Category: Blog

What do we really mean when we say we are “thankful”, “grateful” , and “blessed”? “Have a blessed day,” rolls easily off the tongues of many these days. But has it, too, become just part of the societal norm?

In an article written online for The Patriot Ledger, the Rev. Tim Schenck tells the story behind the hymn “Now Thank We All Our God” composed by Pastor Martin Rinkart. I encourage you to take some time to read these reflections: https://www.patriotledger.com/story/lifestyle/2020/11/24/good-faith-column-never-stop-giving-thanks-even-difficult-year/ and https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/history-of-hymns-now-thank-we-all-our-god

When the German Pastor Martin Rinkart in 1636, inspired by passages from the Book of Sirach (Ecclesiasticus), wrote “Nun danket alle Gott” (Now Thank We All Our God) as a dinner blessing for his children, he was living in the midst of a 30 year war. He could have responded to the world around him in fearmongering and negativity, but he chose to live in such a way as to not be overcome by the suffering but rather to still give God glory and others hope in a loving, living, God who does have a watchful active hand in their (and our) lives.

There are probably many ways to set about being thankful, grateful, and knowing you are blessed. Of those, listening for the will of God in all things is one of those ways. How do we obey God? How do we listen to God? According to Lynne Baab, a Presbyterian minister and the author of numerous books on Christian spiritual practices, “We need to listen to the scriptures in order to know God’s teaching. We need to listen to the Holy Spirit, to teach us how to apply God’s truth. We need to listen to our own lives, so we can understand the ways God is speaking to us in this day, in this place.”

Soon, the liturgical season of Advent will be upon us. Advent is a season inviting us to wait. Nature itself is slowing down, and inviting us to wait with our eyes and ears; it is true that Advent is a call to stability and waiting, however, St. Benedict offers a different view: It is God who waits for us!

The Rule says, “Listen with the ears of your heart, for the Lord waits for us daily to translate into action, as we should, his holy teachings.” (Prologue verse 35)

May the Lord of All Faithfulness and Joy fill you with peace during this season of Gratefulness and waiting.

On Aug. 11, 2023, the Today Show Senior Food Editor Emi Boscamp published an article on the rise of the popularity of the buffet. In the report, she quoted IBIS World Research Marketing Company as noting that in 2022 buffets were a $5.5 BILLION industry. Visualize for a moment the amount of selections laid out for people going through a buffet line. Food can be a hot topic of discussion. Certainly, we each have an opinion as to what we prefer when we frequent such an establishment. As children, we may not have been given much choice over what was put before us, but as adults we do have a say in what we consume.

St. Benedict understood that we have choices. We have the freedom to say “yes” or “no” and with that power to choose we also assume the responsibility of our actions.

In Chapter 72 of the Rule, our Holy Father lays before us a buffet of options to sustain us on our “spiritual journey to our heavenly home (RB 73)” The question is : WHAT DO YOU PREFER?

So let’s look at our options:
● zeal of bitterness vs. good zeal
● disrespect vs. respect of the “other”
● impatience vs. patience of another’s weaknesses
● not listening (non-obedience) vs. listening (obedience) to another

Judging what’s “best for me” vs. judging what is better for someone else (7). Here, not judging is viewed as making priority decisions that benefit yourself over deciding what words, behaviors, etc. best benefit someone else. St. Benedict clearly states to choose the good. He moves from the salad bar to the main course by pointing out three key figures. We can choose what’s better for ourselves or:
● show love to our neighbors/co-workers/monastic and oblate community
● show God our love, respect, and awe
● show true unfeigned love and humility to our spouses, senior citizens, or superiors

Just as we might expect a word or direction from a caring parent , Benedict clearly tells us what we ought to choose over everything laid before us.

Christ.

The irony is that if we choose the good zeal listed above, we are choosing what St Benedict instructs.

The plate of choosing Christ is a very full plate. Sometimes after a big buffet, dessert has to wait a while. Benedict’s dessert? That Christ will bring us all to everlasting life.

It’s a big buffet. What do you prefer?

The circle is a mathematical wonder.  It is an object/shape that has no beginning nor end—except for the point on it in which we determine is the start or the finish. There are an infinite number of points from which to begin and end that exist on the line/arch/curve of the circle. Infinite. Unending. These words, too, describe our spiritual journey, at least what it should be. St. Benedict’s Rule provides us with an open-ended journey full of points along the way in which we are invited to stop, learn, and start again.

Chapter 73 in the Rule of Benedict marks the end of his rule for his followers.

RB 80 titles the chapter : “This Rule only a Beginning of Perfection.”

The end of the Rule is actually a very good place to begin a study on the Rule of St. Benedict. His values and point of view are woven throughout the text. In Chapter 73, we read his reason for writing the rule and points on the journey to which we can look and learn just how those holy men and women before us trusted in Christ, ending separation from God and beginning the process of becoming like Christ. This is what St. Benedict calls us to attempt.

In the Gospel of Matthew, we read about the “Great Commission” (Mt. 28:1-20). Reading closely, we see it is one command with three supporting activities: Make Disciples; Go! Baptize (v. 19); Teach (obedience to Christ)(v.20).  St. Benedict formats Chapter 73 in a similar fashion. His commission? Hasten toward your heavenly home (v.8). His supporting practices?

1. The teachings of the holy fathers (v.2)
2. The scriptures (v. 3-4)
3. The Rule of holy Father Basil (v.5). This was a resource he relied on to formulate his own rule. We have the teachings of the Church, the Rule of St. Benedict, and Rules of other Saints as well as their lives to reflect on.

All of the above are “tools for the cultivation of virtue (v. 6)”– another way of saying “hastening to our heavenly home”.

It is a common practice in many Benedictine Monastic communities to begin reading the Rule from page 1 as soon as the end of Chapter 73 has been read. Like a circle with infinite points, by cycling through the Rule for another round, we may pick up on that which we never noticed before.  Monks and oblates alike are encouraged to daily read from the Rule on their own as well. Maybe, for a challenge or refreshing look at the Rule, we should begin at the end of the Rule?

When is the end actually the beginning?  You’ll have to determine that for yourself.