Founder of western monasticism.
St. Benedict of Nursia and The Holy Rule of
St. Benedict
Monastero di San Benedetto in Norcia
The Abbot who is worthy to be over a monastery, ought always
to be mindful of what he is called, and make his works square with his name of
Superior.
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Founder of western monasticism, born at Nursia, c. 480; died
at Monte Cassino,
543. The only authentic life of Benedict of Nursia is that contained in the
second book of St. Gregory's
"Dialogues". It is rather a character sketch than a biography and
consists, for the most part, of a number of miraculous incidents,
which, although they illustrate the life of the saint, give little help towards
a chronological account of his career. St. Gregory's authorities
for all that he relates were the saint's own disciples, viz. Constantinus, who
succeeded him as Abbot of Monte Cassino;
and Honoratus, who was Abbot of Subiaco when St. Gregory wrote his
"Dialogues".
Benedict was
the son of a Roman noble of Nursia, a small town near Spoleto, and a tradition,
which St. Bede accepts, makes him a twin with his sister Scholastica. His
boyhood was spent in Rome, where he lived with his parents and attended the
schools until he had reached his higher studies. Then "giving over his
books, and forsaking his father's house and wealth, with a mind only to serve God, he sought for some
place where he might attain to the desire of his holy purpose; and in this sort
he departed [from Rome], instructed with learned ignorance and furnished with
unlearned wisdom" (Dial. St. Greg., II, Introd. in Migne, P.L. LXVI).
There is much difference of opinion as to Benedict's age at the time. It has
been very generally stated as fourteen, but a careful examination of St. Gregory's narrative
makes it impossible to suppose him younger than nineteen or twenty. He was old
enough to be in the midst of his literary studies, to understand the real
meaning and worth of the dissolute and licentious lives of his companions, and
to have been deeply affected himself by the love of a woman (Ibid. II, 2). He
was capable of weighing all these things in comparison with the life taught in
the Gospels, and chose the latter, He was at the beginning of life, and he had
at his disposal the means to a career as a Roman noble; clearly he was not a
child, As St. Gregory
expresses it, "he was in the world and was free to enjoy the advantages
which the world offers, but drew back his foot which he had, as it were,
already set forth in the world" (ibid., Introd.). If we accept the date 480
for his birth, we may fix the date of his abandoning the schools and quitting
home at about A.D. 500.
Benedict does
not seem to have left Rome for the purpose of becoming a hermit, but only to
find some place away from the life of the great city; moreover, he took his old
nurse with him as a servant and they settled down to live in Enfide, near a
church dedicated to St. Peter, in some kind of association with "a company
of virtuous men" who were in sympathy with his feelings and his views of
life. Enfide, which the tradition of Subiaco identifies with the modern Affile,
is in the Simbrucini mountains, about forty miles from Rome and two from
Subiaco. It stands on the crest of a ridge which rises rapidly from the valley
to the higher range of mountains, and seen from the lower ground the village
has the appearance of a fortress. As St. Gregory's account
indicates, and as is confirmed by the remains of the old town and by the
inscriptions found in the neighbourhood, Enfide was a place of greater
importance than is the present town. At Enfide Benedict worked his first miracle by restoring to
perfect condition an earthenware wheat-sifter (capisterium) which his old servant had
accidentally broken. The notoriety which this miracle brought upon
Benedict drove him to escape still farther from social life, and "he fled
secretly from his nurse and sought the more retired district of Subiaco".
His purpose of life had also been modified. He had fled Rome to escape the
evils of a great city; he now determined to be poor and to live by his own
work. "For God's
sake he deliberately chose the hardships of life and the weariness of
labour" (ibid., 1).
A short
distance from Enfide is the entrance to a narrow, gloomy valley, penetrating
the mountains and leading directly to Subiaco. Crossing the Anio and turning to
the right, the path rises along the left face oft the ravine and soon reaches
the site of Nero's villa and of the huge mole which formed the lower end of the
middle lake; across the valley were ruins of the Roman baths, of which a few great
arches and detached masses of wall still stand. Rising from the mole upon
twenty five low arches, the foundations of which can even yet be traced, was
the bridge from the villa to the baths, under which the waters of the middle
lake poured in a wide fall into the lake below. The ruins of these vast
buildings and the wide sheet of falling water closed up the entrance of the
valley to St. Benedict as he came from Enfide; to-day the narrow valley lies
open before us, closed only by the far off mountains. The path continues to
ascend, and the side of the ravine, on which it runs, becomes steeper, until we
reach a cave above which the mountain now rises almost perpendicularly; while
on the right hand it strikes in a rapid descent down to where, in St. Benedict's
day, five hundred feet below, lay the blue waters of the lake. The cave has a
large triangular-shaped opening and is about ten feet deep. On his way from
Enfide, Benedict met a monk, Romanus, whose monastery was on the mountain above
the cliff overhanging the cave. Romanus had discussed with Benedict the purpose
which had brought him to Subiaco, and had given him the monk's habit. By his
advice Benedict became a hermit and for three years, unknown to men, lived in
this cave above the lake. St. Gregory
tells us little of these years, He now speaks of Benedict no longer as a youth
(puer), but as a
man (vir) of God. Romanus, he twice
tells us, served the saint in every way he could. The monk apparently visited
him frequently, and on fixed days brought him food.
During these
three years of solitude, broken only by occasional communications with the
outer world and by the visits of Romanus, he matured both in mind and
character, in knowledge of himself and of his fellow-man, and at the same time
he became not merely known to, but secured the respect of, those about him; so
much so that on the death of the abbot of a monastery in the neighbourhood
(identified by some with Vicovaro), the community came to him and begged him to
become its abbot. Benedict was acquainted with the life and discipline of the
monastery, and knew that "their manners were diverse from his and
therefore that they would never agree together: yet, at length, overcome with
their entreaty, he gave his consent" (ibid., 3). The experiment failed;
the monks tried to poison him, and he returned to his cave. From this time his miracles seen to have
become frequent, and many people, attracted by his sanctity and character, came
to Subiaco to be under his guidance. For them he built in the valley twelve
monasteries, in each of which he placed a superior with twelve monks. In a thirteenth
he lived with "a few, such as he thought would more profit and be better
instructed by his own presence" (ibid., 3). He remained, however, the
father or abbot of all. With the establishment of these monasteries began the
schools for children; and amongst the first to be brought were Maurus and
Placid.
The remainder
of St. Benedict's life was spent in realizing the ideal of monasticism which he
has left us drawn out in his Rule, and before we follow the slight
chronological story given by St. Gregory, it will be
better to examine the ideal, which, as St. Gregory says, is St.
Benedict's real biography (ibid., 36). We will deal here with the Rule only so
far as it is an element in St. Benedict's life. For the relations which it bore
to the monasticism of previous centuries, and for its influence throughout the
West on civil and religious government, and upon the spiritual life of Christians, the reader is
referred to the articles MONASTICISM and BENEDICT, SAINT, RULE OF.
THE
BENEDICTINE RULE
1. Before studying St. Benedict's Rule it is necessary to
point out that it is written for laymen, not for clerics. The saint's purpose
was not to institute an order of clerics with clerical duties and offices, but
an organization and a set of rules for the domestic life of such laymen as
wished to live as fully as possible the type of life presented in the Gospel.
"My words", he says, "are addressed to thee, whoever thou art,
that, renouncing thine own will, dost put on the strong and bright armour of
obedience in order to fight for the Lord Christ, our true King." (Prol. to
Rule.) Later, the Church imposed the clerical state upon Benedictines, and with
the state came a preponderance of clerical and sacerdotal duties, but the
impress of the lay origin of the Benedictines has remained, and is perhaps the
source of some of the characteristics which mark them off from later orders.
2. Another
characteristic feature of the saint's Rule is its view of work. His so-called
order was not established to carry on any particular work or to meet any
special special crisis in the Church, as has been the case with other orders.
With Benedict the work of his monks was only a means to goodness of life. The
great disciplinary force for human nature is work; idleness is its ruin. The
purpose of his Rule was to bring men "back to God by the labour of
obedience, from whom they had departed by the idleness of disobedience".
Work was the first condition of all growth in goodness. It was in order that
his own life might be "wearied with labours for God's sake" that St.
Benedict left Enfide for the cave at Subiaco. It is necessary, comments St. Gregory, that God's elect should at the
beginning, when life and temptations are strong are strong in them, "be
wearied with labour and pains". In the regeneration of human nature in the
order of discipline, even prayer comes after work, for grace meets with no
co-operation in the soul and heart of an idler. When the Goth "gave over
the world" and went to Subiaco, St. Benedict gave him a bill-hook and set
him to clear away briars for the making of a garden. "Ecce!
labora!" go and
work. Work is not, as the civilization of the time taught, the condition
peculiar to slaves; it is the universal lot of man, necessary for his
well-being as a man, and essential for him as a Christian.
3. The religious
life, as conceived by St. Benedict is essentially social. Life apart from one's
fellows, the life of a hermit, if it is to be wholesome and sane, is possible
only for a few, and these few must have reached an advanced stage of
self-discipline while living with others (Rule, 1). The Rule, therefore, is
entirely occupied with regulating the life of a community of men who live and
work and pray and eat together, and this is not merely for a course of
training, but as a permanent element of life at its best. The Rule conceives
the superiors as always present and in constant touch with every member of the
government, which is best described as patriarchal, or paternal (ibid., 2, 3,
64). The superior is the head of a family; all are the permanent members of a household.
Hence, too, much of the spiritual teaching of the Rule is concealed under
legislation which seems purely social and domestic organization (ibid. 22-23,
35-41). So intimately connected with domestic life is the whole framework and
teaching of the Rule that a Benedictine may be more truly said to enter or join
a particular household than to join an order. The social character of
Benedictine life has found expression in a fixed type for monasteries and in
the kind of works which Benedictines undertake, and it is secured by an
absolute communism in possessions (ibid. 33, 34, 54, 55), by the rigorous
suppression of all differences of worldly rank - "no one of noble birth
may [for that reason] be put before him that was formerly a slave" (ibid.
2). and by the enforced presence of everyone at the routine duties of the
household.
4. Although
private ownership is most strictly forbidden by the Rule, it was no part of St.
Benedict's conception of monastic life that his monks, as a body, should strip
themselves of all wealth and live upon the alms of the charitable; rather his
purpose was to restrict the requirements of the individual to what was
necessary and simple, and to secure that the use and administration of the
corporate possessions should be in strict accord with the teaching of the
Gospel. The Benedictine ideal of poverty is quite different from the
Franciscan. The Benedictine takes no explicit vow of poverty; he only vows
obedience according to the Rule. The rule allows all that is necessary to each
individual, together with sufficient and varied clothing, abundant food
(excluding only the flesh of quadrupeds), wine and ample sleep (ibid., 39, 40,
41, 55). Possessions could be held in common, they might be large, but they
were to be administered for the furtherance of the work of the community and
for the benefit of others. While the individual monk was poor, the monastery
was to be in a position to give alms, not to be compelled to seek them. It was
to relieve the poor, to clothe the naked, to visit the sick, to bury the dead,
to help the afflicted (ibid., 4), to entertain all strangers (ibid., 3). The
poor came to Benedict to get help to pay their debts (Dial. St. Greg., 27);
they came for food (ibid., 21, 28).
5. St. Benedict
originated a form of government which is deserving of study. It is contained in
chapters 2, 3, 31, 64, 65 of the Rule and in certain pregnant phrases scattered
through other chapters. As with the Rule itself, so also his scheme of
government is intended not for an order but for a single community. He
presupposes that the community have bound themselves, by their promise of
stability, to spend their lives together under the Rule. The superior is then
elected by a free and universal suffrage. The government may be described as a monarchy,
with the Rule as its constitution. Within the four corners of the Rule
everything is left to the discretion of the abbot, the abuse of whose authority
is checked by religion (Rule, 2), by open debate with the community on all
important matters, and with its representative elders in smaller concerns
(ibid., 3). The reality of these checks upon the wilfulness of the ruler can be
appreciated only when it is remembered that ruler and community were bound
together for life, that all were inspired by the single purpose of carrying out
the conception of life taught in the Gospel, and that the relation of the
members of the community to one another and to the abbot, and of the abbot to
them, were elevated and spiritualized by a mysticism which set before itself
the acceptance of the teachings of the Sermon on the Mount as real and
work-a-day truths.
6. (a) When a Christian household, a
community, has been organized by the willing acceptance of its social duties
and responsibilities, by obedience to an authority, and, further, is under the
continuous discipline of work and self-denial, the next step in the
regeneration of its members in their return to God is prayer. The Rule
deals directly and explicitly only with public prayer. For this Benedict
assigns the Psalms and Canticles, with readings from the Scriptures and
Fathers. He devotes eleven chapters out of the seventy-three of his Rule to regulating
this public prayer, and it is characteristic of the freedom of his Rule and of
the "moderation" of the saint, that he concludes his very careful
directions by saying that if any superior does not like his arrangement he is
free to make another; this only he says he will insist on, that the whole
Psalter will be said in the course of a week. The practice of the holy Fathers,
he adds, was resolutely "to say in a single day what I pray we tepid monks
may get through in a whole week" (ibid., 18). On the other hand, he checks
indiscreet zeal by laying down the general rule "that prayer made in
common must always be short" (ibid., 20). It is very difficult to reduce
St. Benedict's teaching on prayer to a system, for this reason, that in his conception
of the Christian
character, prayer is coexistent with the whole life, and life is not complete
at any point unless penetrated by prayer. .
(b) The form of
prayer which thus covers the whole of our waking hours, St. Benedict calls the
first degree of humility. It consists in realizing the presence of God (ibid., 7). The first
step begins when the spiritual is joined to the merely human, or, as the saint
expresses it, it is the first step in a ladder, the rungs of which rest at one
end in the body and at the other in the soul. The ability to exercise this form
of prayer is fostered by that care of the "heart" on which the saint
so often insists; and the heart is saved from the dissipation that would result
from social intercourse by the habit of mind which sees in everyone Christ Himself. "Let
the sick be served in very deed as Christ Himself"
(ibid., 36). "Let all guests that come be received as Christ" (ibid., 53).
"Whether we be slaves or freemen, we are all one in Christ and bear an equal
rank in the service of Our Lord"
(ibid., 2).
(c) Secondly,
there is public prayer. This is short and is to be said at intervals, at night
and at seven distinct hours during the day, so that, when possible, there shall
be no great interval without a call to formal, vocal, prayer (ibid., 16). The
position which St. Benedict gave to public, common prayer can best be described
by saying that he established it as the centre of the common life to which he
bound his monks. It was the consecration, not only of the individual, but of
the whole community to God
by the oft-repeated daily public acts of faith. and of praise and adoration of
the Creator; and this public worship of God, the opus Dei, was to form the chief work of his
monks, and to be the source from which all other works took their inspiration,
their direction, and their strength.
(d) Lastly,
there is private prayer, for which the saint does not legislate. It follows
individual gifts - "If anyone wishes to pray in private, let him go
quietly into the oratory and pray, not with a loud voice, but with tears and
fervour of heart" (ibid., 52). "Our prayer ought to be short and with
purity of heart, except it be perchance prolonged by the inspiration of divine
grace" (ibid., 20). But if St. Benedict gives no further directions on
private prayer, it is because the whole condition and mode of life secured by
the Rule, and the character formed by its observance, lead naturally to the
higher states of prayer. As the Saint writes: "Whoever, therefore, thou
art that hastenest to thy heavenly country, fulfil by the help of Christ this
little Rule which we have written for beginners; and then at length thou shalt
arrive, under God's
protection, at the lofty summits of doctrine and virtue of which we have spoken
above" (ibid., 73). for guidance in these higher states the Saint refers
to the Fathers, Basil and Cassian.
