THE LITURGY from an Orthodox Perspective (thanks to Ancient Faith Radio)

Worship in Spirit and Truth

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On the Divine Liturgy from an Orthodox perspective.

Let My Prayer Arise

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On the psalms, from an Orthodox perspective.

Singing the Triumphal Hymn

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On the sacraments from an Orthodox perspective.

Benedictine Organization (according to the Rule) by Dm David Knowles

Benedictine Organization

HITHERTO the Benedictine institute has been considered externally in its birth and growth. We must now look at its organization, as seen in the Rule as it is interpreted today by the living body of monks.

The keystone of Saint Benedict's monastery is the Abbot, and the descriptions of his office and duties in the, Rule have justly been recognized as masterpieces of spiritual wisdom. The Abbot stands in the place of Christ. The monks are his, that he may lead them to God. He is their shepherd, as Christ is of all men. It is from him that God, the Master of the estate, will demand an account of the souls he has had under his hand. Every fault of theirs will at the last judgment be charged to him, and upon him will lie the burden of the proof before he can be absolved from having caused their ruin. On the other hand, the obedience of the monks must be absolute. They have renounced their own wills; that is why they have come into the monastery. They can rely on their Abbot as upon their divine Lord, and it is their security that the Abbot's will is for them God's will, with no possibility of doubt. This gives to their obedience its value and its joy.

Needless to say, Saint Benedict's teaching on obedience is as practical and as valuable today as it ever was, and the monk's obedience is as absolute. It gives to Benedictine life, as it gives to all religious life, a firmness and a sanctity which is the source of all its strength. At the same time, there have always been, and are still, some characteristics of abbatial government which are not found in every religious organization.

In the first place, the very name "Abbot," (Father) suggests a relationship. It suggests that the Abbot cannot exist apart from, or act without a thought for, his monks. He is not merely one in a hierarchy of rulers. He is Abbot only of, and because of, his monks. His power of command and their vow of obedience are complementary and coincident, and both exist only for the good of the monks' souls, not for the more efficient working towards any other end, however good.

The Abbot is not a Colonel who acts under the orders of a General, nor a representative who acts as intermediary between the monastery and the world, nor a Monarch who has for the time being so much material with which to work. The Abbot may not exploit his monks. He may not even regard them as so much manpower to dispose of for the good of the Church.

Moreover (though this applies in a measure to every religious superior), the Abbot is in a real sense the servant of his monks. He is to lead them to God, not in his way or at his pace, but in the way God wishes for each. He must, in Saint Benedict's own words, realize what a hard task is his, to wait upon the different characters of his monks.

Nothing in the Rule is more striking than Saint Benedict's insistence that sheep may be killed by over-driving, the vessel broken if scoured too fiercely. "Be not overzealous," he says to the Abbot; and he warns him that the standard he sets should be below that which the strongest of his monks will desire.

The impression gained from reading the Rule is that the Abbot was to be an influence actually, and not virtually, operating upon the lives of his monks throughout the ordinary day's routine.

But we need not think that a monastery has fallen from Benedict's ideal if the monks are not perpetually receiving commands and directions from the Abbot. The spirit is always the same. The principle of obedience still stands. The implicit will of the Abbot is expressed in the Rule and customs of the house.

The danger exists, if not in large affairs in small, that the Abbot, in his capacity of administrator, landlord and prelate, may forget that the welfare, spiritual and temporal, of the individual monk is within his responsibility, and that the care of him in the last resort, cannot be delegated to any subordinate official. It is the government of souls that the Abbot has undertaken. All else is subordinated to this. (This fact is repeated four times in the Rule.)

All who have written on the Rule in recent years have laid stress on the wide, in fact supreme, powers given by Saint Benedict to the Abbot. But it may be worth while to point out that Saint Benedict, in all matters that are not purely spiritual, points the way, not indeed towards a religious democracy, but towards a degree of cooperation between Abbot and monks that can have found few analogies in the decaying civic and political life of his time.

The third chapter of the Rule, which follows immediately after the chapter defining the office of Abbot, deals directly with the calling in of the monks to give counsel to the Abbot. This has to be done whenever anything of moment is to be decided. Yet it is clear from the words of the Rule that the Abbot is to come for help and for advice in order that he himself may then decide what is to be done. He is not merely or primarily asking his monks for permission to act in a certain way.

When lesser matters are in question the seniors only are to be consulted; but when it is a question of considerable importance, counsel must be taken of all. Furthermore, the monks themselves are to choose their Abbot -- a command that shows no small faith in human nature when we consider the period of history at which it was given.

