Chapter 73: This Rule is only a beginning

We, however, can only blush with shame when we reflect on the negligence and inadequacy of the monastic lives we lead. (From para. 1 of Ch. 73 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

I think my negligence and inadequacy would cause me to give up, if I hadn't experienced, over time, the grace of finding God hidden within my weaknesses.  Surely this grace must be one of the fruits of meditation.

Chapter 72: The good spirit which should inspire monastic life

But equally there is a good spirit which frees us from evil ways and brings us closer to God and eternal life. (From para. 1 of Ch. 72 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

The experience of zealousness can mislead me. But if I'm willing I can tell the difference between compulsion and the "good spirit".  I know the good spirit by the quality of freedom and closeness to God it brings.

Chapter 71: Mutual obedience in the monastery

Any monk or nun who is corrected for anything by abbot or abbess or one of the seniors and perceives that the senior is upset by feelings of anger, even though they may be well in control, then that junior should at once prostrate on the ground in contrition and not move until the senior gives a blessing which will heal the upset. (From Ch. 71 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

Too often I get caught up in proving a point about who's right or wrong. What matters is being kind to each other, and moving on.

Chapter 70: The offence of striking another

Every occasion for presumptuous behaviour in a monastery must be avoided, so we insist that no one in the community may excommunicate or strike another unless given the power to do so by the superior. (From Ch. 70 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

Presumptiveness and the desire to control flare from my ego. But my spirit moves tenderly.

Chapter 69: No one should act as advocate for another

Great care must be taken to avoid any tendency for one of the community to take the side of and try to protect another, even though they may be closely related through ties of blood. (From Ch. 69 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

I can't change another person, nor should I try to protect another from the inward growth he or she needs to do. But I can respect the conditions needed for growth.

Chapter 68: The response to orders that seem impossible

If the superior after listening to this submission still insists on the original command, then the junior must accept that it is the right thing and with loving confidence in the help of God obey. (From Ch. 68 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. By Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

In facing an impossible situation, obedience seems very much like faith to me.  I learn both in trusting the mantra to lead me to find God in my weak and vulnerable places.

Chapter 67: Those who are sent on a journey

Those who are sent on a journey should commend themselves to the prayers of the community as well as of the superior and, at the last prayer of the work of God in the oratory, there should always be a memento of all who may be absent. (From Ch. 67 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. By Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.) 

The mantra, like a memento left in the oratory, guards my heart and always brings me back to my work of seeking God.

Chapter 66: The porter or portress of the monastery

At the entrance to the monastery there should be a wise senior who is too mature in stability to think of wandering about and who can deal with whatever help is required. (From para. 1 of Ch. 66 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. By Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

At the entrance to my heart is a mantra which can root me and guide me and radiate a stable, helpful presence to others.

Chapter 65: The prior or prioress of the monastery (paragraphs 2-3)

We have no doubt, therefore, that it is best in the interests of preserving peace and charity that the authority for the whole administration of the monastery should rest with the abbot or abbess. (From para. 2 of Ch. 65 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

I have no doubt, and know from my own experience, that it is best in the interests of preserving peace and charity that the authority for my whole being is rooted in the ground of my heart.

Chapter 65: The prior or prioress of the monastery (paragraph 1)

There have been instances when some of these officials have conceived out of an evil spirit of self-importance that they also are superiors and for that reasons have assumed the powers of a tyrant, so that they encourage scandalous divisions in the community. (From para. 1 of Ch. 65 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

My ego, liking to be "official", has conceived a spirit of self-importance and has divided more than integrated my being. The mantra brings me into the presence of true integration, true authority.

Chapter 64: The election of an abbot or abbess (paragraphs 3-4)

In correcting faults they must act with prudence being conscious of the danger of breaking the vessel itself by attacking the rust too vigourously. They should always bear their own frailty in mind and remember not to crush the bruised reed. (From para. 3 of Ch. 64 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

This is powerful imagery of the rust and the bruised reed -- I feel it in myself. Yet I also know from my own experience that hidden in the weakness, hidden in the wound, Christ tenderly waits for me to find him.

Chapter 64: The election of an abbot or abbess (paragraphs 1-2)

The grounds on which a candidate is elected abbot or abbess must be the quality of their monastic life and the wisdom of their teaching, even if they are last in order in the community. (From para. 1 of Ch. 64 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

The quality of alignment is what I think of when I read these words of Benedict's -- being aligned with the current of the Spirit which courses through me and guides my discernment.

Chapter 63: Community order (paragraphs 2-3)

In that way they will conform to scripture which says they should try to be the first to show respect for each other. (From para. 2 of Ch. 63 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

Benedict helps me to realize that when I greet another with sincere respect, I experience a largeness of being, a sense of being in good order.

Chapter 63: Community order (paragraph 1)

So, apart from those whom the superior has promoted for a more cogent reason or demoted for specific faults, all the others retain the order of their conversion to monastic life so exactly that one who arrived at the monastery door at the second hour must accept a place junior to another who came an hour earlier, whatever their age or former rank may have been. (From para. 1 of Ch. 63 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

This order created a radical social equality for Benedict's time. In my own life, order is created every time I convert, I turn again, to the presence of the Spirit dwelling within me.

Chapter 62: The priests of the monastery

When ordained a monk must be careful to avoid a spirit of self-importance or pride and he must avoid taking on himself any duties to which the abbot has not assigned him. (From para. 1 of Ch. 62 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

My ego likes to make me feel self-important and indispensable, but what's essential is a clear and humble vision of reality.

Chapter 61: Monastic pilgrims from far away (paragraphs 2-3)

It may even be right to persuade such a one to stay so that others may benefit and learn from such an example. (From para. 2 of Ch. 61 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

The simple things that can "make my day": receiving a kind look, a helping hand, an encouraging word. These small acts come from people it's good for me to have around; I want to be like them.

