Chapter 26: Unlawful association with the excommunicated
If any member of the community presumes without the permission of the abbot or abbess to associate in any way with or speak to or give instructions to one who has been excommunicated then that person should receive exactly the same punishment of excommunication. (Ch. 26 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)
Benedict is warning me against myself and my "good intentions". He reminds me that what I think is good for another may be based on my own self-importance or desire to control, thinking that I know how to live another's life better than he or she does. Benedict wants to preserve conditions that make it possible for those who have separated themselves from God, to have the solitude and the stillness to hear the Inner Teacher.
Benedict is warning me against myself and my "good intentions". He reminds me that what I think is good for another may be based on my own self-importance or desire to control, thinking that I know how to live another's life better than he or she does. Benedict wants to preserve conditions that make it possible for those who have separated themselves from God, to have the solitude and the stillness to hear the Inner Teacher.
My love is misguided when I prevent a loved one from suffering the natural consequences of their behavior. I had to learn this the hard way when raising two strong-willed teenagers. Keep me humble and always open to this lifelong learning, Abba.
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