The Rule of St. Benedict at Work - Back to the Beginning
We haven't referenced the Rule of St. Benedict in a while. If you read this blog, or know the Rule, you know that it can be used as a ready resource to help us work for the glory of God. Further, you know that it's been studied in a strictly "secular" light as a magnificent outline of how businesses should be run, how organizations should be structured, how people who work for a company (executives, managers, workers) can most productively interact with each other.
I read it faithfully every morning. It's divided such that you read it through three times a year. Benedictine monks read it thusly, and you can too. I highly recommend it.
So with the New Year underway, I thought we'd circle back to The Rule to remind ourselves of how valuable a resource it can be in your work life, beginning with the Prologue.
"...whatever good work thou undertakest, ask him with most instant prayer to perfect it, so that he who has deigned to count us among his sons may never be provoked by our evil conduct. For we must always so serve him with the gifts which he has given us..."
All of our work should be "good." Whatever you do for a living, you can make that work good. First, as a general intention each day, offering it up for the greater glory of God. A good habit to develop: State this intention each and every day, ideally before beginning your work day, but any time will do in a pinch.
If you haven't done this in the past, look at the particular company you work for. Do you work for a company - or run a business - that follows God's law? I'm not saying that your company has to state that they're following God's law. I'm saying that you can and should look at how the company runs its business and evaluate whether or not its policies and procedures are consistent with the Ten Commandments. If your company encourages lying, cheating, stealing (yes, such companies exist), even if you do your best to avoid such practices, at some point you have to confront this reality. You may have to seek employment elsewhere. For most companies, though, you likely won't have this problem.
Let's assume your company's products, services, policies and procedures don't offend God's Commandments, and you work for the greater glory of God. Now, how do your comport yourself? If you don't realize it, the way you treat others can make a huge difference. The Rule is quite clear here:
"If thou wilt have true and everlasting life, keep thy tongue from evil and do good; seek after peace and pursue it."
We're talking good personal conduct and the pursuit of peace rather than contention. Peace at work? Yes! You have a choice as to how you react to work assignments, the words and actions of colleagues, your boss, your company's policies, etc. One quick example: When I worked in sales, many was the time the company's goals for our group and for us as individuals were, to put it mildly, detached from reality. Most of us complained, moaned, groused. Some got angry. The usual response to such reactive behavior was "Don't be negative." Okay, I get that. From the company's perspective, of course, that's a way to get their people to forge ahead despite the stupid, unrealistic goals. But even from a personal point of view, it does you no good to dwell on what may clearly be objectively negative and compound that by dragging yourself down: You've got to do your best no matter what. So just get on with it.
More importantly, though, you've got to protect your interior life here. Your interior life should be characterized by peace. The fact is, peace and happiness is the only atmosphere in which the soul will spiritually flourish. That doesn't mean you won't have pain and suffering in your life. It doesn't mean you won't have to pursue stupid, unrealistic goals. But if you keep peace in your soul, your spiritual life will be vibrant. It will support you as you face the difficulties the world throws at you. It will see you through. Don't let any of what the world dishes up destroy or undercut peace in your soul.
The Rule tells us just how important this is:
"And when you have done these things, my eyes will be upon you and my ears open unto your prayers. And before you call upon me, I shall say to you, 'Lo, here I am.' What can be sweeter to us, dearest brethren, than this voice of our Lord inviting us? Behold in his loving mercy the Lord showeth us the way of life."
We're going to stick with these first passages in the Rule of St. Benedict, to help propel us into 2019. More next time...
I read it faithfully every morning. It's divided such that you read it through three times a year. Benedictine monks read it thusly, and you can too. I highly recommend it.
So with the New Year underway, I thought we'd circle back to The Rule to remind ourselves of how valuable a resource it can be in your work life, beginning with the Prologue.
"...whatever good work thou undertakest, ask him with most instant prayer to perfect it, so that he who has deigned to count us among his sons may never be provoked by our evil conduct. For we must always so serve him with the gifts which he has given us..."
All of our work should be "good." Whatever you do for a living, you can make that work good. First, as a general intention each day, offering it up for the greater glory of God. A good habit to develop: State this intention each and every day, ideally before beginning your work day, but any time will do in a pinch.
If you haven't done this in the past, look at the particular company you work for. Do you work for a company - or run a business - that follows God's law? I'm not saying that your company has to state that they're following God's law. I'm saying that you can and should look at how the company runs its business and evaluate whether or not its policies and procedures are consistent with the Ten Commandments. If your company encourages lying, cheating, stealing (yes, such companies exist), even if you do your best to avoid such practices, at some point you have to confront this reality. You may have to seek employment elsewhere. For most companies, though, you likely won't have this problem.
Let's assume your company's products, services, policies and procedures don't offend God's Commandments, and you work for the greater glory of God. Now, how do your comport yourself? If you don't realize it, the way you treat others can make a huge difference. The Rule is quite clear here:
"If thou wilt have true and everlasting life, keep thy tongue from evil and do good; seek after peace and pursue it."
We're talking good personal conduct and the pursuit of peace rather than contention. Peace at work? Yes! You have a choice as to how you react to work assignments, the words and actions of colleagues, your boss, your company's policies, etc. One quick example: When I worked in sales, many was the time the company's goals for our group and for us as individuals were, to put it mildly, detached from reality. Most of us complained, moaned, groused. Some got angry. The usual response to such reactive behavior was "Don't be negative." Okay, I get that. From the company's perspective, of course, that's a way to get their people to forge ahead despite the stupid, unrealistic goals. But even from a personal point of view, it does you no good to dwell on what may clearly be objectively negative and compound that by dragging yourself down: You've got to do your best no matter what. So just get on with it.
More importantly, though, you've got to protect your interior life here. Your interior life should be characterized by peace. The fact is, peace and happiness is the only atmosphere in which the soul will spiritually flourish. That doesn't mean you won't have pain and suffering in your life. It doesn't mean you won't have to pursue stupid, unrealistic goals. But if you keep peace in your soul, your spiritual life will be vibrant. It will support you as you face the difficulties the world throws at you. It will see you through. Don't let any of what the world dishes up destroy or undercut peace in your soul.
The Rule tells us just how important this is:
"And when you have done these things, my eyes will be upon you and my ears open unto your prayers. And before you call upon me, I shall say to you, 'Lo, here I am.' What can be sweeter to us, dearest brethren, than this voice of our Lord inviting us? Behold in his loving mercy the Lord showeth us the way of life."
We're going to stick with these first passages in the Rule of St. Benedict, to help propel us into 2019. More next time...
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