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X-WR-CALDESC:<i>At the door of the monastery\, place a sensible person who 
 knows how to take a message and deliver a reply\, and whose wisdom keeps t
 hem from roaming about. This porter will need a room near the entrance so 
 that visitors will always find someone there to answer them. As soon as an
 yone knocks\, or a poor person calls out the porter will reply\, 'Thanks b
 e to God' or 'Your blessing\, please' then\, with all the gentleness that 
 comes from reverence of God\, provides a prompt answer with the warmth of 
 love. Let the porter be given one of the younger members if help is needed
 .</i>\n\nOf all the questions to be asked about the nearly 1500 year old R
 ule of Benedict\, and there are many in the twentieth century\, one of the
  most pointed must surely be why one of the great spiritual documents of t
 he Western World would have in it a chapter on how to answer the door. And
  one of the answers might be that answering the door is one of the arch ac
 tivities of Benedictine life. The way we answer doors is the way we deal w
 ith the world. Benedict wants the porter to be available\, 'not roaming ar
 ound' so that the caller is not left waiting\; responsible and 'able to ta
 ke a message\,' so that the community is properly informed\; full of welco
 me\; prompt in responding to people 'with the warmth of love'\; and actual
 ly grateful for the presence of the guest. When the person knocks--wheneve
 r the person knocks--the porter is to say\, 'Thanks be to God' or 'Your bl
 essing\, please\,' to indicate the gift the guest is to the community. The
  porter is to be warmth and welcome at all times\, not just when it feels 
 convenient. In the Rule of Benedict\, there is no such thing as coming out
  of time to the monastery. Come in the middle of lunch\; come in the middl
 e of prayer\; come and bother us with your blessings at any time. There is
  always someone waiting for you.\n\nThe chapter on the porter of the monas
 tery is the chapter on how to receive the Christ in the other always. It i
 s Benedict's theology of surprise.\n\n<i>The monastery should\, if possibl
 e\, be so constructed that within it all necessities\, such as water\, mil
 l and garden are contained\, and the various crafts are practiced. Then th
 ere will be no need for the members to roam outside\, because this is not 
 at all good for their souls.</i>\n\nWe wish this rule to be read often in 
 the community\, so that none of the members can offer the excuse of ignora
 nce.\n\nIf there is any chapter in the rule that demonstrates Benedictine 
 openness to life and\, at the same time\, models a manner of living in the
  midst of society without being consumed by it\, this is surely the one. G
 uests are welcomed enthusiastically in Benedictine spirituality but\, at t
 he same time\, life is not to be frittered away on work\, on social life\,
  on the public bustle of the day. The community is to stay as self-contain
 ed as possible so that centered in the monastery they stay centered in the
 ir hearts. More\, this balance between public and private\, between openne
 ss and centeredness\, between consciousness of the outside world and conce
 ntration on interior growth is to be remembered and rehearsed over and ove
 r again: 'We wish this rule to be read often\,' the rule says plaintively 
 so that the monastic never forgets that the role of the committed Christia
 n is always to grow richer themselves so that they can give richly to othe
 rs. Abba Cassian\, a desert monastic\, told the following story: 'Once upo
 n a time\, we two monks visited an elder. Because he offered us hospitalit
 y we asked him\, 'Why do you not keep the rule of fasting when you receive
  visiting brothers?' And the old monastic answered\, 'Fasting is always at
  hand but you I cannot have with me always. Furthermore\, fasting is certa
 inly a useful and necessary thing\, but it depends on our choice while the
  law of God lays it upon us to do the works of charity. Thus\, receiving C
 hrist in you\, I ought to serve you with all diligence\, but when I have t
 aken leave of you\, I can resume the rule of fasting again.'\n\nThe person
  with a monastic heart knows that the Christ and their salvation are not i
 n religious gyrations of our design alone\; they are in the other\, our re
 sponse to whom is infinitely more important than our religious exercises.
