If he promises to persevere with his intention, after two months this rule should be read through to him, and he should be told, ‘This is the law under which you wish to serve; if you are able to keep it, enter, but if you cannot, you are free to go.’ If he still persists, then he should be taken into the novices’ centre we mentioned and his patience tested again in every way. After six months the rule should be read to him so that he knows what he is letting himself in for. If he still stands firm, after four months the same rule should be read to him yet again. If, after careful consideration, he promises to observe all the rules and to obey all the commands given to him, then he should be received into the community, in full awareness of the fact that the law of the rule lays down that from that day on he is not allowed to leave the monastery or to withdraw his neck from the yoke of the rule, which he had been allowed to accept or reject during the extended period of reflection.
The one who is to be received should take a vow in the oratory in front of everyone: he must promise stability, conversion of his way of life and obedience before God and his saints, so that if he ever does otherwise, he will be clear that he will be condemned by the one whom he scorns. Regarding this promise he should make a petition in the name of the saints whose relics are in that monastery and of the abbot who is present. He should write this petition in his own hand or, if he is illiterate, he must ask someone else to do it for him, and then the novice should put his mark to it and place it on the altar with his own hand. On placing it there, the novice should immediately start to say this verse, ‘Receive me, O Lord, according to your words, and I will live; do not disappoint me in my hope’ (Ps. 119:116). The whole community should repeat this verse three times, adding ‘Glory be to the Father’. Then the novice brother must prostrate himself at the feet of each brother, so that they can pray for him, and from this day on he should be reckoned to be part of the community.
If he possesses any property, he should first distribute it to the poor or make a formal donation granting it to the monastery, keeping absolutely nothing for himself, for he should be aware that from that day on he will not even have jurisdiction over his own body. That is why he will be stripped of his own clothes in the oratory and dressed in the clothes of the monastery. The clothes he takes off will be placed for safe-keeping in the clothes room, so that if at some point he listens to the devil’s persuasions and leaves the monastery (which God forbid), then he will have to take off the monastic clothes before he is expelled. However, the petition the abbot took from the altar will not be returned to him but will be kept in the monastery.
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The offering of their sons by nobles or by the poor
Should it happen that a nobleman offers his son to God in the monastery and if the boy is still very young, his parents should make the petition we mentioned above. When they make the offering, they should wrap the petition and the boy’s hand in the altar cloth and offer him in this way. As to his property, let them promise in this same petition under oath that they will never themselves or through an intermediary or by any other means give him anything or provide him with an opportunity to possess anything. If they are unwilling to do this and they wish to offer something as alms to the monastery so as to gain a reward, they should make a donation from what they want to give to the monastery, retaining for themselves, should they so wish, the use and revenue during their lifetime. In this way they will prevent the boy having any expectations whatsoever which might deceive and ruin him (which God forbid), as experience has taught us. Poor people should do the same, but those who possess nothing at all should simply make a petition and offer their son in the presence of witnesses when the offering is made.
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The admission of priests to the monastery
If anyone who has been ordained a priest asks to be received into the monastery, he should not be granted permission too readily, but if he persists in his request, he needs to be aware that he will have to observe the full discipline of the rule and that he will be allowed no relaxation of the rules, for as it says in Scripture, ‘My friend, what have you come for?’ (Matt. 26:50). He will, however, be allowed to take his place next to the abbot and to give blessings and celebrate mass, if the abbot tells him to. Otherwise he should not take it upon himself to do anything, knowing that he is subject to the discipline of the rule and that he should instead be giving an example of humility to the others. If it happens that there is the question of an appointment or other business in the monastery, he must take his place according to the date of his entry into the monastery rather than the position granted to him out of respect for him as a priest. If any clerics wish to join the monastery out of a similar desire, they should be assigned a middle rank, but they are to be admitted only if they promise to observe the rule and maintain their commitment to stability.
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The reception of visiting monks
If a monk who arrives on a visit from distant regions wishes to live in the monastery as a guest and is happy to accept the customs of the place as he finds them and does not disturb the monastery with his excessive demands but is simply content with what he finds, then he should be allowed to stay for as long as he wishes. If with good reason and in a spirit of loving humility, he criticizes or points out any defect, the abbot should consider the matter fairly in case the Lord has perhaps sent the person for this purpose. If later on he wishes to confirm his commitment to stay in one place, this wish should not be rejected, especially as the quality of his life will have been discerned during the period when he was a guest.