In this matter of counsel, as in so much besides, Saint Benedict's statesmanlike wisdom and trust in human nature are apparent under the seeming simplicity of the Rule. Few, even among gifted and holy men, are capable of combining initiative and receptivity in the ideal proportions. Most legislators in things temporal and spiritual have spent time in devising checks and obligations to safeguard rulers from interference, and subjects from the consequences of human weakness. Saint Benedict prefers to legislate in broad lines which point to the ideal and leave it possible for the ideal to he realized, while he warns against the failings that may occur in practice.

The Rule knows of no confederation of monks beyond the individual abbey. The Rule itself, "the Holy Rule," not the legislator or his own community, was to be the only norm of monastic life. Here too, Benedictines throughout the centuries have made no essential change.

For the purpose of maintaining religious discipline, groups of monasteries have from time to time been formed into congregations with common statutes and an Abbot-President who has certain powers of visitation and definition. In some cases the bond between the houses composing them is strict; in other cases, very light. But in no case is there any legal connection between congregations, and there is no superior with jurisdiction over all the monks of the world.

Benedictines remain at the present day unique among the greater institutes of regulars in the Church on this point. There is no Benedictine "order" in the sense that the Dominicans and Jesuits are an order, with provinces, provincials and general. The individual abbeys are autonomous. All have traditions, and often works and religious practices, to a greater or less degree their own, not shared by other monasteries of the same nationality or in the same congregation. Yet perhaps no more impressive proof that modern Benedictine monasticism is a true development of the original can be found than the undoubted similarity of ideals and spirit that unites all Benedictines throughout the world.

Last Words of Archbishop Christodoulos of Athens and All Greece

Posted: 23 Jan 2011 12:04 PM PST

Shortly before his death on 28 January 2008, the late Archbishop Christodoulos of blessed memory wrote down his last words to his flock. It stirs up much emotion, yet possesses a Christian tone of joyful sorrow as he gives his flock his last exhortation and places all his hopes in the mercy of God.
BEFORE I CLOSE MY EYES...

By Archbishop Christodoulos of Athens and All Greece

My brethren, do not forget me when you sing to the Lord, but remember my desire and love and beseech God, that the Lord would grant me to rest among the righteous.

When these lines are read I will not be found in this life. My hope is that I will be found in the mercy of the Lord.

I have no other surety except hope in the Lord. Nothing remains for me but the supplication that the Lord show leniency in His judgment and to forgive me.

I loved my Savior with whatever strength was in my soul. He Who searches the hearts and insides knows. Many times Satan pushed me to actions and plans and to make decisions that I fear embittered my Lord, Who entrusted me with many talents.

Perhaps I imitated the recipient of the five talents? Perhaps I worked towards His glory or maybe I did things for my glory and visibility?

This I could not distinguish and I leave the world in fear that I did not accomplish to always tell the difference.

I worked towards my purpose with all the strength I had and with the help of God I accomplished much. As many times as I was successful, I felt great satisfaction.

Perhaps my labors had this purpose? And therefore what my Lord said will be fulfilled, that those who are satisfied with one of their good works, that these have already received their reward?

The only thing that consoles me and illumines me is that the mercy and love of God is infinitely greater than all sins, and prayer is the way of salvation and true joy.

Because of this I beg you with all the strength of my voice, my brethren and children, do not forget me in your prayers. Do a cross for me with your heart. Light a candle for my soul.

In my life, I inevitably embittered many of my brethren, whether rightly or wrongly - of what importance is the distinction? Governance is against those responsible with its correct exercise, oftentimes as a terrible bite. My children, the stamp of governance has many thorns.

I kneel before all those I judged - voluntarily or involuntarily - and I plead with them to forgive me from the bottom of their heart, that I may find mercy and rest for my soul before the Just Judge.

From the depths of my soul I forgive all those who may have judged me. This is the life of mankind - hopes, dreams, aspirations and efforts, and so many other treatments for earthly life, which do not allow us to understand in depth that we are sojourners in this earthly life.

As St. Gregory the Theologian said: "We are a fleeting dream, a phantasm that cannot be grasped, the flight of a bird passing over the sky, a ship which leaves no trace upon the sea."

Before I shut my eyes, and as long as I have all my senses, to all I leave my blessing from the depths of my heart.

And to those as the Metropolitan of Dimitriados whom I shepherded and taught for 24 whole years, and to my beloved sheepfold in Athens whom I shepherded for 10 years, and towards all the Greeks inside and outside the borders of Greece.

