In the Rule of St Benedict there is a section describing the
monastery Cellarer. The Cellarer is what
in the military would be called the Quartermaster, in charge of supply and
provision of food and drink and necessary equipment. Benedict says the Cellarer must be humble and
kind, should stick to his job without trying to turn it into a powerful fief,
should be efficient, and sensitive to individual need. And all this, says Benedict, is so that no one may be troubled or vexed in the house of God. We know what “troubled” means… I think
“vexed”, not a word we often use[1],
means feeling at least irritated as well as troubled. The Latin contristetur
includes being made sad and possibly angry.
The idea of no one being troubled or vexed in the house of God may
sound to us like Shangri-La. Things do go
wrong. Human pride and perversity, even silly
misunderstandings, guarantee that. If
you read the histories of great parishes in New Zealand, and of great church
leaders, they are peppered with scandal, dispute, failure, schism and
bitterness, at times.
In contemplative life and prayer we have another frame of
reference. One of the commentators on this
passage in the Rule of St Benedict says we
are told not to react to those buttons pushed, (except) with love and humility. We start to learn how to step back, how not
to follow anyone else’s agenda of labelling, categorising, passing simplistic
judgement, letting emotions rule and decide.
We become acquainted with compassion, and with what it really
means. Compassion is a Latin derivation
which means to suffer with, to share the pain, or sorrow, or bewilderment, or
confusion, as it may be. The equivalent
Greek word arrives in English as sympathy, to suffer together with. So sentimentalism, the popular secular
refuge, is not the same as compassion… nor is having once had that happen to
me… In the company of Jesus the first
task is not to feel sorry – how we feel is not the point – but to seek to understand
and to be present to bear the weight, even the weight of guilt. Understanding does entail being able to be
still, to listen and to pay attention, the willingness to set ego aside, and
not be driven by fear.
In Jesus’s company, what Benedict calls the house of God, it is
not that everything is serene… that is indeed unlikely… but that our instinct
is to bear one another’s burdens, including burdens of guilt and failure – and to
decline other agendas. Paul writes to
the Colossians: Clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness and
patience. Bear with one another, and if
anyone has a complaint, forgive each other…
Above all clothe yourselves with love…
And let the peace[2]
of Christ rule in your hearts… and be thankful.[3]
[1] In
Pride and Prejudice, Mrs Bennet
cries, “Oh Mr Bennet! nothing you say will ever vex me again!” Mr Bennet replies, “I am sorry to hear that,
my dear.”
[2] In
Hebrew: Shalom… In Arabic: Salaam…
[3]
Colossians 3:12-15
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