Monks are to listen "to the precepts of the master" but their primary and ultimate master is God. 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. That is why the ministry of hospitality is such an important part of the Benedictine heritage. Benedict of Nursia lived from ca. A crucial confessor and teacher for Ignatius very early in his spiritual journey was a French monk, Fr. [CDATA[ Closely related to both listening and humility is the virtue of obedience. Roman Roots. Hence he is able to receive others in the community, including guests, with kind consideration. In other words, to be a good Franciscan means to be a good Christian. Benedictine spirituality offers an important voice in our world today, a voice which informs our praying, living and discerning. Therefore, that information is unavailable for most Encyclopedia.com content. Sister Joan Chittister is an extraordinarily prolific writer and among the most famous living Benedictines. Eunice Antony, OSB. "Benedictine Spirituality 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. The RB is saturated with Scripture and, as Esther de Waal has suggested in her book Seeking God: The Baptismal Invitation of the Rule of St. Benedict (Liturgical Press, 2009), the Prologue exemplifies this as a model of baptismal instruction. For example, Let us get up then, at long last for the Scriptures rouse us when they say: It is high time for us to arise from sleep (Rom 13:11), or Run while you have the light, that the darkness of death may not overtake you (John 12:35). Scripture and baptism undergird the Benedictine vision of Christian discipleship, a vision which relies on a prayerful orientation toward God and relationships which support us in Christ-centeredness. The whole spiritual life of the monk consists in listening to God by "inclining the ear of the heart." The rule invites the monk to recognize the presence of God in his life, a presence which is neither gained or won or achieved but simply given. . Here are some of the characteristics of Benedictine spirituality: Grounded in Listening For Benedict, the spiritual life was about listening to Godthrough prayer, Scriptures, the depths of our own experience, through listening to others in our community and the wider church. Hospitality Benedictine spirituality is rooted in the cultivation of good habits. 1) They know that not one-size-fits-all. Successful organizational leaders practice self-mastery and teamwork. Which brings us back to awareness of God, to the beginning again. It is likewise through that response that one becomes free to be and develop as the person one is called to be. Music students do their instruments. Directly translated, Lectio Divina means divine reading. About oblates, the Benedictine order says: "Oblates seek God by striving to become holy in their chosen way of life. 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. "No one is to pursue what he judges better for himself, but instead, what he judges better for someone else." - Rule of St. Benedict 72:7 A Raven is Collaborative Collaborative Ravens create a spirit of teamwork. They are listeners and patient, willing to wait and see. It is humility that takes the monk beyond the myth of his own grandeur to the grandeur of God. In his blog Benedictine Monks, Fr. defines the leader of a Benedictine community is not being head of an institution but being in relationship with all the members. In no way am I qualified to be a teacher of the Benedictine way of life. thats most of the time. Balance is less about achieving perfect equilibrium than it is a pendulum which continuously swings back toward a central point. New Catholic Encyclopedia. An essay by the Sisters of St. Marys Monastery in Rock Island, IL explains that the Benedictine practice of humility is the opposite of humiliation. In the East it dates back to the 3rd century with St. Anthony, and in the West to the 4th century with St. Martin and other founders of monasteries. In a blog hosted by Holy Wisdom Monastery of Madison, Wisconsin, Lynne Smith, OSB writes that in America, middle and upper class people tend to imagine they are living self-sufficiently, believing they are able to pretty much take care of [their] needs. This self-deception is possible only when [w]e take for granted all the people who work behind the scenes to provide the food for the store, to staff and maintain the filling station and all those people involved in the health care system. By listening and seeking stability of life, we strive to discern the new path that Christ is forever calling us to travel. Many Oblates rely on. Stop the madness; listen to the God who loves you. It encourages a life balance between corporate worship, spiritual reading and work in the context of community. On the blog Catholic Beer Club, Br. It shows itself in the way (emphasis mine) you put up with the many things of your daily life, sickness, death, war, persecution, mishaps and misfortunes of every kind. In other words, without awareness of God and without gratitude, indeed, without the interweaving of all these practices into our lives, patience cannot exist. We become obedient only after we know our own will. The fourth Benedictine value is work, or labora. An atheist is a man who lives without God. It appeared little by little wherever the Church took root, a spontaneous manifestation of the Holy Spirit urging Christians to become monks in response to the counsel given by Jesus in the Gospel: "If you wish to be perfect, go, sell your possessions , follow me " (Mt 19.21). Encyclopedia.com. 0000000820 00000 n