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DESCRIPTION:<i>At the door of the monastery\, place a sensible person who k
 nows how to take a message and deliver a reply\, and whose wisdom keeps th
 em from roaming about. This porter will need a room near the entrance so t
 hat visitors will always find someone there to answer them. As soon as any
 one knocks\, or a poor person calls out the porter will reply\, 'Thanks be
  to God' or 'Your blessing\, please' then\, with all the gentleness that c
 omes from reverence of God\, provides a prompt answer with the warmth of l
 ove. Let the porter be given one of the younger members if help is needed.
 </i>\n\nOf all the questions to be asked about the nearly 1500 year old Ru
 le of Benedict\, and there are many in the twentieth century\, one of the 
 most pointed must surely be why one of the great spiritual documents of th
 e Western World would have in it a chapter on how to answer the door. And 
 one of the answers might be that answering the door is one of the arch act
 ivities of Benedictine life. The way we answer doors is the way we deal wi
 th the world. Benedict wants the porter to be available\, 'not roaming aro
 und' so that the caller is not left waiting\; responsible and 'able to tak
 e a message\,' so that the community is properly informed\; full of welcom
 e\; prompt in responding to people 'with the warmth of love'\; and actuall
 y grateful for the presence of the guest. When the person knocks--whenever
  the person knocks--the porter is to say\, 'Thanks be to God' or 'Your ble
 ssing\, please\,' to indicate the gift the guest is to the community. The 
 porter is to be warmth and welcome at all times\, not just when it feels c
 onvenient. In the Rule of Benedict\, there is no such thing as coming out 
 of time to the monastery. Come in the middle of lunch\; come in the middle
  of prayer\; come and bother us with your blessings at any time. There is 
 always someone waiting for you.\n\nThe chapter on the porter of the monast
 ery is the chapter on how to receive the Christ in the other always. It is
  Benedict's theology of surprise.\n\n<i>The monastery should\, if possible
 \, be so constructed that within it all necessities\, such as water\, mill
  and garden are contained\, and the various crafts are practiced. Then the
 re will be no need for the members to roam outside\, because this is not a
 t all good for their souls.</i>\n\nWe wish this rule to be read often in t
 he community\, so that none of the members can offer the excuse of ignoran
 ce.\n\nIf there is any chapter in the rule that demonstrates Benedictine o
 penness to life and\, at the same time\, models a manner of living in the 
 midst of society without being consumed by it\, this is surely the one. Gu
 ests are welcomed enthusiastically in Benedictine spirituality but\, at th
 e same time\, life is not to be frittered away on work\, on social life\, 
 on the public bustle of the day. The community is to stay as self-containe
 d as possible so that centered in the monastery they stay centered in thei
 r hearts. More\, this balance between public and private\, between opennes
 s and centeredness\, between consciousness of the outside world and concen
 tration on interior growth is to be remembered and rehearsed over and over
  again: 'We wish this rule to be read often\,' the rule says plaintively s
 o that the monastic never forgets that the role of the committed Christian
  is always to grow richer themselves so that they can give richly to other
 s. Abba Cassian\, a desert monastic\, told the following story: 'Once upon
  a time\, we two monks visited an elder. Because he offered us hospitality
  we asked him\, 'Why do you not keep the rule of fasting when you receive 
 visiting brothers?' And the old monastic answered\, 'Fasting is always at 
 hand but you I cannot have with me always. Furthermore\, fasting is certai
 nly a useful and necessary thing\, but it depends on our choice while the 
 law of God lays it upon us to do the works of charity. Thus\, receiving Ch
 rist in you\, I ought to serve you with all diligence\, but when I have ta
 ken leave of you\, I can resume the rule of fasting again.'\n\nThe person 
 with a monastic heart knows that the Christ and their salvation are not in
  religious gyrations of our design alone\; they are in the other\, our res
 ponse to whom is infinitely more important than our religious exercises.
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260424T000000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260424T235900
LOCATION:66
SUMMARY:The Porter of the Monastery
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