People are seen as an integrated whole: Body, Mind, and Spirit. Benedictine spirituality is a way of life that helps a person to seek God and his will daily. As you read, pay attention to the one or two which resonate most for you today. Simplicity of life and a sense of stewardship are also characteristics of Benedictine spirituality. https://www.encyclopedia.com/religion/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/benedictine-spirituality, "Benedictine Spirituality Consequently he accepts the services and ideas of others, the gifts of life, and community. praying the Divine Office) as well as regular silent . Ignatian spirituality is a spirituality for everyday life. The Cistercian Order reinforced the eremetical character of the cenobitical life itself. Benedictine spirituality is a fresh alternative in an increasingly fast-paced world. Like counselling, therapy and coaching, spiritual direction rests on careful listening to the 'client'. to the Rule is a good way to summarize the goal of Benedictine spirituality and prayer. If a monk's life is not grounded in God, he is tempted to put himself in the place of God. Chanon gave Ignatius the book Exercises for the Spiritual Life written by Benedictine reformer, Fr. While there are times allotted for prayer and for work, ultimately there is to be no division between the two. 0000000556 00000 n The rhythm of life leads one to times of being alone and times of being in community. Benedictine monks have often received freely from their families and educators, from the rich Benedictine tradition, from the abundant life of their own communities, and from the many mercies of God. 2. [], [] is both. Sam Rahberg is former Director of the Benedictine Center and a spiritual director in St. Paul. Benedictine spirituality is a fresh alternative in an increasingly fast-paced world. Kyle T. Kramer explains in his 2011 article for America Magazine that hospitality, for a Benedictine, means to welcome all others as Christ, to recognize that despite vast differences, the diverse human family is part of the same God-given belonging, and we need one another to survive and thrive. This means facing our fears, letting prejudice and certitude die in us, and rooting ourselves in the love of God, the alpha and omega of the entire creation, the force that pulls everyone and everything toward a center that can hold. Benedictines hold strong convictions, but experience shows strident, uncompromising voices tend to foster arguments, tensions, and hostilitiesnot peace and love. Most online reference entries and articles do not have page numbers. It is regular, converting, reflective, and communal. 21 0 obj <>stream The Benedictine practice of mindfulness, like all the Benedictine practices, is lifelong. Here are some of the characteristics of Benedictine spirituality: For Benedict, the spiritual life was about listening to Godthrough prayer, Scriptures, the depths of our own experience, through listening to others in our community and the wider church. BARTH, KARL (18861968), Swiss Reformed theologian, described by Pope Pius XII as the greatest theologian since Thomas Aquina, A term used to cover a literally bewildering variety of states of mind. As time went on we decided that we needed a clear focus on the values. h|X+8v&yh{#||(E AM3. Spiritual Direction, sometimes referred to as spiritual guidance or spiritual friendship, is an on-going relationship in which a person, desiring to be attentive to his or her spiritual life, meets with the spiritual director on a regular basis to become more attuned to God's presence and to respond more fully to that presence. Retrieved February 22, 2023 from Encyclopedia.com: https://www.encyclopedia.com/religion/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/benedictine-spirituality. Read the full essay to learn more about how humility helps us grow in the love of God and deepens our bonds with each other. . Through contemplative prayer, the monk becomes an emptiness so there is space for God as well as space for others. Brendan Rolling, OSB of St Benedicts Abbey of Atchison, Kansas, Sister Joan tells us that a Benedictine lifestyle is an an oasis of human peace. However, the date of retrieval is often important. Benedict shows us the value of ordering our day around communal prayer (i.e. It sets up a framework of life, an institution, of which the essential and constitutive elements are firmly determined: life in common under the government of a superior called an abbot, who has the help of a prior and other officials and takes counsel of the whole assembly of monks, even the youngest in the community. In The Rule of Benedict for Beginners, Wil Derkse reveals how elements from Benedictine spirituality and the Benedictine lifestyle may be . The ideal of this pattern of conversion is meant to be incarnated in a special way for the community in the abbot, who is expected to be a symbolic center exercising a centripetal force that draws individuals into a truly Christian community of life for God and others in Jesus Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit. 480 to 547 CE in Italy. Belief in One God: The most important teaching of Islam is that only God is to be served and worshipped. He is author of Ice Break: A Collection of Poems (Aetos Publications, 2019), Enduring Ministry: Toward a Lifetime of Christian Leadership (Liturgical Press, 2017), and The Gospels in Poem and Image (Aetos Publications, 2016-2019). 9 13 Benedictine Center is affiliated and operated in partnership with St. Pauls Monastery. 0000000016 00000 n From the 13th century, Benedictine monasteries have often felt the influence of spiritual movements coming from non-monastic sources. Where it was adopted, it was looked upon as a venerable text but not necessarily requiring observance in all its prescriptions. Garcia Jimenez de Cisneros in . Even the Cistercians, who in the 12th century had intended to return to a faithful observance of the rule itself, added numerous statutes. The monk's listening is to be modeled after the prayer of Jesus who spent long hours listening and attentive in the presence of his heavenly Father. New Catholic Encyclopedia. [], [] Learn more about Benedictine spirituality. A monk spends his whole life becoming humble. Benedictine spirituality offers an important voice in our world today, a voice which informs our praying, living and discerning. Augustinian Spirituality does not take us out of the world (into the . It was not founded by a particular saint. Mindfulness is a trending word these days yogis, psychologists, educators, physicians, and practically everyone else is talking about the importance of quieting our busy minds in order to become more aware of the present moment. It was considered as proposing a spiritual program, while daily life was regulated by "customaries," to which succeeded, from the beginning of the 16th century, "Declarations" and "Constitutions" as well as the "Ceremonial." Benedictines carry on a monastic tradition that stems from the origins of the Christian monastic movement in the late third century. //