Chapter 60: The admission of priests into the monastery
An ordained priest who asks to be received into the monastery should not be accepted too quickly. If, however, he shows real perseverance in his request, he must understand that, if accepted, he will be bound to observe the full discipline of the Rule and may expect no relaxations.
(From para. 1 of Ch. 60 Of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry OSB, 1997.)
My ego wants to set me above and apart; the Spirit wants to set me down to serve.
Stability is a requirement for even clerics entering the community. Judas, to whom the Matthew quote was directed by Christ at the time of his betrayal that Benedict uses, was hardly stable. Peter, however, the unstable one in his early relationship with Christ,became a rock. In his second letter, Peter defines stability in community for me, "...make your call and election firm, for, in doing so, you will never stumble." In choosing to follow the call of friendship with Christ, I want to be firm in my meditation practice and in living out daily the revelation of love.
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