{"id":78371,"date":"2013-07-11T06:00:04","date_gmt":"2013-07-11T13:00:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/?p=78371"},"modified":"2016-07-12T15:08:37","modified_gmt":"2016-07-12T22:08:37","slug":"the-man-who-saved-western-civilization","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/the-man-who-saved-western-civilization\/","title":{"rendered":"The Man Who Saved Western Civilization"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>

Saint Benedict
Detail from a fresco by Fra Angelico.<\/p><\/div>
\nB<\/span>enedict<\/a>! The man who saved European civilization! The man who invented western monasticism<\/a>! <\/p>\n

I’ve often written of him<\/a>, and of his sister<\/a> Saint Scholastica. <\/p>\n

The very foundation of this blog was the monastic movement that Benedict began 1500 years ago.<\/p>\n

Frankly, you’re probably sick of hearing my blatherings. What we need is somebody way smarter than me to sum him up. <\/p>\n

Fortunately, I’ve got just the thing. He even uses the word “cyclopean”.<\/p>\n

\nB<\/span>orn in Norcia about 480, Benedict’s first studies were in Rome but, disappointed with city life, he retired to Subiaco, where he stayed for about three years in a cave \u2014 the famous sacro speco<\/em> \u2014 dedicating himself wholly to God. In Subiaco, making use of the ruins of a cyclopean villa of the emperor Nero, he built some monasteries, together with his first disciples, giving life to a fraternal community founded on the primacy of the love of Christ, in which prayer and work were alternated harmoniously in praise of God.<\/p>\n

Years later, he completed this project in Monte Cassino<\/a>, and put it in writing in his Rule<\/a>, the only work of his that has come down to us. Amid the ashes of the Roman Empire, Benedict, seeking first of all the kingdom of God, sowed, perhaps even without realizing it, the seed of a new civilization which would develop, integrating Christian values with classical heritage, on one hand, and the Germanic and Slav cultures on the other.<\/p>\n

There is a particular aspect of his spirituality, which today I would particularly like to underline. Benedict did not found a monastic institution oriented primarily to the evangelization of barbarian peoples, as other great missionary monks of the time, but indicated to his followers that the fundamental, and even more, the sole objective of existence is the search for God: “Quaerere Deum.”<\/p>\n

He knew, however, that when the believer enters into a profound relationship with God he cannot be content with living in a mediocre way, with a minimalist ethic and superficial religiosity. In this light, one understands better the expression that Benedict took from St. Cyprian and that is summarized in his Rule (IV, 21) \u2014 the monks’ program of life: Nihil amori Christi pr\u00e6ponere<\/em>. Prefer nothing to the love of Christ.<\/p>\n

Holiness consists in this valid proposal for every Christian that has become a true pastoral imperative in our time, in which one perceives the need to anchor life and history in solid spiritual references.<\/p>\n

(Excerpted from Pope Benedict XIV’s Angelus address of July 10, 2005)<\/em>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

On today’s Feast of Saint Benedict, won’t you spend some time in prayer, asking this great saint to intercede for an increase to vocations to the religious life all over the world?<\/p>\n

\nR<\/span>aise up, O Lord, in your Church the spirit,
\nwith which our Holy Father St. Benedict was animated,
\nthat, being filled with the same spirit,
\nwe may learn to love what he loved
\nand put into practice what he taught.
\nThrough Christ our Lord, Amen.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