I was your father my beloved children, lead by faith that I was responsible for you. To you, therefore, I extend my final blessing.

You know that I gave you all my love. My soul thirsted for your salvation. My deep faith that I pray to the Lord for you, was the only source from which I drew my strength.

I wanted with whatever strength my poor soul had, to sweeten your pain, to boost your morale, to convince you that only if your heartbeat is in rhythm with God's holy will, only then will a smile of genuine joy never leave your lips, as much as can be found in this world.

Do not seek happiness elsewhere, because then you will toil in vain, and you will not find it. Do not ever forget the words of the Lord: "Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be given you."

Always illumine your thinking and the way of your life with the holy will of God. This will warm your hearts to always be filled with love towards God and towards your brethren and fellow-man, and it will give you the sweetest strength to feel the pain of others as if your own and their joys as if it were your joy.

In this way you will find yourselves in the plan of salvation. Then your names will be written in the eternal books of heaven. In this way only will the fullness of joy, true joy, be able to exist in this world, and it will flood your hearts.

The same Lord assured us, when His 70 disciples returned with great joy, saying: "Lord, even the demons are subdued in Your name."

And He informed them with His comforting words: "Do not rejoice in this, that the demons are subdued, rather rejoice that your names are written in the Heavens."

Who then is able to doubt this? And something more. To all He gave the authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy, without any of them being able to impede one's way.

You know how many people Satan finds and uses as his instruments in order to obstruct the path of salvation of those who want to be saved. He perverts their thoughts, makes their hearts poress and blinds their light, so that they are unable to see the good, and they use the most unfair and harsh inhumane means to stand in the way of salvation.

All these, as they are similar to snakes and scorpions, are crushed with the help of God. May God not allow any of you, my beloved children, to reach such a level.

To all of you I pray that Divine Grace protects and covers you.

My beloved children and my brethren, do not distance yourselves from the path of God. Love God and "prefer nothing but His love". Flood your hearts with Christ and Greece.

My beloved children and my brethren, do not ever view Greece with indifference or sadness. The Lord is our Father and gave us Greece as our home. All of humanity are His children, and none is superior to another by virtue of his homeland.

Let us learn to view as a gift of the Lord every country, together with their traditions and languages. Us Greeks have especially received an inheritance to be bearers and teachers of a great culture, honored throughout the world.

Let us, therefore, live in a way that glorifies the sacred, honors the ancestors, keeps language as an expression of spirit and not simply as a means of communication.

Let us have gratitude in our hearts toward those who gave us our country. Especially us, as followers of the Lord, let us always have in mind that the Christian is not sanctified by his environment but sanctifies it.

My children, never do evil to your fellow-man. Scatter everywhere works of love. Whoever seeks need from you and you are able to sweeten their pain, do not deny them.

Do not look to see if they are a kin or a stranger, known or unknown, of the same nation or a foreigner, of the same faith or a heterodox, of the same religion or a heathen, friend or enemy. Whoever has need, from your love they are your neighbor.

Do not be absent from your religious duties. As often as you are infected with sin, whatever sin, small or great, immediately rush to be purified by the great mystery of Divine and Sacred Confession and be united with God through the receiving of Holy Communion.

Always keep your soul ready, since at any time the Lord may call you to be found worthy of the heavenly Kingdom.

I especially address at this moment you, my fellow workers, from the first to the last, from the oldest to the newest, from the greatest to the smallest.

My beloved children, clergy and laity, I will no longer be near you. My love and prayers however will always remain with you. Do not forsake the holy work of enlightening the people, especially you my brother bishops, priests and deacons in Athens, in Volos and everywhere in Greece.

When you go to our churches and preach the word of God, you will refresh my soul in heaven also. Do not deprive me of this refreshing. Remain faithful associates around my successor Archbishop, whoever it is, and give him your boundless respect, your love and your loyalty.

He will love you as much as I loved you and will uphold with you our Church, in order to accomplish its sacred purpose.

And now my beloved children and my friends: "Behold, I sleep in the midst of all silent and speechless. My mouth has ceased. My tongue is stopped and my lips are immovable. My hands are folded and my legs intertwined, my face is changed, my vision has erased. I do not understand the mourners, for my hearing does not receive the cries of the sad. My nose does not smell the fragrance of the incense. True love never dies, therefore I entreat all of my known and cherished friends, pray for me that on the day of judgment, I may find mercy before that fearful judgment seat."

DO NOT FORGET ME IN YOUR PRAYERS.


Translated by John Sanidopoulos