The Benedictine Tradition
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Spirituality in History Series The Benedictine Tradition Laura Swan, Editor Phyllis Zagano, Series Editor LITURGICAL PRESS Collegeville, Minnesota www.litpress.org Cover design by Ann Blattner. Cover art: Saint Benedict, fresco painting from the Abbey at Monte Cassino, Italy, XIV. © 2007 by Order of Saint Benedict, Collegeville, Minnesota. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, by print, microfilm, micro fiche, mechanical recording, photocopying, translation, or by any other means, known or yet unknown, for any purpose except brief quotations in reviews, without the previous written permission of Liturgical Press, Saint John’s Abbey, P.O. Box 7500, Collegeville, Minnesota 563217500. Printed in the United States of America. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Swan, Laura, 1954– The Benedictine tradition / Laura Swan, Phyllis Zagano. p. cm. — (Spirituality in history series) Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 9780814619148 1. Benedictines—Spiritual life. I. Zagano, Phyllis. II. Title. BX3003.S93 2007 271'.1—dc22 2007000761 Contents Acknowledgments v Preface vii Introduction ix The Benedictine Tradition xiii Benedict (480–ca. 550) and Scholastica (480–ca. 547) 1 The Venerable Bede, Monk of Jarrow (ca. 673–735) 7 Romuald of Ravenna (ca. 950–1027) 17 Anselm of Canterbury (1033–1109) 26 Bernard of Clairvaux (1090–1153) 34 Hildegard of Bingen (1098–1179) 43 Gertrud the Great of Helfta (1256–1302) 50 Dame Gertrude More (1606–1633) 58 Blessed Columba Marmion (1858–1923) 66 Raïssa Maritain (1883–1960) 74 Bede Griffiths (1906–1993) 84 Trappist Martyrs of Tibhirine, Algeria (d. 1996) 94 Benedictines and the Chant Tradition 99 Conference of Benedictine Prioresses 114 Afterword 124 Selections from the Rule of Benedict 127 Notes 145 Bibliography 151 iii Acknowledgments Excerpt from Gregory the Great: The Life of Saint Benedict. Translated by Hilary Costello and Eoin de Bhaldraithe. Commentary by Adalbert de Vogüé. Peter sham, MA: St. Bede’s Publications, 1993. Used with permission. Excerpt from Bede the Venerable’s Homilies on the Gospels: Book Two—Lent to the Dedication of the Church. Translated by Lawrence T. Martin and David Hurst. Kalamazoo, MI: Cistercian Publications, 1991. Used with permission. Excerpt from Peter Damian’s Life of St. Romuald of Ravenna, in Medieval Hagiog- raphy: an Anthology. Edited by Thomas Head and Translated by Henrietta Leyser. Copyright 2000. Reproduced by permission of Routledge/Taylor & Francis Group, LLC. Excerpt from St. Anselm ~ Proslogium; Monologium; an Appendix in Behalf of the Fool by Gaunilon; and Cur Deus Homo. Translated by Sidney Norton Deane. Chicago: Open Court Publishing, 1903. Public Domain. Excerpt from Hildegard of Bingen’s Scivias is from Secrets of God © 1996 by Sabina Flanagan. Reprinted by arrangement with Shambhala Publications, Inc., Boston, www.shambhala.com. Reproduced from Hildegard of Bingen: Symphonia: a Critical Edition of the “Sym- phonia Armonie Celestium Revelationuma; (Symphony of the Harmony of Celestial Revelations), Second Edition edited and translated by Barbara Newman. Copy right © 1988, 1998 by Cornell University. Used with permission of the publisher, Cornell University Press. Excerpt from Bernard of Clairvaux, Sermon 74 on the Song of Songs. Translated by Michael Casey, o.s.c.o., 1990. Used with permission of the translator. Excerpt from Gertrud the Great: The Herald of God’s Loving-Kindness—Books 1 and 2. Translated by Alexandra Barratt. Kalamazoo, MI: Cistercian Publications, 1991. Used with permission. v vi The Benedictine Tradition Excerpt from Augustine Baker, O.S.B., The Life and Death of Dame Gertrude More edited from all the known manuscripts by Ben Wekking. Salzburg, Austria: Analecta Cartusiana, 2002. Permission for use granted by publisher. Extract from Christ, the Life of the Soul: Spiritual Conferences by Blessed Columba Marmion, O.S.B., newly translated by Alan Bancroft, copyright Zaccheus Press, Maryland (zaccheuspress.com) and Gracewing Publishing, 2005 and used with permission. I have made every effort to locate the current copyright holder for We Have Always Been Friends Together and Adventures in Grace: the Memoirs of Raïssa Maritain, originally published by Magi Books. Acknowledgment will be made in future editions if the copyright holder contacts this publisher. The Golden String: an Autobiography by Bede Griffiths, Templegate Publishers (templegate.com), 1954, 1980. A New Vision of Reality: Western Science, Eastern Mysti- cism and Christian Faith, by Bede Griffiths, Templegate Publishers (templegate. com) 1989. Used with permission. Excerpts from Bernardo Olivera’s How Far to Follow? The Martyrs of Atlas. Peter sham, MA: St. Bede Publications, 1997. Used with permission. Excerpts from the Conference of Benedictine Prioresses Wisdom from the Tradition: A Statement of North American Benedictine Women in Response to Our Times. Copy right 2006, Conference of Benedictine Prioresses. Used with permission. Quotes from RB (Rule