New Things and Old
21 Apr. 21 Aug. 21 Dec. Let him that hath been appointed Abbot always bear in mind what a burden he hath received, and to...
Sent to sustain and console others (LXIV:1)
CHAPTER LXIV. Of the Appointment of the Abbot 20 Apr. 20 Aug. 20 Dec. In the appointing of an Abbot, let this principle always be...
Castitatem amare
It is fitting on this feast of Saint Maria Goretti, Virgin and Martyr, to offer some random thoughts on chastity, the joyful virtue. Chastity leads...
Heroic confidence in the midst of impossibilities
June 17th was the dies natalis of Marie-Adèle Garnier, Mother Mary of St. Peter, Foundress of the Adorers of the Sacred Heart of Jesus of...
Behold, I am here
3 Jan. 4 May. 3 Sept. And the Lord, seeking His own workman in the multitude of the people to whom He thus crieth out,...
Lollygaggers Need Not Apply
Prologue of Our Most Holy Father Benedict to His Rule 2 Jan. 3 May. 2 Sept. Let us then at length arise, since the Scripture...
Beginning Afresh
Benedictines Always Beginning Again We began today, once again, the reading of the Holy Rule from the beginning. In Benedictine life, we are always beginning...
Thy mercy dost compass me about
Nicholas and Benjamin were welcomed as postulants today, Divine Mercy Sunday. Quasimodo Sunday: The Feast of Divine Mercy In the early Church, the newly-baptized would...
St Francis de Sales & the Rule of St Benedict
Holiness Is Symphonic The symphonic quality of holiness is a glorious thing orchestrated in Christ, by the Holy Ghost, to the praise of the Father....
Reprove, entreat, rebuke
13 Jan. 14 May. 13 Sept. For the Abbot in his doctrine ought always to observe the bidding of the Apostle, wherein he says: “Reprove,...
And never to despair of God’s mercy
Bless the Lord, O my soul, and never forget all he hath done for thee. Who forgiveth all thy iniquities: who healeth all thy diseases....
One heavy devil
Today we celebrate the feast of All Saints Who Militated Under the Rule of Saint Benedict. One might also translate the name of the feast...
Rejoicing may this day go hence
CHAPTER XIII. How Lauds Are to be Said on Weekdays 15 Feb. 16 June. 16 Oct. On week-days let Lauds be celebrated in the manner...
To thee do I watch from morning’s first light (XII)
CHAPTER XII. How the Solemn Office of Lauds is to Be Said 14 Feb. 15 June. 15 Oct. At Lauds on Sunday let the sixty-sixth...
The Word has also come to me
CHAPTER XLII. That no one may speak after Compline 21 Mar. 21 July. 20 Nov. Monks should love silence at all times, but especially during...
Pope Benedict XVI on Saint Benedict
On 9 April 2008, in his General Audience, Pope Benedict XVI presented the patron of his pontificate, our own father, Saint Benedict. Re–reading Pope Benedict’s...
Tunc dixit: Ecce venio
CHAPTER XXXIII. Whether Monks Ought to Have Anything of Their Own 11 Mar. 11 July. 10 Nov. The vice of private ownership is above all...
Never to despair of the mercy of God
Meeting the Saints How and when did Saint Benedict come into my life? He was not among the saints whom I came to know as...
And she entered into the house
CHAPTER XXV. Of Graver Faults 2 Mar. 2 July. 1 Nov. Let that brother who is found guilty of a more grievous offence be excluded...
Saints John and Paul, Martyrs of Rome
Friends and Martyrs of the Church at Rome Today is the memorial of Saints John and Paul, named both in the Martyrology and in the...