Rule of St. Benedict, Chapters 41-49
BOOK CLUB 1 | WEEK 4: Daily Schedules, Seasonal Routines, and Key Virtues
As a reminder, you can access the text of St. Benedict’s Rule here. If you’d like to visit the Book Club table of contents, you can do so here. Please note that this week was originally listed as “Additional Matters of Discipline and Household Rules”.
We’re continuing to make our way through St. Benedict’s Rule at a steady pace as we move into the second half of the text, and the second half of this book club! When I originally planned the breakout of the sections, I remembered this week’s reading being a lot more fragmented than it actually is. You’ll notice that I have adjusted the byline to account for this. I’m really glad to see there are some common themes, as I think it makes for an easier read of the text and a stronger write-up here!
Chapter 41-42, 47-49: Daily schedules, weekly routines, seasonal disciplines
Everyone these days is talking about how routines (and/or rituals) can benefit you, even if you’re someone who loves to be super spontaneous and free-spirited.1 So it should come as no surprise to us that St. Benedict has been saying the same thing since the sixth century. Benedict addresses a few specific routines in these chapters:
Selecting and sticking to specific mealtimes (no snacks!)
Little Silence in the afternoon; Grand Silence in the evening
Set times of prayer that take priority over everything else
Set times of work (manual or mental/spiritual) that structure your day
Leaning into the liturgical seasons of the Church and the natural seasons
I think that every single item on this list can benefit us as families in one way or another, so let’s just start from the beginning.
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