Today, the Church celebrates the life of Saint Benedict. As a young boy, Benedict was sent to Rome to finish his education. The subject that dominated his study was rhetoric -- the art of persuasive speaking. In Monte Cassino he founded the monastery that became the roots of the Churchs monastic system. His sister, St. Scolastica, settled nearby to live a religious life. No one had ever set up communities like his before or directed them with a rule. What is part of history to us now was a bold step. Benedict realized the strongest and truest foundation for the power of words was the Word of God itself: For what page or word of the Bible is not a perfect rule for temporal life? Benedict died in 547 while standing in prayer before God. Monte Cassino is a rocky hill about 81 mi southeast of Rome, Italy. Here, St. Benedict established his first monastery, the source of the Benedictine Order, around 529. Since it occupied a strategic location, it was attacked many times over the years. Most recently, it was the site of the Battle of Monte Cassino in 1944, where the building was destroyed by Allied bombing and rebuilt after the war. St. Benedict is the patron of many causes including Europe and students.
Posted on: Fri, 11 Jul 2014 13:44:28 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015