37 of 39 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Listen!, June 13, 2004
This review is from: The Rule of Benedict for Beginners: Spirituality for Daily Life (Paperback)
Wil Derkse's book on the Rule of Benedict for beginners is a wonderful introduction to this subject. The Rule of St. Benedict itself is a fairly short book, usually printed in fewer than 100 pages, with its 73 chapters of a few paragraphs in length at most. However, often a simple reading of the Rule leaves modern readers dis-satisfied; it is a rule in many ways of and for a different world, just as the biblical texts can be so characterised. However, it is also, like the Bible, a text that speaks to us today, and has application and inspiration for modern followers.
Benedict's Rule for life includes worship, work, study, prayer, and relaxation. Benedict's Rule requires community -- even for those who become hermits or solitaries, there is a link to the community through worship and through the Rule. No one is alone. This is an important part of the relationship of God to the world, so it is an integral part of the Rule.
Benedict's Rule was set out first in a world that was torn with warfare, economic and political upheaval, and a generally harsh physical environment. This Rule was set out to bring order to a general chaos in which people lived. This is still true today, and men and women all over the world use Benedict's 'little rule for beginners' as a basic structure for their lives.
The first word of the rule is Listen. This is perhaps the best advice for anyone looking for any guidance or rule of life. While Benedict's Rule is decidedly Christocentric and hierarchical (though not as hierarchical as much popular ideas about monastic practice would have one think), it nonetheless can give value to any reader who is looking to construct a practice for oneself.
Benedict's establishment of a monastery was in fact the establishment of a school for spirituality. In his prologue to the Rule, Benedict even states this as his intention. In drawing up its regulations, he intends to set down 'nothing harsh, nothing burdensome.' He sets forth in this brief rule a guide to individual life within community that will bring one ever closer to the divine.
Benedict explores the issues of charity, personality, integrity, and spirituality in all of his rules. From the clothing to the prayer cycle to the reception of guests, all have a purpose that fits into a larger whole, and all have positive charges and negative warnings. Benedict is especially mindful of the sin of pride, be it pride of possession, pride of person, pride of place -- he strives for equality in the community (as a recognition that all are equal before God).
Derkse's book is not a handbook on Benedictine spirituality per se, but rather an introduction to those parts of the Benedictine practice that can be useful and adapted to life outside the monastery. Derkse is himself an oblate member of a Benedictine order - oblates are those who live outside the monastic community, but have ties to the community materially and spiritually, and adapt the Rule of Benedict to fit a secular life, with due reverence and concern for God.
Derkse recounts person experiences in his own growth toward oblature, as well as lessons learned from key aspects of the Rule. Modern issues such as time management, leadership, constancy and commitment, and attentiveness are addressed in ways consistent with both old and new practices. Those who seek a deeper spirituality in the world will be enlightened, but those who might want to adapt time-proven methods to modern situations will also find insight here.
This is a book of only 85 pages, but it can take a long time to read if one does so properly - Derkse recommends reading slowly and intently, letting the spirit form: this is reading for formation, not information.
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32 of 36 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Testing the Water First: Benedict for Beginners, May 24, 2003
This review is from: The Rule of Benedict for Beginners: Spirituality for Daily Life (Paperback)
If your on a spiritual quest, this book could be a God-send. It touches on the BASIC principles of the rule of St.Benedict. "That everything we do in life offers a chance to sing God's praises" is Benedictine spiritually in a nutshell. In the Benedictine attitude there are no nonreligious domains. There are no unholy and holy places, there are no unholy and holy times and activities. EVERYTHING needs to be regarded as holy, EVERYTHING is an object for sanctification. Whether were mopping the floor or cleaning the altar linens in church, we should approach things in the same manner - what a beautiful concept. The thing that attracts me most about Benedictine spiritually is that it is not mysterious, esoteric or unachieveable. It relates entirely with "living in this world"!
If this appeals to you - living like a monk in the real world - this book will serve as a place to "test the waters" before diving in(only 88 pages)and pursuing it more in depth.
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18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Not just for Catholics and wannabe Benedictines, June 1, 2005
This review is from: The Rule of Benedict for Beginners: Spirituality for Daily Life (Paperback)
While this book obviously has a role as a guide for Catholics wanting to develop a Benedictine spirituality in their life, there is a tremendous amount here that would be useful for anyone looking for new ways to overcome the petty distractions in life, and to get more out of both work and play. The foundation of the book may be the lives of Benedictine monks, but what they've learned over the centuries can be useful to all of us.
The book does a great job of illustrating the principles with real life examples, and doesn't paper over the challenges involved.
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