St. Benedict of Nursia and the Liturgy of the Hours

Ave Maria!  Yesterday was the feast of St. Benedict of Nursia, whom I neglected in my enthusiasm to share what I had just read about Helen Keller.  St. Benedict, the father of Western monasticism, has had and continues to have an enormous influence upon men and women throughout the ages.  His wise and practical rule of life has a universal appeal that is suitable for individuals and groups from all religious traditions and walks of life. 

When I think of St. Benedict however, I think first not of his rule but of his love for the liturgy.  For him, it was without question the absolute source and summit of his entire life.  He is credited with having organized the Liturgy of the Hours, as the Divine Office or Breviary is called today.  The liturgy is the heart of the monastic community.  The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is, of course, the principal liturgy, and all the other events of daily life give way to the primacy of the Liturgy of the Hours. 

This is true not just for official Benedictines but also for individual "Benedictine souls" such as me.  With the liturgy as the center of my life, the hours of my days and nights become a liturgy of sorts that I am blessed to offer to the One who alone is worthy of all praise.  Oh, marvelous!  What I celebrate in the liturgy takes root and becomes flesh here and now through Him, with Him and in Him.  Thus my life itself becomes, little by little, more and more, worship of God in spirit and in truth (John 4:24).  I cannot really explain this, I just know that it is true, it is my experience of many long and wonderful years, and it is all God's doing.  And St. Benedict, too, has played a vital part in this lovely mystery of my life.  Thank you, dear Lord -- and St. Benedict, too!

I will sing to the Lord as long as I live:

I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.

Psalm 104:33

P.S.  Lowell Graham at "Speaking to the Soul" has posted a good read on St. Benedict and the three promises of his rule here.