“dashed them against Christ” (allisit ad Christum): For an explanation of the chain of associations involved in this allegorical interpretation of Ps 136(137):9, see Appendix 6, p. 475. The interpretation may be found in the allusion to the same verse in RB 4.50.
Prol.31(Latin / English) “grace” (Gratia): See Thematic Index: GRACE.
Prol.35(Latin / English) “With this conclusion” (Haec complens): Haec could be interpreted as an external accusative referring to the whole series of admonitions drawn from Scripture thus far in the Prologue. It seems more likely, however, that it is to be taken as an internal accusative: “with this conclusion.” The “conclusion” alluded to would then be the preceding verses, which form part of the conclusion of the Sermon on the Mount (Matt 7:24-25) and which in the context of the Prologue are the last of the series of admonitions drawn from Scripture. These words (haec complens) are, however, taken from RM, where they conclude a much longer prologue (and the Thema), including a lengthy commentary on the Lord’s Prayer, which is, of course, also to be found in the Sermon on the Mount.
Prol.37(Latin / English) “patience” (patientia): This is the only place in RB where patientia is used of God. Elsewhere (e.g., Prol.50) it, as well as patiens and patienter, applies to us. Here it is contained in the quotation from Rom 2:4. See Thematic Index: PASCHAL MYSTERY.
Prol.39(Latin / English) “but only if we fulfill the obligations of those who live there” (sed si compleamus habitatoris officium): The Latin here is elliptical. The sense seems to be, “we have heard the instruction for living there (and now have a chance of making our home where the Lord lives), but only if we fulfill the obligations of those who live there.” Many manuscripts of RB do in fact interpolate a phrase to this effect. See Hanslik, ad loc.
Prol.40(Latin / English) “for the battle of holy obedience” (sanctae…oboedientia e militanda): The form of the verb is equivalent to militatura. See C. Mohrmann “La Latinité de Saint Benoît” Études sur le Latin des Chrétiens, I (Rome: Edizioni di Storia e Letteratura 1958) p. 419, and McCann, The Rule of Saint Benedict, n. 10. As in Prol.3, the image of military and civil service refers to the labor of obedience. See note to Prol.3 above. The “battle of holy obedience” means the “battle for holy obedience,” i.e., the struggle to achieve obedience. One might compare this with the phrase “civil rights struggle,” which means, of course, “struggle for civil rights.” Other interpreters, however, understand it to mean that obedience itself is the battle for which we must prepare.
Prol.41(Latin / English) “to us” (in nos): The use of the accusative (instead of: in nobis) provides a very clear example of the tendency of the accusative to take over the functions of the other cases.
“let us ask…” (rogemus Dominum ut gratiae suae iubeat…): Another possible translation would be: “let us ask the Lord to command the help of his grace to supply it. “See de Vogüé, 1.423, n.41 and La Règle du Maître, 1.325, n.41.
Prol.44(Latin / English) “run” (currendum): This verb is used four times in the Prologue, in vv.13,22,44, and 49. All usages, except the last, are taken from RM. In vv.13 and 44, there is an allusion to John 12:35, where the verb in the Vulgate is ambulate (walk). The image of “running” may derive from elsewhere in the New Testament, e.g., 2 Tim 4:7.
Prol.45(Latin / English) “a school for the Lord’s service” (dominici schola servitii): In this noble and often quoted phrase, a school “for” rather than “of” seems best to catch the idea that the monastery is a place where the monks both learn how to serve the Lord and actually do so. In the Latin of this period, schola could mean not only a place where instruction was received but the group receiving instruction as well as, more generally, a vocational corporation (such as a guild) of people devoted to a common craft or service. A similar usage can be seen in the English “school of painters” or “school of porpoises.” See Appendix 2, p. 365. The “school for the Lord’s service” may certainly be regarded as the central idea of the Prologue (see de Vogüé 7.27–74). It implies that the monastery (the school) is the place where Christ continues to teach his disciples the baptismal renunciation of sin and the ways that lead to the repose of eternal life. It implies that life in the monastery is a service of Christ, the Lord. It implies, finally, that service calls for strenuous obedience and suffering with Christ but that such service leads even now to a joyful and loving observance of the commandments of God. See Thematic Index: DISCIPLINE, as divine teaching.
