The Online Library of Liberty

A project of Liberty Fund, Inc.

• Preface
• Introductory Notes
• Note On the History of the Text
• Here Beginneth the Prologue to a Rule For Monasteries
• Here Beginneth the Text of the Rule
• Chapter I: Concerning the Different Kinds of Monks
• Chapter II: What Kind of Man an Abbot Ought to Be
• Chapter III: Concerning the Calling of the Brethren to Council
• Chapter IV: What Are the Instruments of Good Works
• Chapter V: Concerning Obedience
• Chapter VI: Concerning Silence
• Chapter VII: Concerning Humility
• Chapter VIII: Concerning the Divine Office At Night
• Chapter IX: How Many Psalms Are to Be Said At the Night Hours
• Chapter X: How Night Praise Is to Be Accomplished In Summer Time
• Chapter XI: How Night Office Is to Be Said On Lord’s Days
• Chapter XII: How the Office of Lauds Is to Be Sung
• Chapter XIII: How Lauds Are to Be Said On Ferias
• Chapter XIV: How Night Office Is to Be Said On the Feasts of Saints
• Chapter XV: In Which Seasons Alleluia Is to Be Said
• Chapter XVI: How the Work of God Is to Be Carried Out During the Day
• Chapter XVII: How Many Psalms Are to Be Sung At These Hours
• Chapter XVIII: In What Order the Psalms Themselves Are to Be Said
• Chapter XIX: Concerning the Discipline of Saying Office
• Chapter XX: Concerning Reverence In Prayer
• Chapter XXI: Concerning the Deans of the Monastery
• Chapter XXII: How the Monks Are to Sleep
• Chapter XXIII: Concerning Excommunication For Offences
• Chapter XXIV: What the Measure of Excommunication Should Be
• Chapter XXV: Concerning Graver Faults
• Chapter XXVI: Concerning Those Who Without the Orders of the Abbot Consort With the Excommunicate
• Chapter XXVII: How Solicitous the Abbot Should Be For the Excommunicate
• Chapter XXVIII: Concerning Those Who Shall Not Have Amended Though Somewhat Often Corrected
• Chapter XXIX: If Brethren Who Go Out From the Monastery Ought to Be Received Back Again
• Chapter XXX: Concerning the Younger Boys, How They Are to Be Corrected
• Chapter XXXI: Concerning the Cellarer of the Monastery, What Sort of a Person He Should Be
• Chapter XXXII: Concerning the Iron Tools and Other Things Belonging to the Monastery
• Chapter XXXIII: Whether Monks Ought to Have Anything of Their Own
• Chapter XXXIV: Whether All Ought to Receive Necessaries Equally
• Chapter XXXV: Concerning the Weekly Kitcheners
• Chapter XXXVI: Concerning the Sick and Infirm Brethren
• Chapter XXXVII: Concerning the Old and Infants
• Chapter XXXVIII: Concerning the Weekly Reader
• Chapter XXXIX: Concerning the Quantity of Foods
• Chapter Xl: Concerning the Quantity of Drink
• Chapter Xli: At What Hours the Brethren Ought to Have Their Meals
• Chapter Xlii: That No One Talk After Compline
• Chapter Xliii: Concerning Those Who Come Late to the Work of God Or to Table
• Chapter Xliv: Concerning Such As Are Excommunicated, How They May Make Satisfaction
• Chapter Xlv: Concerning Those Who Make Mistakes In the Oratory
• Chapter Xlvi: Concerning Those Who Do Amiss In Any Other Matters
• Chapter Xlvii: of Notifying the Hour of the Work of God
• Chapter Xlviii: Concerning the Daily Manual Work
• Chapter Xlix: Concerning the Observance of Lent
• Chapter L: Concerning Brethren Who Are Working At a Distance From the Oratory, Or Are On the Road
• Chapter Li: Concerning Brethren Who Do Not Go Far Away
• Chapter Lii: of the Oratory of the Monastery
• Chapter Liii: of How Guests Are to Be Received
• Chapter Liv: If a Monk Ought to Receive Letters Or Tokens
• Chapter Lv: Concerning the Brethren’s Clothes and Shoes
• Chapter Lvi: Concerning the Abbot’s Table
• Chapter Lvii: Concerning Artificers In the Monastery
• Chapter Lviii: Concerning the Discipline of Those to Be Received As Brethren
• Chapter Lix: Concerning Noblemen’s Sons and Poor Men’s Sons Who Are Offered
• Chapter Lx: Concerning Priests Who By Chance Shall Wish to Live In the Monastery
• Chapter Lxi: Concerning Monks Who Are Strangers, How They Should Be Received
• Chapter Lxii: Concerning the Priests of the Monastery
• Chapter Lxiii: Concerning the Order of the Community
• Chapter Lxiv: Concerning the Election of an Abbot
• Chapter Lxv: Concerning the Provost of the Monastery
• Chapter Lxvi: Concerning the Porter of the Monastery
• Chapter Lxvii: Concerning Brethren Sent On a Journey
• Chapter Lxviii: If Impossibilities Be Enjoined Upon a Brother
• Chapter Lxix: That In the Monastery One Presume Not to Constitute Himself the Patron of Another
• Chapter Lxx: That No One Presume to Strike Another Unlawfully
• Chapter Lxxi: That the Brethren Be Obedient Among Themselves
• Chapter Lxxii: Concerning the Good Zeal Which Monks Ought to Have
• Chapter Lxxiii: Concerning This, Namely That Not Every Observance of Righteousness Is Laid Down In This Rule
• Other Pax Books

