Chapter 7: The value of humility (paragraph 7)
And so, if the eyes of the Lord are watching the good and the wicked, and if at all times the Lord looks down from heaven on the sons and daughters of men to see if any show understanding in seeking God, and if the angels assigned to care for us report our deeds to the Lord day and night, we must be on our guard every hour or else, as the psalmist says, the time may come when God will observe us falling into evil and so made worthless. (From para. 7 of Ch.7 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)
Such a busy cycle of watching, reporting, being on my guard, yet what matters above all is showing understanding in seeking God. That's where I find meaning and purpose in my life, and experience the cycle that matters -- the cycle of being loved by God, and thus my being able to love.
Such a busy cycle of watching, reporting, being on my guard, yet what matters above all is showing understanding in seeking God. That's where I find meaning and purpose in my life, and experience the cycle that matters -- the cycle of being loved by God, and thus my being able to love.
“Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done”, says the prayer that you taught us, Lord. I like to think of these words and these further words of Benedict on humility as good science. They all advocate and facilitate my living in reality, a most scientific approach to life. They direct me to live in harmony with nature. And you, Abba, are the basis of all nature, of this 13-plus billion light year-old universe. My life is a process of searching and researching, but the ultimate daily discovery and rediscovery in the silence and stillness of meditation is you, here, love, within me.
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