Humility enables the monk to stand in awe before the world and to receive the gifts of God and others. Read the full essay to learn more about how humility helps us grow in the love of God and deepens our bonds with each other. It is not one of the distinguishing characteristics of early monastic life. We are women and men for and with others, hearing both the cry of the . 0000000556 00000 n
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. Most online reference entries and articles do not have page numbers. In addition to the MLA, Chicago, and APA styles, your school, university, publication, or institution may have its own requirements for citations. It strives to answer questions about the meaning of life, how people are connected to each other, truths about the universe, and other mysteries of human existence. St. Benedict lived in the 6 th century. For most of us, though, stability can have a figurative element beyond our experience with a [], 2023 Benedictine Center of St. Pauls Monastery, Core Values: Benedictine Spirituality (Part 1 of 3), Prayer and Community: Benedictine Spirituality (Part 2 of 3) - Benedictine Center, Lectio Divina and Preferring Christ: Benedictine Spirituality (Part 3 of 3) - Benedictine Center, My Day with the Sacred Fire | Benedictine Center, Saturated with Peace: Experiencing Personal Retreat | Benedictine Center, Wholehearted Living as the Lamed Vav | Benedictine Center, Practicing Sustained Lectio Divina | Benedictine Center, What Discernment Means to Me | Benedictine Center, Sabbath: Well-being, Not Endless Work | Benedictine Center, Moderation and Rhythm: A Benedictine Help Against Social Isolation | Benedictine Center, Stability: The Benedictine Value of Locatedness | Benedictine Center, The Erector Set: Adapting to Others | Benedictine Center, Sharper: Benedict's Tools for Good Works | Benedictine Center, The Benedictine Commitment to Learning | Benedictine Center, We Dare To Hope (Part 1 of 2) | Benedictine Center, We Dare To Hope (Part 2 of 2) | Benedictine Center, Life, A Continuous Advent | Benedictine Center, Rooted in Love: My Sustained Lectio Divina | Benedictine Center, Just Wave: Following that Holy Nudge | Benedictine Center. (f`eav The Prologue through RB 7 are a foundational primer; RB 8-20 speak of liturgical prayer; RB 20-67 include teachings for the common life; and RB 68-72 offer a theology of monastic life with an emphasis on love (Prayer and Community: The Benedictine Tradition. Benedictine hospitality requires us to moderate our own views and voices, and in this day and age, as in all ages, moderation is supremely radical. For most Oblates. Humility helps be more authentically, beautifully, and lovingly human. Cultivating awareness of God is important for all who seek a meaningful spirituality. St. Benedicts chapter on humility is one of the longest in the Rule. Benedictine Spirituality - also known as Monastic Spirituality. (61.6). Here are some of the characteristics of Benedictine spirituality: For Benedict, the spiritual life was about listening to Godthrough prayer, Scriptures, the depths of our own experience, through listening to others in our community and the wider church. Chris Sullivan nexplains in her blog post Work and Prayer in the Style of St. Benedict for Loyala Press. 0000001968 00000 n
In a blog hosted by Holy Wisdom Monastery of Madison, Wisconsin, Lynne Smith, OSB, The website of Subiaco Abbey in Arkansas tells us, Modern monks like to point out that first word in the Rule is to Listen,, This article explains that silence is healthy, Monsignor Charles Pope seems to be saying in the blog post, A Reflection On the Benedictine Vow of Stability, ways for those of us who do not live in a monastery to embrace stability, The Friends of St. Benedict website says The, offers people a plan for living a balanced, simple, and prayerful life., Joan Chittister puts it, Benedictine practices build a spirituality that will enable us to go on beyond disappointment, beyond boredom, beyond criticism, beyond loss., the monks and oblates of Saint Meinrad Archabbley, in this post on Environmental Stewardship on the blog. Are you a thoughtful reader (and maybe even a writer) who seeks a peaceful, just, spiritual approach to life? For vowed monastics, stability is literala long-term commitment to a specific place and community. He did not intend to impose uniformity; he foresaw and intended diversity and reserved to each monastery the possibility of adapting the rule's prescriptions to various circumstances, provided the essential values of monasticism were safeguarded. We are no more self-sufficient than the poor whose dependence on the service of others cant be hidden. The Rule of Benedict teaches that Monastics should serve one another (35:1). It sets up a framework of life, an institution, of which the essential and constitutive elements are firmly determined: life in common under the government of a superior called an abbot, who has the help of a prior and other officials and takes counsel of the whole assembly of monks, even the youngest in the community. 0000005209 00000 n
Humility demands that the monk take God seriously, that he take others seriously, but that he never take himself too seriously. 6 Characteristics Of Benedictine Spirituality . endstream
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