The Rule of Benedict (RB) constitutes a basic guide for living the Christian life and continues to be followed by every Benedictine monastery and convent in the world today.
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What is the definition of Benedict Rule?
The Rule of St. Benedict was the standard monastic rule in the Western church by the 9th century, and it served as the basis for the later Cluniac and Cistercian reform movements. …most contemporary monastic rules, the Benedictine Rule emphasizes less austerity and contemplation and more common life and common work in charity and harmony.
What does Benedictine order mean?
The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict ( Latin: Ordo Sancti Benedicti, abbreviated as OSB ), are a monastic religious order of the Catholic Church following the Rule of Saint Benedict. They are also sometimes called the Black Monks, in reference to the colour of their religious habits.
What is Benedict Rule?
The Rule of St. Benedict is still the most foundational piece of monastic spirituality in the Western world. The Rule (as it is usually called) is about community living—a day-to-day basic guide originally written for Christian men who wanted to be monks, telling them what to do, how to be Christ-followers in that unique way, and how to get along with each other.
What is Saint Benedict Rule?
The Rule of St. Benedict is not only the basic guide for living for monks of various orders (Benedictine, Cistercian, et cetera), but is also the inspiration for today’s neo-monastic movements in cities around the world. It establishes a way of life rooted in the Gospel and grounded in the scriptural principles of charity, humility, stability ...
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What is the meaning of Benedictine Rule?
According to Benedict, all things – eating, drinking, sleeping, reading, working, and praying – should be done in moderation. In Wisdom Distilled from the Daily, Sister Joan Chittister writes that in Benedict's Rule, "All must be given its due, but only its due.
What was the Benedictine Rule and where was it followed?
Traditionally, the daily life of the Benedictine revolved around the eight canonical hours. The monastic timetable, or Horarium, would begin at midnight with the service, or "office", of Matins (today also called the Office of Readings), followed by the morning office of Lauds at 3am.
What is the rule of St Benedict summary?
Outline of the Benedictine life St Benedict's Rule organises the monastic day into regular periods of communal and private prayer, sleep, spiritual reading, and manual labour – ut in omnibus glorificetur Deus, "that in all [things] God may be glorified" (cf. Rule ch. 57.9).
What are the values of the rule of St Benedict?
Our Five Core Values There are many values embedded in the Rule of Benedict. Of these, The College of St. Scholastica has chosen to focus on five: Community, Hospitality, Respect, Stewardship, and Love of Learning.
What is the Benedictine order known for?
They were the chief repositories of learning and literature in western Europe and were also the principal educators. One of the most celebrated of Benedictine monasteries was the Burgundian Abbey of Cluny, founded as a reform house by William of Aquitaine in 910.
What is the Benedictine motto?
St Benedict's motto was Ora et Labora (prayer and work). Laborare Est Orare (to work is to pray), detail of a nineteenth century painting by John Rogers Herbert, showing Benedictine monks at work.
What is the main idea of the Benedictine Rule quizlet?
It was created by St. Benedict, and it changed the way monks lived. Some monks still follow it today. The rule says that monks must take vows of poverty (owns no possesions), chasity(no relationships with non-related women), and obiedience.
How do I live a Benedictine life?
23 Benedictine PracticesAwareness of God. In Benedictine practice we acknowledge the primacy of God and look for God in the ordinary events of each day. ... Being in Right Relationship. ... Commitment to Growth (Conversatio) ... Community. ... Gratitude. ... Hospitality. ... Humility. ... Lectio divina / Listening to God's Word in Scripture.More items...•
What is the goal of Benedictine spirituality?
Benedictine spirituality attunes us to an awareness of the divine in the ordinary. In a world where alienation and suspicion of the stranger runs deep, Benedict's respect for all persons and valuing all persons equally can heal our enmity with one another.
What are the 6 Benedictine values?
We integrate the Benedictine values of service, hospitality, moderation, prayer, respect for persons, and community throughout our curriculum and student life programs so students graduate with the capacity to live joyful, meaningful lives.
What was Benedict's rule?
In history of Europe: The organization of late imperial Christianity. Benedict’s rule provided for a monastic day of work, prayer, and contemplation, offering psychological balance in the monk’s life. It also elevated the dignity of manual labour in the service of God, long scorned by the elites of antiquity.
Where was the Benedictine Rule written?
monasticism. Rule of St. Benedict, written in Beneventan script at Montecassino, Italy , late 11th century. Abbot Benedict of Nursia, depicted in the act of writing the Benedictine Rule, painting by Herman Nieg, 1926; in the church of Heiligenkreuz Abbey near Baden bei Wien, Lower Austria.
Why did the Benedictine rule succeed in the West?