Chapter 61: Monastic pilgrims from far away (paragraphs 1-2)

It may happen, of course, that one of them may find something to point out in criticism about the customs of the monastery, using sound arguments in a spirit of charitable deference. In that case the superior should consider the whole questions with care and prudence in case it was for this very purpose that the pilgrim was sent by the Lord. (From para. 1 of Ch. 61 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

Listening with patience and kindness, with the ear of the heart, may reveal to me the Spirit ready to burst out with love and guidance, from the most unlikely places.

Chapter 60: The admission of priests into the monastery

If, however, he shows real perseverance in his request, he must understand that, if accepted, he will be bound to observe the full discipline of the Rule and may expect no relaxations. (From para. 1 of Ch. 60 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

Personal privilege isn't a very constructive attitude in family or community life. I need to discern carefully when I'm being called to be a leader, and then lead in a way that's humble and firm.

Chapter 59: Children offered by nobles or by the poor

Poor people may make the offering of a child in the same way. If they have no property at all, they simply write and offer the child with the document in the presence of witnesses. (From para. 3 of Ch. 59 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

I am poor, and the child I have to offer is myself, this day. I simply say my mantra in the witness of all creation.

Chapter 58: The reception of candidates for the community (paragraphs 4-5)

Before making their profession novices should give any possessions they may have either to the poor or to the monastery in a formal document keeping back for themselves nothing at all in the full knowledge that from that day they retain no power over anything -- not even over their own bodies. (From para. 5 of Ch. 58 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

Retaining no power over anything, controlling nothing even with my thoughts and fantasies -- this is the poverty of spirit that the mantra demands.

Chapter 57: Members of the community with creative gifts

If there are any in the community with creative gifts, they should use them in their workshops with proper humility, provided that the have the permission of the superior. (From para. 1 of Ch. 57 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

I think creative activity undertaken with true humility is prayer.

Chapter 57: Members of the community with creative gifts

If there are any in the community with creative gifts, they should use them in their workshops with proper humility, provided that the have the permission of the superior. (From para. 1 of Ch. 57 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

I think creative activity undertaken with true humility is prayer.

Chapter 56: The table for the superior and community guests

The superior's table should always be with the guests and pilgrims. (From Ch. 56 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

If I honor someone else, it could be because I hope to catch some reflected glory. Or, I can honor someone with humility, and with the deepest respect for their mystery. The more I plumb in prayer the mystery of my own existence, the more I can wonder at the mystery of another.

Chapter 55: Clothing and footwear for the community (paragraphs 3-5)

The superior ought to inspect the beds at regular intervals to see that private possessions are not being hoarded there. (From  para. 3 of Ch. 55 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

Hoarding is a function of my ego, and my ego hoards more than things.  Fidelity to the mantra allows the Spirit to inspect my soul, and this simplifies me.

Chapter 55: Clothing and footwear for the community (paragraphs 1-2)

The community must not be too sensitive about the colour and quality of this clothing; they should be content with what is available in the locality at a reasonable cost. However the superior should see to it that the garments are not short and ill-fitting but appropriate to the size and build of those who wear them. (From para. 1 of Chap. 55 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

What should be my concern with putting on garments? Certainly not a superficial individuality nor a possessiveness and accumulation. Rather, let me be simple, functional, grateful and kind in the choices I must make.  

Chapter 54: The reception of letters and gifts in the monastery

Then it will be for the superior, after agreeing to the reception of the gift, to decide who in the community should receive the gift and, if it is not the one to whom it was sent, that should not give rise to recriminations lest the devil be given an opportunity. (From Ch. 54 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

A generosity of spirit, an attention to the true needs of others, and a detachment from controlling or being controlled by things: All of this is a liberating message to me in the commercial chaos of Christmas.

Chapter 53: The reception of guests (paragraphs 5-6)

The kitchen to serve the superior together with the guests should be quite separate, so that guests, who are never lacking in a monastery, may not unsettle the community by arriving, as they do, at all times of the day. (From para. 5 of Ch. 53 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

I may not have two kitchens, but I have the grace of a discipline, the practice of meditation twice a day. Circumstances may require me to be flexible, and sometimes I may fail, but I have the stability of knowing what my practice is, so that I may always be grounded in it, always return to it.

Chapter 53: The reception of guests (paragraphs 1-4)

The greatest care should be taken to give a warm reception to the poor and to pilgrims, because it is in them above all others that Christ is welcomed. (From para. 4 of Ch. 53 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

What seems special to me about the poor and the pilgrims is a lack of pretense, a way of being that is transparent because of unencumbrance, because of seeking God before all else. The desire for this transparency burns within me.

Chapter 52: The oratory of the monastery

The oratory must be simply a place of prayer, as the name itself implies, and it must not be used for any other activities at all nor as a place for storage of any kind. (From Ch. 52 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

The mantra is a way of poverty; it leads to purity of heart.  It's a way of letting go of the emotional baggage that can cram my own inner room.

Chapter 51: Those on local errands or work

Any who are sent on an errand which will allow them to return to the monastery on the same day must not eat outside, in spite of pressing invitations whatever their source, unless the superior has approved this. (From Ch. 51 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

In the midst of many pressures which would take me off course, I thank God for the stability of the discipline of meditation.

Chapter 50: Those whose work takes them away from the monastery

Those whose work takes them some distance from the monastery so that they cannot manage to get to the oratory at the right times for prayer must kneel with profound reverence for the Lord and perform the work of God at their place of work. (From para. 1 of Ch. 50 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

I'm sensing an inward movement -- the work of God (meditation) and my places of work -- closing in on each other, becoming more continuous.