6 characteristics of benedictine spirituality

The Benedictine practice of service to others is intimately entwined with the reverence for all creation, and another of the great foundations of Benedictine spirituality. Closely related to both listening and humility is the virtue of obedience. It evokes the name of St. Benedict, who lived in the 6th century, together with all those who have been inspired by the Rule of Benedict and associate themselves with the Benedictine spiritual tradition. . If you fill out this form, Ill respond from my personal email. Or, am I living a lie, allowing myself to be conformed to every whim and temptation of my fallen nature? To complete our personal transformation, we never stop changing. It is such a personal thing that it can be considered part of one's identity. Cultural Producer. (f`eav You can learn more about her in her Living Spiritual Teachers Project profile. For most of us, though, stability can have a figurative element beyond our experience with a [], 2023 Benedictine Center of St. Pauls Monastery, Core Values: Benedictine Spirituality (Part 1 of 3), Prayer and Community: Benedictine Spirituality (Part 2 of 3) - Benedictine Center, Lectio Divina and Preferring Christ: Benedictine Spirituality (Part 3 of 3) - Benedictine Center, My Day with the Sacred Fire | Benedictine Center, Saturated with Peace: Experiencing Personal Retreat | Benedictine Center, Wholehearted Living as the Lamed Vav | Benedictine Center, Practicing Sustained Lectio Divina | Benedictine Center, What Discernment Means to Me | Benedictine Center, Sabbath: Well-being, Not Endless Work | Benedictine Center, Moderation and Rhythm: A Benedictine Help Against Social Isolation | Benedictine Center, Stability: The Benedictine Value of Locatedness | Benedictine Center, The Erector Set: Adapting to Others | Benedictine Center, Sharper: Benedict's Tools for Good Works | Benedictine Center, The Benedictine Commitment to Learning | Benedictine Center, We Dare To Hope (Part 1 of 2) | Benedictine Center, We Dare To Hope (Part 2 of 2) | Benedictine Center, Life, A Continuous Advent | Benedictine Center, Rooted in Love: My Sustained Lectio Divina | Benedictine Center, Just Wave: Following that Holy Nudge | Benedictine Center. The monk's own attitude toward his life then is one of stewardship. The thing that distinguishes monks from other religious in the Catholic Church is not primarily a matter of governmental structures or observances; all of these are found in other forms of consecrated life. Only after we have come to understand our desires are we capable of relinquishing them in service of others. 0000002192 00000 n The fourth Benedictine value is work, or labora. A particular spirituality is a specific system, or schema of beliefs, virtues, ideals and principles which form a particular way to approach God and therefore all life in general. Getting Started with Ignatian Spirituality Beyond the Basics of Ignatian Spirituality . It is not one of the distinguishing characteristics of early monastic life. This will not subscribe you to a contact management software program, and you wont get an onslaught of computer-generated emails begging you to buy my books and services. As a Benedictine practice, obedience is intimately linked to being in right relationship, conversatio, humility, and listening. Benedictine prayer has several characteristics that make more for a spirituality of awareness than of consolation. Although well into the middle years of an average life span, I am a rank beginner, a mere toddler in Benedictine practice. Garcia Jimenez de Cisneros in . How are we being invited to swing back toward Christ-centeredness? 0000001554 00000 n It's not a principle that defines what it means to be a Benedictine institution. One of the great challenges in the rule is that the monk obey others not only in their strengths but also in their weaknesses, for it is tempting to see others in their weakness as simply burdens rather than as gifts. %%EOF [], [] is both. On the constitutional level, Benedict's supreme achievement was to provide a succinct and complete directory for the government and the spiritual and material well-being of a monastery. Digital nun, writing for ibenedictines.org tells us,The practice of mindfulness, which for a Christian must always be the practice of mindfulness of the presence of God, is not something we learn in a few hours or even a few years. The Benedictine motto, "Prayer and Work," highlights this simplicity of obedience to our daily duties. Nazirites (Numbers 6:1-21): Nazirites were of two types: those who were dedicated from birth to be a Nazirite (e.g. Within the Cite this article tool, pick a style to see how all available information looks when formatted according to that style. The third Benedictine value is conversatio morum, which translates to "conversion of life." This value involves a commitment to personal and spiritual growth, and it involves constantly seeking to improve oneself and to live in a way that is consistent with one's values and beliefs. Successful organizational . In no way am I qualified to be a teacher of the Benedictine way of life. Benedictine spirituality is rooted in the cultivation of good habits. Practice is how people develop the skills to get adept at anything. Stop the madness; listen to the God who loves you. This pattern of sharing is a basic characteristic of a cenobitic community. A monk should be above all a good listener. There is a temptation to complicate it, to . Benedict's community might well be called a formation community in which all, including the abbot and other superiors in the community, are in the process of being formed all of their lives into the likeness of Christ by attentive listening to the word of God, and a loving response to that word mediated into the life of the community by Christ's own offer of friendship through the communication of the Holy Spirit. Benedictine spirituality helps us to: Focus our eyes on God and His Word Be a people of humility Live and pray in community, rather than being too individualistic Maintain prayerful discipline in our lives 1. Reading the transcript or listening to the podcast is worthwhile. While submission is an act of youth, true obedience can only come as a response of maturity. Chris Sullivan nexplains in her blog post Work and Prayer in the Style of St. Benedict for Loyala Press. Bibliography: Marked for Life: Prayer in the Easter Christ (London 1979). The website of Subiaco Abbey in Arkansas tells us, Modern monks like to point out that first word in the Rule is to Listen,which cant be done while talking! We prefer concepts like freedom and independence. Contact. Brother David Steindl-Rast of the Gut Aich Priory monastery in St. Gilgen, Austria, is the founder and senior advisor for A Network for Grateful Living. Continue to Prayer and Community: Benedictine Spirituality (Part 