www.byzcath.org Forums Faith & Christian Life Faith & Theology Benedictine Oblation for Eastern Christians?

Dear Friends,

The Benedictine Oblate experience has truly revolutionized my inner self!

For one thing, I no longer feel the compulsive need to post on this invaluable forum and otherwise making a spectacle of myself! Miraculous or what?

Seriously though, I find the Patristic readings that Slavipodvizhnik posts here to be of great help in terms of the "lectio Divina" that St Benedict recommends as well as other spiritual offerings here.

It seems to me that Eastern Christian laity need a rule of spiritual life - so why not something like following a monastic rule.

Is it not the case that Orthodox monastic communities allow laity to participate, at various levels, in their spirituality?

How can this be done systematically and to greater effect in North America?

Alex

Tak pravda, brat' Olekandr (from another brother who has reduced his time here as well). I do not think there is anything inherently un- or anti-Eastern in folliwng the Rule; to the contrary. Obviously St. Benedict himself was taking some of the best of the Pachomian Rule and the Longer Rules of St. Basil the Great. He even refers to the longer Rules of St. Basil in the "Rule of one even greater" that he mentions for those who have taken his rule to heart. That for the Eastern Christian may need to be balanced with the rather structured organization that the Oblates have with a Latin spiritual director, fitting into the Latin oblate structure, etc.

Certainly the general prescriptions of the Rule for oblates, such as one or more hours of the Horologion as well as the lectio Divina could apply to any liturgical tradition, whether Latin, Byzantine, Armenian, what have you. And it is not just laity who need this kind of discipline - with the hectic life of multiple parishes, family life, etc. I don't know any cleric, especially myself, who wouldn't benefit from using aspects of the Rule. Bl. Metropolitan Sheptytsky often mentioned these basic aspects when giving spiritual talks to his parochial clergy, and in his guidelines for clergy he took an approach not unlike that of the monk to his oblates.

Dear Father DIAKone!

Khrystos Khreschayetsia!

Excellent, as per your usual! I love how St Benedict, after, as you know well, giving his detailed instructions on how to arrange the Psalter for the Daily Office, ends by exclaiming how if anyone didn't like his arrangement after all, they are free to change it - as long as the Psalter is celebrated weekly.

I take that to mean that we can do the Byzantine Psalter - but without implying that we don't like St Benedict's arrangement!

Happy New Year and all the best!

Your friend and servant,

Alex

Alex,

What does it mean to follow a rule of an order? I honestly don't know much about this.

Dear Ray,

Yes, this is when one tries to live the spirit of a monastic rule of life as much as possible within the lay context of one's life.

Of course, one cannot do everything - but one celebrates a portion of the Office daily, reads Scripture and the Fathers meditatively so as to apply it to one's life, lives the virtue of simplicity and also humility, charity and the like.

In the case of an Oblate or a member of a Third Order, one is associated with a particular monastery and is under a kind of obedience to a spiritual director.

Alex

So, basically you have a spiritual director who is a monk. This monk tells how to practice your faith on a daily basis. Is this correct?

How often do you meet with this spiritual director? What is a typical day for you? Please don't tell me you wake up a 3am and start praying (not that there is anything wrong with that for a monk).

This topic reminds me of a question that has been on my mind. Can one be 'Benedictine' and Greek-Catholic at the same time? It appears not, because St. Benedict's monks were entirely Western. On the other hand, St. Benedict and his tradition is mostly pre-schism from a historical point of view.

Tony, the monastery of Amalfion on Mt. Athos followed the Rule of St. Benedict. It also had metochion in Jerusalem for pilgrims as I recall. The Rule is a way of life; it is not necessarily directed to any specific liturgical tradition. Certainly its development has been around the Latin monastic breviary; but the rule itself does not exclude the possibility of applying its precepts to other liturgical traditions.

Alex,

Glad to see you back!

I'm still in the process of discerning entering the Oblates as a Greek Catholic sometime next year.

I also purchased "St. Benedict of Nursia: The Life, the Liturgical Service, The Akathist Hymn and the Rule" published by St. John of Konstadt Press. It really is a great read.

Have either you for Diak run across any web articles on the Eastern veneration of St. Benedict or the way to live out the Rule?

God bless!

Gordo

PS: I contacted the Antiochian Western-rite Benedictines to enquire as to joining their Oblature, but they indicated that it was really only for those in the Western-rite since it was being used to help grow and strengthen their parishes.