From this short
examination of the Rule and its system of prayer, it will be obvious that to
describe the Benedictine as a contemplative order is misleading, if the word is
used in its modern technical sense as excluding active work; the
"contemplative" is a form of life framed for different circumstances
and with a different object from St. Benedict's. The Rule, including its system
of prayer and public psalmody, is meant for every class of mind and every
degree of learning. It is framed not only for the educated and for souls
advanced in perfection, but it organizes and directs a complete life which is adapted
for simple folk and for sinners, for the observance of the Commandments and for
the beginnings of goodness. "We have written this Rule", writes St.
Benedict, "that by observing it in monasteries, we may shew ourselves to
have some degree of goodness in life and a beginning of holiness. But for him
who would hasten to the perfection of religion, there are the teachings of the
holy Fathers, the following whereof bringeth a man to the height of
perfection" (ibid., 73). Before leaving the subject of prayer it will be
well to point out again that by ordering the public recitation and singing of
the Psalter, St. Benedict was not putting upon his monks a distinctly clerical
obligation. The Psalter was the common form of prayer of all Christians; we must not
read into his Rule characteristics which a later age and discipline have made
inseparable from the public recitation of the Divine Office.
We can now take
up again the story of Benedict's life. How long he remained at Subiaco we do
not know. Abbot Tosti conjectures it was until the year 529. Of these years St. Gregory is content to
tell no more than a few stories descriptive of the life of the monks, and of
the character and government of St. Benedict. The latter was making his first
attempt to realize in these twelve monasteries his conception of the monastic
life. We can fill in many of the details from the Rule. By his own experiment
and his knowledge of the history of monasticism the saint had learnt that the
regeneration of the individual, except in abnormal cases, is not reached by the
path of solitude, nor by that of austerity, but by the beaten path of man's
social instinct, with its necessary conditions of obedience and work; and that
neither the body nor the mind can be safely overstrained in the effort to avoid
evil (ibid., 64). Thus, at Subiaco we find no solitaries, no conventual
hermits, no great austerities, but men living together in organized communities
for the purpose of leading good lives, doing such work as came to their hand -
carrying water up the steep mountain-side, doing the other household work,
raising the twelve cloisters, clearing the ground, making gardens, teaching
children, preaching to the country people, reading and studying at least four
hours a day, receiving strangers, accepting and training new-comers, attending
the regular hours of prayer, reciting and chanting the Psalter. The life at
Subiaco and the character of St. Benedict attracted many to the new
monasteries, and their increasing numbers and growing influence came the
inevitable jealousy and persecution, which culminated with a vile attempt of a
neighboring priest to scandalize
the monks by an exhibition of naked women, dancing in the courtyard of the
saint's monastery (Dial. St. Greg., 8). To save his followers from further
persecution Benedict left Subiaco and went to Monte Cassino.
Upon the crest
of Monte Cassino
"there was an ancient chapel in which the foolish and simple country
people, according to the custom of the old Gentiles, worshipped the god Apollo.
Round about it likewise upon all sides there were woods for the service of devils, in which, even to
that very time, the mad multitude of infidels did offer most wicked sacrifice.
The man of God,
coming hither, feat in pieces the idol, overthrew the altar, set fire on the
woods and in the temple of Apollo built the oratory of St. Martin: and where
the altar of the same Apollo was, he made an oratory of St. John: and by his
continual preaching he brought the people dwelling in those parts to embrace
the faith of Christ" (ibid., 8). On this spot the saint built his
monastery. His experience at Subiaco had led him to alter his plans, and now,
instead of building several houses with a small community in each, he kept all
his monks in one monastery and provided for its government by appointing a
prior and deans (Rule, 65, 21). We find no trace in his Rule, which was most
probably written at Monte Cassino,
of the view which guided him when he built the twelve small monasteries at
Subiaco. The life which we have witnessed at Subiaco was renewed at Subiaco was
renewed at Monte Cassino,
but the change in the situation and local conditions brought a corresponding
modification in the work undertaken by the monks. Subiaco was a retired valley
away in the mountains and difficult of access; Cassino was on one of the great
highways to the south of Italy, and at no great distance from Capua. This
brought the monastery into more frequent communication with the outside world.
It soon became a centre of influence in a district in which there was a large
population, with several dioceses and other monasteries. Abbots came to see and
advise with Benedict. Men of all classes were frequent visitors, and he
numbered nobles and bishops among his intimate friends. There were nuns in the
neighbourhood whom the monks went to preach to and to teach. There was a
village nearby in which St. Benedict preached and made many converts (Dial. St.
Greg., 19). The monastery became the protector of the poor, their trustee
(ibid., 31). their refuge in sickness, in trial, in accidents, in want.
Thus during the
life of the saint we find what has ever since remained a characteristic feature
of Benedictine houses, i.e. the members take up any work which is adapted to
their peculiar circumstances, any work which may be dictated by their
necessities. Thus we find the Benedictines teaching in poor schools and in the
universities, practising the arts and following agriculture, undertaking the
care of souls, or devoting themselves wholly to study. No work is foreign to
the Benedictine, provided only it is compatible with living in community and
with the performance of the Divine Office. This freedom in the choice of work
was necessary in a Rule which was to be suited to all times and places, but it
was primarily the natural result of the which St. Benedict had in view, and
which he differs from the founders of later orders. These later had in view
some special work to which they wished their disciples to devote themselves;
St. Benedict's purpose was only to provide a Rule by which anyone might follow
the Gospel counsels, and live, and work and pray, and save his soul. St. Gregory's narrative of
the establishment of Monte Cassino
does little more for us than to supply disconnected incidents which illustrate
the daily life of the monastery. We gain only a few biographical facts. From Monte Cassino St. Benedict
founded another monastery near Terracina, on the coast, about forty miles
distant (ibid., 22). To the wisdom of long experience and to the mature virtues
of the saint, was now added the gift of prophecy, of which St. Gregory gives many
examples. Celebrated among these is the story of the visit of Totila, King of
the Goths, in the year 543, when the saint "rebuked him for his wicked
deeds, and in a few words told him all that should befall him, saying 'Much
wickedness do you daily commit, and many sins have you done: now at length give
over your sinful life. Into the city of Rome shall you enter, and over the sea
shall you pass: nine years shall you reign, and in the tenth shall you leave
this mortal life.' The king, hearing these things, was wonderfully afraid, and
desiring the holy man to commend him to God in his prayers he
departed: and from that time forward he was nothing so cruel as before he had
been. Not long after he went to Rome, sailed over into Sicily, and in the tenth
year of his reign he lost his kingdom together with his life." (ibid.,
15).
Totila's visit
to Monte Cassino in
543 is the only certain date we have in the saint's life. It must have occurred
when Benedict was advanced in age. Abbot Tosti, following others, puts the
saint's death in the same year. Just before his death we hear for the first time
of his sister Scholastica. "She had been dedicated from her infancy to Our Lord, and used to come
once a year to visit her brother. To whom the man of God went not far from the
gate to a place that did belong to the abbey, there to give her
entertainment" (ibid., 33). They met for the last time three days before
Scholastica's death, on a day "when the sky was so clear that no cloud was
to be seen". The sister begged her brother to stay the night, "but by
no persuasion would he agree unto that, saying that he might not by any means
tarry all night out of his abbey.... The nun receiving this denial of her
brother, joining her hands together, laid them on the table; and so bowing her
head upon them, she made her prayers to Almighty God, and lifting
her head from the table, there fell suddenly such a tempest of lightening and
thundering, and such abundance of rain, that neither venerable Bennet, nor the
monks that were with him, could put their head out of door" (ibid., 33).
Three days later, "Benedict beheld the soul of his sister, which was
departed from her body, in the likeness of a dove, to ascend into heaven: who
rejoicing much to see her great glory, with hymns and lauds gave thanks to Almighty God, and did
impart news of this her death to his monks whom also he sent presently to bring
her corpse to his abbey, to have it buried in that grave which he had provided
for himself" (ibid., 34).
It would seem
to have been about this time that St. Benedict had that wonderful vision in
which he came as near to seeing God as is possible for man
in this life. St. Gregory
and St. Bonaventure say that Benedict saw God and in that vision of God saw the whole world.
St. Thomas will not allow that this could have been. Urban VIII, however, does
not hesitate to say that "the saint merited while still in this mortal
life, to see God
Himself and in God
all that is below him". If he did not see the Creator, he saw the light
which is in the Creator, and in that light, as St. Gregory says,
"saw the whole world gathered together as it were under on beam of the
sun. At the same time he saw the soul of Germanus, Bishop of Capua, in a fiery
globe carried up by the angels
to Heaven" (ibid., 35). Once more the hidden things of God were shown to him, and
he warned his brethren, both "those that lived daily with him and those
that dwelt far off" of his approaching death. "Six days before he
left this world he gave orders to have his sepulchre opened, and forthwith
falling into an ague, he began with burning heat to wax faint; and when as the
sickness daily increased, upon the sixth day he commanded his monks to carry
him into the oratory, where he did arm himself receiving the Body and Blood of our Saviour Christ;
and having his weak body holden up betwixt the hands of his disciples, he stood
with his own hands lifted up to heaven; and as he was in that manner praying,
he gave up the ghost" (ibid., 37). He was buried in the same grave with
his sister "in the oratory of St. John the Baptist, which [he] himself had
built when he overthrew the altar of Apollo" (ibid.). There is some doubt
whether the relics
of the saint are still at Monte Cassino,
or whether they were moved in the seventh century to Fleury. Abbot Tosti in his
life of St. Benedict, discusses the question at length (chap. xi) and decides
the controversy in favour of Monte Cassino.
Perhaps the
most striking characteristics in St. Benedict are his deep and wide human
feeling and his moderation. The former reveals itself in the many anecdotes
recorded by St. Gregory.
We see it in his sympathy and care for the simplest of his monks; his hastening
to the help of the poor Goth who had lot his bill-hook; spending the hours of
the night in prayer on the mountain to save his monks the labour of carrying
water, and to remove from their lives a "just cause of grumbling";
staying three days in a monastery to help to induce one of the monks to
"remain quietly at his prayers as the other monks did", instead of
going forth from the chapel and wandering about "busying himself worldly
and transitory things". He lets the crow from the neighboring woods come
daily when all are at dinner to be fed by himself. His mind is always with
those who are absent; sitting in his cell he knows that Placid is fallen into
the lake; he foresees the accident to the builders and sends a warning to them;
in spirit and some kind of real presence he is with the monks "eating and
refreshing themselves" on their journey, with his friend Valentinian on
his way to the monastery, with the monk taking a present from the nuns, with
the new community in Terracina. Throughout St. Gregory's narrative he
is always the same quiet, gentle, dignified, strong, peace-loving man who by
the subtle power of sympathy becomes the centre of the lives and interests of
all about him. We see him with his monks in the church, at their reading,
sometimes in the fields, but more commonly in his cell, where frequent
messengers find him "weeping silently in his prayers", and in the
night hours standing at "the window of his cell in the tower, offering up
his prayers to God";
and often, as Totila found him, sitting outside the door of his cell, or
"before the gate of the monastery reading a book". He has given his
own portrait in his ideal picture of an abbot (Rule, 64):
It beseemeth the abbot to be ever doing
some good for his brethren rather than to be presiding over them. He must,
therefore, be learned in the law of God, that he may know
whence to bring forth things new and old; he must be chaste, sober, and
merciful, ever preferring mercy to justice, that he himself may obtain mercy.
Let him hate sin and love the brethren. And even in his corrections, let him
act with prudence, and not go too far, lest while he seeketh too eagerly to
scrape off the rust, the vessel be broken. Let him keep his own frailty ever
before his eyes, and remember that the bruised reed must not be broken. And by
this we do not mean that he should suffer vices to grow up; but that prudently
and with charity he should cut them off, in the way he shall see best for each,
as we have already said; and let him study rather to be loved than feared. Let
him not be violent nor over anxious, not exacting nor obstinate, not jealous
nor prone to suspicion, or else he will never be at rest. In all his commands,
whether spiritual or temporal, let him be prudent and considerate. In the works
which he imposeth let him be discreet and moderate, bearing in mind the
discretion of holy Jacob, when he said: 'If I cause my flocks to be overdriven,
they will all perish in one day'. Taking, then, such testimonies as are borne
by these and the like words to discretion, the mother of virtues, let him so
temper all things, that the strong may have something to strive after, and the
weak nothing at which to take alarm.
The 1949
Edition
Translated by
Rev. Boniface Verheyen, OSB
of St.
Benedict's Abbey,
Atchison, Kansas
Electronic text (with added scripture references)
prepared by Br.
Boniface Butterworth, OSB
Used By
Permission
CONTENTS
Chapter 1: Of the Kinds or
the Life of Monks
Chapter 2: What Kind of Man
the Abbot Ought to Be
Chapter 3: Of Calling the
Brethren for Counsel
Chapter 4: The Instruments
of Good Works
Chapter 5: Of Obedience
Chapter 6: Of Silence
Chapter 7: Of Humility
Chapter 8: Of the Divine
Office during the Night
Chapter 9: How Many Psalms
Are to Be Said at the Night Office
Chapter 10: How the Office
Is to Be Said during the Summer Season
Chapter 11: How the Night
Office Is to Be Said on Sundays
Chapter 12: How Lauds Are to
Be Said
Chapter 13: How Lauds Are to
Be Said on Week Days
Chapter 14: How the Night
Office Is to Be Said on the Feasts of the Saints
Chapter 15: At What Times
the Alleluia Is to Be Said
Chapter 16: How the Work of
God Is to Be Performed during the Day
Chapter 17: How Many Psalms
Are to Be Sung at These Hours
Chapter 18: In What Order
the Psalms Are to Be Said
Chapter 19: Of the Manner of
Reciting the Psalter
Chapter 20: Of Reverence at
Prayer
Chapter 21: Of the Deans of
the Monastery
Chapter 22: How the Monks
Are to Sleep
Chapter 23: Of
Excommunication for Faults
Chapter 24: What the Manner
of Excommunication Should Be
Chapter 25: Of Graver Faults
Chapter 26: Of Those Who
without the Command of the Abbot Associate with the Excommunicated
Chapter 27: How Concerned
the Abbot Should Be about the Excommunicated
Chapter 28: Of Those Who
Having Often Been Corrected Do Not Amend
Chapter 29: Whether Brethren
Who Leave the Monastery Ought to Be Received Again
Chapter 30: How Young Boys
Are to Be Corrected
Chapter 31: The Kind of Man
the Cellarer of the Monastery Ought to Be
Chapter 32: Of the Tools and
Goods of the Monastery
Chapter 33: Whether Monks
Ought to Have Anything of Their Own
Chapter 34: Whether All
Should Receive in Equal Measure What Is Necessary
Chapter 35: Of the Weekly
Servers in the Kitchen
Chapter 36: Of the Sick
Brethren
Chapter 37: Of the Aged and
Children
Chapter 38: Of the Weekly
Reader
Chapter 39: Of the Quantity
of Food
Chapter 40: Of the Quantity
of Drink
Chapter 41: At What Times the
Brethren Should Take Their Refection
Chapter 42: That No One
Speak after Complin
Chapter 43: Of Those Who Are
Tardy in Coming to the Work of God or to Table
Chapter 44: Of Those Who Are
Excommunicated -- How They Make Satisfaction
Chapter 45: Of Those Who
Commit a Fault in the Oratory
Chapter 46: Of Those Who
Fail in Any Other Matters
Chapter 47: Of Giving the
Signal for the Time of the Work of God
Chapter 48: Of the Daily
Work
Chapter 49: On the Keeping
of Lent
Chapter 50: Of the Brethren
Who Work a Long Distance form the Oratory or Are on a Journey
Chapter 51: Of the Brethren
Who Do Not Go Very Far Away
Chapter 52: Of the Oratory
of the Monastery
Chapter 53: Of the Reception
of Guests
Chapter 54: Whether a Monk
Should Receive Letters or Anything Else
Chapter 55: Of the Clothing
and the Footgear of the Brethren
Chapter 56: Of the Abbot's
Table
Chapter 57: Of the Artists
of the Monastery
Chapter 58: Of the Manner of
Admitting Brethren
Chapter 59: Of the Children
of the Noble and of the Poor Who Are Offered
Chapter 60: Of Priests Who
May Wish to Live in the Monastery
Chapter 61: How Stranger
Monks Are to Be Received
Chapter 62: Of the Priests
of the Monastery
Chapter 63: Of the Order in
the Monastery
Chapter 64: Of the Election
of the Abbot
Chapter 65: Of the Prior of
the Monastery
Chapter 66: Of the Porter of
the Monastery
Chapter 67: Of the Brethren
Who Are Sent on a Journey
Chapter 68: If a Brother is
Commanded to Do Impossible Things
Chapter 69: That in the
Monastery No One Presume to Defend Another
Chapter 70: That No One
Presume to Strike Another
Chapter 71: That the
Brethren be Obedient to One Another
Chapter 72: Of the Virtuous
Zeal Which the Monks Ought to Have
Chapter 73: Of This, that
Not the Whole Observance of Righteousness is Laid Down in this Rule
Listen, O my son, to the precepts of thy master, and incline
the ear of thy heart, and cheerfully receive and faithfully execute the
admonitions of thy loving Father, that by the toil of obedience thou mayest
return to Him from whom by the sloth of disobedience thou hast gone away.
