Holy Rule for September 13
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St. Mary's Monastery
Sep 12, 2026, 5:50:44 PM (9 days ago) Sep 12
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Br. Jerome Leo’s Daily Reflection on the Holy Rule
January 13, May 14, September 13
Chapter 2: What Kind of Person the Abbess Ought to Be (23-29)
In her teaching the Abbess should always follow the Apostle's formula: "Reprove, entreat, rebuke" (2 Tim. 4:2); threatening at one time and coaxing at another as the occasion may require, showing now the stern countenance of a mistress, now the loving affection of a mother. That is to say, it is the undisciplined and restless whom she must reprove rather sharply; it is the obedient, meek and patient whom she must entreat to advance in virtue; while as for the negligent and disdainful, these we charge her to rebuke and correct. And let her not shut her eyes to the faults of offenders; but, since she has the authority, let her cut out those faults by the roots as soon as they begin to appear, remembering the fate of Heli, the priest of Silo (1 Kings 2-4). The well-disposed and those of good understanding let her correct with verbal admonition the first and second time. But bold, hard, proud and disobedient characters she should curb at the very beginning of their ill-doing by stripes and other bodily punishments, knowing that it is written, "the fool is not corrected with words" (Prov. 18:2; 29:19), and again, "Beat your son with the rod, and you will deliver his soul from death"(Prov. 23:13-14).
REFLECTION
Again, this is for all of us, not just Abbots!
I'll bet that many of us have, at one time or another, had to deal with someone whose initial response to others was often a sharp, full-force rebuke. That tends to stun people with its severity, a severity which is out of line, or we wouldn't be surprised at all!
There are three provisions here: "reprove, entreat, rebuke." They have the weight of Scripture as well as that of the Holy Rule. All three are necessary and, except for the most truly extraordinary cases, all three are necessary in that order.
I think most monastic people who have been listening to God and truly examining themselves tend to be gentle. That's fine, but stopping permanently at either of the gentle points can win one the disgust of a community in a big hurry. We tend to pity weak incompetence for a while, then we come to loathe it. The Truth we look at, look for and strive to learn absolutely demands that when needed, our authority will have teeth, no matter how unpleasant that may be to us.
To exercise that rebuke factor all the time, or to fail it out of reticence or distaste is an awful failure in self-control, self-denial and ascesis. We need all three modes in our tool kits. Were that not the case, the Holy Spirit would have never bothered to aid both Sts. Paul and Benedict in putting them there!
Br. Jerome Leo Hughes, OSB (RIP)
Br. Jerome Leo’s Daily Reflection on the Holy Rule
January 13, May 14, September 13
Chapter 2: What Kind of Person the Abbess Ought to Be (23-29)
In her teaching the Abbess should always follow the Apostle's formula: "Reprove, entreat, rebuke" (2 Tim. 4:2); threatening at one time and coaxing at another as the occasion may require, showing now the stern countenance of a mistress, now the loving affection of a mother. That is to say, it is the undisciplined and restless whom she must reprove rather sharply; it is the obedient, meek and patient whom she must entreat to advance in virtue; while as for the negligent and disdainful, these we charge her to rebuke and correct. And let her not shut her eyes to the faults of offenders; but, since she has the authority, let her cut out those faults by the roots as soon as they begin to appear, remembering the fate of Heli, the priest of Silo (1 Kings 2-4). The well-disposed and those of good understanding let her correct with verbal admonition the first and second time. But bold, hard, proud and disobedient characters she should curb at the very beginning of their ill-doing by stripes and other bodily punishments, knowing that it is written, "the fool is not corrected with words" (Prov. 18:2; 29:19), and again, "Beat your son with the rod, and you will deliver his soul from death"(Prov. 23:13-14).
REFLECTION
Again, this is for all of us, not just Abbots!
I'll bet that many of us have, at one time or another, had to deal with someone whose initial response to others was often a sharp, full-force rebuke. That tends to stun people with its severity, a severity which is out of line, or we wouldn't be surprised at all!
There are three provisions here: "reprove, entreat, rebuke." They have the weight of Scripture as well as that of the Holy Rule. All three are necessary and, except for the most truly extraordinary cases, all three are necessary in that order.
I think most monastic people who have been listening to God and truly examining themselves tend to be gentle. That's fine, but stopping permanently at either of the gentle points can win one the disgust of a community in a big hurry. We tend to pity weak incompetence for a while, then we come to loathe it. The Truth we look at, look for and strive to learn absolutely demands that when needed, our authority will have teeth, no matter how unpleasant that may be to us.
To exercise that rebuke factor all the time, or to fail it out of reticence or distaste is an awful failure in self-control, self-denial and ascesis. We need all three modes in our tool kits. Were that not the case, the Holy Spirit would have never bothered to aid both Sts. Paul and Benedict in putting them there!
Br. Jerome Leo Hughes, OSB (RIP)
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