life for Benedict's disciples; hence the monk's obedience is above all to God and God's word which the monk finds mediated into his life through a wide variety of persons and experiencesin the rule, in the abbot, in the community as a whole, in the young and the old, in the sick and in guests, in the liturgy of the hours and in personal prayer, in sacred reading, in work, and in silence. Yes, work, too, is a basic tenet of Benedictine Spirituality, Chris Sullivan nexplains in her blog post Work and Prayer in the Style of St. Benedict for Loyala Press. When the monk has zeal for God, he will come to see that he is consumed not only with love for God but for everything and everyone else that God has created. Humility helps be more authentically, beautifully, and lovingly human. Awareness of God In Benedictine practice we acknowledge the primacy of God and look for God in the ordinary events of each day. For Benedict, prayer had a particular structure and process. A particular spirituality is a specific system, or schema of beliefs, virtues, ideals and principles which form a particular way to approach God and therefore all life in general. Humility demands that the monk take God seriously, that he take others seriously, but that he never take himself too seriously. Of all creatures, the human person is in fact the neediest. Benedictine Abbeys and Priories in the U.S. Benedictine University: Narrative Description, https://www.encyclopedia.com/religion/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/benedictine-spirituality. In no way am I qualified to be a teacher of the Benedictine way of life. New Catholic Encyclopedia. Having the mind of a beginner, being receptive to starting anew, starting fresh, starting overthis, too, is a Benedictine practice. Instead of being possessive and manipulative, he is called to grow in detachment which manifests itself in the constructive and creative use of things. trailer
BARTH, KARL As for details, Benedict left much to the discernment and initiative of the superior. People are tired and worn out from striving against unhealthy systems. By listening and seeking stability of life, we strive to discern the new path that Christ is forever calling us to travel. This article on the Contemplative outreach website explains the history of lectio divina, and offers instruction in how to do it. is an Italian saint and one of the first followers of Saint Francis of Assisi. People are seen as an integrated whole: Body, Mind, and Spirit. Encyclopedia.com gives you the ability to cite reference entries and articles according to common styles from the Modern Language Association (MLA), The Chicago Manual of Style, and the American Psychological Association (APA). This little rule for beginners serves to develop a spirituality made up of practices, which Benedictines incorporate into their relationship with God and their interactions with the people with whom they live and work. backgrounds including non-Catholic ones find deep spirituality in the Divine Office and the other Benedictine practices in the Rule such as the emphasis on work and lectio divina (slow prayerful reading), is difficult to state briefly. Before writing his Rule, Benedict lived for years as a hermit. xref
Poet/Writer. Benedictine Center is affiliated and operated in partnership with St. Pauls Monastery. Benedict's community might well be called a formation community in which all, including the abbot and other superiors in the community, are in the process of being formed all of their lives into the likeness of Christ by attentive listening to the word of God, and a loving response to that word mediated into the life of the community by Christ's own offer of friendship through the communication of the Holy Spirit. Its principal source is the Word of God and its model is Christ. His books includeGratefulness,A Listening Heart, and most recently, a new autobiography,i am through you so. For most Oblates. 0000001056 00000 n
Benedictine Sr. Mary Lou Kownacki, a major force behind the ministries and outreach that shaped the Benedictines of Erie, Pennsylvania, in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, died Jan. 6 at . This religious practice refers to St. Benedict and his spiritual practice. 0000002499 00000 n
Christian monasticism had been in existence for a long time before Benedict wrote his rule. Ignatian spirituality challenges us to encounter God in all things, witnessing to the joy of the Gospel. But for all, the ideal has remained "solitude of heart" with God, guaranteed by the "order of charity" in the community institution. Since Benedict was a monk, the spirituality which is based on his rule, is fundamentally monastic. Acts 18:18). 9 0 obj
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For the readers convenience, I will include only six of them here along with a simple explanation. Benedictines believe that the Christian life is best lived not through the extremes of any harsh religious asceticism but in the daily context of good, balanced life in community. In 1887 Pope Leo XIII, who was enamored of the Benedictines, reestablished the College of Saint Anselm in Rome. Mindfulness is a trending word these days yogis, psychologists, educators, physicians, and practically everyone else is talking about the importance of quieting our busy minds in order to become more aware of the present moment. The Benedictine practice of service to others is intimately entwined with the reverence for all creation, and another of the great foundations of Benedictine spirituality. It may be an old liqueur but it has a well-deserved place in the modern bar. In a very special way God speaks through the Scriptures, through the liturgy of the hours (opus Dei ), and through personal prayer. This emphasis on silence is so that we can learn to listen to God more acutelyThis kind of sensitivity and awareness makes it easier to pray at all times. This article explains that silence is healthy for community life and fosters the learning of reverence for all creation. He does not harbor illusions of grandeur but senses that all of his life is simply gift. Benedict, RULE OF Saint.This work holds the first place among monastic legislative codes, and was by far the most important factor in the organization and spread of monasticism in the West.For its general character and also its illustration of St. Benedict's own life, see the article St. Benedict of Nursia.Here, however, it is treated more in detail, under the following heads: I. Are you a thoughtful reader (and maybe even a writer) who seeks a peaceful, just, spiritual approach to life? 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