If you are looking for the beginning of the study of The Rule of St. Benedict then you can go HERE for a brief introduction. At the bottom of the introduction you will find the links to each section of the study guide as it becomes available. If you would like to see the growing list of book studies available for free on this site you can go HERE. Enjoy!
Virtues/Vices/Great Ideas: (Find them in the Text)
Humility, Virtue and Vice
Grammar Questions: (The Information of the Text)
According to Benedict, what are the two sides of the ladder (in the story of Jacob’s ladder) symbolic of?
List the twelve steps of humility (in abbreviated fashion).
Where did Benedict say a person would arrive “after ascending all these steps?”
What did Benedict say should be done “in the time remaining after Vigils?”
In addition to reading of the Old and New Testaments, what other kinds of works were to be “read at Vigils?”
Why were certain readings to be omitted from Vigils during the Summer?
Sunday vigils were to remain the same throughout Summer and Winter unless one thing occurred. What one thing could affect this?
What was always supposed to be recited at Lauds and Vespers by the Superior, and for what reason?
Logic Questions: (Interpreting, Comparing/Contrasting, Reasoning)
Why did Benedict say “every exaltation is a kind of pride?” What did he mean by that?
Benedict stated “death is stationed near the gateway of pleasure.” How might this be true?
Why would obedience and submission to a “superior” be an important part of learning humility?
Why is obedience even in the midst of “difficult, unfavorable, or even unjust conditions,” necessary for learning humility?
Why should a monk be content with “the lowest and most menial treatment?”
Why is Benedict associating the process of growing in humility with “not speaking unless asked a question?” What’s the connection between humility and silence?
Why is not being “given to ready laughter” a mark of humility?
Why might standing be something done “in honor and reverence of the Holy Trinity?” Can one not honor God while sitting or lying down?
What would the repetition of the recitation of the various scriptural texts mostly likely do for the Monks over time?
Rhetoric Questions: (The Analysis of Ideas in the Text)
What is your overall evaluation of the twelve steps on the ladder of humility? Do you think each of these steps are good and right or do you have some reservations about one or more of them? If you think they are excellent, why? If you think some of them might not be what they ought, which ones? How would you amend them? Would you add any recommendations for pursuing humility? If so, what would you add?
The Rule of St. Benedict shows us how the changing of seasons affected their practices of worship in the monastery. Is this something that should no longer be a consideration in the modern world? Should the seasons of the years play any role in dictating our practices of spiritual discipline and worship? Why or why not?
Theological Analysis: (Sola Scriptura)
Read Proverbs 15:33; 18:12; and 22:4. What is the consistent teaching in these verses about Humility?
Read Philippians 2:1-11. How does the teaching here about Christ’s Humility correspond to what Proverbs teaches us in the previously mentioned verses?
Read Mark 10:35-45. Why might Christ’s teaching here go against a person’s typical expectation about “greatness?”