In Christianity: Missions and monasticism. The Benedictine Rule—initiated by St. Benedict of Nursia—succeeded in the West because of its simplicity and restraint; more formidable alternatives were available in the 6th century.
Who was the organizer of the Cistercian rule and order?
Robert was succeeded by St. Alberic and then by St. Stephen Harding, who proved to be the real organizer of the Cistercian rule and order. The new regulations demanded severe asceticism; they rejected all feudal revenues and reintroduced manual labour for…. Read More.
When was the Benedictine rule written?
St. Benedict wrote his rule, the so-called Benedictine Rule, c. 535–540 with his own abbey of Montecassino in mind. The rule, which spread slowly in Italy and Gaul, provided a complete directory for both the government and the spiritual and material well-being of a monastery by carefully integrating prayer, manual labour, and study into a well-rounded daily routine. By the 7th century the rule had been applied to women, as nuns, whose patroness was deemed St. Scholastica, sister of St. Benedict.
When did Benedictine monasticism end?
The great age of Benedictine predominance ended about the middle of the 12th century, and the history of the main line of Benedictine monasticism for the next three centuries was to be one of decline and decadence. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. Subscribe Now.
When did the Benedictine order begin publishing the Old Testament?
Learn More in these related Britannica articles: biblical literature: The Vulgate. In 1907 the Benedictine order, on the initiative of Pope Pius X, began preparing a comprehensive edition. By 1969 only the Prophets were still awaiting publication to complete the Old Testament.
When were the lines of French kings written?
Les Lignées des roys de France (“The Lines of French Kings”), c. 1450 ; the parchment roll contains an abbreviated version of Les Grandes Chroniques de France, the official history of the French realm that was maintained by the Benedictine monks of the royal abbey at Saint- Denis.
Is a Benedictine a monk?
Benedictine, member of the Order of Saint Benedict (O.S.B.), member of any of the confederated congregations of monks, lay brothers, and nuns who follow the rule of life of St. Benedict ( c. 480– c. 547) and who are spiritual descendants of the traditional monastics of the early medieval centuries in Italy and Gaul. The Benedictines, strictly speaking, do not constitute a single religious order, because each monastery is autonomous.
Why did Charlemagne copy St Benedict's rule?
Charlemagne had Benedict's rule copied and distributed to encourage monks throughout western Europe to follow it as a standard. Beyond its religious influences, the Rule of St Benedict was one of the most important written works to shape medieval Europe, embodying the ideas of a written constitution and the rule of law. It also incorporated a degree of democracy in a non-democratic society, and dignified manual labor .
What are some examples of reform movements of St Benedict?
Examples include the Camaldolese, the Cistercians, the Trappists (a reform of the Cistercians), and the Sylvestrines. At the heart of reform movements, past and present, lie Hermeneutical questions about what fidelity to tradition means. For example, are sixth-century objectives, like blending in with contemporary dress or providing service to visitors, better served or compromised by retaining sixth-century clothing or by insisting that service excludes formal educational enterprises?
What is the monasticon anglicanum?
Monasticon Anglicanum, or, The history of the ancient abbies, and other monasteries, hospitals, cathedral and collegiate churches in England and Wales. With divers French, Irish, and Scotch monasteries formerly relating to England. Sam Keble. ^ Kardong, T. (2001). Saint Benedict and the Twelfth-Century Reformation.
What is Benedict's greatest debt?
Benedict's greatest debt, however, may be to the anonymous document known as the Rule of the Master, which Benedict seems to have radically excised, expanded, revised and corrected in the light of his own considerable experience and insight. Saint Benedict's work expounded upon preconceived ideas that were present in the religious community only ...
What is a cenobite?
Cenobites, those "in a monastery, where they serve under a rule and an abbot".
Where did Benedict live?
In the West in about the year 500, Benedict became so upset by the immorality of society in Rome that he gave up his studies there, at age fourteen, and chose the life of an ascetic monk in the pursuit of personal holiness, living as a hermit in a cave near the rugged region of Subiaco. In time, setting an example with his zeal, he began to attract disciples. After considerable initial struggles with his first community at Subiaco, he eventually founded the monastery of Monte Cassino in 529, where he wrote his Rule near the end of his life.
Where did monasticism originate?
Christian monasticism first appeared in the Egyptian desert, in the Eastern Roman Empire a few generations before Benedict of Nursia. Under the inspiration of Saint Anthony the Great (251-356), ascetic monks led by Saint Pachomius (286-346) formed the first Christian monastic communities under what became known as an Abbot, from the Aramaic abba (father).
What is the Benedictine customary?
A ' customary' is the code adopted by a particular Benedictine house, adapting the Rule to local conditions.
