Holy Rule for January 11
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St. Mary's Monastery
Jan 10, 2026, 5:55:45 PM (6 days ago) Jan 10
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Br. Jerome Leo’s Daily Reflection on the Holy Rule
January 11, May 12, September 11
Chapter 2: What Kind of Person the Abbess Ought to Be (11-15)
Therefore, when anyone receives the name of Abbess, she ought to govern her disciples with a twofold teaching. That is to say, she should show them all that is good and holy by her deeds even more than by her words, expounding the Lord's commandments in words to the intelligent among her disciples, but demonstrating the divine precepts by her actions for those of harder hearts and ruder minds. And whatever she has taught her disciples to be contrary to God's law, let her indicate by her example that it is not to be done, lest, while preaching to others, she herself be found reprobate (1 Cor. 9:27), and lest God one day say to her in her sin, "Why do you declare My statutes and profess My covenant with your lips, whereas you hate discipline and have cast My words behind you" (Ps. 49:16-17)? And again, "You were looking at the speck in your brother's eye, and did not see the beam in your own" (Matt. 7:3).
REFLECTION
This isn't just for abbots and parents, this is for all of us. Example is put forward as the primary means of teaching, even before words. All of us must "walk the talk" and practice what we preach. Every one of us is obliged to somehow uncover the splendor of the City of God in our lives, to show it to others. Mere verbal description will be of little help in comparison to actually living out the vision.
All of us put forward an image of who we are in words, one way or another. As years go by, we usually get a more or less complete picture of who we are and of the self we wish to present to the world. This is where family, community and marriage can be so important. The people who live with us see right through the flaws in our verbal picture.
It is less easy for us to believe in our grand and false images of ourselves when we are rubbing shoulders with one or more reality checks all the time! These reality checks can point out genuine greatness in areas we might not have expected, but they can also underscore the pathetic comedy of our pretensions. Both are useful for humility, both lead to truth. Just be careful not to believe it when you are praised too much. Those pointing out our flaws are no more infallible than we are, but they can often be a lot more objective.
Ever watch a foreign film with the audio badly dubbed into another language? It is jarring and annoying. What St. Benedict is saying to all of us here is to get the picture and the sound into synchronized form. For all Christians, all Benedictines, there should be no disparity between video and audio. Lofty ideal that!
St. Benedict knew that loftiness would be hard for us to reach, too. He knew there would be beams in our eyes, specks in others'. Hence, a lot of this boils down to approach and attitude. Come on to others from a position of "I'm OK and you are not," and see where it gets you.
You might make a temporary dent. You might even change a few of the really less than bright. Most wise people, however, will give you a lot of room. They see the mask, the falsity there, and it inhibits much else from getting through to them. It's like really competent actors being cast in a role that does not fit them at all. One sits through the whole movie thinking: "No way can I believe that she is so-and-so!" "Great play, nice plot, but I didn't find the male lead credible..."
Hopefully, at that final Awards night, there will be Tony's, Emmies and Oscars for all of us, with maybe a Golden Globe or two thrown into our totals!
Br. Jerome Leo Hughes, OSB (RIP)
Br. Jerome Leo’s Daily Reflection on the Holy Rule
January 11, May 12, September 11
Chapter 2: What Kind of Person the Abbess Ought to Be (11-15)
Therefore, when anyone receives the name of Abbess, she ought to govern her disciples with a twofold teaching. That is to say, she should show them all that is good and holy by her deeds even more than by her words, expounding the Lord's commandments in words to the intelligent among her disciples, but demonstrating the divine precepts by her actions for those of harder hearts and ruder minds. And whatever she has taught her disciples to be contrary to God's law, let her indicate by her example that it is not to be done, lest, while preaching to others, she herself be found reprobate (1 Cor. 9:27), and lest God one day say to her in her sin, "Why do you declare My statutes and profess My covenant with your lips, whereas you hate discipline and have cast My words behind you" (Ps. 49:16-17)? And again, "You were looking at the speck in your brother's eye, and did not see the beam in your own" (Matt. 7:3).
REFLECTION
This isn't just for abbots and parents, this is for all of us. Example is put forward as the primary means of teaching, even before words. All of us must "walk the talk" and practice what we preach. Every one of us is obliged to somehow uncover the splendor of the City of God in our lives, to show it to others. Mere verbal description will be of little help in comparison to actually living out the vision.
All of us put forward an image of who we are in words, one way or another. As years go by, we usually get a more or less complete picture of who we are and of the self we wish to present to the world. This is where family, community and marriage can be so important. The people who live with us see right through the flaws in our verbal picture.
It is less easy for us to believe in our grand and false images of ourselves when we are rubbing shoulders with one or more reality checks all the time! These reality checks can point out genuine greatness in areas we might not have expected, but they can also underscore the pathetic comedy of our pretensions. Both are useful for humility, both lead to truth. Just be careful not to believe it when you are praised too much. Those pointing out our flaws are no more infallible than we are, but they can often be a lot more objective.
Ever watch a foreign film with the audio badly dubbed into another language? It is jarring and annoying. What St. Benedict is saying to all of us here is to get the picture and the sound into synchronized form. For all Christians, all Benedictines, there should be no disparity between video and audio. Lofty ideal that!
St. Benedict knew that loftiness would be hard for us to reach, too. He knew there would be beams in our eyes, specks in others'. Hence, a lot of this boils down to approach and attitude. Come on to others from a position of "I'm OK and you are not," and see where it gets you.
You might make a temporary dent. You might even change a few of the really less than bright. Most wise people, however, will give you a lot of room. They see the mask, the falsity there, and it inhibits much else from getting through to them. It's like really competent actors being cast in a role that does not fit them at all. One sits through the whole movie thinking: "No way can I believe that she is so-and-so!" "Great play, nice plot, but I didn't find the male lead credible..."
Hopefully, at that final Awards night, there will be Tony's, Emmies and Oscars for all of us, with maybe a Golden Globe or two thrown into our totals!
Br. Jerome Leo Hughes, OSB (RIP)
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