of Benedict) are from Benedict’s Rule: a Translation and Commentary by Terrence Kardong, o.s.b. Copyright 1996, Liturgical Press. Preface he worldwide explosion of interest in “spirituality” has sent inquirers Tin several directions. One of the more fruitful is toward the tradi tional spiritualities that have enriched and nurtured the church for many hundreds of years. Among the oldest Christian spiritualities are those connected to particular foundations, charisms, or individuals. This series of spiritualities in history focuses on five distinct traditions within the history of the church, those now known as Benedictine, Carmelite, Dominican, Franciscan, and Ignatian. Each volume in this series seeks to present the given spiritual tradi tion through an anthology of writings by or about persons who have lived it, along with brief biographical introductions of those persons. Each volume is edited by an expert in the tradition at hand. Each can serve as the foundation of a course in the given tradition, or as a guide for personal reading. The present volume of Benedictine spirituality has been edited by Laura Swan, o.s.b., former prioress of St. Placid Priory in Lacey, Wash ington, and author of three other books on spirituality, whose breadth and depth of knowledge of her tradition has allowed her to draw to gether the boldest threads from the tapestry of Benedictine history and present them in a manner accessible to all. This book presents but a taste of the deep and rich spirituality of the followers of Saint Benedict, and is offered in recognition of his and their magnificent contributions to the church in the fifteen centuries since he first joined monastics together in community. The lives and writings of the Benedictine men and women in this volume show how remarkable and dedicated Benedictines have continued to be faithful to St. Benedict’s and St. Scholastica’s vision as monastics devoted to the prayer of the church. Each entry shows a different facet of the crystallized spirituality vii viii The Benedictine Tradition of St. Benedict, chosen from among the thousands of Benedictine men and women who have lived that spirituality over the centuries. Those included present only a snapshot of the whole, without the rich detail that many volumes could present. My own work on this book and for this series has continued with the able assistance of librarians, particularly the reference and interlibrary loan staff at Hofstra University, Hempstead, New York, and the library staff at Marymount College, Tarrytown, New York, especially Mary Elizabeth Rathgeb, r.s.h.m. For his support and encouragement with this project I am most grateful to Peter Dwyer, Director of Liturgical Press. Phyllis Zagano January 15, 2007 Feast of Sts. Maurus and Placid Introduction e live in a world undergoing change at a breathtaking pace. Our Weconomy and politics have become intertwined through globaliza tion, and the powerful have prevailed and profited. We are challenged by heartwrenching injustice; genocide is common and familiar. We are busy and disconnected from one another. Isolation and addiction siege our souls. Our willingness to accept illusion and façade, shattered fami lies, mobility and pseudointimacy through technology have left us wondering who we are and how we are to be in this alien world. Some thing from the ancient past and from the desert calls to our parched hearts, impelling us to look anew. There is a better way to live and relate and create. Benedictine spirituality is enjoying a renaissance. The simplicity of St. Benedict’s way, the humble wisdom that abides in his spiritual teach ings, and his ardent desire to help all seekers succeed in the spiritual journey entices even the most reticent to hearken to his words. St. Bene dict gifted the church with his “modest Rule for beginners” (RB 73:8), instructions for a monastic way of life. Today people are integrating the Benedictine values of hospitality, stability, work, and prayer both inside and outside the monastery to deepen the meaning in their lives and draw near to God. Grounded in Benedict’s Rule, Benedictine spirituality is the wisdom resulting from fifteen hundred years of wrestling with the meaning and practicalities of living Benedict’s teaching in everyday life. It is the writ ten and oral heritage of many generations and cultures pondering and reflecting on the Rule. With Benedictine monasteries established in many cultures and most nations, Benedictine spirituality is finding diverse expression while maintaining continuity. Benedictine spirituality engages that tradition with contemporary society and other religious and monastic ix x The Benedictine Tradition traditions. We seek wisdom from the past and guidance for making life choices in our turbulent times. Our souls know: there must be a better way. The twins Benedict (480–550) and Scholastica (480–547) demonstrate for us healthy relationships—with one another and with God—which are the foundation of community life. Seeking God together in community evokes a response of reverent prayer and compassionate ministry.