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Chapter I -
Purpose and Basis of Common Life
Before all else, dear brothers, love God and
then your neighbor, because these are the chief commandments given to
us.
1. The following are the precepts we order you
living in the monastery to observe.
2. The main purpose for you having come together
is to live harmoniously in your house, intent upon God in oneness of
mind and heart.
3. Call nothing your own, but let everything be
yours in common. Food and clothing shall be distributed to each of you
by your superior, not equally to all, for all do not enjoy equal
health, but rather according to each one's need. For so you read in
the Acts of the Apostles that they had all things in common and
distribution was made to each one according to each one's need
(4:32,35).
4. Those who owned something in the world should
be careful in wanting to share it in common once they have entered the
monastery.
5. But they who owned nothing should not look
for those things in the monastery that they were unable to have in the
world. Nevertheless, they are to be given all that their health
requires even if, during their time in the world, poverty made it
impossible for them to find the very necessities of life. And those
should not consider themselves fortunate because they have found the
kind of food and clothing which they were unable to find in the world.
6. And let them not hold their heads high,
because they associate with people whom they did not dare to approach
in the world, but let them rather lift up their hearts and not seek
after what is vain and earthly. Otherwise, monasteries will come to
serve a useful purpose for the rich and not the poor, if the rich are
made humble there and the poor are puffed up with pride.
7. The rich, for their part, who seemed
important in the world, must not look down upon their brothers who
have come into this holy brotherhood from a condition of poverty. They
should seek to glory in the fellowship of poor brothers rather than in
the reputation of rich relatives. They should neither be elated if
they have contributed a part of their wealth to the common life, nor
take more pride in sharing their riches with the monastery than if
they were to enjoy them in the world. Indeed, every other kind of sin
has to do with the commission of evil deeds, whereas pride lurks even
in good works in order to destroy them.And what good is it to scatter
one's weath abroad by giving to the poor, even to become poor oneself,
when the unhappy soul is thereby more given to pride in despising
riches than it had been in possessing them?
8. Let all of you then live together in oneness
of mind and heart, mutually honoring God in yourselves, whose temples
you have become.
Chapter II - Prayer
1. Be assiduous in prayer (Col 4:2), at the
hours and times appointed.
2. In the Oratory no one should do anything
other than that for which was intended and from which it also takes
its name. Consequently, if there are some who might wish to pray there
during their free time, even outside the hours appointed, they should
not be hindered by those who think something else must be done there.
3. When you pray to God in Psalms and hymns,
think over in your hearts the words that come from your lips.
4. Chant only what is prescribed for chant;
moreover, let nothing be chanted unless it is so prescribed.
Chapter III - Moderation and Self-Denial
1. Subdue the flesh, so far as your health
permits, by fasting and abstinence from food and drink. However, when
someone is unable to fast, he should still take no food outside
mealtimes unless he is ill.
2. When you come to table, listen until you
leave to what is the custom to read, without disturbance or strife.
Let not your mouths alone take nourishment but let your hearts too
hunger for the words of God.
3. If those in more delicate health from their
former way of life are treated differently in the matter of food, this
should not be a source of annoyance to the others or appear unjust in
the eyes of those who owe their stronger health to different habits of
life. Nor should the healthier brothers deem them more fortunate for
having food which they do not have, but rather consider themselves
fortunate for having the good health which the others do not enjoy.
4. And if something in the way of food,
clothing, and bedding is given to those coming to the monastery from a
more genteel way of life, which is not given to those who are
stronger, and therefore happier, then these latter ought to consider
how far these others have come in passing from their life in the world
down to this life of ours, though they have been unable to reach the
level of frugality common to the stronger brothers. Nor should all
want to receive what they see given in larger measure to the few, not
as a token of honor, but as a help to support them in their weakness.
This would give rise to a deplorable disorder - that in the monastery,
where the rich are coming to bear as much hardship as they can, the
poor are turning to a more genteel way of life.
5. And just as the sick must take less food to
avoid discomfort, so too, after their illness, they are to receive the
kind of treatment that will quickly restore their strength, even
though they come from a life of extreme poverty. Their more recent
illness has, as it were, afforded them what accrued to the rich as
part of their former way of life. But when they have recovered their
former strength, they should go back to their happier way of life
which, because their needs are fewer, is all the more in keeping with
God's servants. Once in good health, they must not become slaves to
the enjoyment of food which was necessary to sustain them in their
illness. For it is better to suffer a little want than to have too
much.
Chapter IV - Safeguarding Chastity, and Fraternal
Correction
1. There should be nothing about your clothing
to attract attention. Besides, you should not seek to please by your
apparel, but by a good life.
2. Whenever you go out, walk together, and when
you reach your destination, stay together.
3. In your walk, deportment, and in all actions,
let nothing occur to give offense to anyone who sees you, but only
what becomes your holy state of life.