<\/a>

The Cross of Saint Benedict<\/a>, as seen in Le\u00f3n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Benedict! The man who saved European civilization! The man who invented western monasticism! I’ve often written of him, and of his sister Saint Scholastica. The very foundation of this blog was the monastic movement that Benedict began 1500 years ago. Frankly, you’re probably sick of hearing my blatherings. What we need is somebody way smarter than me to sum him […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[46,6,19,16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-78371","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-annual","category-pope-benedict-xvi","category-pray","category-saint"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1aGBK-ko3","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":5822,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/benedict-on-benedict\/","url_meta":{"origin":78371,"position":0},"title":"Benedict on Benedict","author":"Thom","date":"11 July 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Benedict! The man who saved European civilization! The man who invented western monasticism! I've often written of him, and of his sister Saint Scholastica. The very foundation of this blog was the monastic movement that Benedict began 1500 years ago. Frankly, you're probably sick of hearing my blatherings. What we\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Meditations"","block_context":{"text":"Meditations","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/meditations\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/07\/Fra_Angelico_Benedict-300x365.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":88706,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/ut-in-omnibus-glorificetur-deus\/","url_meta":{"origin":78371,"position":1},"title":"Ut in Omnibus Glorificetur Deus","author":"Thom","date":"11 July 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Pray and work! is the perennial exhortation of the Order of Saint Benedict. However, the motto of the Order, found at the end of chapter 57 of the Holy Rule is \"Ut in Omnibus Glorificetur Deus\". In English, this is rendered as \"That in all things God may be glorified\".\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Meditations"","block_context":{"text":"Meditations","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/meditations\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/uiogd.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/uiogd.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/uiogd.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/uiogd.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/uiogd.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":427,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/saint-benedict-abba-poeman-and-amenempoe\/","url_meta":{"origin":78371,"position":2},"title":"Saint Benedict, Abba Poeman, and Amenemope","author":"Thom","date":"21 March 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Although it does not appear on the Universal (Roman) calendar, today is one of two feasts of Saint Benedict celebrated by Benedictines throughout the world. If it is true that the Irish saved civilization, it's worth remembering that they did so largely in Benedictine Monasteries. Today, I have three short\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Meditations"","block_context":{"text":"Meditations","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/meditations\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":105649,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/the-sheep-are-wanting-in-the-fold\/","url_meta":{"origin":78371,"position":3},"title":"The Sheep are Wanting in the Fold","author":"Thom","date":"11 July 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Abscind\u00e9tur de ov\u00edli pecus. (from the Canticle of Habakkuk: Hab. 3:17) Benedict is famously the man who saved Western Civilization. He lived during the decades following the fall of Rome to terminal decadence and invasion, and the Order he founded went on to preserve the works of literature and history\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "History"","block_context":{"text":"History","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/history\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/03\/Saint-Benedict-presents-the-Rule-to-Saint-Maurus.jpg?fit=672%2C697&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/03\/Saint-Benedict-presents-the-Rule-to-Saint-Maurus.jpg?fit=672%2C697&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/03\/Saint-Benedict-presents-the-Rule-to-Saint-Maurus.jpg?fit=672%2C697&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":84174,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/on_community\/","url_meta":{"origin":78371,"position":4},"title":"On Community","author":"Thom","date":"11 July 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Today is the principal feast (at least among the Benedictines) of Saint Benedict of Nursia, author of the great monastic rule that in large part saved western civilization after the fall of the Roman Empire. Pope Benedict XVI took his name at least in part from Saint Benedict, and the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Camino"","block_context":{"text":"Camino","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/camino\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Clear Creek Abbey - St Benedict icon","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/clear-creek-abbey-St-Benedict-icon-300-e1393712126562.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":87432,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/of-benedict-and-his-monks\/","url_meta":{"origin":78371,"position":5},"title":"Of Benedict and His Monks","author":"Thom","date":"11 July 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Happy Saint Benedict's Day! Today is the principal feast of the founder of western monasticism: the author of the Holy Rule, and a great saint. Over the course of the last decade and more, new monastic institutions with many young monks and sisters are beginning to flourish throughout the world.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Chant"","block_context":{"text":"Chant","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/chant\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Saint-Benedict.jpg?fit=600%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Saint-Benedict.jpg?fit=600%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Saint-Benedict.jpg?fit=600%2C600&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78371","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=78371"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78371\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":87478,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78371\/revisions\/87478"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=78371"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=78371"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=78371"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}