Instruction 
Instruction on the Rule by noteworthy modern day monastics or oblates
Living out the Rule
The community as envisaged by Benedict does not operate according to the standards of this age . . . . Benedict resists any tendency which would lead his monks to do any of the following: to be more concerned about “transitory earthly trifles” than the kingdom (Rule of St. Benedict [RB] 2:33-36) to become protective… Read More ›
Christ has no Body but Yours
During his time on earth, Jesus met and talked to many people. Some of those meetings were private; others were public, and had far-reaching effects. Some were both. For example, Jesus turned water into wine for the sake of a young bride and groom who were not too good on planning. But that wine was… Read More ›
Work for Total Abolition of War
What is the place of the Christian in all this? Is he simply to fold his hands and resign himself to the worst, accepting it as the inescapable will of God and preparing himself to enter heaven with a sigh of relief? Should he open up the apocalypse and run out into the street to… Read More ›
The Measure of Love Authenticity
When the love of Jesus draws forth the best in us the lower appetites go into recession. It is not that we conquer them; they simply lose their capacity to charm us. . .. A devotional life that coexists with an unchallenged concern for personal comfort and advancement is likely to be spurious. The measures… Read More ›
The Danger of Servitude
The danger of servitude, especially to the electronic media, is not only that it wastes time and incapacitates, but it also serves as a channel through which evil thoughts about which St. Benedict speaks (cogitationes malas, RB: 4:50), enter the mind of the monk or nun (or lay person) and thence pass through to the… Read More ›
Listening Carefully
. . . it is Christ who speaks through human agents-the less overpowering they are, the more attentively the abbot must strain to hear what they say. The same principle applies here that Benedict enunciates concerning the poor: The terror that great ones inspire assures them of respect (53:15), but it is in listening carefully… Read More ›
Towards Eternal Life
Happiness consists in knowing what you want, and then knowing you have it, or you are on the way to getting it. What we want is God. Our hearts will not rest, until they rest in you, O Lord [1]. Our minds seek infinite truth. Our hearts are made for infinite love. The purpose of… Read More ›
Balance in the Rule
. . . The important thing, and it is what Benedict warns of, is the monastic vice of acedia. Apathetic is the word in English, but the Latin word is acediosus (RB 48:18). The monk has lost the zeal that is looked for in the new man coming to the monastery [1]. The man truly… Read More ›