STABILITY: an outline of remarks to the Community on 16 August 2020
by Rt. Rev. Michael-John Austin, Abbot

WE LIVE IN A TIME where change seems to be constant and unrelenting. This is exacerbated by another set of changes that ask us to reign in our autonomy for the sake of the whole. Mixed messaging for sure.

This push and pull does not come easy, even for those who are more supple, agile, able to bend with the current flow of things and still be attentive to those who might know best.

So, what does it mean to live in STABILITY in a world whose axis seems to be built on ME, the I, the personal ego of the individual?

We begin with the simple statement that STABILITY is a marriage to someone, community, or value, that grounds us.

In a world where the divorce rate outside the church and inside the church is about 50 percent, this suggests that the church isn’t any better at preparing individuals for marriage than the world at large. The church needs to ask itself, “What are we teaching or not teaching?” that such a large proportion of its members end their relationships in separation and divorce? This is also true of other commitments we have made: What is it that permits us to wander about from one venue to the next? And maybe this is the problem: We see our commitments as something more like a bee that moves from one flower to the next looking for the sweetest nectar. Our commitments are not flowers, but exchanges made between people whose God is in the center.

I believe Saint Benedict addresses this way of life in the Rule. His direction is not only for monks and nuns but for the totality of the church and his creation. I urge all those with leadership roles to teach stability as a guiding principle, not only in the specific but as a general rule of life.

Saint Benedict starts his teaching in the Prologue.

“Let us get up…for the Scriptures rouse us when they say: It is high time for us to arise from sleep [and pray] … If you hear his voice…do not harden not your hearts…listen to what the Spirit says…Run while you have the light of life, that the darkness of death may not overtake you.”

“Seeking [from] a [diverse] multitude of people, the Lord calls out…Is there anyone here who yearns for life?” We should yell this from our pulpits …. “Is there anyone who wants life, different from what you are living?”

If so, “Clothed with faith and the performance of good works, let us set out on this way, with the Gospel for our guide” and the Rule as our bride.

The Lord waits for us to translate our words into action. This is not a time of hopeful thinking: I wish I could — but, I need more time, the time is not right, and many other excuses that fall from our lips. But rather the immediate response of Mary to the angel Gabriel. Her decision meant life and death; what does your excuses mean?

Benedict in Chapter 1 describes those who have a calling to Christian living/religious life.

He clearly is in support of those who have a clear understanding of commitment and the implications of commitment. But they need clear guidelines and a knowledgeable teacher/father/mother to teach them.

Benedict goes on to speak of those whose commitment is to themselves: the sarabaites and the worst of all, gyrovagues, who are restless, listening to their own voice and inclinations, who wonder from place to place looking for their perfect pasture. This translates to so many areas of life, rather than being content with what you already have.

Stability is about entering into a “marriage of the heart,” willing to do battle to save it, by following holy obedience and its instructions.

Benedict continues the Prologue by adding: “Never swerving from God’s instructions, then, but faithfully observing his teaching in the monastery [of the heart] until death, we shall through patience share in the sufferings of Christ that we may deserve also to share in his kingdom. Amen.

Here is the meaning of Stability from the words of our holy father – Saint Benedict.

With STABILITY comes the making of a new foundation. Benedict grounds his definition with the following:

Stability means taking the theological word Stability and placing it into action. St. James would remind us that faith without good works is no faith at all. Having laid the foundation, in Chapter 4 of the Rule, Benedict begins building his House with the Tools of Good Works.

He reminds us that “our way of acting should be different from the world’s way; the love of Christ must come before all else.”

In chapter 5, Benedict erects the walls of his House with actions of obedience, the ability to hear instructions in the context of Love and more so to listen to directives that might challenge us not to listen to the Christ figure but to oneself. We need to move from the architectural blueprints into actually building a House. Chapter 5 does not only provide specific instructions on how to build a House; it promises that the House will support all those living there, the community, by adding an alarm system to protect us from the forces of evil, but also from ourselves.

Finally, Benedict give us a roof, the 12 steps of humility. Only through these rafters can we come to understand all the rest that community requires. No roof, no humility means that the House will not stand against the storm that is on the horizon. We are on the eclipse of a mighty storm, a mighty battle of good vs. evil. Its scouts are already in our midst, searching out our weaknesses, planning division from within the ranks. Scripture reminds us that nothing will prevail against God’s church as a community of believers from the outside. Saint Paul warns us that this will happen from within. As a reflection point, look at the registered members baptized in the parish, and look at Sunday attendance. It’s happening before our very eyes. 

The enemy is pitching its tents right outside our doors. They are sharpening their weapons for battle. What are we doing?

As Benedictines, we begin our battle preparations with the foundation of Stability.