What is the meaning of the Benedictine vow?
to remain in the same community), conversatio morum (an idiomatic Latin phrase suggesting "conversion of manners"; see below) and obedience to the community's superior. This solemn commitment tends to be referred to as the "Benedictine vow" and is the Benedictine antecedent and equivalent of the evangelical counsels professed by candidates for reception into a religious order .
What is the Benedictine Confederation?
Benedictine Confederation. Parent organization. Catholic Church. Website. osb .org. The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict ( Latin: Ordo Sancti Benedicti, abbreviated as OSB ), are a monastic religious order of the Catholic Church following the Rule of Saint Benedict. They are also sometimes called the Black Monks, ...
What is the oldest Benedictine monastery in the world?
The English Benedictine Congregation is the oldest of the nineteen Benedictine congregations. Augustine of Canterbury and his monks established the first English Benedictine monastery at Canterbury soon after their arrival in 597. Other foundations quickly followed. Through the influence of Wilfrid, Benedict Biscop, and Dunstan, the Benedictine Rule spread with extraordinary rapidity, and in the North it was adopted in most of the monasteries that had been founded by the Celtic missionaries from Iona. Many of the episcopal sees of England were founded and governed by the Benedictines, and no fewer than nine of the old cathedrals were served by the black monks of the priories attached to them. Monasteries served as hospitals and places of refuge for the weak and homeless. The monks studied the healing properties of plants and minerals to alleviate the sufferings of the sick.
How is Benedictine monasticism different from other Western religious orders?
Benedictine monasticism is fundamentally different from other Western religious orders insofar as its individual communities are not part of a religious order with "Generalates" and "Superiors General". Each Benedictine house is independent and governed by an abbot.
What vow did the Benedictines take?
Benedictines took a fourth vow of "stability", which professed loyalty to a particular foundation. Not being bound by location, the mendicants were better able to respond to an increasingly "urban" environment.
Where was the monastery of Benedict of Nursia?
The monastery at Subiaco in Italy , established by Benedict of Nursia c. 529, was the first of the dozen monasteries he founded. He later founded the Abbey of Monte Cassino. There is no evidence, however, that he intended to found an order and the Rule of Saint Benedict presupposes the autonomy of each community. When Monte Cassino was sacked by the Lombards about the year 580, the monks fled to Rome, and it seems probable that this constituted an important factor in the diffusion of a knowledge of Benedictine monasticism.
Benedictine Rule
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Benedictine Rule
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What is Benedict's rule?
In Wisdom Distilled from the Daily , Sister Joan Chittister writes that in Benedict’s Rule, “All must be given its due, but only its due. There should be something of everything and not too much of anything. ”.
What are the vows of Benedictine?
Benedictines make three vows: stability, fidelity to the monastic way of life, and obedience. Though promises of poverty and chastity are implied in the Benedictine way, stability, fidelity, and obedience receive primary attention in the Rule-perhaps because of their close relationship with community life.
What is Benedictine hospitality?
Hospitality for Benedict meant that everyone who comes-the poor, the traveler, the curious, those not of our religion or social standing or education-should be received with genuine acceptance.
What happened to the Roman Empire when Benedict wrote his rule?
When Benedict wrote his Rule, society seemed to be falling apart. Though materially prosperous, the Roman Empire was in a state of decline.
What does stability mean in monastics?
Stability means that the monastic pledges lifelong commitment to a particular community. To limit oneself voluntarily to one place with one group of people for the rest of one’s life makes a powerful statement.
What was Benedict's spiritual life?
In Benedict’s supremely realistic way, the spiritual life was something to be worked at, not merely hoped for. The importance of community life is another great theme of Benedict’s Rule. Prior to Benedict, religious life was the life of the hermit, who went to the desert and lived alone in order to seek God.
What was Benedict's approach to seeking God?
His approach to seeking God was both sensible and humane. For Benedict, a spiritual pathway was not one to be littered with weird and unusual practices; rather, all that is needed is to be faithful to finding God in the ordinary circumstances of daily life.
What does Benedict prioritize in the book of Benedict?
In it, Benedict prioritizes the good works of a monk and how to do them —in other words, what tools to use to accomplish the tasks. Many of the good works he lists are of the obvious sort—following the ten commandments, for example. But there are some surprises.
What is the meaning of Benedict's language?
Benedict’s language emphasizes the unity of the human person in a way that was once commonly understood—that is , when a person was believed to respond to God with body/soul (without distinction) all at once. Benedict reminds the monks: “to fall often to prayer,” as in, literally, to one’s knees. PLENTY MORE.
How do Benedictine monks read?