But if he is found to be demanding or problematic during his time as a guest, then not only should he not join the monastic community but he should be asked politely to leave, so that the others are not corrupted by his unacceptable behaviour. If he does not deserve to be dismissed, then he should be accepted as a member of the community if he asks to join, and he should in fact be persuaded to remain, so that the others can learn from his example: after all, wherever we are we serve the same Lord and fight for the same King. If the abbot considers him worthy, he may accord him a slightly higher position. In fact the abbot can give monks as well as those who have been ordained as priests or clergy a higher position than they had on entry, if he considers them worthy. But the abbot must be careful not to allow a monk from another known monastery to come and live there unless he has his abbot’s permission or a letter of recommendation, for as it says in Scripture, ‘Do not do to someone else what you do not want done to you’ (Tob. 4:15).
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Priests of the monastery
If an abbot wishes to have a priest or deacon ordained, he should choose one of the brothers whom he considers worthy to perform the duties of the priesthood. When this brother has been ordained, he must take care to avoid self-satisfaction or pride and must not presume to do anything apart from what the abbot has told him to do, knowing well that he must be all the more subject to the discipline of the rule. The fact that he is a priest must not cause him to forget the obedience and discipline demanded by the rule; in fact he must try to make even more progress towards God.
He should always keep the place he was given on entry to the monastery, except in his duties at the altar and unless the community has voted and the abbot has agreed that he should be promoted on account of the excellence of his life. However, he should be aware that he must observe the rules set for the deans and priors; if he presumes to act otherwise, he will not be regarded as a priest but a rebel, and if after repeated warnings he does not correct his behaviour, the bishop should also be brought in as a witness. If he still does not improve and still has glaring faults, he must be expelled from the monastery, should his obstinacy be such that he refuses to submit and obey the rule.
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Rank within the community
In the monastery the brothers should keep the rank they were assigned at the time of their entry to the monastic life, according to the merits of their life or as the abbot decides. The abbot
must not disturb the flock entrusted to him or make any unjust arrangements as if he had arbitrary power, but always bear in mind that he will have to give an account to God of all his decisions and actions. And so when the brothers come forward for the kiss of peace, for communion, or to intone the psalm or when they are standing in the choir, they should keep to the order the abbot has decided on or which the brothers themselves keep to. In no circumstances whatsoever should age make a difference to the order or prejudice it: after all, Samuel and Daniel judged their elders, even though they were only boys. Apart from those whom, as we mentioned, the abbot has decided, after careful consideration, to promote or demote for a particular reason, all the rest should keep the rank assigned to them at their entry into the monastic life, so that for example someone who entered the monastery at the second hour of the day, should recognize that he is junior to someone who arrived at the first hour, regardless of his age and social status. The boys, however, are to be subject at all times to the discipline of everyone.
The younger ones must respect their seniors and the older ones must love the younger ones. In addressing one another no one must call someone just by his name: the older ones must call the younger ones ‘brother’ and the younger ones should call their elders ‘nonnus’, which means ‘reverend father’. The abbot, because he is Christ’s representative, should be called ‘lord’ and ‘abbot’, not because of his high position but out of reverence and love for Christ. He must bear this in mind and show himself worthy of such honour.
Whenever the brothers meet each other, the younger one should ask the older one for a blessing. If an older brother passes by, the younger one should stand up and give him his seat and the younger one should not presume to sit down unless the older one tells him to. In this way Scripture will be fulfilled when it says, ‘Be eager to give precedence to each other’ (Rom. 12:10). Small boys and adolescents must strictly maintain their proper order in the oratory and at table. Outside or anywhere else they must be supervised and controlled, until they reach the age of discretion.
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Election of the abbot
In the appointment of an abbot, the guiding principle should always be that the person appointed should be the one chosen unanimously by the whole congregation in the fear of God, or even by a minority, however small, of the community if they will make the more sensible decision. The one to be appointed should be chosen for his virtuous way of life and the wisdom of his teaching, even if he is the lowest in rank in the community. But if the whole community agrees to choose someone who condones their vices (which God forbid) and those vices come to the attention of the bishop to whose diocese that place belongs, or of the neighbouring abbots and Christians, they must prevent this conspiracy of the wicked taking control, and must appoint someone suitable to be in charge of the house of God, knowing that they will be well rewarded for this, if they do it with pure intentions and with enthusiasm for God. Conversely, they will be guilty if they fail to act.
