Chapter 50: Those whose work takes them away from the monastery
Those whose work takes them some distance from the monastery so that they cannot manage to get to the oratory at the right times for prayer must kneel with profound reverence for the Lord and perform the work of God at their place of work. (From para. 1 of Ch. 50 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)
Benedict has a specific instruction here about fidelity to the Divine Office, but I'm struck by the way the final phrase repeats the word "work", to say to me, in essence, "to perform the work at the place of work". In this way, I may see all work as the work of God, and all places as that oratory which is the secret room in my heart.
It is my mind that so often can "work far away", can go "on a journey" and even find excuses not to observe "the prescribed hours". John Main reminds me in today's selection from Moment of Christ, in The Daily Readings, that it is not my mind which is the center but "my (our) center is my (our) own heart" where "I(we) can discover myself(ourselves) rooted in God". So when I find my mind far away, it is to my heart with breath and mantra that I can return "to perform the Opus Dei."(RB 50.1-50.4)
ReplyDelete" . . . Performing the Work of God at their place of work." My work includes my twice-daily meditation, doesn't it, Abba. And meditation, saying my mantra from beginning to end, IS work. Thank you for inviting me to join your Son, Jesus, in this way, as we do His eternal work of loving you, of being together with you.
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