4. Although your eyes may chance to rest upon
some woman or other, you must not fix your gaze upon any woman. Seeing
women when you go out is not forbidden, but it is sinful to desire
them or to wish them to desire you, for it is not by tough or
passionate feeling alone but by one's gaze also that lustful desires
mutually arise. And do not say that your hearts are pure if there is
immodesty of the eye, because the unchaste eye carries the message of
an impure heart. And when such hearts disclose their unchaste desires
in a mutual gaze, even without saying a word, then it is that chastity
suddenly goes out of their life, even though their bodies remain
unsullied by unchaste acts.
5. And whoever fixes his gaze upon a woman and
likes to have hers fixed upon him must not suppose that others do not
see what he is doing. He is very much seen, even by those he thinks do
not see him. But suppose all this escapes the notice of man - what
will he do about God who sees from on high and from whom nothing is
hidden? Or are we to imagine that he does not see because he sees with
a patience as great as his wisdom? Let the religious man then have
such fear of God that he will not want to be an occasion of sinful
pleasure to a woman. Ever mindful that God sees all things, let him
not desire to look at a woman lustfully. For it is on this point that
fear of the Lord is recommended, where it is written: An abomination
to the Lord is he who fixes his gaze (Prv. 27:20)
6. So when you are together in church and
anywhere else where women are present, exercise a mutual care over
purity of life. Thus, by mutual vigilance over one another will God,
who dwells in you, grant you his protection.
7. If you notice in someone of your brothers
this wantonness of the eye, of which I am speaking, admonish him at
once so that the beginning of evil will not grow more serious but will
be promptly corrected.
8. But if you see him doing the same thing again
on some other day, even after your admonition, then whoever had
occasion to discover this must report him as he would a wounded man in
need of treatment. But let the offense first be pointed out to two or
three so that he can be proven guilty on the testimony of these two or
three and be punished with due severity. And do not charge yourselves
with ill-will when you bring this offense to light. Indeed, yours in
the greater blame if you allow your brothers to be lost through your
silence when you are able to bring about their correction by your
disclosure. If you brother, for example, were suffering a bodily wound
that he wanted to hide for fear of undergoing treatment, would it not
be cruel of you to remain silent and a mercy on your part to make this
known? How much greater then is your obligation to make his condition
known lest he continue to suffer a more deadly wound of the soul.
9. But if he fails to correct the fault despite
this admonition, he should first be brought to the attention of the
superior before the offense is made known to the others who will have
to prove his guilt, in the event he denies the charge. Thus, corrected
in private, his fault can perhaps be kept from the others. But should
he feign ignorance, the others are to be summoned so that in the
presence of all he can be proven guilty, rather than stand accused on
the word of one alone. Once proven guilty, he must undergo salutary
punishment according to the judgment of the superior or priest having
the proper authority. If he refuses to submit to punishment, he shall
be expelled from your brotherhood even if he does not withdraw of his
own accord. For this too is not done out of cruelty, but from a sense
of compassion so that many others may not be lost through his bad
example.
10. And let everything I have said about not
fixing one's gaze be also observed carefully and faithfully with
regard to other offenses: to find them out, to ward them off, to make
them known, to prove and punish them - all out of love for man and a
hatred of sin.
11. But if anyone should go so far in wrongdoing
as to receive letters in secret from any woman, or small gifts of any
kind, you ought to show mercy and pray for him if he confesses this of
his own accord. But if the offense is detected and he is found guilty,
he must be more severely chastised according to the judgment of the
priest or superior.
Chapter V - The Care of
Community Goods and Treatment of the Sick
1. Keep your clothing in one place in charge of
one or two, or of as many as are needed to care for them and to
prevent damage from moths. And just as you have your food from the one
pantry, so, too, you are to receive your clothing from a single
wardrobe. If possible, do not be concerned about what you are given to
wear at the change of seasons, whether each of you gets back what he
had put away or something different, providing no one is denied what
he needs. If, however, disputes and murmuring arise on this account
because someone complains that he received poorer clothing than he had
before, and thinks it is beneath him to wear the kind of clothing worn
by another, you may judge from this how lacking you are in that holy
and inner garment of the heart when you quarrel over garments for the
body. But if allowance is made for your weakness and you do receive
the same clothing you had put away, you must still keep it in one
place under the common charge.
2. In this way, no one shall perform any task
for his own benefit but all your work shall be done for the common
good, with greater zeal and more dispatch than if each one of you were
to work for yourself alone. For charity, as it is written, is not
self-seeking (1 Cor 13:5) meaning that it places the common good
before its own, not its own before the common good. So whenever you
show greater concern for the common good than for your own, you may
know that you are growing in charity. Thus, let the abiding virtue of
charity prevail in all things that minister to the fleeting
necessities of life.
