Holy Rule for August 11
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St. Mary's Monastery
Aug 10, 2026, 6:34:31 PMAug 10
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Br. Jerome Leo’s Daily Reflection on the Holy Rule
April 11, August 11, December 11
Chapter 58: On the Manner of Receiving Sisters (1-16)
When anyone is newly come for the reformation of her life, let her not be granted an easy entrance; but, as the Apostle says, "Test the spirits to see whether they are from God."
If the newcomer, therefore, perseveres in her knocking, and if it is seen after four or five days that she bears patiently the harsh treatment offered her and the difficulty of admission, and that she persists in her petition, then let entrance be granted her, and let her stay in the guest house for a few days.
After that let her live in the novitiate, where the novices study, eat and sleep. A senior shall be assigned to them who is skilled in winning souls, to watch over them with the utmost care. Let her examine whether the novice is truly seeking God, and whether she is zealous for the Work of God, for obedience and for trials. Let the novice be told all the hard and rugged ways by which the journey to God is made. If she promises stability and perseverance, then at the end of two months let this rule be read through to her, and let her be addressed thus: "Here is the law under which you wish to fight. If you can observe it, enter; if you cannot, you are free to depart."
If she still stands firm, let her be taken to the above-mentioned novitiate and again tested in all patience. And after the lapse of six months let the Rule be read to her, that she may know on what she is entering. And if she still remains firm, after four months let the same Rule be read to her again. Then, having deliberated with herself, if she promises to keep it in its entirety and to observe everything that is commanded, let her be received into the community. But let her understand that, according to the law of the Rule, from that day forward she may not leave the monastery nor withdraw her neck from under the yoke of the Rule which she was free to refuse or to accept during that prolonged deliberation.
REFLECTION
The most important thing that St. Benedict asks of all of us on entrance into the monastic way is whether we truly seek God. Whether Abbot Primate or newest Oblate novice, that is what we are asked by the Holy Rule. It is a question we shall be asked for the rest of our lives, and one to which we must strive (and often struggle!) to say yes, again and again, day after day.
"Quaeremus inventum," said St. Augustine: "Let us seek Him Whom we have found." In truth a certain "finding" of God is necessary to whet our appetite, to lead us to seek Him more deeply. Once that happens, however, we can go on seeking God for the rest of time and eternity and never get to the end of His infinite love and mercy. Even in heaven the journey will go on, with us always being creature and Him always loving Creator. We will never end our quest, but we will love it, we will never reach the essence of God, but that will never frustrate us in heaven. It's an adventure we shall love.
If we do not seek God, there is no point whatever in becoming a monastic. St. Bernard once said something to the effect that, if one is going to go to hell, one should choose the broad way of the world, where at least there is comfort of a sort on the way, not the narrow way of the monastery, where one would go from hard life to hell. I haven't paraphrased him too well, but I hope it is clear enough. No one should waste time with monastic life if they are not seeking God, seeking to go deeper into Him. To do so would be folly.
After novitiate, our commitment to conversion of manners obliges us to ever seek, to ever try to improve, to never give up the quest entirely. A Benedictine who has stopped trying to be better and stopped seeking God is in deep, maybe even fatal trouble. We always seek and strive. It is the very stuff of our lives as monastics.
This chapter, by the way, led to the traditional division we now have of the Holy Rule into dates that will result in it all being read three times a year. The novices had to hear it three times anyway and elsewhere St. Benedict had asked that all in community hear it "frequently." Hence, this system was devised to cover both fronts!
Br. Jerome Leo Hughes, OSB (RIP)
Br. Jerome Leo’s Daily Reflection on the Holy Rule
April 11, August 11, December 11
Chapter 58: On the Manner of Receiving Sisters (1-16)
When anyone is newly come for the reformation of her life, let her not be granted an easy entrance; but, as the Apostle says, "Test the spirits to see whether they are from God."
If the newcomer, therefore, perseveres in her knocking, and if it is seen after four or five days that she bears patiently the harsh treatment offered her and the difficulty of admission, and that she persists in her petition, then let entrance be granted her, and let her stay in the guest house for a few days.
After that let her live in the novitiate, where the novices study, eat and sleep. A senior shall be assigned to them who is skilled in winning souls, to watch over them with the utmost care. Let her examine whether the novice is truly seeking God, and whether she is zealous for the Work of God, for obedience and for trials. Let the novice be told all the hard and rugged ways by which the journey to God is made. If she promises stability and perseverance, then at the end of two months let this rule be read through to her, and let her be addressed thus: "Here is the law under which you wish to fight. If you can observe it, enter; if you cannot, you are free to depart."
If she still stands firm, let her be taken to the above-mentioned novitiate and again tested in all patience. And after the lapse of six months let the Rule be read to her, that she may know on what she is entering. And if she still remains firm, after four months let the same Rule be read to her again. Then, having deliberated with herself, if she promises to keep it in its entirety and to observe everything that is commanded, let her be received into the community. But let her understand that, according to the law of the Rule, from that day forward she may not leave the monastery nor withdraw her neck from under the yoke of the Rule which she was free to refuse or to accept during that prolonged deliberation.
REFLECTION
The most important thing that St. Benedict asks of all of us on entrance into the monastic way is whether we truly seek God. Whether Abbot Primate or newest Oblate novice, that is what we are asked by the Holy Rule. It is a question we shall be asked for the rest of our lives, and one to which we must strive (and often struggle!) to say yes, again and again, day after day.
"Quaeremus inventum," said St. Augustine: "Let us seek Him Whom we have found." In truth a certain "finding" of God is necessary to whet our appetite, to lead us to seek Him more deeply. Once that happens, however, we can go on seeking God for the rest of time and eternity and never get to the end of His infinite love and mercy. Even in heaven the journey will go on, with us always being creature and Him always loving Creator. We will never end our quest, but we will love it, we will never reach the essence of God, but that will never frustrate us in heaven. It's an adventure we shall love.
If we do not seek God, there is no point whatever in becoming a monastic. St. Bernard once said something to the effect that, if one is going to go to hell, one should choose the broad way of the world, where at least there is comfort of a sort on the way, not the narrow way of the monastery, where one would go from hard life to hell. I haven't paraphrased him too well, but I hope it is clear enough. No one should waste time with monastic life if they are not seeking God, seeking to go deeper into Him. To do so would be folly.
After novitiate, our commitment to conversion of manners obliges us to ever seek, to ever try to improve, to never give up the quest entirely. A Benedictine who has stopped trying to be better and stopped seeking God is in deep, maybe even fatal trouble. We always seek and strive. It is the very stuff of our lives as monastics.
This chapter, by the way, led to the traditional division we now have of the Holy Rule into dates that will result in it all being read three times a year. The novices had to hear it three times anyway and elsewhere St. Benedict had asked that all in community hear it "frequently." Hence, this system was devised to cover both fronts!
Br. Jerome Leo Hughes, OSB (RIP)
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