To thee, therefore, my speech is now directed, who, giving
up thine own will, takest up the strong and most excellent arms of obedience,
to do battle for Christ the Lord, the true King.
In the first place, beg of Him by most earnest prayer, that
He perfect whatever good thou dost begin, in order that He who hath been
pleased to count us in the number of His children, need never be grieved at our
evil deeds. For we ought at all times so to serve Him with the good things
which He hath given us, that He may not, like an angry father, disinherit his
children, nor, like a dread lord, enraged at our evil deeds, hand us over to
everlasting punishment as most wicked servants, who would not follow Him to
glory.
Let us then rise at length, since the Scripture arouseth us,
saying: "It is now the hour for us to rise from sleep" (Rom 13:11);
and having opened our eyes to the deifying light, let us hear with awestruck
ears what the divine voice, crying out daily, doth admonish us, saying:
"Today, if you shall hear his voice, harden not your hearts" (Ps
94[95]:8). And again: "He that hath ears to hear let him hear what the
Spirit saith to the churches" (Rev 2:7). And what doth He say? --
"Come, children, hearken unto me, I will teach you the fear of the
Lord" (Ps 33[34]:12). "Run whilst you have the light of life, that
the darkness of death overtake you not" (Jn 12:35).
And the Lord seeking His workman in the multitude of the
people, to whom He proclaimeth these words, saith again: "Who is the man
that desireth life and loveth to see good days" (Ps 33[34]:13)? If hearing
this thou answerest, "I am he," God saith to thee: "If thou wilt
have true and everlasting life, keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips from
speaking guile; turn away from evil and do good; seek after peace and pursue
it" (Ps 33[34]:14-15). And when you shall have done these things, my eyes
shall be upon you, and my ears unto your prayers. And before you shall call
upon me I will say: "Behold, I am here" (Is 58:9).
What, dearest brethren, can be sweeter to us than this voice
of the Lord inviting us? See, in His loving kindness, the Lord showeth us the
way of life. Therefore, having our loins girt with faith and the performance of
good works, let us walk His ways under the guidance of the Gospel, that we may
be found worthy of seeing Him who hath called us to His kingdom (cf 1 Thes
2:12).
If we desire to dwell in the tabernacle of His kingdom, we
cannot reach it in any way, unless we run thither by good works. But let us ask
the Lord with the Prophet, saying to Him: "Lord, who shall dwell in Thy
tabernacle, or who shall rest in Thy holy hill" (Ps 14[15]:1)?
After this question, brethren, let us listen to the Lord
answering and showing us the way to this tabernacle, saying: "He that
walketh without blemish and worketh justice; he that speaketh truth in his
heart; who hath not used deceit in his tongue, nor hath done evil to his
neighbor, nor hath taken up a reproach against his neighbor" (Ps
14[15]:2-3), who hath brought to naught the foul demon tempting him, casting
him out of his heart with his temptation, and hath taken his evil thoughts
whilst they were yet weak and hath dashed them against Christ (cf Ps 14[15]:4;
Ps 136[137]:9); who fearing the Lord are not puffed up by their goodness of
life, but holding that the actual good which is in them cannot be done by
themselves, but by the Lord, they praise the Lord working in them (cf Ps
14[15]:4), saying with the Prophet: "Not to us, O Lord, not to us; by to
Thy name give glory" (Ps 113[115:1]:9). Thus also the Apostle Paul hath
not taken to himself any credit for his preaching, saying: "By the grace
of God, I am what I am" (1 Cor 15:10). And again he saith: "He that
glorieth, let him glory in the Lord" (2 Cor 10:17).
Hence, the Lord also saith in the Gospel: "He that
heareth these my words and doeth them, shall be likened to a wise man who built
his house upon a rock; the floods came, the winds blew, and they beat upon that
house, and it fell not, for it was founded on a rock" (Mt 7:24-25). The
Lord fulfilling these words waiteth for us from day to day, that we respond to
His holy admonitions by our works. Therefore, our days are lengthened to a
truce for the amendment of the misdeeds of our present life; as the Apostle
saith: "Knowest thou not that the patience of God leadeth thee to penance"
(Rom 2:4)? For the good Lord saith: "I will not the death of the sinner,
but that he be converted and live" (Ezek 33:11).
Now, brethren, that we have asked the Lord who it is that
shall dwell in His tabernacle, we have heard the conditions for dwelling there;
and if we fulfil the duties of tenants, we shall be heirs of the kingdom of
heaven. Our hearts and our bodies must, therefore, be ready to do battle under
the biddings of holy obedience; and let us ask the Lord that He supply by the
help of His grace what is impossible to us by nature. And if, flying from the
pains of hell, we desire to reach life everlasting, then, while there is yet
time, and we are still in the flesh, and are able during the present life to
fulfil all these things, we must make haste to do now what will profit us
forever.
We are, therefore, about to found a school of the Lord's
service, in which we hope to introduce nothing harsh or burdensome. But even
if, to correct vices or to preserve charity, sound reason dictateth anything
that turneth out somewhat stringent, do not at once fly in dismay from the way
of salvation, the beginning of which cannot but be narrow. But as we advance in
the religious life and faith, we shall run the way of God's commandments with
expanded hearts and unspeakable sweetness of love; so that never departing from
His guidance and persevering in the monastery in His doctrine till death, we
may by patience share in the sufferings of Christ, and be found worthy to be
coheirs with Him of His kingdom.
Of the Kinds or the Life of Monks
It is well known that there are four kinds of monks. The
first kind is that of Cenobites, that is, the monastic, who live under a rule
and an Abbot.
The second kind is that of Anchorites, or Hermits, that is,
of those who, no longer in the first fervor of their conversion, but taught by
long monastic practice and the help of many brethren, have already learned to
fight against the devil; and going forth from the rank of their brethren well
trained for single combat in the desert, they are able, with the help of God,
to cope single-handed without the help of others, against the vices of the
flesh and evil thoughts.
But a third and most vile class of monks is that of
Sarabaites, who have been tried by no rule under the hand of a master, as gold
is tried in the fire (cf Prov 27:21); but, soft as lead, and still keeping
faith with the world by their works, they are known to belie God by their
tonsure. Living in two's and three's, or even singly, without a shepherd,
enclosed, not in the Lord's sheepfold, but in their own, the gratification of
their desires is law unto them; because what they choose to do they call holy,
but what they dislike they hold to be unlawful.
But the fourth class of monks is that called Landlopers, who
keep going their whole life long from one province to another, staying three or
four days at a time in different cells as guests. Always roving and never
settled, they indulge their passions and the cravings of their appetite, and
are in every way worse than the Sarabaites. It is better to pass all these over
in silence than to speak of their most wretched life.
Therefore, passing these over, let us go on with the help of
God to lay down a rule for that most valiant kind of monks, the Cenobites.
What Kind of Man the Abbot Ought to Be
The Abbot who is worthy to be over a monastery, ought always
to be mindful of what he is called, and make his works square with his name of
Superior. For he is believed to hold the place of Christ in the monastery, when
he is called by his name, according to the saying of the Apostle: "You
have received the spirit of adoption of sons, whereby we cry Abba (Father)" (Rom 8:15).
Therefore, the Abbot should never teach, prescribe, or command (which God
forbid) anything contrary to the laws of the Lord; but his commands and
teaching should be instilled like a leaven of divine justice into the minds of
his disciples.
Let the Abbot always bear in mind that he must give an
account in the dread judgment of God of both his own teaching and of the
obedience of his disciples. And let the Abbot know that whatever lack of profit
the master of the house shall find in the sheep, will be laid to the blame of
the shepherd. On the other hand he will be blameless, if he gave all a
shepherd's care to his restless and unruly flock, and took all pains to correct
their corrupt manners; so that their shepherd, acquitted at the Lord's judgment
seat, may say to the Lord with the Prophet: "I have not hid Thy justice
within my heart. I have declared Thy truth and Thy salvation" (Ps
39[40]:11). "But they contemning have despised me" (Is 1:2; Ezek 20:27).
Then at length eternal death will be the crushing doom of the rebellious sheep
under his charge.
When, therefore, anyone taketh the name of Abbot he should
govern his disciples by a twofold teaching; namely, he should show them all
that is good and holy by his deeds more than by his words; explain the
commandments of God to intelligent disciples by words, but show the divine
precepts to the dull and simple by his works. And let him show by his actions,
that whatever he teacheth his disciples as being contrary to the law of God
must not be done, "lest perhaps when he hath preached to others, he
himself should become a castaway" (1 Cor 9:27), and he himself committing
sin, God one day say to him: "Why dost thou declare My justices, and take
My covenant in thy mouth? But thou hast hated discipline, and hast cast My
words behind thee" (Ps 49[50]:16-17). And: "Thou who sawest the mote
in thy brother's eye, hast not seen the beam in thine own" (Mt 7:3).
Let him make no distinction of persons in the monastery. Let
him not love one more than another, unless it be one whom he findeth more
exemplary in good works and obedience. Let not a free-born be preferred to a
freedman, unless there be some other reasonable cause. But if from a just
reason the Abbot deemeth it proper to make such a distinction, he may do so in
regard to the rank of anyone whomsoever; otherwise let everyone keep his own
place; for whether bond or free, we are all one in Christ (cf Gal 3:28; Eph
6:8), and we all bear an equal burden of servitude under one Lord, "for
there is no respect of persons with God" (Rom 2:11). We are distinguished
with Him in this respect alone, if we are found to excel others in good works
and in humility. Therefore, let him have equal charity for all, and impose a
uniform discipline for all according to merit.
For in his teaching the Abbot should always observe that
principle of the Apostle in which he saith: "Reprove, entreat,
rebuke" (2 Tm 4:2), that is, mingling gentleness with severity, as the
occasion may call for, let him show the severity of the master and the loving
affection of a father. He must sternly rebuke the undisciplined and restless;
but he must exhort the obedient, meek, and patient to advance in virtue. But we
charge him to rebuke and punish the negligent and haughty. Let him not shut his
eyes to the sins of evil-doers; but on their first appearance let him do his
utmost to cut them out from the root at once, mindful of the fate of Heli, the
priest of Silo (cf 1 Sam 2:11-4:18). The well-disposed and those of good understanding,
let him correct at the first and second admonition only with words; but let him
chastise the wicked and the hard of heart, and the proud and disobedient at the
very first offense with stripes and other bodily punishments, knowing that it
is written: "The fool is not corrected with words" (Prov 29:19). And
again: "Strike thy son with the rod, and thou shalt deliver his soul from
death" (Prov 23:14).
The Abbot ought always to remember what he is and what he is
called, and to know that to whom much hath been entrusted, from him much will
be required; and let him understand what a difficult and arduous task he
assumeth in governing souls and accommodating himself to a variety of
characters. Let him so adjust and adapt himself to everyone -- to one gentleness
of speech, to another by reproofs, and to still another by entreaties, to each
one according to his bent and understanding -- that he not only suffer no loss
in his flock, but may rejoice in the increase of a worthy fold.
Above all things, that the Abbot may not neglect or
undervalue the welfare of the souls entrusted to him, let him not have too
great a concern about fleeting, earthly, perishable things; but let him always
consider that he hath undertaken the government of souls, of which he must give
an account. And that he may not perhaps complain of the want of earthly means,
let him remember what is written: "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and
His justice, and all these things shall be added unto you" (Mt 6:33). And
again: "There is no want to them that fear Him" (Ps 33[34]:10). And
let him know that he who undertaketh the government of souls must prepare
himself to give an account for them; and whatever the number of brethren he
hath under his charge, let him be sure that on judgment day he will, without
doubt, have to give an account to the Lord for all these souls, in addition to
that of his own. And thus, whilst he is in constant fear of the Shepherd's
future examination about the sheep entrusted to him, and is watchful of his
account for others, he is made solicitous also on his own account; and whilst
by his admonitions he had administered correction to others, he is freed from
his own failings.
Of Calling the Brethren for Counsel
Whenever weighty matters are to be transacted in the
monastery, let the Abbot call together the whole community, and make known the
matter which is to be considered. Having heard the brethren's views, let him
weigh the matter with himself and do what he thinketh best. It is for this
reason, however, we said that all should be called for counsel, because the
Lord often revealeth to the younger what is best. Let the brethren, however,
give their advice with humble submission, and let them not presume stubbornly
to defend what seemeth right to them, for it must depend rather on the Abbot's
will, so that all obey him in what he considereth best. But as it becometh
disciples to obey their master, so also it becometh the master to dispose all
things with prudence and justice. Therefore, let all follow the Rule as their
guide in everything, and let no one rashly depart from it.
Let no one in the monastery follow the bent of his own
heart, and let no one dare to dispute insolently with his Abbot, either inside
or outside the monastery. If any one dare to do so, let him be placed under the
correction of the Rule. Let the Abbot himself, however, do everything in the
fear of the Lord and out of reverence for the Rule, knowing that, beyond a
doubt, he will have to give an account to God, the most just Judge, for all his
rulings. If, however, matters of less importance, having to do with the welfare
of the monastery, are to be treated of, let him use the counsel of the Seniors
only, as it is written: "Do all things with counsel, and thou shalt not
repent when thou hast done" (Sir 32:24).
The Instruments of Good Works
(1) In the first place to love the Lord God with the whole
heart, the whole soul, the whole strength...
(2) Then, one's
neighbor as one's self (cf Mt 22:37-39; Mk 12:30-31; Lk 10:27).
(3) Then, not
to kill...
(4) Not to
commit adultery...
(5) Not to
steal...
(6) Not to
covet (cf Rom 13:9).
(7) Not to bear
false witness (cf Mt 19:18; Mk 10:19; Lk 18:20).
(8) To honor
all men (cf 1 Pt 2:17).
(9) And what
one would not have done to himself, not to do to another (cf Tob 4:16; Mt 7:12;
Lk 6:31).
(10) To deny
one's self in order to follow Christ (cf Mt 16:24; Lk 9:23).
(11) To
chastise the body (cf 1 Cor 9:27).
(12) Not to
seek after pleasures.
(13) To love
fasting.
(14) To relieve
the poor.
(15) To clothe
the naked...
(16) To visit
the sick (cf Mt 25:36).
(17) To bury
the dead.
(18) To help in
trouble.
(19) To console
the sorrowing.
