A Portrait of the Just Man (Prologue 5)
PROLOGUE OF OUR MOST HOLY FATHER SAINT BENEDICT TO HIS RULE
5 Jan. 6 May. 5 Sept.
Hence also the Lord saith in the Gospel: “He that heareth these words of Mine, and doeth them, is like a wise man who built his house upon a rock: the floods came, the winds blew, and beat upon that house, and it fell not, because it was founded upon a rock.” And the Lord in fulfilment of these His words is waiting daily for us to respond by our deeds to His holy admonitions. Therefore are the days of our life lengthened for the amendment of our evil ways, as saith the Apostle: “Knowest thou not that the patience of God is leading thee to repentance?” For the merciful Lord saith: “I will not the death of a sinner, but that he should be converted and live.”
5 January 2026
Prologue vv. 33-38
Saint Benedict has been presenting the requirements for dwelling in the Lord’s Tabernacle in terms of the portrait of the just man in Psalm 14. He does not continue all the way to the end of the Psalm, as does his probable source, the Rule of the Master, in a parallel section. But he would have been well aware of the final verse of the Psalm: Qui facit haec non movebitur in aeternum, ‘He who doth these things shall not be moved forever.’ And thus this section of the Prologue naturally concludes, as does the Sermon on the Mount, with the parable of the house built upon rock, which is an image of the man Qui audit verba mea haec et facit ea, ‘Who heareth these words of Mine and doeth them.’
As mentioned in the last few days, this section on the need for deeds in order to dwell in the Lord’s Tabernacle mirrors the previous section of requirements for the Lord’s workman taken from Psalm 33. The chiastic structure then continues as today’s passage goes on to issue an urgent call to act now and not delay, thus recapitulating the earlier admonition to hear the Lord’s voice today, and to run while we have the light of life. Today’s repetition of this theme is even more insistent: Saint Benedict tells us, in effect, that the reason we are still alive in this world is so that we can have time to repent of our sins.
This perspective can change the entire way we look at our life. On the one hand, it might seem a bit depressing to think of our life in this world simply as a ‘truce’—which is the literal meaning of indutias which Saint Benedict uses in speaking of the lengthening of our days. Yet this consideration, that our life is a sort of ‘grace period’ given to us for repentance—should induce a sense of deep gratitude for the immense patience of God: the patientia which is directed towards paenitentia. We all know the experience of dreading some deadline, perhaps for a paper or exam, or perhaps a class or a meeting that we are not prepared for—and then suddenly receiving the word that an extension has been given, or school has been cancelled, or the meeting postponed. There is a sudden sense of elation, as ‘a new lease on life’ is given to us. We hear the same in the Canticle of Ezechias in Isaias 38, which we say at Ferial Lauds on Tuesday, the Canticle which he sang after the Lord had heard his prayer on his sickbed and added years to his life.
Thus, we can reflect each morning when we arise that, while God could have justly called us the night before to render an account of our deeds before His judgment seat, instead another extension has been given to us. This should be a motive for great gratitude for His undeserved kindness, but also a further incentive to get to work today about the business of changing our life, leaving behind our selfish will in order to let the love of God and our neighbour become more and more the wellspring of all of our actions. May we begin today to take advantage of the ‘truce’ that is offered to us, and show our Father the gratitude that His generous mercy deserves.