The Rule of St. Benedict #1

The start of a series

My friend Jason Heron asked me to contribute to the Benedictine Thought and Action Blog, a project of Mount Marty University in South Dakota. Jason is the S. Wilma Lyle Endowed Chair of Theology at Mount Marty and his blog is an exploration of the Rule of Saint Benedict.

Benedict composed his Rule in the 6th century as a way to organize the lives of the monks who came after him. Even today, it serves as the major touchstone not just for the Benedictines, but for all Catholic monastic life. The Benedictine Thought and Action Blog dives into the Rule in order to learn how Benedict’s thinking might continue to serve us today, even if we’re not monks or nuns. The full text of the Rule can be found here.

I have not read the Rule. Indeed, Jason asked me to contribute a series of reflections from the perspective of someone who is reading it for the first time. In this first piece, I reflect on my initial encounter with the text and look at the Rule’s prologue.

Here is an excerpt:

I found Benedict’s Rule on a free book table. It’s the red one from 1980. For seven years it’s moved with me across the country, never once having been read. The cover has faded. Sometimes, I see it on the shelf when I’m looking for something else. The pages are crumbling at the corners. “I need to read this,” I say to myself.

Sitting down now with the Rule’s Prologue, I notice first the notes along the margins. There are two different hands, presumably from two different previous owners – a thick blue pen and a faded unsharpened pencil. Phrases are underlined like “nothing harsh, nothing burdensome” or “a little strictness in order to amend faults.” At the bottom of the page, in pencil: “from fear to love – run.” Now, in my own hand, I underline the first sentence: “Listen carefully, my son.”

The entire reflection can be read here.