Prol.49(Latin / English) “But as we progress in this way of life” (Processu…conversationis): Conversatio means generally a way of life, here the monastic way of life. The monk is the Christian who turns to the monastic life (58.1), who makes a beginning (73.1), who is exhorted to progress in the monastic way of life (Prol.49), who promises to live the monastic life (58.17), and who is hurrying toward the perfection of the monastic life (73.2). For further discussion of this term, see Appendix 5, pp. 459–463. See Thematic Index: CONVERSATIO; LIFE, as journey.
Prol.50(Latin / English) Caes.Arel. reg.mon. 1; Cypr. hab.virg. 21; Cypr. ad Fort. 11; Cypr. de op. et el. 13; Cypr. epist. 57,1-3.
Prol.50(Latin / English) “faithfully observing his teaching” (in eius doctrinam…perseverantes): There is an allusion here to the picture of the early Christian community drawn by Luke in Acts 2:42 (perseverantes in doctrina apostolorum). References to these texts from Acts describing the life of the Jerusalem community abound in early monastic literature, for monastic authors saw in the practices of the Jerusalem community a justification for the practices of cenobitic monasticism. Cassian develops the theme most extensively and sees in the Jerusalem community both the prototype and origin of cenobitic monasticism. See A. de Vogüé “Monasticism and the Church in the Writings of Cassian” MS 3 (1965) 19–51 and Pier Cesare Bori, Chiesa Primitiva: L’immagine della comunità delle origini—Atti 2,42-47; 4,32-37—nella storia della chiesa antica, Testi e richerche di Scienze religiose 10 (Brescia: Paideia Editrice 1974). On the notion of perseverance contained in this phrase, see also Appendix 5, pp. 464–466. See Thematic Index: PASCHAL MYSTERY.
“patience…sufferings… (passionibus…patientiam): The two Latin words are from the same root, something that could not be indicated neatly in the translation. See Col 1:24.
[“It is called a rule...“ (Regula appellatur...)]: Not all MSS have this phrase, and of those that do, not all have it before ch. 1. There is reason to doubt that this statement goes back to St. Benedict. However, there is no denying that regula, meaning literally a ‘straight edge,’ is a derivative of rego. Dirigo, meaning ‘rule’ (set in separate straight lines) or ‘keep straight,’ is a compound of rego. Rectus, meaning “straight” (or “true” in the carpenter’s sense), is the past participle of rego, used as an adjective (see 7.21; 73.3,4).
A similar attempt to explain the derivation of regula can be found in RM Prol.23-27. The meaning of words, however, depends as much on usage and context as upon etymology, even when that is correctly given. For discussion of the usage of regula prior to RM, see the Introduction, pp. 84–88.
1.1 (English / Latin) “monks” (Monachorum): For the literary background of this chapter and additional discussion of the terms “monk,” “cenobite,” etc., see Appendix 1, pp. 301–321. Except for vv. 11-13, the wording of RB 1 is identical with that of RM 1. However, RB omits much material in RM. See Thematic Index: MONK.
1.2 (English / Latin)“cenobites” (coenobitarum): The Latin word is derived from the Greek koinos bios, which means literally: “common life.”
“serve” (militans): See notes to Prol.3 and 40.
“a rule and an abbot” (regula vel abbate): In later Latin vel often, as here, means “and.” In earlier Western monastic tradition, regula does not necessarily refer to a written rule distinct from the authority of the abbot. It is the innovation of RM to complement the authority of the latter with a written document. See A. de Vogüé “Sub regula vel abbate: A Study of the Theological Significance of the Ancient Mona
stic Rules” Rule and Life: An Interdisciplinary Symposium, ed. M. B. Pennington (Spencer, Mass.: Cistercian Publications 1971) pp. 21–63. See Thematic Index: RULE.
1.3 (English / Latin) “anchorites” (anachoritarum): The Latin word is a transliteration of the Greek anachōrētēs, which means: one who withdraws or retires. See Introduction, pp. 17–18.
“hermits” (eremitarum): The Latin word comes from the Greek erēmitēs, meaning: one who lives in the desert (erēmos). In RB, RM and Cassian, the cenobitic life is viewed as the necessary preparation for the life of a hermit.
“monastic life” (conversationis): The term conversio in RM has been replaced here by conversatio. For a discussion of the meaning of the terms, see Appendix 5, pp. 459–463.