Dear Ray,

I'm a "long distance" oblate novice with St Meinrad's Archabbey in Indiana.

My director communicates with us regularly during our one year formative period on lectio divina, suggests ways of praying the Hours (and oblates can even make up their own version of the Hours, if they like).

A typical day would be rising around 6:00 am for the morning prayer which could be either a portion of the Midnight office, Matins, or just three Kathismata of the Psalter - as much as time allows. I go ahead while I'm making coffee, my wife's breakfast and the like. The morning period is golden for prayer and inspires one for the whole day.

One can punctuate the day with the Hours - sometimes a Kathisma of the Psalter at 9:00 am noon and 3:00 pm can bring one's focus back to where it should be - on God. Lunch can be a time to read a portion of the Rule of Benedict, or the Scriptural readings on pomog.org or the Patristic readings by Slavipodvizhnik here. Or else one can do it in the evening.

The Jesus Prayer is actually very adaptable to the Benedictine spirit and there are Greek Catholic Benedictines near Chicago who use the Jesus Prayer to substitute for Hours when they are out harvesting their crops etc.

Vespers and Compline are very important as well as beautiful to gently close the day with. One can and should remember Our Father St Benedict in all the Hours, at least at the ending doxology.

The Benedictine scapular and medal identifies you with his 1500 year old tradition and reminds one of one's responsibility to strive to live the spirit of the Rule daily.

The spiritual director has taught me so much and I thank God for his guidance - Fr. Meinrad Bruner OSB.

Alex

Dear Tony,

There are Eastern Catholic and even Orthodox Benedictines (of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia, for example, but they are Western rite).

Chevetogne is a biritual Benedictine monastery in Europe and I know of a UGCC Benedictine community near Chicago.

The ROCOR published the Rule of St Benedict in which it states that any Orthodox Christian may follow the rule of St Benedict etc.

St Benedict took his inspiration solely from the Eastern monastic well-springs of St John Cassian and his studies on Coptic monasticism and the Rules of St Basil the Great.

His liturgical schema is Western, but he never intended it to be a straight-jacket - most Latin Benedictines today don't follow it to the letter anyway. He only laid down, for EC purposes, that the entire Psalter be recited weekly. And our Church does that already. HOW it is done, St Benedict said, is not a concern.

The Rule of St Benedict is fully recognized by world Orthodoxy as a legitimate monastic rule.

It is a brilliant rule and adapted to laity because of its simplicity.

Don't see a problem for EC's or Orthodox Christians following it at all!

Alex

Dear Gordo,

The book you have contains a commentary on precisely that.

There are books available on the www.osb.org [osb.org] website written by Oblates about how to adapt the spirit of the Rule to our daily lives - liturgically, we simply use the Eastern traditions of prayer and devotion.

However, I've a couple of books on living the Benedictine rule of life by laity that are very helpful.

I've come across Benedictine oblates who are Catholic, Orthodox, Presbyterian, Lutheran, Anglican, United Methodist. They all share a love for liturgical prayer and the "Hours." They are all enthusiastic about this - Benedict has such a universal appeal! And the Protestants who are oblates become sort of "High Church" and appreciate Catholicism in a way they would not have had they not felt an attraction for the Rule of Benedict.

Ultimately, he will himself guide us along the path of his Rule!

We only need set out on it with faith and trust in God!

And you know that already!

Alex

Dear Friends,

For all those who are, right now, discerning a possible call to become an Oblate of St Benedict, please contact the Director of Oblates, Fr. Meinrad Bruner, at St Meinrad's Archabbey in Indiana - their website is excellent!

Tell them "Alex Roman" sent you!

The website is: www.saintmeinrad.edu/monastery_oblates.aspx [saintmeinrad.edu]

And, no, I don't get brownie points for this at all . . .

Alex

Peace and all good to my brother Alex !

james

I know of two BC men who are steeped in the Orthodox worldview but are also devout Benedictine Oblates. They have intense spiritual lives that cause them to be a real treasure in our parish. Like Diak so aptly said, it's a way of life open to both Eastern and Western Christian spiritual practice.

Alex, thanks for detailing your practice, it's very helpful and inspiring.It is good to hear from both you and Diak again. Now all we need are Fr. Gregory's posts about prayer. Slavipodvizhnik's Optina quotes are wonderful and definitely in the sprit of St. Benedict.


Peace,
Cynthia