Holy Rule for February 25
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St. Mary's Monastery
Feb 24, 2026, 5:13:16 PMFeb 24
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Br. Jerome Leo’s Daily Reflection on the Holy Rule
February 25 (or 26), June 27, October 27
Chapter 20: On Reverence in Prayer
When we wish to suggest our wants to persons of high station, we do not presume to do so except with humility and reverence. How much the more, then, are complete humility and pure devotion necessary in supplication of the Lord who is God of the universe! And let us be assured that it is not in saying a great deal that we shall be heard (Matt 6:7), but in purity of heart and in tears of compunction. Our prayer, therefore, ought to be short and pure, unless it happens to be prolonged by an inspiration of divine grace. In community, however, let prayer be very short, and when the Superior gives the signal let all rise together.
REFLECTION
There is a necessary tension in Benedictine prayer, both public and private, between the awesome majesty and otherness of God and His infinite closeness and approachability. God is among us. He is not the guy next door, but neither is He some untouchable, easily offended emperor or sultan. Both these truths must be addressed in order to maintain a correct balance.
God doesn't need ceremony, He doesn't need anything. All the high church in the world might (or might not...) tickle His fancy, but it does not one whit for Him personally. The rub here is that WE need what we offer to God, and that has been all too often forgotten in the last 50 years or so. In a very real and subtle sense, we BECOME what we offer to God, often quite unnoticed by ourselves.
The upshot of all this is clear: offer God the lowest possible common denominator, tacky and cheap, and that is what those offering will become. Offer Him empty and presumptuous high church and be not surprised when those offering such things become rather pathetically silly themselves. In fact, sad fact, either extreme will make people pathetically silly and spiritually impoverished besides.
Balance, always balance! The Holy Rule says "our prayer should be short and pure." Fine, but the last part of that phrase has often gotten lost in the struggles of reform. Just plain short doesn't get it. God doesn't care about short, except insofar as it cheats us, those He loves.
The balance of short AND pure will feed a normal soul well. Hence, if you find liturgy in any given place leaves you at least hungry and maybe starving, it's a safe guess that something might be wrong. God is still served, but His people often are not. That should upset both God and us.
A very Benedictine warning here that the Carmelites would strongly approve: prayer is only to be prolonged by "inspiration of divine grace." When God does let us feel something wonderful in prayer, a very understandable temptation is to hang onto the feeling, to prolong it, to produce it again.
It doesn't work, folks, and it could very well turn into a trap. When God prolongs prayer or gives us graces, fine! Relax, swim in His grace and enjoy it, but never, ever try to fill the pool for a quick dip on your own. That's not the way prayer - or God - works.
Br. Jerome Leo Hughes, OSB (RIP)
Br. Jerome Leo’s Daily Reflection on the Holy Rule
February 25 (or 26), June 27, October 27
Chapter 20: On Reverence in Prayer
When we wish to suggest our wants to persons of high station, we do not presume to do so except with humility and reverence. How much the more, then, are complete humility and pure devotion necessary in supplication of the Lord who is God of the universe! And let us be assured that it is not in saying a great deal that we shall be heard (Matt 6:7), but in purity of heart and in tears of compunction. Our prayer, therefore, ought to be short and pure, unless it happens to be prolonged by an inspiration of divine grace. In community, however, let prayer be very short, and when the Superior gives the signal let all rise together.
REFLECTION
There is a necessary tension in Benedictine prayer, both public and private, between the awesome majesty and otherness of God and His infinite closeness and approachability. God is among us. He is not the guy next door, but neither is He some untouchable, easily offended emperor or sultan. Both these truths must be addressed in order to maintain a correct balance.
God doesn't need ceremony, He doesn't need anything. All the high church in the world might (or might not...) tickle His fancy, but it does not one whit for Him personally. The rub here is that WE need what we offer to God, and that has been all too often forgotten in the last 50 years or so. In a very real and subtle sense, we BECOME what we offer to God, often quite unnoticed by ourselves.
The upshot of all this is clear: offer God the lowest possible common denominator, tacky and cheap, and that is what those offering will become. Offer Him empty and presumptuous high church and be not surprised when those offering such things become rather pathetically silly themselves. In fact, sad fact, either extreme will make people pathetically silly and spiritually impoverished besides.
Balance, always balance! The Holy Rule says "our prayer should be short and pure." Fine, but the last part of that phrase has often gotten lost in the struggles of reform. Just plain short doesn't get it. God doesn't care about short, except insofar as it cheats us, those He loves.
The balance of short AND pure will feed a normal soul well. Hence, if you find liturgy in any given place leaves you at least hungry and maybe starving, it's a safe guess that something might be wrong. God is still served, but His people often are not. That should upset both God and us.
A very Benedictine warning here that the Carmelites would strongly approve: prayer is only to be prolonged by "inspiration of divine grace." When God does let us feel something wonderful in prayer, a very understandable temptation is to hang onto the feeling, to prolong it, to produce it again.
It doesn't work, folks, and it could very well turn into a trap. When God prolongs prayer or gives us graces, fine! Relax, swim in His grace and enjoy it, but never, ever try to fill the pool for a quick dip on your own. That's not the way prayer - or God - works.
Br. Jerome Leo Hughes, OSB (RIP)
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