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Chapter 32 – The Tools and Goods of the Monastery

In my modest attempt to consider The Rule of St. Benedict, I often quote from Sr. Joan Chittister’s work, “A Spirituality for the 21st Century.” She provides practical lessons of deep insight. On a few occasions, St. Joan’s commentary is so succinct that nothing more needs to be added and I am compelled to simply quote her thoughts in full. This is one of those times and the following observations are from her excellent work.

To those who think for a moment that the spiritual life is an excuse to ignore the things of the world, to go through time suspended above the mundane, to lurch from place to place with a balmy head and a saccharine smile on the face let this chapter be fair warning. Benedictine spirituality is as much about good order, wise management, and housecleaning as it is about the meditative and the immaterial dimensions of life. Benedictine spirituality sees the care of the earth and the integration of prayer and work, body and soul, as essential parts of the journey to wholeness that answers the emptiness in each of us.[1]

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[1] Joan Chittister, “The Manner of Reproving the Young,” in The Rule of Benedict: A Spirituality for the 21st Century (New York: Crossroad, 2010), 163-164.

 

Danny Nobles

email: dan@christmission.us. I grew up in rural Alabama, the youngest of six boys. Inheriting values of faith and service to others from my parents. Connie and I met in Kansas. We married and raised two daughters. Today, 43 years later, we live in North Carolina and enjoy 7 grandchildren. Retired from the Army, I entered seminary and earned a PhD, studying the stresses faced by Christian leaders and ways of promoting their wellbeing. Seeking a different path of spiritual growth, I discovered the Order of St. Benedict, and found a community of faithful disciples who seek to be with our Lord more than trying to do Christianity. Sounds strange, doesn’t it? As I learned to pray contemplatively, it was as if my second lung began to breath. My life became less hectic and my soul found peace. To me, monastic spirituality is being with God in community. As we serve others, we realize that God is serving through us. My advice to others - seek to be with God rather than insisting on doing for God. As He fills you with Himself, He will do mighty things around (and sometimes through) you.