Chapter 18: The order for reciting the psalms (paragraphs 1-2)

Each hour begins with following verse: O God come to my assistance, O Lord make haste to help me. (From para. 1 of Ch. 18 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry OSB, 1997.)

How wonderful and curious that Benedict begins each hour with the same psalm verse that Cassian earlier recommended as a formula for continuous prayer. And for John Main, Cassian's recommendation of a formula became the key to Fr. John's recovering the Christian tradition of the mantra. The psalmist, Cassian, St. Benedict and John Main all point me toward a way of selfless growth.