Fr. Erik Varde
Benedictines take three vows: of obedience, of stability and of conversatio morum. I see this last as precisely a vow not to get stuck.
What are the signs that one is stuck?
A loss of joy.
And how do you get unstuck?
It’s said about St Anthony of Egypt, often thought of as the first monk, that he started each day by saying, ‘Today I begin.’ When you endeavour to live life seriously and zestfully, it is constantly new: every day is a bit like the first day of creation.
We monks start our day, at 3.20am, with Vigils, and the first psalm St Benedict would have us sing is Psalm 95 – ‘Today, if you hear his voice, harden not your hearts’. Today!
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