(20) To hold
one's self aloof from worldly ways.
(21) To prefer
nothing to the love of Christ.
(22) Not to
give way to anger.
(23) Not to
foster a desire for revenge.
(24) Not to
entertain deceit in the heart.
(25) Not to
make a false peace.
(26) Not to
forsake charity.
(27) Not to
swear, lest perchance one swear falsely.
(28) To speak
the truth with heart and tongue.
(29) Not to
return evil for evil (cf 1 Thes 5:15; 1 Pt 3:9).
(30) To do no
injury, yea, even patiently to bear the injury done us.
(31) To love
one's enemies (cf Mt 5:44; Lk 6:27).
(32) Not to
curse them that curse us, but rather to bless them.
(33) To bear
persecution for justice sake (cf Mt 5:10).
(34) Not to be
proud...
(35) Not to be
given to wine (cf Ti 1:7; 1 Tm 3:3).
(36) Not to be
a great eater.
(37) Not to be
drowsy.
(38) Not to be
slothful (cf Rom 12:11).
(39) Not to be
a murmurer.
(40) Not to be
a detractor.
(41) To put
one's trust in God.
(42) To refer
what good one sees in himself, not to self, but to God.
(43) But as to
any evil in himself, let him be convinced that it is his own and charge it to
himself.
(44) To fear
the day of judgment.
(45) To be in
dread of hell.
(46) To desire
eternal life with all spiritual longing.
(47) To keep
death before one's eyes daily.
(48) To keep a
constant watch over the actions of our life.
(49) To hold as
certain that God sees us everywhere.
(50) To dash at
once against Christ the evil thoughts which rise in one's heart.
(51) And to
disclose them to our spiritual father.
(52) To guard
one's tongue against bad and wicked speech.
(53) Not to
love much speaking.
(54) Not to
speak useless words and such as provoke laughter.
(55) Not to
love much or boisterous laughter.
(56) To listen
willingly to holy reading.
(57) To apply
one's self often to prayer.
(58) To confess
one's past sins to God daily in prayer with sighs and tears, and to amend them
for the future.
(59) Not to
fulfil the desires of the flesh (cf Gal 5:16).
(60) To hate
one's own will.
(61) To obey
the commands of the Abbot in all things, even though he himself (which Heaven
forbid) act otherwise, mindful of that precept of the Lord: "What they
say, do ye; what they do, do ye not" (Mt 23:3).
(62) Not to
desire to be called holy before one is; but to be holy first, that one may be
truly so called.
(63) To fulfil
daily the commandments of God by works.
(64) To love
chastity.
(65) To hate no
one.
(66) Not to be
jealous; not to entertain envy.
(67) Not to
love strife.
(68) Not to love
pride.
(69) To honor
the aged.
(70) To love
the younger.
(71) To pray
for one's enemies in the love of Christ.
(72) To make
peace with an adversary before the setting of the sun.
(73) And never
to despair of God's mercy.
Behold, these are the instruments of the spiritual art,
which, if they have been applied without ceasing day and night and approved on
judgment day, will merit for us from the Lord that reward which He hath
promised: "The eye hath not seen, nor the ear heard, neither hath it entered
into the heart of man, what things God hath prepared for them that love
Him" (1 Cor 2:9). But the workshop in which we perform all these works
with diligence is the enclosure of the monastery, and stability in the
community.
Of Obedience
The first degree of humility is obedience without delay.
This becometh those who, on account of the holy subjection which they have
promised, or of the fear of hell, or the glory of life everlasting, hold
nothing dearer than Christ. As soon as anything hath been commanded by the
Superior they permit no delay in the execution, as if the matter had been
commanded by God Himself. Of these the Lord saith: "At the hearing of the
ear he hath obeyed Me" (Ps 17[18]:45). And again He saith to the teachers:
"He that heareth you heareth Me" (Lk 10:16).
Such as these, therefore, instantly quitting their own work
and giving up their own will, with hands disengaged, and leaving unfinished
what they were doing, follow up, with the ready step of obedience, the work of
command with deeds; and thus, as if in the same moment, both matters -- the
master's command and the disciple's finished work -- are, in the swiftness of
the fear of God, speedily finished together, whereunto the desire of advancing
to eternal life urgeth them. They, therefore, seize upon the narrow way whereof
the Lord saith: "Narrow is the way which leadeth to life" (Mt 7:14),
so that, not living according to their own desires and pleasures but walking
according to the judgment and will of another, they live in monasteries, and
desire an Abbot to be over them. Such as these truly live up to the maxim of
the Lord in which He saith: "I came not to do My own will, but the will of
Him that sent Me" (Jn 6:38).
This obedience, however, will be acceptable to God and
agreeable to men then only, if what is commanded is done without hesitation,
delay, lukewarmness, grumbling or complaint, because the obedience which is
rendered to Superiors is rendered to God. For He Himself hath said: "He
that heareth you heareth Me" (Lk 10:16). And it must be rendered by the
disciples with a good will, "for the Lord loveth a cheerful giver (2 Cor
9:7). " For if the disciple obeyeth with an ill will, and murmureth, not
only with lips but also in his heart, even though he fulfil the command, yet it
will not be acceptable to God, who regardeth the heart of the murmurer. And for
such an action he acquireth no reward; rather he incurreth the penalty of
murmurers, unless he maketh satisfactory amendment.
Of Silence
Let us do what the Prophet saith: "I said, I will take
heed of my ways, that I sin not with my tongue: I have set a guard to my mouth,
I was dumb, and was humbled, and kept silence even from good things" (Ps
38[39]:2-3). Here the prophet showeth that, if at times we ought to
refrain from useful speech for the sake of silence, how much more ought we to
abstain from evil words on account of the punishment due to sin.
Therefore, because of the importance of silence, let
permission to speak be seldom given to perfect disciples even for good and holy
and edifying discourse, for it is written: "In much talk thou shalt not
escape sin" (Prov 10:19). And elsewhere: "Death and life are in the
power of the tongue" (Prov 18:21). For it belongeth to the master to speak
and to teach; it becometh the disciple to be silent and to listen. If,
therefore, anything must be asked of the Superior, let it be asked with all humility
and respectful submission. But coarse jests, and idle words or speech provoking
laughter, we condemn everywhere to eternal exclusion; and for such speech we do
not permit the disciple to open his lips.
Of Humility
Brethren, the Holy Scripture crieth to us saying:
"Every one that exalteth himself shall be humbled; and he that humbleth
himself shall be exalted" (Lk 14:11; 18:14). Since, therefore, it saith
this, it showeth us that every exaltation is a kind of pride. The Prophet
declareth that he guardeth himself against this, saying: "Lord, my heart
is not puffed up; nor are my eyes haughty. Neither have I walked in great
matters nor in wonderful things above me" (Ps 130[131]:1). What then?
"If I was not humbly minded, but exalted my soul; as a child that is
weaned is towards his mother so shalt Thou reward my soul" (Ps
130[131]:2).
Hence, brethren, if we wish to reach the greatest height of
humility, and speedily to arrive at that heavenly exaltation to which ascent is
made in the present life by humility, then, mounting by our actions, we must
erect the ladder which appeared to Jacob in his dream, by means of which angels
were shown to him ascending and descending (cf Gen 28:12). Without a doubt, we
understand this ascending and descending to be nothing else but that we descend
by pride and ascend by humility. The erected ladder, however, is our life in
the present world, which, if the heart is humble, is by the Lord lifted up to
heaven. For we say that our body and our soul are the two sides of this ladder;
and into these sides the divine calling hath inserted various degrees of
humility or discipline which we must mount.
The first degree of humility, then, is that a man always
have the fear of God before his eyes (cf Ps 35[36]:2), shunning all
forgetfulness and that he be ever mindful of all that God hath commanded, that
he always considereth in his mind how those who despise God will burn in hell
for their sins, and that life everlasting is prepared for those who fear God.
And whilst he guardeth himself evermore against sin and vices of thought, word,
deed, and self-will, let him also hasten to cut off the desires of the flesh.
Let a man consider that God always seeth him from Heaven,
that the eye of God beholdeth his works everywhere, and that the angels report
them to Him every hour. The Prophet telleth us this when he showeth God thus
ever present in our thoughts, saying: "The searcher of hearts and reins is
God" (Ps 7:10). And again: "The Lord knoweth the thoughts of
men" (Ps 93[94]:11) And he saith: "Thou hast understood my thoughts
afar off" (Ps 138[139]:3). And: "The thoughts of man shall give
praise to Thee" (Ps 75[76]:11). Therefore, in order that he may always be
on his guard against evil thoughts, let the humble brother always say in his
heart: "Then I shall be spotless before Him, if I shall keep myself from
iniquity" (Ps 17[18]:24).
We are thus forbidden to do our own will, since the
Scripture saith to us: "And turn away from thy evil will" (Sir
18:30). And thus, too, we ask God in prayer that His will may be done in us (cf
Mt 6:10). We are, therefore, rightly taught not to do our own will, when we
guard against what Scripture saith: "There are ways that to men seem
right, the end whereof plungeth into the depths of hell" (Prov 16:25). And
also when we are filled with dread at what is said of the negligent: "They
are corrupted and become abominable in their pleasure" (Ps 13[14]:1). But
as regards desires of the flesh, let us believe that God is thus ever present
to us, since the Prophet saith to the Lord: "Before Thee is all my
desire" (Ps 37[38]:10).
We must, therefore, guard thus against evil desires, because
death hath his station near the entrance of pleasure. Whence the Scripture
commandeth, saying: "Go no after thy lusts" (Sir 18:30). If,
therefore, the eyes of the Lord observe the good and the bad (cf Prov 15:3) and
the Lord always looketh down from heaven on the children of men, to see whether
there be anyone that understandeth or seeketh God (cf Ps 13[14]:2); and if our
actions are reported to the Lord day and night by the angels who are appointed
to watch over us daily, we must ever be on our guard, brethren, as the Prophet
saith in the psalm, that God may at no time see us "gone aside to evil and
become unprofitable" (Ps 13[14]:3), and having spared us in the present
time, because He is kind and waiteth for us to be changed for the better, say
to us in the future: "These things thou hast done and I was silent"
(Ps 49[50]:21).
The second degree of humility is, when a man loveth not his
own will, nor is pleased to fulfill his own desires but by his deeds carrieth
our that word of the Lord which saith: "I came not to do My own will but
the will of Him that sent Me" (Jn 6:38). It is likewise said:
"Self-will hath its punishment, but necessity winneth the crown."
The third degree of humility is, that for the love of God a
man subject himself to a Superior in all obedience, imitating the Lord, of whom
the Apostle saith: "He became obedient unto death" (Phil 2:8).
The fourth degree of humility is, that, if hard and
distasteful things are commanded, nay, even though injuries are inflicted, he
accept them with patience and even temper, and not grow weary or give up, but
hold out, as the Scripture saith: "He that shall persevere unto the end
shall be saved" (Mt 10:22). And again: "Let thy heart take courage,
and wait thou for the Lord" (Ps 26[27]:14). And showing that a faithful
man ought even to bear every disagreeable thing for the Lord, it saith in the
person of the suffering: "For Thy sake we suffer death all the day long;
we are counted as sheep for the slaughter" (Rom 8:36; Ps 43[44]:22). And
secure in the hope of the divine reward, they go on joyfully, saying: "But
in all these things we overcome because of Him that hath loved us" (Rom
8:37). And likewise in another place the Scripture saith: "Thou, O God,
hast proved us; Thou hast tried us by fire as silver is tried; Thou hast
brought us into a net, Thou hast laid afflictions on our back" (Ps
65[66]:10-11). And to show us that we ought to be under a Superior, it
continueth, saying: "Thou hast set men over our heads" (Ps
65[66]:12). And fulfilling the command of the Lord by patience also in adversities
and injuries, when struck on the one cheek they turn also the other; the
despoiler of their coat they give their cloak also; and when forced to go one
mile they go two (cf Mt 5:39-41); with the Apostle Paul they bear with false
brethren and "bless those who curse them" (2 Cor 11:26; 1 Cor 4:12).
The fifth degree of humility is, when one hideth from his
Abbot none of the evil thoughts which rise in his heart or the evils committed
by him in secret, but humbly confesseth them. Concerning this the Scripture
exhorts us, saying: "Reveal thy way to the Lord and trust in Him" (Ps
36[37]:5). And it saith further: "Confess to the Lord, for He is good, for
His mercy endureth forever" (Ps 105[106]:1; Ps 117[118]:1). And the
Prophet likewise saith: "I have acknowledged my sin to Thee and my
injustice I have not concealed. I said I will confess against myself my
injustice to the Lord; and Thou hast forgiven the wickedness of my sins"
(Ps 31[32]:5).
The sixth degree of humility is, when a monk is content with
the meanest and worst of everything, and in all that is enjoined him holdeth
himself as a bad and worthless workman, saying with the Prophet: "I am
brought to nothing and I knew it not; I am become as a beast before Thee, and I
am always with Thee" (Ps 72[73]:22-23).
The seventh degree of humility is, when, not only with his
tongue he declareth, but also in his inmost soul believeth, that he is the
lowest and vilest of men, humbling himself and saying with the Prophet:
"But I am a worm and no man, the reproach of men and the outcast of the
people" (Ps 21[22]:7). "I have been exalted and humbled and
confounded" (Ps 87[88]:16). And also: "It is good for me that Thou
hast humbled me, that I may learn Thy commandments" (Ps 118[119]:71,73).
The eighth degree of humility is, when a monk doeth nothing
but what is sanctioned by the common rule of the monastery and the example of
his elders.
The ninth
degree of humility is, when a monk withholdeth his tongue from speaking, and
keeping silence doth not speak until he is asked; for the Scripture showeth
that "in a multitude of words there shall not want sin" (Prov 10:19);
and that "a man full of tongue is not established in the earth" (Ps
139[140]:12).
The tenth degree of humility is, when a monk is not easily
moved and quick for laughter, for it is written: "The fool exalteth his
voice in laughter" (Sir 21:23).
The eleventh degree of humility is, that, when a monk
speaketh, he speak gently and without laughter, humbly and with gravity, with
few and sensible words, and that he be not loud of voice, as it is written:
"The wise man is known by the fewness of his words."
The twelfth degree of humility is, when a monk is not only
humble of heart, but always letteth it appear also in his whole exterior to all
that see him; namely, at the Work of God, in the garden, on a journey, in the
field, or wherever he may be, sitting, walking, or standing, let him always
have his head bowed down, his eyes fixed on the ground, ever holding himself
guilty of his sins, thinking that he is already standing before the dread
judgment seat of God, and always saying to himself in his heart what the
publican in the Gospel said, with his eyes fixed on the ground: "Lord, I
am a sinner and not worthy to lift up mine eyes to heaven" (Lk 18:13); and
again with the Prophet: "I am bowed down and humbled exceedingly" (Ps
37[38]:7-9; Ps 118[119]:107).
Having, therefore, ascended all these degrees of humility,
the monk will presently arrive at that love of God, which being perfect,
casteth out fear (1 Jn 4:18). In virtue of this love all things which at first
he observed not without fear, he will now begin to keep without any effort, and
as it were, naturally by force of habit, no longer from the fear of hell, but
from the love of Christ, from the very habit of good and the pleasure in
virtue. May the Lord be pleased to manifest all this by His Holy Spirit in His
laborer now cleansed from vice and sin.
Of the Divine Office during the Night
Making due allowance for circumstances, the brethren will
rise during the winter season, that is, from the calends of November till
Easter, at the eighth hour of the night; so that, having rested till a little
after midnight, they may rise refreshed. The time, however, which remains over
after the night office (Matins) will be employed in study by those of the
brethren who still have some parts of the psalms and the lessons to learn.
