Benedict of Nursia - by Anselm Grün (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Anselm Grün, OSB, famed Benedictine author and cellarer--supplies manager--of his monastery at Münsterschwarzach, offers brief reflections on aspects of the Rule of Benedict. He sketches the life of Benedict and reflects on how Benedict's instructions enable one to live constantly in the presence of God. Even the most mundane objects are signs of the presence of God. It is not merely that we focus our attention on God, but that we're aware that God always focuses attention on us, loving and encouraging us in all things. For example: he calls the cellarer to regard all utensils and goods of the monastery as sacred vessels of the altar.

Grün also ponders how work is an aid to prayer and how the Benedictine vow of stability is essential to building community. Silence and the solitude that characterize the monastic are conditions for the possibility of genuine community.

Each chapter concludes with a brief reflection on the state of contemporary society and how the aspect of the Rule of Benedict treated in the chapter applies to the needs of today.

Review Quotes

Anselm Grün first wrote his introduction to Benedictine life in 1979. He has continued to live its content for some twenty-five years of ministry as a Benedictine monk, revising it as he himself has grown in the discipleship of Christ. His reflections make one excited about the potential for a more God-aware life that the Benedictine way offers. Liturgical Press is to be commended for making the translation of the German fourth edition of Benedict's Message available to the English-speaking public who wish to share in the fellowship of the thousands of monastics and laity who have followed the saint through the centuries.Cistercian Studies Quarterly

This is a valuable, easy-to-follow resource for individuals and small groups. . . . couldn't be more practical.Writing Works