2). Just as all these people practice to become more proficient, spiritual seekers practice in order to become better at living a spiritual life. ." Humility is the ability to recognize one's rightful place in the universe and to see oneself as a mysterious combination of strengths and weaknesses. It is likewise through that response that one becomes free to be and develop as the person one is called to be. The primary prayer of all Catholics is the Eucharistic liturgy in which they celebrate and share their faith together, in accord with Jesus' instruction: "Do this in memory of me."The Catholic bishops at the Second Vatican Council decreed that "devotions should be so . FRANCISCAN SPIRITUALITY Franciscan spirituality motivates a way of following Christ that is based on the gospels. In Benedictine practice we acknowledge the primacy of God and look for God in the ordinary events of each day. At the heart of his contemplative tradition are values which are directly opposed to blindness, materialism, and greed. Cite this article Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography. By integrating their prayer and work, they manifest Christ's presence in society.". Lets make ours a truly humana listening and reverentconnection. Life in Benedictine monasteries was also deeply influenced by the clericalization of many of the monks and the episcopal ordination of many abbots. When I consider Benedictine hospitality, I like to extend this notion to the dialogues we initiate with those of other religious and spiritual backgrounds, especially with non-Christians. This article on the Contemplative outreach website explains the history of lectio divina, and offers instruction in how to do it. Commit to daily, weekly or monthly prayer disciplines. St. Vincent teaches us to see Christ in the poor and suffering, so much so that the poor become our Lords and Masters and we their servants. In this, affective piety and the contemplative study of the mysteries of God were no longer so strictly united as in the preceding centuries, in which the patristic tradition had been preserved. The rule is marked by a strong sense of the individual monk's personal worth and dignity. It is a comprehensive rule of life for the whole church and all her members. Refer to each styles convention regarding the best way to format page numbers and retrieval dates. Demonstrate good will, humility, trust, accountability, justice, faithfulness, obedience, peace, and discipleship. Consequently he accepts the services and ideas of others, the gifts of life, and community. Obedience means "to listen intently," and this vow is undertaken in a spirit of faith and love in following Christ who was obedient to the will of the Father. 1. 1. But, we keep practicing, because we hope that eventually, with faithful practice, that our way of being present to others will be as rich and meaningful as Chopins Nocturns are mysteriously rich with meaning when played by the virtuoso Arthur Rubinstein near the end of his life. It insists that God is present in our world and active in our lives. Furthermore, he avoids anything that would be excessive or beyond the capacity of the average monk. It sets up a framework of life, an institution, of which the essential and constitutive elements are firmly determined: life in common under the government of a superior called an abbot, who has the help of a prior and other officials and takes counsel of the whole assembly of monks, even the youngest in the community. backgrounds including non-Catholic ones find deep spirituality in the Divine Office and the other Benedictine practices in the Rule such as the emphasis on work and lectio divina (slow prayerful reading), is difficult to state briefly. God speaks to the monk through Christ, but the monk is called to see Christ not only in the superior but also in the guests, in the sick, in the young, and in the old. Her muscular Christianity is grounded in the spiritual practices of the Rule of Saint Benedict, such as silence, hospitality, humility, and peace. j. chittister, The Rule of Benedict: Insights for the Ages (New York 1992). The rule did not become a text of the past or a dead document; rather it continued to live and to vivify, but its very fecundity, its inexhaustible youthfruits of its discretionexplain how it was able to inspire different realizations. Interviewed by Krista Tippett for her podcast On Being, Brother David talks about gratitude as the true wellspring of joy. They pray the Office together, with no voice standing out above the others. Lectio divina involves contemplating what we read or hear in a Scripture, being receptive to the presence of God, and letting ourselves be transformed. Successful organizational leaders practice self-mastery and teamwork. Benedictine monastics make a three-fold commitment to stability, conversion (conversatio), and obedience. St. Benedict speaks of steps in humility, comparing them to the rungs of a ladder which we climb one by onean image that implies not a strict order of ascent but a more general sense of movement growth. It is specified solely by a commitment to God sanctioned by public vows. Adrian Burke, OSB writes, Benedict insists in his. The whole spiritual life of the monk consists in listening to God by "inclining the ear of the heart." As. Are you a thoughtful reader (and maybe even a writer) who seeks a peaceful, just, spiritual approach to life? It emphasizes the preeminent position which hospitality occupies in every Benedictine monastery. You will likely recognize the timeless quality of the values which has caused them to endure for centuries and continue speaking to the many layers of our human experience (personal, familial, communal and societal). In his spare time, you will find Sam tending his familys small tree farm or fly fishing for trout in Southeast Minnesota. 6v-7r of the Bodleian library in Oxford. The Benedictines, strictly speaking, do not constitute a single religious . What we know about St. Benedict himself comes to us mainly through Gregory the Great (ca. She reminds that in the Rule of Benedict, in the economy of monastic life, prayer is work and work is prayer. While [t]ime set aside for prayer can be a great blessing, we can turn all of our daily tasks into prayer when we bring to them the awareness of ourselves in relationship with our ever-present God. He writes: "The will develops its own gifts, seeking to perfect them in the order of nature and of grace so as to bring the faithful soul to spiritual maturity. Prayer is essential to a Benedictine lifestyle. Only a year ago, after a year of formation, I became an Oblate of Saint Benedicts Monastery in St. Joseph, MInnesota. But if they are rich communally, they must be rich for the many people who are poor not only materially but also intellectually, culturally, spiritually, and humanly.
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