3. It follows, therefore, that if anyone brings
something for their sons or other relatives living in the monastery,
whether a garment or anything else they think is needed, this must not
be accepted secretly as one's own but must be placed at the disposal
of the superior so that, as common property, it can be given to
whoever needs it. But if someone secretly keeps something given to
him, he shall be judged guilty of theft.
4. Your clothing should be cleaned either by
yourselves or by those who perform this service, as the superior shall
determine, so that too great a desire for clean clothing may not be
the source of interior stains on the soul.
5. As for bodily cleanliness too, a brother must
never deny himself the use of the bath when his health requires it.
But this should be done on medical advice, without complaining, so
that even though unwilling, he shall do what has to be done for his
health when the superior orders it. However, if the brother wishes it,
when it might not be good for him, you must not comply with his
desire, for sometimes we think something is beneficial for the
pleasure it gives, even though it may prove harmful.
6. Finally, if the cause of a brother's bodily
pain is not apparent, you make take the word of God's servant when he
indicates what is giving him pain. But if it remains uncertain whether
the remedy he likes is good for him, a doctor should be consulted.
7. When there is need to frequent the public
baths or any other place, no fewer than two or three should go
together, and whoever has to go somewhere must not go with those of
his own choice but with those designated by the superior.
8. The care of the sick, whether those in
convalescence or others suffering from some indisposition, even though
free of fever, shall be assigned to a brother who can personally
obtain from the pantry whatever he sees is necessary for each one.
9. Those in charge of the pantry, or of clothing
and books, should render cheerful service to their brothers.
10. Books are to be requested at a fixed hour
each day, and anyone coming outside that hour is not to receive them.
11. But as for clothing and shoes, those in
charge shall not delay the giving of them whenever they are required
by those in need of them.
Chapter VI - Asking Pardon and Forgiving Offenses
1.Your should either avoid quarrels altogether
or else put an end to them as quickly as possible; otherwise, anger
may grow into hatred, making a plank out of a splinter, and turn the
soul into a murderer. For so you read: Everyone who hates his brother
is a murderer (1 Jn 3:15).
2. Whoever has injured another by open insult,
or by abusive or even incriminating language, must remember to repair
the injury as quickly as possible by an apology, and he who suffered
the injury must also forgive, without further wrangling. But if they
have offended one another, they must forgive one another's trespasses
for the sake of your prayers which should be recited with greater
sincerity each time you repeat them. Although a brother is often
tempted to anger, yet prompt to ask pardon from one he admits to
having offended, such a one is better than another who, though less
given to anger, finds it too hard to ask forgiveness. But a brother
who is never willing to ask pardon, or does not do so from his heart,
has no reason to be in the monastery, even if he is not expelled. You
must then avoid being too harsh in your words, and should they escape
your lips, let those same lips not be ashamed to heal the wounds they
have caused.
3. But whenever the good of discipline requires
you to speak harshly in correcting your subjects, then, even if you
think you have been unduly harsh in your language, you are not
required to ask forgiveness lest, by practicing too great humility
toward those who should be your subjects, the authority to rule is
undermined. But you should still ask forgiveness from the Lord of all
who knows with what deep affection you love even those whom you might
happen to correct with undue severity. Besides, you are to love
another with a spiritual rather than an earthly love.
Chapter VII - Governance and Obedience
1. The superior should be obeyed as a father
with the respect due him so as not to offend God in his person, and,
even more so, the priest who bears responsibility for you all.
2. But it shall pertain chiefly to the superior
to see that these precepts are all observed and, if any point has been
neglected, to take care that the transgression is not carelessly
overlooked but is punished and corrected. In doing so, he must refer
whatever exceeds the limit and power of his office, to the priest who
enjoys greater authority among you.
3. The superior, for his part, must not think
himself fortunate in his exercise of authority but in his role as one
serving you in love. In your eyes he shall hold the first place among
you by the dignity of his office, but in fear before God he shall be
as the least among you. He must show himself as an example of good
works toward all. Let him admonish the unruly, cheer the fainthearted,
support the weak, and be patient toward all (1 Thes 5:14). Let him
uphold discipline while instilling fear. And though both are
necessary, he should strive to be loved by you rather than feared,
ever mindful that he must give an account of you to God.
4. It is by being more obedient, therefore, that
you show mercy not only toward yourselves but also toward the superior
whose higher rank among you exposes him all the more to greater peril.
Chapter VIII - Observance of the Rule
1. The Lord grant that you may observe all these
precepts in a spirit of charity as lovers of spiritual beauty, giving
forth the good odor of Christ in the holiness of your lives: not as
slaves living under the law but as men living in freedom under grace.
2. And that you may see yourselves in this
little book, as in a mirror, have it read to you once a week so as to
neglect no point through forgetfulness. When you find that you are
doing all that has been written, give thanks to the Lord, the Giver of
every good. But when one of you finds that he has failed on any point,
let him be sorry for the past, be on his guard for the future, praying
that he will be forgiven his fault and not be led into temptation.
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