Chapter 64: The election of an abbot or abbess (paragraphs 1-2)

The grounds on which a candidate is elected abbot or abbess must be the quality of their monastic life and the wisdom of their teaching, even if they are the last in order in the community. (From para. 1 of Ch. 64 of Saint Benedict's Rule, trans. by Patrick Barry, OSB, 1997.)

I need to respect order based on circumstances when it is for the good of the community. But I must also be open to discernment of the unique gifts of others, as well as my own. Though gifts differ,  their wise interplay creates harmony.