Holy Rule for July 22
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St. Mary's Monastery
Jul 21, 2025, 5:05:45 PM7/21/25
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Br. Jerome Leo’s Daily Reflection on the Holy Rule
March 22, July 22, November 21
Chapter 43: On Those Who Come Late to the Work of God or to Table (1-12)
At the hour for the Divine Office, as soon as the signal is heard, let them abandon whatever they may have in hand and hasten with the greatest speed, yet with seriousness, so that there is no excuse for levity. Let nothing, therefore, be put before the Work of God.
If at the Night Office anyone arrives after the "Glory be to the Father" of Psalm 94 - which Psalm for this reason we wish to be said very slowly and protractedly - let him not stand in his usual place in the choir; but let him stand last of all, or in a place set aside by the Abbot for such negligent ones in order that they may be seen by him and by all. He shall remain there until the Work of God has been completed, and then do penance by a public satisfaction.
The reason why we have judged it fitting for them to stand in the last place or in a place apart is that, being seen by all, they may amend for very shame. For if they remain outside of the oratory, there will perhaps be someone who will go back to bed and sleep or at least seat himself outside and indulge in idle talk, and thus an occasion will be provided for the evil one. But let them go inside, that they many not lose the whole Office, and may amend for the future.
At the day Hours anyone who does not arrive at the Work of God until after the verse and the "Glory be to the Father" for the first Psalm following it shall stand in the last place, according to our ruling above. Nor shall he presume to join the choir in their chanting until he has made satisfaction, unless the Abbot should pardon him and give him permission; but even then the offender must make satisfaction for his fault.
REFLECTION
First, an aside. The signal to get moving, whatever it may be, is usually a bell or something like it. Our modern age looks at any request or command we don't like as a time to start negotiations, not to obey. We may euphemize this with terms like "dialogue" but the bottom line is finding a graceful way to say either "Heck, NO!" or considerably less than "Yes!" or "OK, fine!" Bells, however, are inexorable and there is no point in arguing with them. It is worth remembering that, in the old days, the bell was known as the "vox Dei," the voice of God.
As usual, there is a gem buried here that gets lost in the wash of being late or being on time or kneeling out or not. That treasure is: "Let nothing, therefore, be put before the Work of God." (Older translations had: "let nothing be preferred to the Work of God." This has usually been cited, quite rightly, a basis for the centrality of liturgy in Benedictine life, but that is an incomplete view, one which leaves riches beyond telling unmined. The full sense of this goes well beyond liturgy.
For the monastic, everything but sin is in some way the work of God. ALL of God's will for us becomes a priority. That's what our commitment means. Monastic struggle sacralizes every jot and tittle. In one sense, there is no small stuff anymore. (That can be a trap for the scrupulous if over-applied, so watch out, folks!) The distinction between sacred and profane is all but obliterated. Our life is of a whole, and that holistic life is most often informed of God's wishes for us by obedience.
That can require tremendous faith and trust in God, but God does reward such trust richly beyond our dreams. ALL our treasure comes in earthen vessels, so that even a far less than optimal individual can often be a pipeline through which God's will flows unimpeded.
Contemporary attempts by some to reduce all Benedictine obedience to a process of dialogue or negotiation, or to make it a communal affair or a consensual one are terribly false and far off the mark. The textual evidence of the Holy Rule, as well as historical and traditional evidence simply do not support such claims.
The Rule speaks of dialogue only when one is commanded to do the impossible, and even then, if the superior insists, one must trust and obey. Tough saying, but obedience works best when it isn't a lot of fun.
But back to priorities. Surely the Office comes first before lesser obediences. Being late because one finished something that could wait is a poor excuse, because it shows what valued most - is one's own will.
Br. Jerome Leo Hughes, OSB (RIP)
Br. Jerome Leo’s Daily Reflection on the Holy Rule
March 22, July 22, November 21
Chapter 43: On Those Who Come Late to the Work of God or to Table (1-12)
At the hour for the Divine Office, as soon as the signal is heard, let them abandon whatever they may have in hand and hasten with the greatest speed, yet with seriousness, so that there is no excuse for levity. Let nothing, therefore, be put before the Work of God.
If at the Night Office anyone arrives after the "Glory be to the Father" of Psalm 94 - which Psalm for this reason we wish to be said very slowly and protractedly - let him not stand in his usual place in the choir; but let him stand last of all, or in a place set aside by the Abbot for such negligent ones in order that they may be seen by him and by all. He shall remain there until the Work of God has been completed, and then do penance by a public satisfaction.
The reason why we have judged it fitting for them to stand in the last place or in a place apart is that, being seen by all, they may amend for very shame. For if they remain outside of the oratory, there will perhaps be someone who will go back to bed and sleep or at least seat himself outside and indulge in idle talk, and thus an occasion will be provided for the evil one. But let them go inside, that they many not lose the whole Office, and may amend for the future.
At the day Hours anyone who does not arrive at the Work of God until after the verse and the "Glory be to the Father" for the first Psalm following it shall stand in the last place, according to our ruling above. Nor shall he presume to join the choir in their chanting until he has made satisfaction, unless the Abbot should pardon him and give him permission; but even then the offender must make satisfaction for his fault.
REFLECTION
First, an aside. The signal to get moving, whatever it may be, is usually a bell or something like it. Our modern age looks at any request or command we don't like as a time to start negotiations, not to obey. We may euphemize this with terms like "dialogue" but the bottom line is finding a graceful way to say either "Heck, NO!" or considerably less than "Yes!" or "OK, fine!" Bells, however, are inexorable and there is no point in arguing with them. It is worth remembering that, in the old days, the bell was known as the "vox Dei," the voice of God.
As usual, there is a gem buried here that gets lost in the wash of being late or being on time or kneeling out or not. That treasure is: "Let nothing, therefore, be put before the Work of God." (Older translations had: "let nothing be preferred to the Work of God." This has usually been cited, quite rightly, a basis for the centrality of liturgy in Benedictine life, but that is an incomplete view, one which leaves riches beyond telling unmined. The full sense of this goes well beyond liturgy.
For the monastic, everything but sin is in some way the work of God. ALL of God's will for us becomes a priority. That's what our commitment means. Monastic struggle sacralizes every jot and tittle. In one sense, there is no small stuff anymore. (That can be a trap for the scrupulous if over-applied, so watch out, folks!) The distinction between sacred and profane is all but obliterated. Our life is of a whole, and that holistic life is most often informed of God's wishes for us by obedience.
That can require tremendous faith and trust in God, but God does reward such trust richly beyond our dreams. ALL our treasure comes in earthen vessels, so that even a far less than optimal individual can often be a pipeline through which God's will flows unimpeded.
Contemporary attempts by some to reduce all Benedictine obedience to a process of dialogue or negotiation, or to make it a communal affair or a consensual one are terribly false and far off the mark. The textual evidence of the Holy Rule, as well as historical and traditional evidence simply do not support such claims.
The Rule speaks of dialogue only when one is commanded to do the impossible, and even then, if the superior insists, one must trust and obey. Tough saying, but obedience works best when it isn't a lot of fun.
But back to priorities. Surely the Office comes first before lesser obediences. Being late because one finished something that could wait is a poor excuse, because it shows what valued most - is one's own will.
Br. Jerome Leo Hughes, OSB (RIP)
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