The figure of the servant who is forced to settle a debt and doesn’t have the means to do so unsettles me from the very beginning of this parable. His earnest pleas are heard and to my relief his huge debt is cancelled. It would be good if the parable stopped there.
The shaft of light created by the cancelling of the debt quickly disappears and now the scene is set in shadow. The servant hasn’t internalised the mercy that was shown him. He hasn’t internalised the words of the Psalmist: The Lord is compassion and love, slow to anger and rich in mercy. The servant has chosen to stay firmly in the world of debt-keeping and vengeance. He has missed an opportunity for grace.
Matthew’s uncompromising parable addresses a community who were learning the cost of discipleship. That there were disagreements is a given. The parable form is designed to shock and jolt its hearers. Matthew is telling his audience that forgiveness is the key that will unlock the dynamics of the Kingdom. The parable is an invitation to step into the the world of grace.
How can you step into the grace of the Kingdom this week?
Today’s first reading from Numbers is the story of the people being bitten by snakes in the wilderness. Moses fashions a bronze serpent, holds it up and whoever looks upon it lives. Whatever we might think of the likelihood of this happening, the point the story is the power of God to heal and save.
‘No one has gone up to heaven except the one who came down from heaven, the Son of Man who is in heaven; and the Son of Man must be lifted up as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.’
Moses’ holding up the serpent links directly with John’s important theological idea of Jesus being ‘lifted up’ on the cross. Jesus is presented as the one who brings healing through suffering and glory. When Jesus is lifted up people will see that his claims about his close relationship with his Father are true.
We don’t always connect suffering and glory in our own lives. But we do recognise the power of love to heal us. Christ’s self-emptying love is there in the everyday if we can take time to slow down and see it. There are moments when Christ is ‘lifted up’ in the small kindnesses and acts of self-giving love. The invitation today is to be open to those moments.
‘I tell you solemnly once again, if two of you on earth agree to ask anything at all, it will be granted to you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three meet in my name, I shall be there with them.‘
This quotation is so familiar that over the years I have taken for granted what it means. That it teaches us something about prayer would be the most obvious interpretation. From a monastic perspective it’s the promise that Christ is there every time we gather that takes my attention. While the communal times of prayer are the principle way in which we gather as monastics, alongside this there several more forms of gathering. Christ is present in all of these.
We gather around the common table. Meals eaten in silence and in common are a place into which we can invite Christ. The monastic refectory shares many of the ceremonials of the chapel. We gather at recreation. We take time in the day to come together to listen to each other. We sometimes gather for a work project or a meeting. Ideally we consciously invite Christ to be present here too. We gather when someone goes on a significant journey. Here our prayers for safety and a fruitful trip are implicit. We gather at a deathbed. When I entered, depending on the circumstances and time of a sister’s death, a bell would summon us to a sister’s bedside. In all of these gatherings we hope to be aware that Christ is present.
Where will you gather this coming week? Where will Christ be with you?
My monastery of Turvey Abbey is affiliated to the Benedictine Congregation of Monte Oliveto. We keep today’s feast as a Solemnity. I remember older sisters referring to this feast as Maria Bambina. It was not until I had the chance of a trip to Rome in September 2002 that I was to learn more of how the feast is celebrated there. I was attending a conference for Benedictines and September 8th was a free day. Some American sisters had been exploring the churches of Rome and came back with tales of cradles made from flowers, in which lay baby Mary. I drew back a little then from this Italian piety.
Twenty years later and I may have experienced a little shift within me. I am beginning to see the place which affective piety holds in the life of faith. I don’t think it really bears close analysis. There is something there which stirs the heart and speaks of the power of God’s promise.
In the liturgy of the Word today we are invited to reflect on the power of God’s promise. Prophesying in the southern kingdom of Judah, Micah says that it is the smallest clan that God will use as his instrument of salvation. From the small and little known town of Bethlehem a ruler will be born. From this small town near Jerusalem we move to the equally insignificant town of Nazareth. Matthew doesn’t name the town, instead we have a text which situates Jesus in terms of lineage. Matthew’s carefully worked out schema neatly moves through salvation history, arriving at the all important verse:
and Jacob was the father of Joseph the husband of Mary; of her was born Jesus who is called Christ.
Though it is neat on the page, this story of salvation is anything but neat in reality. Sr Maria Boulding speaks of this in her book, The Coming of God:
‘The story of Israel’s hope is a story not of smooth progress but of successive breakthroughs. God’s promise had been made to the people through Abraham, Moses, David, or one of the prophets.
Each time someone, or some people, had been asked to make a leap of faith and love in response to the one who promised, to break through a barrier, to be reborn to a new possibility. The result was a fuller life, a new level and sphere of existence, but at the cost of everything on this side of the barrier. It always meant a letting go, a dying to something that had been familiar, controllable, perhaps even perfect of its kind.’
Mary takes her places here as one whose life was fully at the disposal of God’s plan. She too had to die to something familiar in order to give birth to and be reborn into a new possibility. When we celebrate Maria Bambina we celebrate the potential that we have each held from the moment of our birth. We celebrate the potential that we each have to put our lives at God’s disposal.