Once the abbot has been appointed, he must always consider the burden he has undertaken and to whom he will have to ‘give an account of his stewardship’ (Luke 16:2). He must be aware that it is his duty to benefit others rather than to control them. It is his duty to be learned in the divine law so that he may be knowledgeable and have a store from which he can ‘take out new things and old’ (Matt. 13:52); he must also be pure, sensible and merciful. He must always ‘put mercy before judgement’ (James 2:13), so that he himself may also be shown mercy. He must hate wrongdoing and love the brothers. When punishing he must act sensibly and not be excessive, in case he should damage the pot while trying to scrub away the dirt. He must always distrust his own fragility and remember not to ‘crush the bruised reed’ (Isa. 42:3). By this we do not mean that he should allow wrongdoings to grow rampant but should eradicate them sensibly and with love, in accordance with what seems beneficial to each, as we have mentioned. He should strive to be loved rather than feared. He must not be inconsistent or anxious, not extreme in his behaviour or obstinate, not jealous or excessively suspicious, for then he will never rest. He must act with foresight and consideration whenever he gives an order. Whether the task he orders concerns God or the world, he should be discreet and restrained, remembering the discretion of holy Jacob who said, ‘If I drive my flocks too hard, they will all die on a single day’ (Gen. 33:13). Taking these and other examples of discretion, the mother of all virtues, let him be moderate in all things, so that the stronger brothers still have something to work towards and the weaker ones will not be put off. In particular, he should observe this rule in all things. Then his wise management will mean that he will hear from the Lord what the good servant heard who distributed wheat to his fellow servants at the right time: ‘Truly, I say to you, he has put him in charge of all his possessions’ (Matt. 24:47).
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The prior of the monastery
It frequently happens that the appointment of a prior gives rise to serious scandals in the monasteries, for there are some who are puffed up with a wicked spirit of pride and consider themselves on a par with the abbots, arrogating to themselves tyrannical power. In this way they feed scandal and cause dissension in the community, especially in monasteries where the prior is appointed by the same bishop and abbots as the abbot himself. It is easy to see how absurd this is for it means that he is given reason to be proud from the moment of his appointment, since he will think to himself, ‘I have been appointed by the same people as the abbot’, and that he is therefore not subject to the abbot’s power. This will cause envy, quarrels, back-biting, rivalry, dissension and breaches of the rule, and whenever the abbot and prior disagree their souls must be in danger as a result of their dissension. The monks for whom they are responsible will also be heading towards damnation when they try to take sides. Responsibility for this dangerous situation lies chiefly with those who set up this confusing practice.
We therefore think it a good idea to preserve peace and love by putting the abbot in charge of appointments in his monastery. If possible all practical matters within the monastery should be dealt with by the deans, as mentioned earlier, under the supervision of the abbot, so that if the business is entrusted to several, no individual will have reason to become proud. But if circumstances demand or the community makes a reasonable and humble request and the abbot considers it the right course, then the abbot, with the advice of the God-fearing brothers, should choose someone and appoint him as his prior. However, this prior should respectfully do whatever his abbot tells him to do and not do anything contrary to the abbot’s wishes or his arrangements, for the higher the position conferred on him, the more careful he ought to be to observe the precepts of the rule.
If the prior is found to have serious faults or is seduced by conceit into being proud or is proved to be treating this holy rule with contempt, he should be admonished verbally as many as four times, but if he does not mend his ways, then he should be punished according to the discipline of the rule. If he still does not correct his behaviour, then he must be dismissed from the office of prior and replaced by someone more suitable. But if he fails to be quiet and obedient within the community after this, then he must be expelled even from the monastery. However, the abbot should bear in mind that he must give to God an account of all his judgements: this should prevent his soul becoming inflamed by envy or rivalry.
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The porter of the monastery
A wise old man should be placed at the monastery gate, who will know how to take a message and give a reply and whose age means that he will not be tempted to wander about. This porter should have a room next to the gate so that anyone who arrives will always find someone there to deal with enquiries. As soon as someone knocks or a poor man calls him, he should reply, ‘Thanks be to God’ or ‘Your blessing, please.’ His response should be given promptly and with great gentleness, inspired by fear of God and with the warmth of love. If this porter needs help, one of the younger brothers should provide assist
ance.
If possible, the monastery should be arranged in such a way that everything necessary – in other words, water, the mill, the garden and the various crafts practised – should be inside the monastery, so that the monks do not need to go wandering outside for that is not at all good for their souls.
We would like this rule to be read aloud frequently in the community, so that no brother can plead ignorance as an excuse.
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Brothers sent on a journey
Brothers who are to be sent on a journey should commend themselves to the prayers of the abbot and all the brothers. All those who are absent should be remembered in the last prayer of the work of God. On the same day the brothers return from their journey, they should lie prostrate on the floor of the oratory throughout all the canonical hours of the work of God. They must ask everyone to pray for them on account of any faults they may happen to have committed on their journey – if perhaps they witnessed something bad or heard something bad as the result of idle talk. No one should presume to tell anyone else what he saw or heard outside the monastery, for this can cause great harm. If someone does venture to do so, he should submit to the punishment of the rule. The same goes for anyone who dares to leave the enclosure of the monastery to go anywhere or to do anything however trivial without being instructed to do so by the abbot.
The Rule of Benedict Page 6