But from Easter to the aforesaid calends, let the hour for
celebrating the night office (Matins) be so arranged, that after a very short
interval, during which the brethren may go out for the necessities of nature,
the morning office (Lauds), which is to be said at the break of day, may follow
presently.
How Many Psalms Are to Be Said at the Night Office
During the winter season, having in the first place said the
verse: Deus, in adjutorium meum intende; Domine, ad adjuvandum me festina, there is next to be said three
times, Domine, labia mea aperies, et os meum annuntiabit laudem tuam (Ps 50[51]:17). To this the third
psalm and the Gloria are to be added. After this the 94th psalm with its antiphon is to be
said or chanted. Hereupon let a hymn follow, and after that six psalms with
antiphons. When these and the verse have been said, let the Abbot give the
blessing. All being seated on the benches, let three lessons be read
alternately by the brethren from the book on the reading stand, between which
let three responsories be said. Let two of the responsories be said without the
Gloria, but after
the third lesson, let him who is chanting say the Gloria. When the cantor beginneth to sing
it, let all rise at once from their seats in honor and reverence of the Blessed
Trinity.
Let the inspired books of both the Old and the New
Testaments be read at the night offices, as also the expositions of them which
have been made by the most eminent orthodox and Catholic Fathers.
After these three lessons with their responsories, let six
other psalms follow, to be sung with Alleluia. After these let the lessons from
the Apostle follow, to be said by heart, then the verse, the invocation of the
litany, that is, Kyrie eleison. And thus let the night office come to an end.
How the Office Is to Be Said during the Summer Season
From Easter till the calends of November let the whole
psalmody, as explained above, be said, except that on account of the shortness
of the nights, no lessons are read from the book; but instead of these three
lessons, let one from the Old Testament be said from memory. Let a short
responsory follow this, and let all the rest be performed as was said; namely,
that never fewer than twelve psalms be said at the night office, exclusive of
the third and the 94th psalm.
How the Night Office Is to Be Said on Sundays
For the night office on Sunday the monks should rise earlier.
At this office let the following regulations be observed, namely: after six
psalms and the verse have been sung, as we arranged above, and all have been
properly seated on the benches in their order, let four lessons with their
responsories be read from the book, as we said above. In the fourth responsory
only, let the Gloria be said by the chanter, and as soon as he beginneth it let all
presently rise with reverence.
After these lessons let six other psalms with antiphons and
the verse follow in order as before. After these let there be said three
canticles from the Prophets, selected by the Abbot, and chanted with Alleluia. When the verse also hath been said
and the Abbot hath given the blessing, let four other lessons from the New
Testament be read in the order above mentioned. But after the fourth responsory
let the Abbot intone the hymn Te Deum laudamus. When this hath been said, let the
Abbot read the lesson from the Gospel, all standing with reverence and awe.
When the Gospel hath been read let all answer Amen, and immediately the Abbot will
follow up with the hymn Te decet laus, and when he hath given the blessing Lauds will begin.
Let this order of the night office be observed on Sunday the
same way in all seasons, in summer as well as in winter, unless perchance
(which God forbid) the brethren should rise too late and part of the lessons or
the responsories would have to be shortened. Let every precaution be taken that
this does not occur. If it should happen, let him through whose neglect it came
about make due satisfaction for it to God in the oratory.
How Lauds Are to Be Said
At Lauds on Sunday, let the 66th psalm be said first simply,
without an antiphon. After that let the 50th psalm be said with Alleluia; after this let the 117th and the
62d be said; then the blessing and the praises, one lesson from the Apocalypse,
said by heart, a responsory, the Ambrosian hymn, the verse and the canticle
from the Gospel, the litany, and it is finished.
How Lauds Are to Be Said on Week Days
On week days let Lauds be celebrated in the following
manner, to wit: Let the 66th psalm be said without an antiphon, drawing it out
a little as on Sunday, that all may arriver for the 50th, which is to be said
with an antiphon. After this let two other psalms be said according to custom;
namely, the 5th and the 35th on the second day, the 42d and the 56th on the
third day, the 63rd and the 64th on the fourth day, the 87th and the 89th on
the fifth day, the 75th and the 91st on the sixth day, and on Saturday the 142d
and the canticle of Deuteronomy, which should be divided into two Glorias. On the other days, however, let the
canticle from the Prophets, each for its proper day, be said as the Roman
Church singeth it. After these let the psalms of praise follow; then one lesson
from the Apostle, to be said from memory, the responsory, the Ambrosian hymn,
the verse, the canticle from the Gospel, the litany, and it is finished.
Owing to the sandals which are wont to spring up, the
morning and the evening office should, plainly, never end unless the Lord's
Prayer is said in the hearing of all by the Superior in its place at the end;
so that in virtue of the promise which the brethren make when they say,
"Forgive us as we forgive" (Mt 6:12), they may cleanse themselves of
failings of this kind.
At the other hours which are to be said, however, let only
the last part of this prayer be said aloud, so that all may answer, "But
deliver us from evil" (Mt 6:13).
How the Night Office Is to Be Said on the Feasts of the
Saints
On the feasts of the saints and on all solemn festivals let
the night office be performed as we said it should be done on Sunday; except
that the psalms, the antiphons, and the lessons proper for that day be said;
but let the number above mentioned be maintained.
At What Times the Alleluia Is to Be Said
From holy Easter until Pentecost let the Alleluia be said without intermission, both
with the psalms and with the responsories; but from Pentecost until the
beginning of Lent let it be said every night at the nocturns with the six
latter psalms only. However, on all Sundays outside of Lent, let the canticles,
Lauds, Prime, Tierce, Sext, and None be said with Alleluia. Let Vespers, however, be said with
the antiphon; but let the responsories never be said with Alleluia, except from Easter to Pentecost.
How the Work of God Is to Be Performed during the Day
As the Prophet saith: "Seven times a day I have given
praise to Thee" (Ps 118[119]:164), this sacred sevenfold number will be
fulfilled by us in this wise if we perform the duties of our service at the
time of Lauds, Prime, Tierce, Sext, None, Vespers, and Complin; because it was
of these day hours that he hath said: "Seven times a day I have given
praise to Thee" (Ps 118[119]:164). For the same Prophet saith of the night
watches: "At midnight I arose to confess to Thee" (Ps 118[119]:62).
At these times, therefore, let us offer praise to our Creator "for the
judgments of His justice;" namely, at Lauds, Prime, Tierce, Sext, None,
Vespers, and Complin; and let us rise at night to praise Him (cf Ps
118[119]:164, 62).
How Many Psalms Are to Be Sung at These Hours
We have now arranged the order of the psalmody for the night
and the morning office; let us next arrange for the succeeding Hours. At the
first Hour let three psalms be said separately, and not under one Gloria. Let the hymn for the same Hour be
said after the verse Deus, in adjutorium (Ps 69[70]:2), before the psalms are begun. Then,
after the completion of three psalms, let one lesson be said, a verse, the Kyrie
eleison, and the
collects.
At the third, the sixth, and the ninth Hours, the prayer
will be said in the same order; namely, the verse, the hymn proper to each
Hour, the three psalms, the lesson, the verse, the Kyrie eleison, and the collects. If the
brotherhood is large, let these Hours be sung with antiphons; but if small, let
them be said without a break.
Let the office of Vespers be ended with four psalms and
antiphons; after these psalms a lesson is to be recited, next a responsory, the
Ambrosian hymn, a verse, the canticle from the Gospel, the litany, the Lord's
Prayer, and the collects.
Let Complin end with the saying of three psalms, which are
to be said straight on without an antiphon, and after these the hymn for the
same Hour, one lesson, the verse, Kyrie eleison, the blessing, and the collects.
In What Order the Psalms Are to Be Said
In the beginning let there be said the verse, Deus, in
adjutorium meum intende; Domine, ad adjuvandum me festina (Ps 69[70]:2), and the Gloria, followed by the hymn for each Hour.
At Prime on Sunday, then, there are to be said four sections of the 118th
psalm. At the other Hours, however, namely Tierce, Sext, and None, let three
sections of the same psalm be said. But at Prime on Monday let three psalms be
said, namely, the first, the second, and the sixth; and thus each day at Prime
until Sunday, let three psalms be said each time in consecutive order up to the
19th psalm, yet so that the ninth psalm and the 17th be each divided into two Glorias; and thus it will come about that at
the night office on Sundays we always begin with the 20th psalm.
At Tierce, Sext, and None, on Monday, however, let the nine
sections which remain over the 118th psalm be said, three sections at each of
these Hours. The 118th psalm having thus been parceled out for two days,
namely, Sunday and Monday, let there be sung on Tuesday for Tierce, Sext, and
None, three psalms each, from the 119th to the 127th, that is, nine psalms.
These psalms will always be repeated at the same Hours in just the same way
until Sunday, observing also for all these days a regular succession of the
hymns, the lessons, and the verses, so, namely, that on Sunday the beginning is
always made with the 118th psalm.
Let Vespers be sung daily with the singing of four psalms.
Let these psalms begin with the 109th to the 147th, excepting those which are
set aside for the other Hours; namely, from the 117th to the 127th, and the
133d, and the 142d. All the rest are to be said at Vespers; and as the psalms fall
three short, those of the aforesaide psalms which are found to be longer, are
to be divided; namely, the 138th, the 143d, and the 144th. But because the
116th is short, let it be joined to the 115th. The order of the psalms for
Vespers having thus been arranged let the rest, namely, the lessons, the
responsories, the hymns, the verses, and the canticles, be said as we have
directed above.
At Complin, however, let the same psalms be repeated every
day; namely, the 4th, the 90th, and the 133d.
Having arranged the order of the office, let all the rest of
the psalms which remain over, be divided equally into seven night offices, by
so dividing such of them as are of greater length that twelve fall to each
night. We especially impress this, that, if this distribution of the psalms
should perchance displease anyone, he arrange them if he thinketh another
better, by all means seeing to it that the whole Psalter of one hundred and
fifty psalms be said every week, and that it always start again from the
beginning at Matins on Sunday; because those monks show too lax a service in
their devotion who in the course of a week chant less than the whole Psalter
with is customary canticles; since we read, that our holy forefathers promptly
fulfilled in one day what we lukewarm monks should, please God, perform at
least in a week.
Of the Manner of Reciting the Psalter
We believe that God is present everywhere and that the eyes
of the Lord behold the good and the bad in every place (cf Prov 15:3). Let us
firmly believe this, especially when we take part in the Work of God. Let us,
therefore, always be mindful of what the Prophet saith, "Serve ye the Lord
with fear" (Ps 2:11). And again, "Sing ye wisely" (Ps 46[47]:8).
And, "I will sing praise to Thee in the sight of the angels" (Ps
137[138]:1). Therefore, let us consider how it becometh us to behave in the
sight of God and His angels, and let us so stand to sing, that our mind may be
in harmony with our voice.
Of Reverence at Prayer
If we do not venture to approach men who are in power,
except with humility and reverence, when we wish to ask a favor, how much must
we beseech the Lord God of all things with all humility and purity of devotion?
And let us be assured that it is not in many words, but in the purity of heart
and tears of compunction that we are heard. For this reason prayer ought to be
short and pure, unless, perhaps it is lengthened by the inspiration of divine
grace. At the community exercises, however, let the prayer always be short, and
the sign having been given by the Superior, let all rise together.
Of the Deans of the Monastery
If the brotherhood is large, let brethren of good repute and
holy life be chosen from among them and be appointed Deans; and let them take
care of their deaneries in everything according to the commandments of God and
the directions of their Abbot. Let such be chosen Deans as the Abbot may safely
trust to share his burden. Let them not be chosen for their rank, but for the
merit of their life and their wisdom and knowledge; and if any of them, puffed
up with pride, should be found blameworthy and, after having been corrected
once and again and even a third time, refuseth to amend, let him be deposed,
and one who is worthy be placed in his stead. We make the same regulation with
reference to the Prior.
How the Monks Are to Sleep
Let the brethren sleep singly, each in a separate bed. Let
them receive the bedding befitting their mode of life, according to the
direction of their Abbot. If it can be done, let all sleep in one apartment;
but if the number doth not allow it, let them sleep in tens or twenties with
the seniors who have charge of them. Let a light be kept burning constantly in
the cell till morning.
Let them sleep clothed and girded with cinctures or cords,
that they may be always ready; but let them not have knives at their sides
whilst they sleep, lest perchance the sleeping be wounded in their dreams; and
the sign having been given, rising without delay, let them hasten to outstrip each
other to the Work of God, yet with all gravity and decorum. Let the younger
brethren not have their beds beside each other, but intermingled with the older
ones; and rising to the Work of God, let them gently encourage one another on
account of the excuses of the drowsy.
Of Excommunication for Faults
If a brother is found stubborn or disobedient or proud or
murmuring, or opposed to anything in the Holy Rule and a contemner of the
commandments of his Superiors, let him be admonished by his Superiors once and
again in secret, according to the command of our Lord (cf Mt 18:15-16). If he
doth not amend let him be taken to task publicly before all. But if he doth not
reform even then, and he understandeth what a penalty it is, let him be placed
under excommunication; but if even then he remaineth obstinate let him undergo
corporal punishment.
What the Manner of Excommunication Should Be
The degree of excommunication or punishment ought to be
meted out according to the gravity of the offense, and to determine that is
left to the judgment of the Abbot. If, however, anyone of the brethren is
detected in smaller faults, let him be debarred from eating at the common
table.
The following shall be the practice respecting one who is
excluded from the common table: that he does not intone a psalm or an antiphon
nor read a lesson in the oratory until he hath made satisfaction; let him take
his meal alone, after the refection of the brethren; thus: if, for instance,
the brethren take their meal at the sixth hour that brother will take his at
the ninth, and if the brethren take theirs at the ninth, he will take his in the
evening, until by due satisfaction he obtaineth pardon.
Of Graver Faults
But let the brother who is found guilty of a graver fault be
excluded from both the table and the oratory. Let none of the brethren join his
company or speak with him. Let him be alone at the work enjoined on him,
persevering in penitential sorrow, mindful of the terrible sentence of the
Apostle who saith, that "such a man is delivered over for the destruction
of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord" (1 Cor
5:5). Let him get his food alone in such quantity and at such a time as the
Abbot shall deem fit; and let him not be blessed by anyone passing by, nor the
food that is given him.
Of Those Who without the Command of the Abbot Associate
with the Excommunicated
If any brother presume to associate with an excommunicated
brother in any way, or to speak with him, or to send him a message, without the
command of the Abbot, let him incur the same penalty of excommunication.
How Concerned the Abbot Should Be about the
Excommunicated
Let the Abbot show all care and concern towards offending
brethren because "they that are in health need not a physician, but they
that are sick" (Mt 9:12). Therefore, like a prudent physician he ought to
use every opportunity to send consolers, namely, discreet elderly brethren, to
console the wavering brother, as it were, in secret, and induce him to make
humble satisfaction; and let them cheer him up "lest he be swallowed up
with overmuch sorrow" (2 Cor 2:7); but, as the same Apostle saith,
"confirm your charity towards him" (2 Cor 2:8); and let prayer be
said for him by all.
The Abbot must take the utmost pains, and strive with all
prudence and zeal, that none of the flock entrusted to him perish. For the
Abbot must know that he has taken upon himself the care of infirm souls, not a
despotism over the strong; and let him fear the threat of the Prophet wherein
the Lord saith: "What ye saw to be fat, that ye took to yourselves, and
what was diseased you threw away" (Ezek 34:3-4). And let him follow the
loving example of the Good Shepherd, who, leaving the ninety-nine sheep on the
mountains, went to seek the one that had gone astray, on whose weakness He had
such pity, that He was pleased to lay it on His sacred shoulders and thus carry
it back to the fold (cf Lk 15:5).
Of Those Who Having Often Been Corrected Do Not Amend
If a brother hath often been corrected and hath even been
excommunicated for a fault and doth not amend, let a more severe correction be
applied to him, namely, proceed against him with corporal punishment.