Where is God calling you to a new possibility in your own life?
‘If any wish to come after me, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.’
There’s a scene in the Nun’s Story which is etched in my memory. Sr Luke, a young sister in First Vows, is asked by her Reverend Mother to intentionally fail her medical exams in order to show humility. She can’t do it and suffers the consequences when she is sent to work in a mental hospital rather than the Congo. Sadly this model of Religious Life was fairly prevalent. Those who study religious life refer to it as the Control Model. The structures were such that they could be used to break a person’s will. But is this what our Gospel text is asking today?
In all honesty I don’t think this is what Jesus or Matthew are intending to say. Matthew writes for a community who have already experienced persecution. When Matthew records Jesus’ words the hearers are invited to see their own sufferings as part of the dynamic of death and resurrection which Jesus experienced. Ultimately it is about where they place their focus. To ‘lose your life’ is not to obliterate your person, but rather to find in Christ’s death and resurrection the true meaning of your life. Largely we don’t need to go looking for penances or ways to make our crosses heavy. As our lives unfold there will be many circumstances which bring us suffering. The invitation to us all is to hold fast and to set our hearts on the tiniest glimmers of resurrection.
St Benedict makes no explicit mention of the cross in his Rule. However, the Rule is thoroughly Christocentric and in its pages you’ll find invitation after invitation to live out that self-emptying love (kenosis) which lead Jesus to the cross.
Therefore we intend to establish a school of the Lord’s service. In drawing up its regulations, we hope to set down nothing harsh, nothing burdensome.Prologue
All aspects of monastery life are focused on seeking and serving God. I often speak of monastic life as an ‘intentional life’. Monastic life is an intentional training in love. Very little is left to chance. Three areas of the life are of particular importance.
PRAYER
The primary focus of a monastic’s day is the praying of the Liturgy of Hours. This strong emphasis on communal prayer is the hallmark Benedictine life. St Benedict urges monastics to pray in such a way that the bonds of community are made stronger:
‘let us stand to sing the Psalms in such a way that our minds are in harmony with our voices.’Ch. 19, The Discipline of Psalmody
The monastic liturgy is so arranged that everyone has their part to play. Some community members will have very specific roles in the liturgy and others will play their part by coming prepared and ready to sing. The contribution of each individual is valued. Monastic liturgy is never a musical performance, it is always an act of humble communal service.
WORK
St Benedict arranges the monastery timetable so that at least 5 hours are spent doing manual work. Many imagine monastic life as fairly sedate with not much activity: in fact, each day is timetabled and full. St Benedict wanted his monks to ‘live by the work of their hands’ and so have a sense of shared responsibility for the life of the monastery. The Rule gives very wise advice on how a monastic is to understand their work and warns the monastic against becoming proud:
‘If there are artisans in the monastery, they are to practice their craft with all humility, but only with the abbot’s permission. If one of them becomes puffed up with his skillfulness in his craft, and feels that he is conferring something on the monastery.’ Ch. 57, The Artisans of the Monastery
There is a strong ethos in Benedictine communities of valuing each type of work. We try to do all of our work as best as we can, whether that is emptying the bins or writing a talk. We would also show respect for the work of another.
RELATIONSHIPS
Throughout the Rule there is one central truth: Christ is really present in each member of the community. The love, respect and honour which we show to each other, we show to Christ. This love underpins all that happens in the monastery. Living with the same group of people day in day out isn’t always easy. St Benedict knows that irritations can build up and he has several safeguards against this:
‘Assuredly, the celebration of Lauds and Vespers must never pass without the superior reciting the entire Lord’s Prayer at the end for all to hear, because the thorns of contention are likely to spring up. This warned by the pledge they make to one another in the very words of this prayer: Forgive us as we forgive (Matt 6:12), they may cleanse themselves of this vice.’ Ch. 13, The Celebration of Lauds on Ordinary Days
St Benedict puts great store by the virtues of patience and forbearance. Daily life in the monastery presents many opportunities to work towards these virtues. I have used used Ch 72 several times in these reflections. It is the touchstone of mutual love and respect. St Benedict’s words are simple and hugely challenging:
This, then, is the good zeal which monks must foster with fervent love: They should each try to be the first to show respect to the other (Rom 12:10), supporting with the greatest patience one another’s weaknesses of body or behaviour, and earnestly competing in obedience to one another.
Reflect on your own experience of prayer, work and relationships. Is there anything in St Benedict’s teaching that can help you?
‘Let them prefer nothing whatever to Christ, and may he bring us all together to everlasting life.’ (Ch. 72, On Good Zeal)
St Benedict began his life of faith in the small town of Norcia, just outside of Rome. As a young boy he was sent to Rome to study: he found himself unhappy there and so left for Affile, a small town roughly thirty miles east of Rome. It was here that he felt a strong call to solitude. He went to Subiaco and made his home in a small cave. It wasn’t long before word spread that there was a ‘holy man’ living at Subiaco. One day an entire community of monks from a neighbouring monastery came to see him and begged him to become their Abbot.