1.5 (English / Latin) “of body and mind” (carnis vel cogitationum): The phrase may be rendered more literally: “of the flesh and of the thoughts.” It does not derive from a Greek body-soul anthropology, nor does it represent two mutually distinct categories of vices. Both terms derive ultimately from New Testament usage, where both are used to cover a wide variety of vices. For the reference of “flesh,” see Gal 5:19, and for “thoughts” (dialogismoi in Greek), see Mark 7:21 (Matt 15:19). Evagrius of Pontus had developed a theory of the eight principal “thoughts” (logismoi), which was transmitted to the West as the eight principal vices (Cassian. inst. 5,1) and became eventually better known as the seven capital sins. See Introduction, p. 39.
1.6 (English / Latin) “sarabaites” (sarabaitarum): The term is of Coptic origin, where it did not originally have a pejorative connotation. See Appendix 1, p. 318, n. 39.
“no experience to guide them” (experientia magistra): The juxtaposition of “rule” and “experience” suggests that the experience by which the monk should be taught is not only his own but that of teachers as well. The sarabaites lack a rule and a teacher, while the cenobites have both (RB 1.2). The quotation “as gold is tried in a furnace” can be found in Prov 27:21, Sir 2:5 and Wis 3:6.
1.7 (English / Latin) “tonsure” (tonsuram): Although it has been suggested that the origin of the tonsure is to be found in the Eastern custom of cutting the hair of slaves and that the monks did this to identify themselves as slaves of Christ, the evidence is uncertain and the origins of the custom remain obscure. It does not seem to belong to the earliest monastic tradition. Cassian does not mention it as an Egyptian practice or when describing the sarabaites. It seems to have been of rather recent origin in the time of RM and RB. The Roman practice, to which this is presumably an allusion, was, at this period, not to shave the head but simply to cut the hair short. Given the role that hair has always played in the fashions of society, it may reasonably be conjectured that a motive for the development of the practice lay in the desire to combat vanity. The recurrent aversion, on ascetical grounds, to bathing (RB 36.8) may also have provided hygienic reasons. The most thorough treatment of the evidence is by H. Leclercq “Tonsure” DACL 15.2430–43, who also provides the best information on the related area of facial hair, “Barbe” DACL 2.478–493.
1.10 (English / Latin) “gyrovagues” (gyrovagum): This word is a mongrel formation from the Greek gūros (circle) and the Latin vagari (to wander). RM is the first to use this term. Perhaps it is fervor novicius that makes the Master go on for sixty-two verses about these wretched men whom St. Benedict dismisses in two.
1.13 (English / Latin) “the strong kind” (fortissimum genus): It seems unlikely, though not altogether impossible, that fortissimum is a true superlative, meaning the ‘strongest’ of the four. The Latin superlative, even in classical times, could mean no more than ‘very strong’ and by the sixth century is often no more forceful than the positive forte. It is unlikely, given the context of vv. 3-5 and the authority of the tradition (Cassian. conl. 19, passim), that St. Benedict is expressing a preference for cenobites. The order of the four types is one not of preference but of supposed historical emergence, and this is based on Cassian’s theory of the apostolic origins of cenobitism (Cassian. conl. 18). Note further that the use of fortis in RB 18.16, of the longer (fortiores) psalms, and in 70.6 of older (fortiori aetate) men, suggests that the idea “numerically stronger” may also have been at the back of the author’s mind here.
2.1 (English / Latin) “abbot” (Abbas): The word almost certainly derives from the Aramaic abba, meaning ‘father’ (Mark 14:36; Rom 8:15; Gal 4:6). For further discussion of the word and of this chapter generally, see Appendix 2, pp. 322f.
“superior” (maioris): The “title” in question is maior. There is a play in Latin, partly carried over into English, on the comparative form maior suggesting that more exemplary (superior) conduct is demanded of the abbot. In this translation, maior, when used of the abbot (cf. 5.4,15; 7.34), is rendered “superior,” as is also prior (see note on 6.7).
2.2 (English / Latin) “to hold the place of” (agere vices): This Latin phrase is possibly a theatrical metaphor meaning, like partes agere, “to take the role of.” See Appendix 2, p. 350.
“a title of Christ” (ipsius...pronomine): The biblical text invoked here does not actually give the title abba to Christ but to God the Father. For a discussion of how Christ came to be regarded as father, see Appendix 2, pp. 356–363.
2.5 (English / Latin) “leaven” (fermentum): The image is probably drawn from Matt 13:33 and identifies the teaching of the abbot with the divine precepts.
2.6 (English / Latin) “Let the abbot always remember” (memor semper abbas): Memor is being treated here virtually as a present participle. (Cf. note on Prol.25). In RB it is sometimes followed by a genitive, as in classical Latin (2.26; 31.16), sometimes by a direct object (4.61; 7.11; 31.8 and probably 19.3).
