St. Benedict of Nursia (ca. 480-ca. 553) Excerpt from The Rule Monastic communities generally had a rule, or set of regulations, prescribing the discipline of their members’ daily life.
St. Benedict of Nursia (ca. 480-ca. 553) Excerpt from The Rule Monastic communities generally had a rule, or set of regulations, prescribing the discipline of their members’ daily life. The Rule written by St. Benedict for his community at Monte Cassino in southern Italy was admired by Pope Gregory the Great and by Charlemagne, who obtained an exact copy of it when he visited Monte Cassino in 787. The Rule requires complete renunciation of the world in order to maintain a routine of collective prayer and chanting seven times a day, plus about four hours of reading and meditating on the Bible, and some manual labor. -Chapter 16: The Day Office The prophet says: “Seven times daily I have sung Your praises" (Ps. 119: 164). We will cleave to this sacred number if we perform our monastic duties at Lauds, Prime, Tierce, Sext, None, Vespers and Compline. -Chapter 17: The number of psalms said in the Day Office Three psalms are to be chanted for Prime, each with a separate Gloria. An appropriate hymn is sung, before the psalms After the psalms a lesson from the apostle is recited, and the Hour is finished with the versicle, the Kyrie and dismissal. The Hours of Tierce, Sext and None are to be conducted in the same order. – Chapter 22: How the monks are to sleep All the monks shall sleep in separate beds If possible they should all sleep in one room. However, if there are too many for this, they will be grouped in tens or twenties, a senior in charge of each group. Let a candle burn throughout the night. They will sleep in their robes, belted but with no knives, thus preventing injury in slumber. The monks then will always be prepared to rise at the signal and hurry to the Divine Office. But they must make haste with gravity and modesty. The younger brothers should not be next to each other. Rather their beds should be interspersed with those of their elders. When they arise for the Divine Office, they ought encourage each other, for the sleepy make many excuses. -Chapter 48: Daily manual labor Idleness is an enemy of the soul. Therefore, the brothers should be occupied according to schedule in either manual labor or holy reading From Easter to October, the brothers shall work at manual labor from Prime until the fourth hour. From then until the sixth hour they should read. After dinner they should rest (in bed) in silence. However, should anyone desire to read, he should do so without disturbing his brothers. None should be chanted at about the middle of the eighth hour. Then everyone shall work as they must until Vespers. If conditions dictate that they labor in the fields (harvesting), they should not be grieved for they are truly monks when they must live by manual labor, as did our fathers and the apostles. Everything should be in moderation, though, for the sake of the timorous…. All shall read on Saturdays except those with specific tasks. If anyone is so slothful that he will not or cannot read or study, he will be assigned work so as not to be idle. -Chapter 53: The reception of guests
The kitchen of the abbot and guests should be separate from that of the community so as not to disturb the brothers, for the visitors, of whom there are always a number, come and go at irregular hours… No one may associate or converse with guests unless ordered. If one meets or sees a guest, he is to greet him with humility and ask a blessing. If the guest speaks, the brother is to pass on, telling the guest that he is not permitted to speak. – Chapter 55: Clothing and shoes Each monk needs only two each of tunics and cowls, so he will be prepared for night wear and washing. Anything else is superfluous and should be banished… Bedding shall consist of a mattress, coverlet, blanket and pillow. The abbot will make frequent inspections of the bedding to prevent hoarding. Any infractions are subject to the severest discipline and, so that this vice of private ownership may be cut away at the roots, the abbot is to furnish all necessities: cowl, tunic, shoes, stockings, belt, knife, pen, needle, towel and writing tablet. – Chapter 57: Artisans and craftsmen Craftsmen present in the monastery should practice their crafts with humility, as permitted by the abbot. But if anyone becomes proud of his skill and the profit he brings the community, he should be taken from his craft and work at ordinary labor. This will continue until he humbles himself and the abbot is satisfied. If any of the works of these craftsmen are sold, the salesman shall take care to practice no fraud… . In pricing, they should never show greed, but should sell things below the going secular rate. -Chapter 66: The porter of the monastery The monastery should be planned, if possible, with all the necessities—water, mill, garden, shops—within the walls. Thus the monks will not need to wander about outside, for this is not good for their souls. Source: Anthony C. Meisel, The Rule of St. Benedict, tr. M.L. del Mastro (New York: Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc., 1975).
Please read the excerpt from The Rule of St. Benedict of Nursia and answer the following question in this week’s discussion. St. Benedict proclaims that “Idleness is the enemy of the soul” and “Private ownership [is] a vice.” How are these beliefs reflected in the rules he sets forth for monastic life? Although monastic life might seem very odd to us now, what do you think of Benedict’s message?
St. Benedict’s rules were intended to govern communal life in medieval monasteries.
Discuss how Benedict’s rules are reflected in the plan of St. Gall. Can you think of any contemporary example of architecture that clearly was designed with a set of “rules” in mind?
Collepals.com Plagiarism Free Papers
Are you looking for custom essay writing service or even dissertation writing services? Just request for our write my paper service, and we'll match you with the best essay writer in your subject! With an exceptional team of professional academic experts in a wide range of subjects, we can guarantee you an unrivaled quality of custom-written papers.
Get ZERO PLAGIARISM, HUMAN WRITTEN ESSAYS
Why Hire Collepals.com writers to do your paper?
Quality- We are experienced and have access to ample research materials.
We write plagiarism Free Content
Confidential- We never share or sell your personal information to third parties.
Support-Chat with us today! We are always waiting to answer all your questions.