CHAPTER II

WHAT KIND OF MAN AN ABBOT OUGHT TO BE

An abbot who is worthy to preside over a monastery ought always to remember what he is called and to justify his title by his deeds. For he is deemed in the monastery the representative of Christ, since it is by His title he is addressed, for the Apostle says: “Ye have received the Spirit of adoption of sons in which it is we cry out Abba, Father.” And so an abbot ought not to teach, establish, or order anything contrary to the spirit of the Lord’s revealed will, but let his commandments and teaching, as being the leaven of divine justice, sprinkle the minds of the disciples.

Let the abbot be always careful of his own teaching and of the obedience of his disciples, of both which matters examination will be made at the dreadful judgment of God; and let the abbot know that to the fault of the shepherd is accounted whatever the father of the family shall have found amiss in the sheep. Only so shall he be free of blame in proportion as the perfect diligence of a shepherd has been applied to the restless and disobedient flock and every careful attention has been manifested towards whatever was corrupt about them; and their shepherd, absolved at the judgment of the Lord, may with the prophet say to the Lord: “Thy justice have I not hidden away in my heart: Thy truth and Thy salvation I have told forth: but they have been despisers and spurned me.” And then at length let the punishment of the sheep who were disobedient in spite of his care be death itself prevailing over them.

Therefore when anyone receives the title of abbot he ought to preside over his disciples with twofold manner of teaching: that is, to show forth all that is good and holy by deeds even more than by words, so as by his words to set the commandment of the Lord before the more intelligent disciples: but to those hard of heart and to those of less capacity to show forth the divine precept by his deeds. And all things that he has taught the disciples are contrary to the divine precepts, let his own deeds indicate are things not to be done; lest preaching to others himself be found reprobate; and lest at any time God say to him in his sin: “Wherefore dost thou discourse of My justice and take My covenant upon thy lips, even thou who hatest discipline and hast cast My words behind thee?” And: “Thou who hast been in the habit of seeing a mote in thy brother’s eye, why hast thou not seen the beam in thine own?”

Let him show no favouritism in the monastery. Let not one be loved more than another, unless it be one whom he has found to excel in good deeds and obedience. Let not one of gentle birth be placed higher than one who was recently a serf, unless there be some other and reasonable cause. Let it be so however if it shall have seemed good to the abbot on just grounds; and so let him do concerning the place of anyone whomsoever: but otherwise let them keep their own places: for whether bondmen or freemen we are all one in Christ and under the one Lord bear equal rank of subjection, for there is no acceptation of persons with God. In His sight we are differentiated one from the other in respect to this only, namely, if we be found humble and to excel others in good deeds. Therefore let him have an equal love towards all; let one and the same discipline be meted out to all according to their merits.

For in his teaching the abbot ought always to keep to that apostolic formula in which it is said: “Convince, entreat, rebuke”: that is to say, mingling according to circumstances gentleness with severity, let him show the sternness of a master, the affection of a father: that is to say, he ought to convince the undisciplined and restless almost harshly: but to entreat the obedient, the meek and the patient, that they progress still better. But the negligent and the haughty we admonish him to rebuke and correct. And let him not close his eyes to the sins of those who do amiss, but almost as soon as they begin to appear let him cut them off at the roots and master them, mindful of the judgment against Eli the priest in Silo. The more dignified and the intellectually minded let him correct by word at their first and second admonition; but the froward, the hard, the proud and the disobedient, let him coerce at the very first offence by the stripes of corporal punishment, knowing it is written: “A fool is not corrected by words”; and again: “Strike thy son with the rod and thou wilt free his soul from death.”

The abbot ought always to remember what he is, to remember what he is styled and to know that to whom more is committed from him is more required; and let him know how difficult and arduous a matter he has undertaken, namely, to govern souls and to adapt himself to many dispositions. One with gentleness, another with rebukes, another with persuasion, so let him, according to the character and intelligence of each, mould and adapt himself, that not only may no injury accrue to the flock entrusted to him, but that he may actually have occasion to rejoice in the increase of his flock’s welfare.

Above all, let him not be too solicitous about things transitory, things earthly, things perishable, closing his eyes to, or too little weighing the salvation of, the souls committed to his care; but let him always have in mind that because he has undertaken to govern souls, he must one day render an account of them.

And that he may not complain of having too little worldly substance, as may hap, let him remember the Scripture: “First seek the kingdom of God and His justice, and all these things shall be added unto you.” And again: “Nothing is wanting to them that fear Him.” And let him know that he who has undertaken the government of souls must prepare himself for rendering an account. And however great the number of brethren he knows he has under his care, let him recognize for certain that he will have to account to the Lord for all their souls in the day of judgment and without doubt for his own soul in addition. And so, always duly fearful of the Chief Pastor’s future examination into the state of the sheep entrusted to him, while careful on others’ account he becomes solicitous on his own; and while by his admonitions he affords correction to others, he is also himself freed from his faults.