What was life like for Benedictine monks?
Religious services – there were several a day that they had to attend. Matins was at midnight, Lauds at 3am, Prime at 6am, Terce, Sext and None before dinner; Vespers was at 6pm. Bedtime – the monks went to bed at 8pm in the winter and 9pm in the summer. They had to sleep in dormitories of 10 or 20.
How did Benedictine monks spend their time?
Benedictine monks spend about four hours a day in the “divine office” of prayer and another four hours a day in reading the Scriptures. According to Benedict, manual work is a form of holy prayer. Each monk is given work assignments because labor is a valued and integral part of the human experience.
What is Benedictine tradition?
The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (Latin: Ordo Sancti Benedicti, abbreviated as OSB), are a monastic religious order of the Catholic Church following the Rule of Saint Benedict. They are also sometimes called the Black Monks, in reference to the colour of their religious habits.
What are Benedictine monks known for?
Benedictines, in addition to their monastic life of contemplation and celebration of the liturgy, are engaged in various activities, including education, scholarship, and parochial and missionary work.
Are Benedictine monks allowed to talk?
Benedictines don’t take a vow of silence but take their dinner and breakfast without talking. At dinner, they don’t talk, but one of the monks sits at the front of the cavernous room, surrounded by stained glass, and reads an article from Benedictine history and passages from the Rule of St. Benedict.
What do Benedictine monks eat?
The Rule of St Benedict Each monk is allowed a pound of bread, along with a quarter litre of wine. Benedictine monks were not quite vegetarian by modern standards, though. Eating meat from four-legged animals was prohibited, but they could eat meat from birds and fish.
What time do monks go to sleep?
This ritual is always at 5 or 5.30 p.m. — a few hours before going to bed so that they can spend the rest of the evening relaxed and fall asleep easily. The only catch is to surrender. As you are underneath the shower, feel the water on your body. Notice its warmth and touch.
How many hours do Benedictine monks sleep?
8 hours of sleep was pretty much commanded by St. Benedict, the chief abbot of the Benedictine monks, because he wanted them fully rested for the task at hand — often this included taking care of war-torn refugees and homeless and starving children during national conflicts like the Crusades or The War of The Roses.
What do monks wear under their habits?
In Christian monastic orders of the Catholic, Lutheran and Anglican Churches, the habit often consists of a tunic covered by a scapular and cowl, with a hood for monks or friars and a veil for nuns; in apostolic orders it may be a distinctive form of cassock for men, or a distinctive habit and veil for women.
Do Benedictine monks talk?
What is the life of a Benedictine monk like?
Benedictines live a single life, and they also live with other monks. They are guided by the St. Benedict rule consisting of 73 chapters that comprise administrative and spiritual wisdom. The rules guide them on how to run a monastery and how to live through Christ. They also learn to be humble and obedient.
What do Benedictines do for a living?
Apart from the monastic life, the Benedictines also get involved in activities like missionary work, education, and scholarship programs. In order to become a benedictine monk, you need to take the “benedictine vows.”
Where do Benedictine monks live in the wilderness?
Benedictine monks live in the wilderness. Benedictine abbeys are often built in mountain and desert places. Like Moses, Benedictine monks meet God in the wilderness . Acts 7:31-32, “When forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him [Moses] in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush.
What is a monastic life?
Following the Rule of St. Benedict, monks live a common, separated, ascetic life, and submit themselves in unrestricted obedience to their superiors.