Catechesis According to the Rule of Benedict
By The Rev. Dr. Greg Peters, Servants of Christ Research Professor of Monastic Studies at Nashotah House
The Rule of Benedict offers a fully-formed theology of spirituality under the theme of humility. For the monk, this lifetime of formation (or catechesis; or, in a more Benedictine fashion, “a lifetime of ascending the ladder of humility”) takes place in the monastic community, within the four walls of the monastery under the authority of an abbot and the rule. For the rest of us, however, it takes place within the church, within the four walls of the sanctuary under the authority of the clergy (bishops, priests, and deacons) and the rule of Sacred Scripture. Nonetheless, there is much to learn from the Benedictine monastic tradition vis-à-vis catechesis. We shall examine stability, fidelity to monastic life, and obedience in Benedict’s Rule, thinking in terms that we are catechetical novices, if you will.
First, monastic catechesis depends on stability. According to the Benedictine Rule, after “standing firm” for one year, when one is to be received into the monastery “he comes before the whole community in the oratory and promises stability, fidelity to monastic life, and obedience.” (1) Though things are a bit different today the root of monastic living is the same: a man or a woman, desiring to follow their God-given calling and vocation, enters a monastic community, is formed monastically in that community, takes vows to God as a member of that community, and, by God’s grace, dies in that community. And, with little variation, there are, in essence, two seasons of formation: from entrance until the taking of permanent vows; and then from the taking of permanent vows until death. In other words, monastic catechesis lasts a lifetime!
Twenty-first century people, like ourselves, are highly mobile, but stability often roots us to a place and to particular communities. There is the community of my own immediate family, my work community, and perhaps most importantly, my ecclesial community at Anglican Church of the Epiphany. In all of these communities, but perhaps most crucially in our home and at our parish, we are catechized. As James K. A. Smith reminds us, we are liturgical beings (homo liturgicus) who do not only think but, first and foremost, love through habituated practices. Because we are liturgical beings, we are going to be formed through liturgy. But which liturgy – a secular, cultural liturgy or a sacred, Christian liturgy? For the “liturgy is a ‘hearts and minds’ strategy, a pedagogy that trains us as disciples precisely by putting our bodies through a regimen of repeated practices that get hold of our heart and ‘aim’ our love toward the kingdom of God.” (2) At the end of the day, says Smith, “Intentional Christian worship that includes the elements we’ve described above, and that draws upon a holistic tradition of worship that activates the whole body, is packed with formative power.” (3) And what are these “elements . . . described above”? They are a call to worship; being greeted by God and greeting others; singing; the reading of the Law; confession and assurance of pardon; baptism; the Creed; prayer; Scripture and sermon; Eucharist; offering; and sending. Now, some of these elements could be gained outside the church, God’s foremost community. They are available in monasteries for sure. But are these not just the core practices of Christian liturgy? The core practices of the Church of God? That is, is not the church itself, and in local parishes certainly, the place to practice these practices, to be formed in habituated love--or, in Benedictine terms, to be catechized in humility? Yes, and our stability to local Christian communities is what makes this catechesis possible.
Second, monastic catechesis requires fidelity. The phrase that is often translated “fidelity to the monastic life” in the Rule of Benedict is, in Latin, conversatio morum suorum. According to the great Benedictine scholar Terrence Kardong, this is one of the “more controverted terms” in the Rule. (4) If it were conversio instead of conversatio then it would simply mean “conversion of one’s behavior.” But conversatio, literally “way of life,” “is often used in Christian literature to translate the Greek askēsis and hence can mean ‘the ascetic life’ or ‘the monastic life.’” (5) Perhaps the best way to think about it and to translate it is as “about his manner of life and moral conduct” or “about his manner of life, that is to say, his moral conduct.” (6) So, in addition to stability, monastic catechesis necessitates a proper way of life, especially in our moral lives. That is, to be catechized properly we need to be morally upright people; or, in more overt biblical terms, “whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, do; and the God of peace will be with you” (Phil 4:8-9 RSV; italics added for emphasis).
As you will rightly note, there is a bit of a Catch-22 here: knowing how to be and act morally is, in part at least, dependent on how well we have been catechized; yet being and acting morally is part of our catechesis. In theological terms, this is synergism in the best sense of the word. We are people of faith because of what Christ alone has done; but we are holy, moral people of faith because of what Christ has done and because of what we do as in-Spirited, en-Lightened baptized Christians. Monastic catechesis means I am a committed member and participant in a local parish (stability), and I partake fully in the sacramental life of the Church (fidelity).
Lastly, monastic catechesis entails obedience. If we think about having to render obedience, we tend to get bent a bit out of shape. We like to be autonomous, independent people. Obedience subjects us to someone or something else, and most of us just do not like that. We are fallen, sinful human beings after all. But, fear not! Benedict views his rule as “written for beginners,” and thus Benedict strives to legislate “nothing harsh, nothing burdensome”
In the Rule, obedience is primarily an issue of humility. In the chapter titled “Obedience,” Benedict says that the “basic road to progress for the humble person is through prompt obedience.” (7) Benedict’s monastic legislation is characterized by humility as both an end and a means, formed through a balance between prayer and manual labor and moderation. As Christians we are required to be obedient – to God, obviously, but that does not happen in a vacuum. The arena for our obedience is the church. The rules of our obedience are found first and foremost in the Sacred Scriptures but also in the creeds, confessions, and canons of the church. The people to whom we render obedience are the clergy and other God-appointed men and women. In the words of the Apostle Paul, “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Phil 2:5-8). Thus, a properly Christ-shaped life is one of obedience. Simply stated, to be a Christian is to practice obedience.
To those who serve as catechists: Benedict’s Rule envisions that formation or catechesis happens throughout all of life. To pastors and/or priests: do not think that catechesis ends at high school graduation or confirmation, for example. Ensure that your parish practices catechesis from the cradle to the grave, just as monastic formation extends from entry to the monastery until death. And a final word to all of us: let us let others catechize us, for we are not there yet. Despite our real or perceived spiritual maturity, we still have room to grow. As Benedict would say it, we are somewhere on the ladder of humility, likely moving back and forth between rungs. Some of us might be closer to the top than the bottom, but we are ever in need of ongoing catechesis. Thus, let us listen carefully then to the instruction of others “and attend to them with the ear of [our] heart.” (8)
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(1) RB 58.3-5, 8 and 17; Timothy Fry, ed., RB 1980: The Rule of St. Benedict in Latin and English with Notes (Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 1981), 267-269.
(2) James K. A. Smith, Desiring the Kingdom: Worship, Worldview, and Cultural Formation (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2009), 33.
(3) Smith, Desiring the Kingdom, 208.
(4) Terrence G. Kardong, Benedict’s Rule: A Translation and Commentary (Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 1996), 459.
(5) Ibid.
(6) Fry, ed., RB 1980, 462.
(7) RB 5.1; Kardong, Benedict’s Rule, 103.
(8) RB Prol 1; Fry, ed., RB 1980, 157.