But if even then he doth not reform, or puffed up with
pride, should perhaps, which God forbid, even defend his actions, then let the
Abbot act like a prudent physician. After he hath applied soothing lotions,
ointments of admonitions, medicaments of the Holy Scriptures, and if, as a last
resource, he hath employed the caustic of excommunication and the blows of the
lash, and seeth that even then his pains are of no avail, let him apply for
that brother also what is more potent than all these measures: his own prayer
and that of the brethren, that the Lord who is all-powerful may work a cure in
that brother.
But if he is not healed even in this way, then finally let the
Abbot dismiss him from the community, as the Apostle saith: "Put away the
evil one from among you" (1 Cor 5:13); and again: "If the faithless
depart, let him depart" (1 Cor 7:15); lest one diseased sheep infect the
whole flock.
Whether Brethren Who Leave the Monastery Ought to Be
Received Again
If a brother, who through his own fault leaveth the
monastery or is expelled, desireth to return, let him first promise full
amendment of the fault for which he left; and thus let him be received in the
last place, that by this means his humility may be tried. If he should leave
again, let him be received even a third time, knowing that after this every
means of return will be denied him.
How Young Boys Are to Be Corrected
Every age and understanding should have its proper
discipline. Whenever, therefore, boys or immature youths or such as can not
understand how grave a penalty excommunication is, are guilty of a serious
fault, let them undergo severe fasting or be disciplined with corporal
punishment, that they may be corrected.
The Kind of Man the Cellarer of the Monastery Ought to Be
Let there be chosen from the brotherhood as Cellarer of the
monastery a wise man, of settled habits, temperate and frugal, not conceited,
irritable, resentful, sluggish, or wasteful, but fearing God, who may be as a
father to the whole brotherhood.
Let him have the charge of everything, let him do nothing
without the command of the Abbot, let him do what hath been ordered him and not
grieve the brethren. If a brother should perchance request anything of him unreasonably
let him not sadden the brother with a cold refusal, but politely and with
humility refuse him who asketh amiss. Let him be watchful of his own soul,
always mindful of the saying of the Apostle: "For they that have
ministered well, shall purchase to themselves a good degree" (1 Tm 3:13).
Let him provide for the sick, the children, the guests, and the poor, with all
care, knowing that, without doubt, he will have to give an account of all these
things on judgment day. Let him regard all the vessels of the monastery and all
its substance, as if they were sacred vessels of the altar. Let him neglect
nothing and let him not give way to avarice, nor let him be wasteful and a
squanderer of the goods of the monastery; but let him do all things in due measure
and according to the bidding of his Abbot.
Above all things, let him be humble; and if he hath not the
things to give, let him answer with a kind word, because it is written: "A
good word is above the best gift" (Sir 18:17). Let him have under his charge
everything that the Abbot hath entrusted to him, and not presume to meddle with
matters forbidden him. Let him give the brethren their apportioned allowance
without a ruffle or delay, that they may not be scandalized, mindful of what
the Divine Word declareth that he deserveth who shall scandalize one of these
little ones: "It were better for him that a millstone were hanged about
his neck and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea" (Mt 18:6).
If the community is large, let assistants be given him,
that, with their help, he too may fulfil the office entrusted to him with an
even temper. Let the things that are to be given be distributed, and the things
that are to be gotten asked for at the proper times, so that nobody may be
disturbed or grieved in the house of God.
Of the Tools and Goods of the Monastery
Let the Abbot appoint brethren on whose life and character
he can rely, over the property of the monastery in tools, clothing, and things
generally, and let him assign to them, as he shall deem proper, all the
articles which must be collected after use and stored away. Let the Abbot keep
a list of these articles, so that, when the brethren in turn succeed each other
in these trusts, he may know what he giveth and what he receiveth back. If
anyone, however, handleth the goods of the monastery slovenly or carelessly let
him be reprimanded and if he doth not amend let him come under the discipline
of the Rule.
Whether Monks Ought to Have Anything of Their Own
The vice of personal ownership must by all means be cut out
in the monastery by the very root, so that no one may presume to give or
receive anything without the command of the Abbot; nor to have anything
whatever as his own, neither a book, nor a writing tablet, nor a pen, nor
anything else whatsoever, since monks are allowed to have neither their bodies
nor their wills in their own power. Everything that is necessary, however, they
must look for from the Father of the monastery; and let it not be allowed for
anyone to have anything which the Abbot did not give or permit him to have. Let
all things be common to all, as it is written. And let no one call or take to
himself anything as his own (cf Acts 4:32). But if anyone should be found to
indulge this most baneful vice, and, having been admonished once and again,
doth not amend, let him be subjected to punishment.
Whether All Should Receive in Equal Measure What Is
Necessary
It is written, "Distribution was made to everyone
according as he had need" (Acts 4:35). We do not say by this that respect
should be had for persons (God forbid), but regard for infirmities. Let him who
hath need of less thank God and not give way to sadness, but let him who hath
need of more, humble himself for his infirmity, and not be elated for the
indulgence shown him; and thus all the members will be at peace.
Above all, let not the evil of murmuring appear in the least
word or sign for any reason whatever. If anyone be found guilty herein, let him
be placed under very severe discipline.
Of the Weekly Servers in the Kitchen
Let the brethren serve each other so that no one be excused
from the work in the kitchen, except on account of sickness or more necessary
work, because greater merit and more charity is thereby acquired. Let help be
given to the weak, however, that they may not do this work with sadness; but
let all have help according to the size of the community and the circumstances
of the place. If the community is large, let the Cellarer be excused from the kitchen,
or if, as we have said, any are engaged in more urgent work; let the rest serve
each other in charity.
Let him who is to go out of the weekly service, do the
cleaning on Saturday. Let him wash the towels with which the brethren
wipe their hands and feet. Let him who goeth out, as well as him who is to come
in, wash the feet of all. Let him return the utensils of his department to the
Cellarer clean and whole. Let the Cellarer give the same to the one who cometh
in, so that he may know what he giveth and what he receiveth back.
An hour before meal time let the weekly servers receive each
a cup of drink and a piece of bread over the prescribed portion, that they may
serve their brethren at the time time of refection without murmuring and undue
strain. On solemn feast days, however, let them abstain till after Mass.
As soon as the morning office on Sunday is ended, let the
weekly servers who come in and who go out, cast themselves upon their knees in
the oratory before all, asking their prayers. Let him who goeth out of the
weekly service, say the following verse: Benedictus es, Domine Deus, qui
adjuvisti me et consolatus se me (Dan 3:52; Ps 85[86]:17). The one going out having said
this three times and received the blessing, let the one who cometh in follow
and say: Deus in adjutorium meum intende; Domine, ad adjuvandum me festina (Ps 69[70]:2). And let this also be
repeated three times by all, and having received the blessing let him enter
upon his weekly service.
Of the Sick Brethren
Before and above all things, care must be taken of the sick,
that they be served in very truth as Christ is served; because He hath said,
"I was sick and you visited Me" (Mt 25:36). And "As long as you
did it to one of these My least brethren, you did it to Me" (Mt 25:40).
But let the sick themselves also consider that they are served for the honor of
God, and let them not grieve their brethren who serve them by unnecessary
demands. These must, however, be patiently borne with, because from such as
these a more bountiful reward is gained. Let the Abbot's greatest concern,
therefore, be that they suffer no neglect.
Let a cell be set apart for the sick brethren, and a
God-fearing, diligent, and careful attendant be appointed to serve them. Let
the use of the bath be offered to the sick as often as it is useful, but let it
be granted more rarely to the healthy and especially the young. Thus also let
the use of meat be granted to the sick and to the very weak for their recovery.
But when they have been restored let them all abstain from meat in the usual
manner.
But let the Abbot exercise the utmost care that the sick are
not neglected by the Cellarer or the attendants, because whatever his disciples
do amiss falleth back on him.
Of the Aged and Children
Although human nature is of itself drawn to feel compassion
for these life-periods, namely, old age and childhood, still, let the decree of
the Rule make provision also for them. Let their natural weakness be always
taken into account and let the strictness of the Rule not be kept with them in
respect to food, but let there be a tender regard in their behalf and let them
eat before regular hours.
Of the Weekly Reader
Reading must not be wanting at the table of the brethren
when they are eating. Neither let anyone who may chance to take up the book venture
to read there; but let him who is to read for the whole week enter upon that
office on Sunday. After Mass and Communion let him ask all to pray for him that
God may ward off from him the spirit of pride. And let the following verse be
said three times by all in the oratory, he beginning it: Domine, labia mea
aperies, et os meum annuntiabit laudem tuam (Ps 50[51]:17), and thus having received the blessing
let him enter upon the reading.
Let the deepest silence be maintained that no whispering or
voice be heard except that of the reader alone. But let the brethren so help
each other to what is needed for eating and drinking, that no one need ask for
anything. If, however, anything should be wanted, let it be asked for by means
of a sign of any kind rather than a sound. And let no one presume to ask any
questions there, either about the book or anything else, in order that no cause
to speak be given [to the devil] (Eph 4:27; 1 Tm 5:14), unless, perchance, the
Superior wisheth to say a few words for edification.
Let the brother who is reader for the week take a little
bread and wine before he beginneth to read, on account of Holy Communion, and
lest it should be too hard for him to fast so long. Afterward, however, let him
take his meal in the kitchen with the weekly servers and the waiters. The
brethren, however, will not read or sing in order, but only those who edify
their hearers.
Of the Quantity of Food
Making allowance for the infirmities of different persons,
we believe that for the daily meal, both at the sixth and the ninth hour, two
kinds of cooked food are sufficient at all meals; so that he who perchance
cannot eat of one, may make his meal of the other. Let two kinds of cooked
food, therefore, be sufficient for all the brethren. And if there be fruit or
fresh vegetables, a third may be added. Let a pound of bread be sufficient for
the day, whether there be only one meal or both dinner and supper. If they are
to eat supper, let a third part of the pound be reserved by the Cellarer and be
given at supper.
If, however, the work hath been especially hard, it is left
to the discretion and power of the Abbot to add something, if he think fit,
barring above all things every excess, that a monk be not overtaken by
indigestion. For nothing is so contrary to Christians as excess, as our Lord
saith: "See that your hearts be not overcharged with surfeiting" (Lk
21:34).
Let the same quantity of food, however, not be served out to
young children but less than to older ones, observing measure in all things.
But let all except the very weak and the sick abstain
altogether from eating the flesh of four-footed animals.
Of the Quantity of Drink
"Every one hath his proper gift from God, one after
this manner and another after that" (1 Cor 7:7). It is with some
hesitation, therefore, that we determine the measure of nourishment for others.
However, making allowance for the weakness of the infirm, we think one hemina
of wine a day is sufficient for each one. But to whom God granteth the
endurance of abstinence, let them know that they will have their special
reward. If the circumstances of the place, or the work, or the summer's heat
should require more, let that depend on the judgment of the Superior, who must
above all things see to it, that excess or drunkenness do not creep in.
Although we read that wine is not at all proper for monks,
yet, because monks in our times cannot be persuaded of this, let us agree to
this, at least, that we do not drink to satiety, but sparingly; because
"wine maketh even wise men fall off" (Sir 19:2). But where the
poverty of the place will not permit the aforesaid measure to be had, but much
less, or none at all, let those who live there bless God and murmur not. This
we charge above all things, that they live without murmuring.
At What Times the Brethren Should Take Their Refection
From holy Easter till Pentecost let the brethren dine at the
sixth hour and take supper in the evening. From Pentecost on, however, during
the whole summer, if the monks have no work in the fields and the excess of the
heat doth not interfere, let them fast on Wednesday and Friday until the ninth
hour; but on the other days let them dine at the sixth hour. This sixth hour
for dinner is to be continued, if they have work in the fields or the heat of
the summer is great. Let the Abbot provide for this; and so let him manage and
adapt everything that souls may be saved, and that what the brethren do, they
may do without having a reasonable cause to murmur. From the ides of September
until the beginning of Lent let them always dine at the ninth hour. During
Lent, however, until Easter, let them dine in the evening. But let this evening
hour be so arranged that they will not need lamp-light during their meal; but
let everything be finished whilst it is still day. But at all times let the hour
of meals, whether for dinner or for supper, be so arranged that everything is
done by daylight.
That No One Speak after Complin
Monks should always be given to silence, especially,
however, during the hours of the night. Therefore, on every day, whether of
fast or of a mid-day meal, as soon as they have risen from their evening meal,
let all sit together in one place, and let one read the Conferences or the
Lives of the Fathers, or something else that will edify the hearers; not,
however, the Heptateuch or the Books of the Kings, because it would not be
wholesome for weak minds to hear this part of the Scripture at that hour; they
should, however, be read at other times. But if it was a fast-day, then, when
Vespers have been said, and after a short interval, let them next come together
for the reading of the Conferences, as we have said; and when the four or five
pages have been read, or as much as the hour will permit, and all have assembled
in one place during the time of the reading, let him also come who was
perchance engaged in work enjoined on him. All, therefore, having assembled in
one place, let them say Complin, and after going out from Complin, let there be
no more permission from that time on for anyone to say anything.
If, however, anyone is found to break this rule, let him
undergo heavy punishment, unless the needs of guests should arise, or the Abbot
should perhaps give a command to anyone. But let even this be done with the
utmost gravity and moderation.
Of Those Who Are Tardy in Coming to the Work of God or to
Table
As soon as the signal for the time of the divine office is
heard, let everyone, leaving whatever he hath in his hands, hasten with all
speed, yet with gravity, that there may be no cause for levity. Therefore, let
nothing be preferred to the Work of God. If at Matins anyone cometh after the Gloria of the 94th psalm, which on that account
we wish to be much drawn out and said slowly, let him not stand in his place in
the choir; but let him stand last of all, or in a place which the Abbot hath
set apart for such careless ones, that he may be seen by him and by all, until,
the Work of God being ended, he maketh satisfaction by public penance. The
reason, however, why we think they should stand in the last place, or apart
from the rest, is this, that seen by all they may amend for very shame. For if
they stayed outside the oratory, there might be one who would go back to sleep,
or anyhow would seat himself outside, indulge in vain gossip, and give a
"chance to the devil" (Eph 4:27; 1 Tm 5:14). Let him go inside,
therefore, that he may not lose the whole, and may amend for the future.
At the day hours, however, whoever doth not arrive for the
Work of God after the verse and the Gloria of the first psalm, which is said after the verse,
let him stand in the last place, according to the rule which we stated above;
and let him not attempt to join the choir of the chanters until he hath made
satisfaction, unless, perchance, the Abbot's permission hath given him leave to
do so, with the understanding that he atone the fault afterwards.
If anyone doth not come to table before the verse, so that all
may say the verse and pray together and sit down to table at the same time, let
him be twice corrected for this, if he failed to come through his own fault and
negligence. If he doth not amend after this, let him not be permitted to eat at
the common table; but separated from the company of all, let him eat alone, his
portion of wine being taken from him, until he hath made satisfaction and hath
amended. In like manner let him suffer who is not present also at the verse
which is said after the refection.
And let no one presume to take food or drink before or after
the appointed time. But if anything should be offered to a brother by the
Superior and he refuseth to accept it, and afterwards desireth what at first he
refused or anything else, let him receive nothing at all, until he maketh due
satisfaction.
Of Those Who Are Excommunicated -- How They Make
Satisfaction
Whoever is excommunicated for graver faults from the oratory
and the table, let him, at the time that the Work of God is celebrated in the
oratory, lie stretched, face down in silence before the door of the oratory at
the feet of all who pass out. And let him do this until the Abbot judgeth that
it is enough. When he then cometh at the Abbot's bidding, let him cast himself
at the Abbot's feet, then at the feet of all, that they may pray for him. If
then the Abbot ordereth it, let him be received back into the choir in the
place which the Abbot shall direct; yet so that he doth not presume to intone a
psalm or a lesson or anything else in the oratory, unless the Abbot again
biddeth him to do so. Then, at all the Hours, when the Work of God is ended,
let him cast himself on the ground in the place where he standeth, and thus let
him make satisfaction, until the Abbot again biddeth him finally to cease from
this penance.
