Rule 
Articles and posts specifically teaching the Rule of St. Benedict. Articles divided into two categories: Benedictine Wisdom, the teaching of the Benedictine Fathers; and Instruction, teaching by more modern day Benedictine scholars.
The paradox of human existence
There is a paradox that lies in the very heart of human existence. It must be apprehended before any lasting happiness is possible in the soul of a man. The paradox is this: man’s nature, by itself, can do little or nothing to settle his most important problems. If we follow nothing but our natures,… Read More ›
We share the breath of the Divine Spirit
The Spirit by which the Church lives is the Spirit of love, of unity. Unity can be preserved or restored only by understanding, acceptance and pardon. The Church is a body of men who know they are forgiven and who forgive repeatedly because they are themselves forgiven repeatedly. The Church is then not so much… Read More ›
Self-centeredness
By abusing free choice, man diverted his love from the changeless good, God, and, blinded by his own self-centeredness, he directed his love to what was inferior. Thus withdrawing from the true good and deviating toward what of itself was not good, where he anticipated gain he found loss, and by perversely loving himself he… Read More ›
Commentary for the Second Sunday of Easter
Gospel Summary The first thing that we notice in today’s gospel is the amazing effect of that the presence and words of Jesus have on his confused and frightened disciples. He finds them in hiding, completely immobilized by the terrible realization of the death of their beloved leader. He addresses them cheerfully with the standard… Read More ›
Easter: A day of salvation
So, with the Alleluia of victory, the triumphant cry of Easter on her lips, the Church renews the Paschal mystery in which death is conquered, the power of the devil is broken forever, and sins are forgiven: the mystery of the death and resurrection of the Savior who is born to us on this day…. Read More ›
Love of God, neighbor, and self
Although there is an evident distinction between love of God, love of neighbor, and love of self, a marvelous bond nevertheless does exist among the three, so that each is found in all, and all in each. None of them can be possessed without all, and when one wavers they all diminish. Someone who does… Read More ›
Our real enemy is within our own castle
Often in the course of the liturgical year the Church complains, in our behalf, that we are pressed down under the burden of our own human activity. That seems strange! To be free to do things in our own way would appear, at first sight, to be “the liberty of the sons of God.” But… Read More ›
Christ Himself is the Truth
Those who are quickened to a divine life in Christ, by His Spirit, enter into intimate communion with the Truth. They possess the Truth. Truth lives in their entire being and manifests itself in all their activities, body and soul. The “Truth has made them free.” Christ Himself is the Truth. And to achieve this… Read More ›
By love we make our journey
Eternal life is knowing the true God; the true way to it is to love with one’s whole heart. Love, then, is the way, truth the life; truth is the image, love the likeness; love is the price, truth is the prize; by love we make our journey, in truth we stand fast. Moreover, since… Read More ›
The Ladder of Divine Ascent: Is it still relevant to us?
Can the Ladder, a work written by a hermit monk who lived 1,400 years ago, say something to us today? Can the existential journey of a man who lived his entire life on Mount Sinai in such a distant time be relevant to us? At first glance it would seem that the answer must be… Read More ›