And then there is spiritual reading, or lectio divina. Visit almost any Benedictine monastery at meal time and you’ll be treated to a form of this ancient tradition practiced out loud, when a designated monk reads while the others eat. In the refectory the reading is done by one of the brothers, while everyone else eats in silence. The Rule puts it this way: “There is to be complete silence, so that no whisper nor any voice other than that of the reader be heard there. Whatever is wanted for eating and drinking the brethren should pass to one another, so that no one need ask for anything. If, however, something is wanted, it should be asked for by some sign or sound rather than by speaking.” Sometimes this takes place throughout the meal, other times only for part of the time. The books are usually selected by the abbot, and they are not necessarily spiritual. I once spent two lunches at a priory in Vermont listening to a new history of the Civil War.
What did Benedict remind the monks?
Benedict reminds the monks: “to fall often to prayer,” as in, literally, to one’s knees. PLENTY MORE. Numerous other spiritual principles have their origins in Benedict’s great Rule. Hospitality, for instance, was practiced more in the medieval monasteries than anywhere else at that time.
What are monks asked to do?
But there are some surprises. Monks are asked, for instance, to “bury the dead” and “to dread hell,” both of which have much to do with the medieval mindset. But there are others that uniquely aim a monk at virtue.
What is a personal rule of life?
A personal Rule of Life is an intentional path of real, concrete steps, taken for the purpose of forming one’s life around an ideal . The word rule, in this case, comes the Latin word regula, which is also the root for words such as ruler, or regular—in other words, those things that are supposed to be models for behavior. If a Rule sounds strict, it’s not supposed to, but if it sounds disciplined, then you’re hearing it correctly. Helpful Rules of Life are patterns that guide us to become people ready for heaven. Popular author Dallas Willard once compared a spiritual Rule to a “Curriculum in Christlikeness”—and that’s just about right.
What is the rule of community living?
The Rule (as it is usually called) is about community living—a day-to-day basic guide originally written for Christian men who wanted to be monks, telling them what to do, how to be Christ-followers in that unique way, and how to get along with each other.
Summary
The Rule of Saint Benedict (Latin: Regula Sancti Benedicti) is a book of precepts written in Latin in 516 by St Benedict of Nursia (c. AD 480–550) for monks living communally under the authority of an abbot.
The spirit of Saint Benedict's Rule is summed up in the motto of the Benedictine Confederation: pax ("peace") and the traditional ora et labora ("pray and work"). …
Origins
Christian monasticism first appeared in the Egyptian desert, in the Eastern Roman Empire a few generations before Benedict of Nursia. Under the inspiration of Saint Anthony the Great (251–356), ascetic monks led by Saint Pachomius (286–346) formed the first Christian monastic communities under what became known as an Abbot, from the Aramaic abba (father).
Overview
The Rule opens with a hortatory preface, drawing on the Admonitio ad filium spiritualem, in which Saint Benedict sets forth the main principles of the religious life, viz.: the renunciation of one's own will and arming oneself "with the strong and noble weapons of obedience" under the banner of "the true King, Christ the Lord" (Prol. 3). He proposes to establish a "school for the Lord's serv…
Outline of the Benedictine life
Saint Benedict's model for the monastic life was the family, with the abbot as father and all the monks as brothers. Priesthood was not initially an important part of Benedictine monasticism – monks used the services of their local priest. Because of this, almost all the Rule is applicable to communities of women under the authority of an abbess. This appeal to multiple groups would later m…
Reforms
During the more than 1500 years of their existence, the Benedictines have not been immune to periods of laxity and decline, often following periods of greater prosperity and an attendant relaxing of discipline. In such times, dynamic Benedictines have often led reform movements to return to a stricter observance of both the letter and spirit of the Rule of St Benedict, at least as they understood it. Examples include the Camaldolese, the Cistercians, the Trappists (a reform of …
Secular significance
Charlemagne had Benedict's rule copied and distributed to encourage monks throughout western Europe to follow it as a standard. Beyond its religious influences, the Rule of St Benedict was one of the most important written works to shape medieval Europe, embodying the ideas of a written constitution and the rule of law. It also incorporated a degree of democracy in a non-democratic society, and dignified manual labor.
Popular legend
A popular legend claims that the Rule of Saint Benedict contains the following passage:
If any pilgrim monk come from distant parts, with a wish to dwell as a guest in the monastery, and will be content with the customs which he finds in the place, and do not perchance by his lavishness disturb the monastery, but is simply content with what he finds: he shall be received, for as long a time as he desires. If, indeed, he would find fault with anything, or expose it, reason…
See also
• Rule of Saint Augustine
• Rule of Saint Basil
• Benedict of Nursia
• Benedictine rite
• Benedictines