Rule of St. Benedict and the Prayer of St. Francis - Essay Example

Significantly, a variety of monastic traditions have contributed to the growth of the religious life within the Catholic Church. The regulation of monasticism was mainly carried out by the various religious rules such as the Rule of St Basil and the Rule of St Benedict in the early periods of monasticism and these rules were strictly observed by the monks. However, the Church laws of different denominations began to regulate monasticism in the later periods and there was a great change in the attitude towards these religious rules.

The selections from the Rule of St. Benedict and the Prayer of St. Francis as given in the textbook provide an important illustration of the monastic traditions of different periods in the Church's history. In spite of their apparent differences, both of these texts make sense in the context of the monastic traditions of the different periods. A comparative analysis of these two texts explains how monasticism fits into the Christian tradition generally and these texts provide the most effective demonstrations of the religious rules of different monastic traditions.

In an analysis of the selection from the Rule of St. Benedict, one comes to recognize the example of the monastic tradition of the early stages of monasticism. The Rule of St. Benedict belongs to the first half of the sixth century and illustrates the severity of the religious attitudes towards the way of life for the monks. The rules relating to ex-communication for faults were on the basis of the commands of Jesus Christ who urged first to admonish the person going wrong and then to abandon him.

In fact, the Rule of St. Benedict about ex-communication for faults illustrates how severely and closely was the commandments of the Lord were observed by the monastic tradition of the early period. The rules specified in the Rule of St. Benedict have a close resemblance to the commandments of Jesus Christ and the laws were strictly observed by the monks of the time. "If a brother is found contumacious or disobedient, proud or grumbler, or in any way acting contrary to the holy Rule and despising the orders of the seniors, let him, according to the Lord's commandment, be privately admonished once and twice by his seniors.

If he does not then amend, let him be publically rebuked before all. But if even then he does not correct himself, let him be subjected to excommunication, if he understands the gravity of this penalty. If, however, he is incorrigible, let him undergo corporal chastisement." (245) There are other pertinent aspects of the Rule of St. Benedict which suggest the spirit of monasticism at this particular period in history and the monks were not allowed to possess anything as personal belongings. The Prayer of St.

Francis, in comparison, illustrates the spirit of monasticism at another crucial period in the history of monasticism and the prayer also clearly reflects the teachings of Christ who came up with the great message of forgiveness and love. This prayer, which emphasizes values such as peace, love, forgiveness, faith, hope, light, and joy, also reflects the spirit of the monastic way of living in the particular period. "Lord, make me an instrument of your peace. Where there is hatred let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; and where there is sadness, joy." (248) To conclude, the Rule of St.

Benedict and the Prayer of St. Francis illustrate the spirit of the monastic tradition in different contexts of monasticism and both reflect the religious rules pertaining to both the monastic traditions.