Chapter 66: The porter or portress of the monastery
At the entrance to the monastery there should be a wise senior who is too mature in stability to think of wandering about and who can deal with enquiries and give whatever help is required. (From para. 1 of Ch. 66 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)
That wise, mature and stable senior at the door of my heart is the mantra. I wander far more than is good for me, especially when circumstances are disorienting and my practice flounders. But that good old monk is always at the door, reminding me how to live.
“Meditation . . . calls for generous openness to God’s destiny for us, to his plan for us, to his love for us.” (John Main, “Way of Unknowing” Kindle loc 1401). The mantra, Abba, is the “wise old guide” to my destiny, to your plan for me, to your love for me.
ReplyDelete