2.7 (English / Latin) “father of the household” (paterfamilias): This word occurs only once in RB. While Abbot Herwegen saw comparisons between the Roman paterfamilias and the abbot of the monastery, it seems better to understand the term according to biblical and monastic tradition. It is Christ, not the abbot, who is the paterfamilias. See Appendix 2, pp. 351–352.
2.8 (English / Latin) “to cure” (cura): The metaphor is medical, as in RB 28. See Appendix 2, p. 352, and Thematic Index: CARE and CONCERN.
2.13 (English / Latin) “reprobate” (reprobus): The Greek word (adokimos) translated by reprobus in 1 Cor 9:27 can mean “disqualified” and could then be understood as a continuation of the boxing imagery used in 1 Cor 9:26. But the question here, as always in similar passages in RB, is not how modern scholars interpret the phrase but how the ancient writer understood the text.
2.17 (English / Latin) “and obedience” (aut oboedientia): The rest of vv. 16-17 is borrowed from RM, but these two words are, significantly, original to RB.
2.20 (English / Latin) “whether slave or free ...”(sive servus sive liber ...): The quotation is a conflation of Eph 6:8 and Gal 3:28. Cf. RB 7.65 for another example of this kind of conflation.
“bearing” (baiulamus): In the Vulgate this word is used of Jesus carrying the cross in John 19:17.
2.21 (English / Latin) “in good works and in humility” (in operibus bonis et humiles): These words are an addition of RB to RM.
2.22 (English / Latin) “according to their merits” (secundum merita): These words are likewise an addition of RB to RM.
“discipline” (disciplina): See Appendix 4, pp. 434–435, and Thematic Index: DISCIPLINE.
2.28 (English / Latin)“evil” (improbus): The root sense of improbus seems to be “not up to standard.” From this derives a wide range of meanings. In a particular phrase some general term of reprobation, such as “evil,” may be the best translation; or it may be necessary to supply from the context the particular tone needed, as in 23.5: “lacking in understanding” (from intellegit in 23.4), or “insensitivity” for improbitate in 52.3 (from the general tenor of the chapter).
“some other physical punishment” (vel corporis castigatio): E.g., fasting.
2.30 (English / Latin) “what he is called” (quod dicitur): I.e., abbas. Cf.
v.1 above.
“more will be expected of a man to whom more has bee n entrusted” (cui plus committitur, plus ab eo exigitur): Although the wording in the Vulgate is different (cui commendavenmt multum, plus petent ab eo), there is no doubt that this is a free citation of Luke 12:48 and even represents a stylistic improvement over the latter.
2.35 (English / Latin) “excuse” (causetur): This seems to be the abbatial equivalent of murmuratio, and Benedict is severe on both excuses and grumbling.
2.38 (English / Latin) “submit a reckoning to the Lord” (redditurus Domino rationem): There is a reference here to Heb 13:17, from which several words have been borrowed (rationem pro animabus vestris reddituri). See A. de Vogüé “Semper cogitet quia rationem redditurus est (RB 2.34 et 64.7). Benoît, le Maître, Augustin et l’Épître aux Hébreux” Benedictina 23 (1976) 1–7.
3.1 (English / Latin) “the whole community” (omnem congregationem): The abbot is assisted by the advice of the community and the seniors. While RM attaches the material on consultation of the monks to chapter 2 (2.41-52), RB makes a separate chapter of it. The former speaks only of assembling the whole community (which is assumed to be small) and restricts the subject matter to questions of the temporal possessions of the monastery. RB, on the contrary, provides for a council of seniors for questions of less importance, so that the whole community need be consulted only on affairs of great importance. While it may be that St. Benedict, like RM, is thinking primarily of temporal administration, this is not evident in RB, and it seems more probable that he wishes to broaden the scope of the consultation. There is precedent in Pachomian and Basilian cenobitism for consultation of the seniors about monastic affairs, but there seems to be no earlier example of seeking the advice of the whole community. The concern of RM and of later rules about property decisions seems to reflect the viewpoint of Justinian’s legislation giving communities a voice in matters regarding the ownership of temporalities. See M. Blecker “Roman Law and “Consilium” in the Regula Magistri and the Rule of St. Benedict” Speculum 47 (1972) 1–28 and A. de Vogüé, RBS 2 (1973) 13*–18*.
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