But let those who are excommunicated for lighter faults from
the table only make satisfaction in the oratory, as long as the Abbot
commandeth, and let them perform this until he giveth his blessing and saith,
"It is enough."
Of Those Who Commit a Fault in the Oratory
If anyone whilst he reciteth a psalm, a responsory, an
antiphon, or a lesson, maketh a mistake, and doth not humble himself there
before all by making satisfaction, let him undergo a greater punishment,
because he would not correct by humility what he did amiss through negligence.
But let children be beaten for such a fault.
Of Those Who Fail in Any Other Matters
If anyone whilst engaged in any work, in the kitchen, in the
cellar, in serving, in the bakery, in the garden, at any art or work in any
place whatever, committeth a fault, or breaketh or loseth anything, or
transgresseth in any way whatever, and he doth not forthwith come before the
Abbot and the community, and of his own accord confess his offense and make
satisfaction, and it becometh known through another, let him be subjected to a
greater correction.
If, however, the cause of the offense is secret, let him
disclose it to the Abbot alone, or to his spiritual Superiors, who know how to
heal their own wounds, and not expose and make public those of others.
Of Giving the Signal for the Time of the Work of God
Let it be the Abbot's care that the time for the Work of God
be announced both by day and by night; either to announce it himself, or to
entrust this charge to a careful brother that everything may be done at the
proper time.
Let those who have been ordered, intone the psalms or the
antiphons in their turn after the Abbot. No one, however, should presume to
sing or read unless he is able so to perform this office that the hearers may
be edified; and let it be done with humility, gravity, and reverence by him
whom the Abbot hath ordered.
Of the Daily Work
Idleness is the enemy of the soul; and therefore the
brethren ought to be employed in manual labor at certain times, at others, in
devout reading. Hence, we believe that the time for each will be properly
ordered by the following arrangement; namely, that from Easter till the calends
of October, they go out in the morning from the first till about the fourth
hour, to do the necessary work, but that from the fourth till about the sixth
hour they devote to reading. After the sixth hour, however, when they have
risen from table, let them rest in their beds in complete silence; or if,
perhaps, anyone desireth to read for himself, let him so read that he doth not
disturb others. Let None be said somewhat earlier, about the middle of the eighth
hour; and then let them work again at what is necessary until Vespers.
If, however, the needs of the place, or poverty should
require that they do the work of gathering the harvest themselves, let them not
be downcast, for then are they monks in truth, if they live by the work of
their hands, as did also our forefathers and the Apostles. However, on account
of the faint-hearted let all things be done with moderation.
From the calends of October till the beginning of Lent, let
them apply themselves to reading until the second hour complete. At the second
hour let Tierce be said, and then let all be employed in the work which hath
been assigned to them till the ninth hour. When, however, the first signal for
the hour of None hath been given, let each one leave off from work and be ready
when the second signal shall strike. But after their repast let them devote
themselves to reading or the psalms.
During the Lenten season let them be employed in reading
from morning until the third hour, and till the tenth hour let them do the work
which is imposed on them. During these days of Lent let all received books from
the library, and let them read them through in order. These books are to be
given out at the beginning of the Lenten season.
Above all, let one or two of the seniors be appointed to go
about the monastery during the time that the brethren devote to reading and
take notice, lest perhaps a slothful brother be found who giveth himself up to
idleness or vain talk, and doth not attend to his reading, and is unprofitable,
not only to himself, but disturbeth also others. If such a one be found (which
God forbid), let him be punished once and again. If he doth not amend, let him
come under the correction of the Rule in such a way that others may fear. And let
not brother join brother at undue times.
On Sunday also let all devote themselves to reading, except
those who are appointed to the various functions. But if anyone should be so
careless and slothful that he will not or cannot meditate or read, let some
work be given him to do, that he may not be idle.
Let such work or charge be given to the weak and the sickly
brethren, that they are neither idle, nor so wearied with the strain of work
that they are driven away. Their weakness must be taken into account by the
Abbot.
On the Keeping of Lent
The life of a monk ought always to be a Lenten observance.
However, since such virtue is that of few, we advise that during these days of Lent
he guard his life with all purity and at the same time wash away during these
holy days all the shortcomings of other times. This will then be worthily done,
if we restrain ourselves from all vices. Let us devote ourselves to tearful
prayers, to reading and compunction of heart, and to abstinence.
During these days, therefore, let us add something to the
usual amount of our service, special prayers, abstinence from food and drink,
that each one offer to God "with the joy of the Holy Ghost" (1 Thes
1:6), of his own accord, something above his prescribed measure; namely, let
him withdraw from his body somewhat of food, drink, sleep, speech, merriment,
and with the gladness of spiritual desire await holy Easter.
Let each one, however, make known to his Abbot what he
offereth and let it be done with his approval and blessing; because what is
done without permission of the spiritual father will be imputed to presumption
and vain glory, and not to merit. Therefore, let all be done with the approval
of the Abbot.
Of Brethren Who Work a Long Distance from the Oratory or
Are on a Journey
The brethren who are at work too far away, and cannot come
to the oratory at the appointed time, and the Abbot hath assured himself that
such is the case -- let them perform the Work of God in the fear of God and on
bended knees where they are working. In like manner let those who are sent on a
journey not permit the appointed hours to pass by; but let them say the office
by themselves as best they can, and not neglect to fulfil the obligation of
divine service.
Of the Brethren Who Do Not Go Very Far Away
A brother who is sent out on any business and is expected to
return to the monastery the same day, may not presume to eat outside, even
though he be urgently requested to do so, unless, indeed, it is commanded him
by his Abbot. If he act otherwise, let him be excommunicated.
Of the Oratory of the Monastery
Let the oratory be what it is called, and let nothing else
be done or stored there. When the Work of God is finished, let all go out with
the deepest silence, and let reverence be shown to God; that a brother who
perhaps desireth to pray especially by himself is not prevented by another's
misconduct. But if perhaps another desireth to pray alone in private, let him
enter with simplicity and pray, not with a loud voice, but with tears and
fervor of heart. Therefore, let him who doth not say his prayers in this way,
not be permitted to stay in the oratory after the Work of God is finished, as
we said, that another may not be disturbed.
Of the Reception of Guests
Let all guests who arrive be received as Christ, because He
will say: "I was a stranger and you took Me in" (Mt 25:35). And let
due honor be shown to all, especially to those "of the household of the
faith" (Gal 6:10) and to wayfarers.
When, therefore, a guest is announced, let him be met by the
Superior and the brethren with every mark of charity. And let them first pray
together, and then let them associate with one another in peace. This kiss of
peace should not be given before a prayer hath first been said, on account of
satanic deception. In the greeting let all humility be shown to the guests,
whether coming or going; with the head bowed down or the whole body prostrate
on the ground, let Christ be adored in them as He is also received.
When the guests have been received, let them be accompanied
to prayer, and after that let the Superior, or whom he shall bid, sit down with
them. Let the divine law be read to the guest that he may be edified, after
which let every kindness be shown him. Let the fast be broken by the Superior
in deference to the guest, unless, perchance, it be a day of solemn fast, which
cannot be broken. Let the brethren, however, keep the customary fast. Let the
Abbot pour the water on the guest's hands, and let both the Abbot and the whole
brotherhood wash the feet of all the guests. When they have been washed, let
them say this verse: "We have received Thy mercy, O God, in the midst of
Thy temple" (Ps 47[48]:10). Let the greatest care be taken, especially in
the reception of the poor and travelers, because Christ is received more
specially in them; whereas regard for the wealthy itself procureth them
respect.
Let the kitchen of the Abbot and the guests be apart, that
the brethren may not be disturbed by the guests who arrive at uncertain times
and who are never wanting in the monastery. Let two brothers who are able to
fulfil this office well go into the kitchen for a year. Let help be given them
as they need it, that they may serve without murmuring; and when they have not
enough to do, let them go out again for work where it is commanded them. Let
this course be followed, not only in this office, but in all the offices of the
monastery -- that whenever the brethren need help, it be given them, and that
when they have nothing to do, they again obey orders. Moreover, let also a
God-fearing brother have assigned to him the apartment of the guests, where
there should be sufficient number of beds made up; and let the house of God be
wisely managed by the wise.
On no account let anyone who is not ordered to do so,
associate or speak with guests; but if he meet or see them, having saluted them
humbly, as we have said, and asked a blessing, let him pass on saying that he
is not allowed to speak with a guest.
Whether a Monk Should Receive Letters or Anything Else
Let it not be allowed at all for a monk to give or to
receive letters, tokens, or gifts of any kind, either from parents or any other
person, nor from each other, without the permission of the Abbot. But even if
anything is sent him by his parents, let him not presume to accept it before it
hath been make known to the Abbot. And if he order it to be accepted, let it be
in the Abbot's power to give it to whom he pleaseth. And let not the brother to
whom perchance it was sent, become sad, that "no chance be given to the
devil" (Eph 4:27; 1 Tm 5:14). But whosoever shall presume to act otherwise,
let him fall under the discipline of the Rule.
Of the Clothing and the Footgear of the Brethren
Let clothing be given to the brethren according to the
circumstances of the place and the nature of the climate in which they live,
because in cold regions more in needed, while in warm regions less. This
consideration, therefore, resteth with the Abbot. We believe, however, that for
a temperate climate a cowl and a tunic for each monk are sufficient, -- a
woolen cowl for winter and a thin or worn one for summer, and a scapular for
work, and stockings and shoes as covering for the feet. Let the monks not worry
about the color or the texture of all these things, but let them be such as can
be bought more cheaply. Let the Abbot, however, look to the size, that these
garments are not too small, but fitted for those who are to wear them.
Let those who receive new clothes always return the old
ones, to be put away in the wardrobe for the poor. For it is sufficient for a
monk to have two tunics and two cowls, for wearing at night and for washing.
Hence, what is over and above is superfluous and must be taken away. So, too,
let them return stockings and whatever is old, when they receive anything new.
Let those who are sent out on a journey receive trousers from the wardrobe,
which, on their return, they will replace there, washed. The cowls and the
tunics should also be a little better than the ones they usually wear, which
they received from the wardrobe when they set out on a journey, and give back
when they return.
For their bedding, let a straw mattress, a blanket, a
coverlet, and a pillow be sufficient. These beds must, however, be frequently
examined by the Abbot, to prevent personal goods from being found. And if
anything should be found with anyone that he did not receive from the Abbot,
let him fall under the severest discipline. And that this vice of private
ownership may be cut off by the root, let everything necessary be given by the
Abbot; namely, cowl, tunic, stockings, shoes, girdle, knife, pen, needle,
towel, writing tablet; that all pretence of want may be removed. In this
connection, however, let the following sentence from the Acts of the Apostles
always be kept in mind by the Abbot: "And distribution was made to every
man according as he had need" (Acts 4:35). In this manner, therefore, let
the Abbot also have regard for the infirmities of the needy, not for the bad
will of the envious. Yet in all his decisions, let the Abbot think of God's
retribution.
Of the Abbot's Table
Let the Abbot's table always be with the guests and
travelers. When, however, there are no guests, let it be in his power to invite
any of the brethren he desireth. Let him provide, however, that one or two of
the seniors always remain with the brethren for the sake of discipline.
Of the Artists of the Monastery
If there be skilled workmen in the monastery, let them work
at their art in all humility, if the Abbot giveth his permission. But if anyone
of them should grow proud by reason of his art, in that he seemeth to confer a
benefit on the monastery, let him be removed from that work and not return to
it, unless after he hath humbled himself, the Abbot again ordereth him to do
so. But if any of the work of the artists is to be sold, let them, through
whose hands the transaction must pass, see to it, that they do not presume to
practice any fraud on the monastery. Let them always be mindful of Ananias and
Saphira, lest, perhaps, the death which these suffered in the body (cf Acts
5:1-11), they and all who practice any fraud in things belonging to the monastery
suffer in the soul. On the other hand, as regards the prices of these things,
let not the vice of avarice creep in, but let it always be given a little
cheaper than it can be given by seculars, That God May Be Glorified in All
Things (1 Pt 4:11).
Of the Manner of Admitting Brethren
Let easy admission not be given to one who newly cometh to
change his life; but, as the Apostle saith, "Try the spirits, whether they
be of God" (1 Jn 4:1). If, therefore, the newcomer keepeth on knocking,
and after four or five days it is seen that he patiently beareth the harsh
treatment offered him and the difficulty of admission, and that he persevereth
in his request, let admission be granted him, and let him live for a few days
in the apartment of the guests.
But afterward let him live in the apartment of novices, and
there let him meditate, eat, and sleep. Let a senior also be appointed for him,
who is qualified to win souls, who will observe him with great care and see
whether he really seeketh God, whether he is eager for the Work of God,
obedience and humiliations. Let him be shown all the hard and rugged things
through which we pass on to God.
If he promiseth to remain steadfast, let this Rule be read
to him in order after the lapse of two months, and let it be said to him:
Behold the law under which thou desirest to combat. If thou canst keep it,
enter; if, however, thou canst not, depart freely. If he still persevereth,
then let him be taken back to the aforesaid apartment of the novices, and let
him be tried again in all patience. And after the lapse of six months let the
Rule be read over to him, that he may know for what purpose he entereth. And if
he still remaineth firm, let the same Rule be read to him again after four
months. And if, after having weighed the matter with himself he promiseth to
keep everything, and to do everything that is commanded him, then let him be
received into the community, knowing that he is now placed under the law of the
Rule, and that from that day forward it is no longer permitted to him to wrest
his neck from under the yoke of the Rule, which after so long a deliberation he
was at liberty either to refuse or to accept.
Let him who is received promise in the oratory, in the
presence of all, before God and His saints, stability, the conversion of
morals, and obedience, in order that, if he should ever do otherwise, he may
know that he will be condemned by God "Whom he mocketh." Let him make
a written statement of his promise in the name of the saints whose relics are
there, and of the Abbot there present. Let him write this document with his own
hand; or at least, if he doth not know how to write, let another write it at
his request, and let the novice make his mark, and with his own hand place it
on the altar. When he hath placed it there, let the novice next begin the
verse: "Uphold me, O Lord, according to Thy word and I shall live; and let
me not be confounded in my expectations" (Ps 118[119]:116). Then let all
the brotherhood repeat this verse three times, adding the Gloria Patri.
The let that novice brother cast himself down at the feet of
all, that they may pray for him; and from that day let him be counted in the
brotherhood. If he hath any property, let him first either dispose of it to the
poor or bestow it on the monastery by a formal donation, reserving nothing for
himself as indeed he should know that from that day onward he will no longer
have power even over his own body.
Let him, therefore, be divested at once in the oratory of
the garments with which he is clothed, and be vested in the garb of the
monastery. But let the clothes of which he was divested by laid by in the
wardrobe to be preserved, that, if on the devil's suasion he should ever consent
to leave the monastery (which God forbid) he be then stripped of his monastic
habit and cast out. But let him not receive the document of his profession
which the Abbot took from the altar, but let it be preserved in the monastery.
Of the Children of the Noble and of the Poor Who Are
Offered
If it happen that a nobleman offereth his son to God in the
monastery and the boy is of tender age, let his parents execute the written promise
which we have mentioned above; and with the oblation let them wrap that
document and the boy's hand in the altar cloth and thus offer him.