What had begun as Benedict’s solitary search for God, soon became a communal way of life. This search for God was now lived out with a group of brothers. The whole structure of the monastery is built on a life that is held in common. Benedict’s Rule is a guide for the communal search for God and much of it is his teaching on prayer, work and relationships. These are solid, practical guidelines that are designed to ‘safeguard love’.
‘The good of all concerned, however, may prompt us to a little strictness in order to amend faults and to safeguard love.’ (Rule of St Benedict, Prologue)
St Benedict knows that the path can be difficult and so he has in mind two sources of strength for the community: his written Rule and the teaching of the Abbess. The Rule gives explicit and implicit guidelines for living together. It is the Abbess’ job to steer a steady course between following the Rule and adapting to the particular circumstances of the monastery.
Reflect on your own experiences of living and working as part of a group or family. What have you learnt about yourself? What is your experience of following rules or a code of conduct? Have you ever been in a leadership position where you have had to adapt some rules? Have you had the experience of being able to safeguard love?
The whole of Scripture charts the call of God and humanity’s response. We see this in the major events that shaped the faith of the people of Israel. God’s plan inches forward, with many twists and turns along the way. At every turn God waits for a response. Everything is played out through relationship.
In today’s Gospel text the story of our salvation reaches another milestone. It’s from a place of real relationship that Jesus asks Peter one of the most poignant questions in the Gospels: ‘But you,’ he said ‘who do you say I am?’ Then Simon Peter spoke up, ‘You are the Christ,’ he said, ‘the Son of the living God.’
In one sentence we see the depth of Peter’s relationship with Jesus. Jesus acknowledges this relationship with words that affirm:
‘Simon son of Jonah, you are a happy man! Because it was not flesh and blood that revealed this to you but my Father in heaven. So I now say to you: You are Peter and on this rock I will build my Church.
Biblical scholars refer to this text as the Primacy of Peter and much theological discourse is built around these verses. In my own mind I have reframed this text as the Primacy of Relationship. Peter stands for each one of us. We can each stand where Peter stands and hear these challenging and affirming words.
God builds the Kingdom, of which the Church is a part, with the fabric of our lives. Nothing is wasted. Each courageous act, each faltering yes, God will take and use.
How can you live the values of the Kingdom this week?
LOVE The seventy three chapters of the Rule of St Benedict are a framework for living in community. Every aspect of monastery life is covered, sometimes in detail that is a little surprising. Some parts of the text are very demanding and others are tender and considerate. This strictness is seen by St Benedict as means of ‘safeguarding love’. I hadn’t given this much thought until I entered the monastery. Over the years I have learnt that faithfulness in the small things prepares you for the big things. All of the attitudes, values and ways of organising life within the monastery walls are there to provide a framework that will support you. This is especially important when things aren’t going so well. Having a clear idea of the next right thing you need to do ensures that love is safeguarded.
St Benedict devotes several chapters of his Rule to the situations where love is at risk.
Therefore, he ought to use every skill of a wise physician and send in senpectae, that is, mature and wise brothers who, under the cloak of secrecy, may support the wavering brother, urge him to be humble as a way of making satisfaction, and console him lest he be overcome with sorrow. (Ch 27, Rule of St Benedict)
St Benedict makes use of ‘elder wisdom’ for the brother who is struggling. He is careful to protect the privacy of the brother. These two things stand out for me. Everyone of us will have known a time when we have needed some mentoring. Often its by chance that the right person is there to help you find a way through your difficulties.
Who have been the senpectae in your own life? Have you ever found yourself in a mentoring role? What did you learn about yourself?
That we know almost nothing about St Bartholomew (Nathanael) is perhaps a little liberating. There is space for our imaginations to read between the lines in the very short text from John. There are four things that I glean from this text: Nathanael is not afraid to make his point, he responds to an invitation, Jesus knows him, Jesus makes him an extraordinary promise.
I have a lot of sympathy with Nathanael needing to question Phillip’s certainty on having found the Messiah from Nazareth. Often when I question it is because something has unsettled me.
The moment of response to an invitation often marks the beginning of a new stage on our faith journeys. When I look back over my life I can pinpoint the times where I was invited to events, sometimes at quite short notice, that began to change my life. Nathanael has opened himself to God’s grace and change is inevitable.
That Jesus knows him and can say of him; ‘There is an Israelite who deserves the name, incapable of deceit.’ stops me in my tracks. And I find myself wondering what Jesus would say of me.
The promise that Jesus makes to Nathanael, ‘I tell you most solemnly, you will see heaven laid open and, above the Son of Man, the angels of God ascending and descending.’ is a vision of glory. Nathanael will witness Christ’s passion and resurrection before he fully understands what this means. This is what it means to be a disciple.
Our discipleship can take so many forms. Let’s pray that today the Psalmist’s words can be said of us:
“Your friends, O Lord, make known the glorious splendour of your reign.”
