Centered On Christ

Augustine Roberts, OCSO, has been a Trappist monk since the early 1950s. After serving as abbot of St. Joseph's Abbey in Spencer, Massachusetts, he became Procurator General of the Trappist Order. In the 1960s he was one of the founders of the first abbey of his Order in South America, later serving as its abbot. Today he is a much sought-after guide, called to help many communities in the delicate task of adapting the perennial monastic way of life to the needs of the twenty-first century.

This book ought to be read by many, not only those within monastic communities. The hope might be that in time the wider audience of the Church could come to see the book's unique contribution to the spiritual life of conformity, conversion, and transformation that each Christian is called to achieve with Christ and by his grace.Cistercian Studies Quarterly

• TABLE OF CONTENTSForeword   xiiiby Bernardo Olivera, OCSOPreface   xvAbbreviations xxiCHAPTER ONEEntering the Monastery   11. Following Jesus   1Gospel Life   1Consequences for Today   62. Profession through the Centuries   8Beginnings: 50–450   8Middle Ages: 450–1450   10New Understanding   13Promises of Profession according to Saint Benedict   16For Further Reflection   17CHAPTER TWORoots of Monastic Life   201. Apostolic Life   21Christ’s Way of Life   22Vocabulary of Discipleship   23From the Desert to St. Benedict   27Shared Conversatio   282. What Is Monastic Life?   32Desert Fathers   34John Cassian   35Rule of St. Benedict   37 3. Evangelical Counsels?   40Vatican II and Afterwards   40An Umbrella Term   42For Further Reflection   45CHAPTER THREECommitments of Conversatio   471. Overview   472. Basic Observances   50Withdrawal from Society   53Life of Prayer   59Gospel Austerity   69Common Life   76Monastic Work   803. Lack of Fidelity   86Abandonment of Monastic Life   86Expressions of Defective Conversion   874. The Spirit of Continual Conversion   88Principal Factor in Monastic Life   90Passover to the Father   91Leaving the World   93Purity of Heart   95Transformation in Christ   97For Further Reflection   99CHAPTER FOURConsecrated Chastity   1021. Meaning of Consecrated Chastity   102Poverty, Chastity, Obedience   102Central Element of Religious Profession   104Note on Terminology   1052. Basic Requirements   108State of Consecrated Virginity   108Cultivation of Chastity   109Human Sexuality   1113. Christ and Chastity   114 4. Other Levels of Sexuality   118Chastity and Sensuality   118Chastity and Eros   119Chastity and Friendship   122Practical Summary   1265. Fruits of Consecrated Virginity   128Sponsa Christi 128 Prayer   129Affective Maturity   131Virginity and Monastic Life   132For Further Reflection   134CHAPTER FIVEBenedictine Poverty   1361. Types of Religious Poverty   137Benedictine Poverty   138Personal Poverty   142Communal Poverty   1432. Responsibilities   144Personal Poverty and Detachment   144Common Life and Productive Work   146Responsibility for Communal Poverty   1533. Toward a Mature Poverty   156Immature Poverty   156Growth in the Life of Poverty   157For Further Reflection  160CHAPTER SIXMonastic Obedience   1621. Christian Obedience   162Human Intermediaries   162Obedience in Christ   1652. A Special Vow 169God’s Redemptive Plan   169Church Authority   172 3. Obedience and Fidelity   176Exterior Commitments   176Spirit of Monastic Obedience   179Reciprocal Need   182The Word of Christ   1844. Obedience, Weak and Strong   185Breaking Communion   186Vow, Virtue, and Counsel   189How Do We Grow in Obedience?   1925. Dialogued Obedience   195Through Dialogue to Obedience   196Qualities of Dialogue   198Practical Summary   199For Further Reflection   201CHAPTER SEVENCenobitic Stability   2031. Commitment to Stability   204Different Interpretations   205Benedictine Stability   206Lack of Stability   2072. Special Situations   208Foundations   208Obedience   210Health   210Greater Spiritual Good   2113. The Spirit of Stability   215Monastic Stability According to the Desert Fathers   216Cenobitic Stability among the First Cistercians   218Doctrinal Reflections   2224. Person and Community   226Which Comes First?   226Spirituality of Communion   230 5. Love of the Order   233What Is Love of One’s Order?   234Stability and Structural Change   238Stability and Faith   240For Further Reflection   242CHAPTER EIGHTSpirituality and Profession   2431. Spiritual Methods   2442. Features of a Triple Way   247Spiritual Art 248Anthropology of the Three Methods   2513. A Christic Milieu   2584. Observance, Prayer, Humility   262Monastic Observance   262Lectio Divina   265Humility   268Practical Consequences   276Vows and the Following of Christ   2815. Profession “According to the Rule of St. Benedict”   283Primacy of Conversatio   284Resolving a Dilemma   285For Further Reflection   288CHAPTER NINEBeyond the Profession Ceremony   2901. Summing Up   290What Profession Means   290Conversatio   2942. A Life of Love   296Promise, Profession, and Intention   296Consecration   300Experiencing Jesus   303Person, Community, and Profession   308 3. Into the Beyond   311Life-Giving Spirit   311Guiding the Human Family   314For Further Reflection   316APPENDIXDiagrams on the Dynamics of Monastic Profession   317Diagram I:   Conversatio morum: Fidelity to Monastic Life   317Diagram II:   Methods in Benedictine Spirituality   318Diagram III:  Monastic Profession and Beyond   319Thematic Index   320