As to their property, let them bind themselves under oath in
the same document that they will never give him anything themselves nor through
any other person, nor in any way whatever, nor leave a chance for his owning
anything; or else, if they refuse to do this and want to make an offering to
the monastery as an alms for their own benefit, let them make a donation to the
monastery of whatever goods they wish to give, reserving to themselves the
income of it, if they so desire. And let everything be so barred that the boy
remain in no uncertainty, which might deceive and ruin him (which God forbid)
-- a pass we have learned by experience.
Let those who are poor act in like manner. But as to those
who have nothing at all, let them simply make the declaration, and with the
oblation offer their son in the presence of witnesses.
Of Priests Who May Wish to Live in the Monastery
If a priest asketh to be received into the monastery, let
consent not be granted too readily; still, if he urgently persisteth in his
request, let him know that he must keep the whole discipline of the Rule, and
that nothing will be relaxed in his favor, that it may be as it is written:
"Friend, whereunto art thou come" (Mt 26:25)?
It may be granted him, however, to stand next after the
Abbot, and to give the blessing, or to celebrate Mass, but only if the Abbot
ordereth him to do so; but if he doth not bid him, let him not presume to do
anything under whatever consideration, knowing that he is under the discipline
of the Rule, and let him rather give examples of humility to all. But if there
is a question of an appointment in the monastery, or any other matter, let him
be ranked by the time of his entry into the monastery, and not by the place
granted him in consideration of the priesthood.
But if a cleric, moved by the same desire, wisheth to join
the monastery, let him too have a middle place, provided he promiseth to keep
the Rule and personal stability.
How Stranger Monks Are to Be Received
If a monk who is a stranger, arriveth from a distant place
and desireth to live in the monastery as a guest, and is satisfied with the
customs he findeth there, and doth not trouble the monastery with superfluous
wants, but is satisfied with what he findeth, let him be received for as long a
time as he desireth. Still, if he should reasonably, with humility and charity,
censure or point out anything, let the Abbot consider discreetly whether the
Lord did not perhaps send him for that very purpose. If later on he desireth to
declare his stability let his wish not be denied, and especially since his life
could be known during his stay as a guest.
But if during the time that he was a guest he was found to
be troublesome and disorderly, he must not only not associate with the monastic
body but should even be politely requested to leave, that others may not be
infected by his evil life. But if he hath not been such as deserveth to be cast
forth, he should not only be admitted to join the brotherhood, if he apply, but
he should even be urged to remain, that others may be taught by his example,
because we serve one Lord and fight under one King everywhere. If the Abbot
recognize him to be such a one he may also place him in a somewhat higher rank.
The Abbot may, however, place not only a monk, but also
those of the aforesaid grades of priests and clerics, in a higher place than
that of their entry, if he seeth their lives to be such as to deserve it. But
let the Abbot take care never to admit a monk of any other known monastery to
residence, without the consent of his Abbot or commendatory letters, because it
is written: "What thou wilt not have done to thyself, do not to
another" (Tb 4:16).
Of the Priests of the Monastery
If the Abbot desireth to have a priest or a deacon ordained,
let him select from among his monks one who is worthy to discharge the priestly
office.
But let the one who hath been ordained be on his guard
against arrogance and pride, and let him not attempt to do anything but what is
commanded him by the Abbot, knowing that he is now all the more subject to the
discipline of the Rule; and in consequence of the priesthood let him not forget
the obedience and discipline of the Rule, but advance more and more in
godliness.
Let him, however, always keep the place which he had when he
entered the monastery, except when he is engaged in sacred functions, unless
the choice of the community and the wish of the Abbot have promoted him in acknowledgment
of the merit of his life. Let him know, however, that he must observe the Rule
prescribed by the Deans and the Superiors.
If he should otherwise, let him be judged, not as a priest,
but as a rebel; and if after frequent warnings he doth not amend, and his guilt
is clearly shown, let him be cast forth from the monastery, provided his
obstinacy is such that he will neither submit nor obey the Rule.
Of the Order in the Monastery
Let all keep their order in the monastery in such wise, that
the time of their conversion and the merit of their life distinguish it, or as
the Abbot hath directed. Let the Abbot not disorder the flock committed to him,
nor by an arbitrary use of his power dispose of anything unjustly; but let him
always bear in mind that he will have to give an account to God of all his
judgments and works. Hence in the order that he hath established, or that the
brethren had, let them approach for the kiss of peace, for Communion, intone
the psalms, and stand in choir.
And in no place whatever let age determine the order or be a
disadvantage; because Samuel and Daniel when mere boys judged the priests (cf 1
Sam 3; Dan 13:44-62). Excepting those, therefore, whom, as we have said, the
Abbot from higher motives hath advanced, or, for certain reasons, hath lowered,
let all the rest take their place as they are converted: thus, for instance,
let him who came into the monastery at the second hour of the day, know that he
is younger than he who came at the first hour, whatever his age or dignity may
be.
Children are to be kept under discipline at all times and by
everyone. Therefore, let the younger honor their elders, and the older love the
younger.
In naming each other let no one be allowed to address
another by his simple name; but let the older style the younger brethren,
brothers; let the younger, however, call their elders, fathers, by which is
implied the reverence due to a father. But because the Abbot is believed to
hold the place of Christ, let him be styled Lord and Abbot, not only by
assumption on his part, but out of love and reverence for Christ. Let him think
of this and so show himself, that he be worthy of such an honor. Wherever,
then, the brethren meet each other, let the younger ask the blessing from the
older; and when the older passeth by, let the younger rise and give him place
to sit; and let the younger not presume to sit down with him unless his elder
biddeth him to do so, that it may be done as it is written: "In honor
preventing one another" (Rom 12:10).
Let children and boys take their places in the oratory and
at table with all due discipline; outdoors, however, or wherever they may be,
let them be under custody and discipline until they reach the age of
understanding.
Of the Election of the Abbot
In the election of an Abbot let this always be observed as a
rule, that he be placed in the position whom the whole community with one
consent, in the fear of God, or even a small part, with sounder judgment, shall
elect. But let him who is to be elected be chosen for the merit of his life and
the wisdom of his doctrine, though he be the last in the community.
But even if the whole community should by mutual consent
elect a man who agreeth to connive at their evil ways (which God forbid) and
these irregularities in some come to the knowledge of the Bishop to whose
diocese the place belongeth, or to neighboring Abbots, or Christian people, let
them not permit the intrigue of the wicked to succeed, but let them appoint a
worthy steward over the house of God, knowing that they shall receive a
bountiful reward for this action, if they do it with a pure intention and godly
zeal; whereas, on the other hand, they commit a sin if they neglect it.
But when the Abbot hath been elected let him bear in mind
how great a burden he hath taken upon himself, and to whom he must give an
account of his stewardship (cf Lk 16:2); and let him be convinced that it
becometh him better to serve than to rule. He must, therefore, be versed in the
divine law, that he may know whence "to bring forth new things and
old" (Mt 13:52). Let him be chaste, sober, and merciful, and let him
always exalt "mercy above judgment" (Jas 2:13), that he also may
obtain mercy.
Let him hate vice, but love the brethren. And even in his
corrections, let him act with prudence and not go to extremes, lest, while he
aimeth to remove the rust too thoroughly, the vessel be broken. Let him always
keep his own frailty in mind, and remember that "the bruised reed must not
be broken" (Is 42:3). In this we are not saying that he should allow evils
to take root, but that he cut them off with prudence and charity, as he shall see
it is best for each one, as we have already said; and let him aim to be loved
rather than feared.
Let him not be fussy or over-anxious, exacting, or
headstrong; let him not be jealous or suspicious, because he will never have
rest. In all his commands, whether they refer to things spiritual or temporal,
let him be cautious and considerate. Let him be discerning and temperate in the
tasks which he enjoineth, recalling the discretion of holy Jacob who saith:
"If I should cause my flocks to be overdriven, they would all die in one
day" (Gen 33:13). Keeping in view these and other dictates of discretion,
the mother of virtues, let him so temper everything that the strong may still
have something to desire and the weak may not draw back. Above all, let him
take heed that he keep this Rule in all its detail; that when he hath served
well he may hear from the Lord what the good servant heard who gave his
fellow-servants bread in season: "Amen, I say to you," He
saith,"he shall set him over all his goods" (Mt 24:47).
Of the Prior of the Monastery
It often happeneth indeed, that grave scandals arise in
monasteries out of the appointment of the Prior; since there are some who,
puffed up with the wicked spirit of pride and thinking themselves to be second
Abbots, set up a despotic rule, foster scandals, and excite quarrels in the
community, and especially in those places where also the Prior is appointed by
the same Bishop or the same Abbots who appointeth his Abbot. How foolish this
is can easily be seen; because, from the very beginning of his appointment,
matter for pride is furnished him, when his thoughts suggest to him that now he
is exempt from the authority of the Abbot, because "thou too hast been
appointed by those by whom the Abbot was appointed." From this source
arise envy, discord, slander, quarrels, jealousy, and disorders. While the
Abbot and the Prior are thus at variance with each other, it must follow that
their souls are endangered by this discord and that those who are under them,
as long as they humor the parties, go to ruin. The fault of this evil resteth
on the heads of those who were the authors of such disorders.
We foresee, therefore, that for the preservation of peace
and charity it is best that the government of the monastery should depend on
the will of the Abbot; and if it can be done, let the affairs of the monastery
(as we have explained before) be attended to by deans, as the Abbot shall
dispose; so that, the same office being shared by many, no one may become
proud.
If, however, the place require it, or the brotherhood
reasonably and with humility make the request, and the Abbot shall deem it
advisable, let the Abbot himself appoint as Prior whomever, with the advice of
God-fearing brethren, he shall select. But let the Prior reverently do what his
Abbot hath enjoined on him, doing nothing against the will or the direction of
the Abbot; for the higher he is placed above others, the more careful should he
be to obey the precepts of the Rule.
If the Prior be found disorderly or blinded by vainglory, or
hath been proved to be a contemner of the Holy Rule, let him be admonished up
to the fourth time; if he doth not amend, let the correction of the regular
discipline be applied to him. But if he doth not amend even then, let him be
deposed from the office of priorship, and another who is worthy be appointed in
his stead. But if even afterward he be not quiet and submissive in the
brotherhood, let him also be expelled from the monastery. Still, let the Abbot
reflect that he must give an account to God for all his judgments, lest perhaps
envy or jealousy should sear his conscience.
Of the Porter of the Monastery
Let a wise old man be placed at the door of the monastery,
one who knoweth how to take and give an answer, and whose mature age doth not
permit him to stray about.
The porter should have a cell near the door, that they who
come may always find one present from whom they may obtain an answer. As soon
as anyone knocketh or a poor person calleth, let him answer, "Thanks be to
God," or invoke a blessing, and with the meekness of the fear of God let
him return an answer speedily in the fervor of charity. If the porter hath need
of assistance, let him have a younger brother.
If it can be done, the monastery should be so situated that
all the necessaries, such as water, the mill, the garden, are enclosed, and the
various arts may be plied inside of the monastery, so that there may be no need
for the monks to go about outside, because it is not good for their souls. But
we desire that this Rule be read quite often in the community, that none of the
brethren may excuse himself of ignorance.
Of the Brethren Who Are Sent on a Journey
Let the brethren who are to be sent on a journey recommend
themselves to the prayers of all the brotherhood and of the Abbot. And after
the last prayer at the Work of God, let a commemoration always be made for the
absent brethren.
On the day that the brethren return from the journey, let
them lie prostrate on the floor of the oratory at all the Canonical Hours, when
the Work of God is finished, and ask the prayers of all on account of failings,
for fear that the sight of evil or the sound of frivolous speech should have
surprised them on the way.
And let no one presume to relate to another what he hath
seen or heard outside of the monastery, because it is most hurtful. But if
anyone presume to do so, let him undergo the penalty of the Rule. In like
manner let him be punished who shall presume to go beyond the enclosure of the
monastery, or anywhere else, or to do anything, however little, without the
order of the Abbot.
If a Brother Is Commanded to Do Impossible Things
If, perchance, any difficult or impossible tasks be enjoined
on a brother, let him nevertheless receive the order of him who commandeth with
all meekness and obedience. If, however, he see that the gravity of the task is
altogether beyond his strength, let him quietly and seasonably submit the
reasons for his inability to his Superior, without pride, protest, or dissent.
If, however, after his explanation the Superior still insisteth on his command,
let the younger be convinced that so it is good for him; and let him obey from
love, relying on the help of God.
That in the Monastery No One Presume to Defend Another
Care must be taken that on no occasion one monk try to
defend another in the monastery, or to take his part, even though they be
closely related by ties of blood. Let it not be attempted by the monks in any
way; because such conduct may give rise to very grave scandal. If anyone
overstep this rule, let him be severely punished.
That No One Presume to Strike Another
Let every occasion for presumption be avoided in the
monastery. We decree that no one be permitted to excommunicate or to strike any
one of his brethren, unless the Abbot hath given him the authority. But let
those who transgress be taken to task in the presence of all, that the others
may fear (cf 1 Tm 5:20).
Let all, however, exercise diligent and watchful care over
the discipline of children, until the age of fifteen; but even that, within due
limits and with discretion. For if anyone should presume to chastise those of
more advanced years, without the command of the Abbot, or should be unduly
provoked with children, let him be subject to the discipline of the Rule;
because it is written: "What thou dost not wish to be done to thee, do not
thou to another" (Tb 4:16).
That the Brethren Be Obedient to One Another
The brethren must render the service of obedience not only
to the Abbot, but they must thus also obey one another, knowing that they shall
go to God by this path of obedience. Hence, granted the command of the Abbot
and of the Superiors who are appointed by him (to which we do not permit
private commands to be preferred), in other respects let the younger brethren obey
their elders with all charity and zeal. But if anyone is found to be obstinate,
let him be punished.
And if a brother be punished in any way by the Abbot or by
any of his Superiors for even a slight reason or if he perceive that the temper
of any of his Superiors is but slightly ruffled or excited against him in the
least, let him without delay cast himself down on the ground at his feet making
satisfaction, until the agitation is quieted by a blessing. If anyone scorn to
do this, either let him undergo corporal punishment, or, if he be obstinate,
let him be expelled from the monastery.
Of the Virtuous Zeal Which the Monks Ought to Have
As there is a harsh and evil zeal which separateth from God
and leadeth to hell, so there is a virtuous zeal which separateth from vice and
leadeth to God and life everlasting.
Let the monks, therefore, practice this zeal with most
ardent love; namely, that in honor they forerun one another (cf Rom 12:10). Let
them bear their infirmities, whether of body or mind, with the utmost patience;
let them vie with one another in obedience. Let no one follow what he thinketh
useful to himself, but rather to another. Let them practice fraternal charity
with a chaste love.
Let them fear God and love their Abbot with sincere and
humble affection; let them prefer nothing whatever to Christ, and my He lead us
all together to life everlasting.
Of This, that Not the Whole Observance of Righteousness
Is Laid Down in this Rule
Now, we have written this Rule that, observing it in
monasteries, we may show that we have acquired at least some moral
righteousness, or a beginning of the monastic life.
On the other hand, he that hasteneth on to the perfection of
the religious life, hath at hand the teachings of the holy Fathers, the
observance of which leadeth a man to the height of perfection. For what page or
what utterance of the divinely inspired books of the Old and the New Testament
is not a most exact rule of human life? Or, what book of the holy Catholic
Fathers doth not loudly proclaim how we may go straight to our Creator? So,
too, the collations of the Fathers, and their institutes and lives, and the
rule of our holy Father, Basil -- what are they but the monuments of the
virtues of exemplary and obedient monks? But for us slothful, disedifying, and
negligent monks they are a source for shame and confusion.
Thou, therefore, who hastenest to the heavenly home, with
the help of Christ fulfil this least rule written for a beginning; and then
thou shalt with God's help attain at last to the greater heights of knowledge
and virtue which we have mentioned above.
U. I. O. G. D.