Rules

As we enter April, this Lenten series now goes forward in time. The Christian tradition of withdrawing from society to get closer to God had begun in deserts, first with Jesus, and later by hermits in Egypt and Palestine. As Christianity penetrated Europe, people there also wanted to withdraw from society, but they had no deserts. So, they formed monastic communities. These monasteries provided the same opportunity to spend time alone, among other monks, in buildings that were usually in the country, the more isolated, the better.

But how should these people live? How often should they pray, sing the psalms, allow others to visit? That’s where today’s monk comes in, Benedict of Nursia. His was an Italian who wrote the Rule in 530, which became the rulebook for monasteries all over Europe for over a thousand years ( and still applies in many). The Rule was necessary because monks believed that the key to growing close to God was to dial down their selfish desires ( for food, for sleep, for sex, for gossiping or showing off, etc…). By instituting the Rule, monks set aside their personal preferences to submit entirely to the authority of the Abbott and the stipulations of the Rule. Being unable to make personal decisions became a badge of honour. The paradox was that this extreme submission brought people an awareness of God’s presence that they lacked before. 

Here is an excerpt from chapter four of the Rule, instructing monks on the behaviour they should embrace:

To deny oneself, that one may follow Christ.

To chastise the body.

Not to embrace delights.

To love fasting.

To relieve the poor.

To clothe the naked.

To visit the sick.

To bury the dead.

To help in tribulation.

To console the sorrowing.

To become a stranger to worldly deeds.

To prefer nothing to the love of Christ.

Not to carry anger into effect.

Not to prolong the duration of one’s wrath.

Not to retain guile in one’s heart.

Not to make a false peace.

Not to abandon charity.

Not to swear, lest perchance one forswear.

To utter only truth from heart and mouth.

Not to return evil for evil.

Not to do injury, but to suffer it patiently.

To love enemies.

Not to curse in return those who curse one, but rather to bless them. 

In the days ahead in this series, we will hear from many people who decided to move into monasteries, their version of the desert, to live as though every day was Lent. We’ll see that in this isolation and discipline,  they saw deeply into human nature, and had wondrous visions of God. Peace. 

-Rev. Stephen Milton, Lawrence Park Community Church, Toronto

To read the entire Rule, click here.

Note: if you have missed any the posts, they can now all be found on our website, updated daily:

https://www.lawrenceparkchurch.ca/blog

If you would like to subscribe to this series, please contact stephen@lawrenceparkchurch.ca