The Importance of Respect and Reverence in our Prayer and Work Life

Today we dive back into the weeds with the Rule of St. Benedict. We'll be continuing our Stability Project by referencing entries in the Rule in order from first to last. While we're not monks living in a monastery we find St. Benedict's instructions helpful in fostering order and stability in our work life, just it does for a monastic community.

Recent posts referenced the entries about how to pray the Divine Office. The 16 entries regarding how to pray the Divine Office end with "Of Reverence in Prayer." Before we explore how reverence in prayer applies to our work, first a quick update on the amped up flood of distractions that threaten the steady attention to our daily tasks that our work requires.

While the C-Virus and the Mess created by government lock-downs, jab demands, passports, etc. haven't yet receded into the dustbin of history (where they belong), things have eased up a bit. But last time we listed a slew of new distractions, even dangers, have arisen, as if on cue:

...rising inflation; war with the threat of wider, more lethal outbreaks; social unrest; financial market losses; an inevitable recession (which may have already begun)...

Of note here is the fact that, even if the C-Virus Mess fades (and it hasn't yet), we can expect all of the above to not only linger for months, more likely years, but also to intensify. So while our Stability Project was originally motivated by the Mess, we're even more motivated by our expanded list. 

Now, if the temptation surfaces to rail at our religious and business leaders - and let's not forget our politicians - join the club. Most of these folks fall somewhere between being a big letdown and presenting a clear and present danger to our physical, mental, emotional, and - most importantly - our spiritual well-being.

Prominent business leaders - typically senior executives at big corporations - went along with the lock-downs and forced vaccination policies. (And if you haven't sought or been exposed to research studies that more and more demonstrate that the jabs not only have failed to deliver the protection they promised, but indeed themselves can and have injured and killed thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands, please do so. Do it for your sake and the sake of your families, and, if you're an employer, your employees.)

Ditto for the passive, compliant decisions of our religious leaders - in the case of Catholics, our bishops. 

As for politicians, frankly they've behaved as they usually do. Whichever the wind blows that will result in their re-election drives their votes and what they promote.

All of that became clear during the Mess. It continues now in the face of the expanded list of distractions and danger we noted above.

We're addressing the problems caused by these folks to make some sense out of our next entry in the Rule of St. Benedict:

"If we wish to prefer a petition to men of high station, we do not presume to do it without humility and respect; how much more ought we to supplicate the Lord God al all things with all humility and pure devotion. And let us be sure that we shall not be heard for our much speaking, but for purity of heart and tears of compunction. Our prayer, therefore ought to be short and pure, unless it chance to be prolonged by the impulse and inspiration of divine grace..."

Notice how St. Benedict assumes that humility and respect should and would be due to "men of high station." Indeed that's how he very well may have have categorized the folks we mentioned who deserve just about anything but humility and respect. 

Yes, I know that we Catholics traditionally defer to those in positions of legitimate authority. But such people must hold themselves accountable to the requirements and duties of their authority. Unfortunately (unless I'm way off here), it's hard to argue that the people we've referenced have done so. 

So to properly understand St. Benedict's point here, we need to separate the person from the position. Doing so, we may not defer to the person who holds the position with humility and respect if they have abused or betrayed their authority. 

But St. Benedict's point still makes a lot of sense. And, indeed, we may know or work for exceptions to the unfortunate rule. 

Would that those who hold positions of authority were those who might cause us to approach them humbly, with respect. The world around us would not now be such a distraction and danger to our diligently performing the duties of our state of life on a consistent, day-in day-out basis.

It reminds us of the importance of our Stability Project as one means to counter that which would undermine our efforts at work.