{"id":38366,"date":"2024-09-12T06:55:17","date_gmt":"2024-09-12T13:55:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/?p=38366"},"modified":"2024-09-12T06:55:17","modified_gmt":"2024-09-12T13:55:17","slug":"when-less-becomes-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/when-less-becomes-more\/","title":{"rendered":"When Less Becomes More"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Rule of Benedict<\/em> dates back, approximately to the mid-600s AD. Today, it remains a constitution of sorts that men agree\u00a0 to follow when entering a Benedictine monastery. Although Benedict called the book, \u201ca little rule for beginners,\u201d it prescribed every aspect of the daily life for the community.[1]<\/a> Benedict believed that by following the rules, the monks would be drawn closer to God. Benedict lived in Rome during the sixth century, when pagan practices that were common. Being repulsed by what them, he left Rome to live in solitude miles outside the city.[2]<\/a> Throughout the rest of his life, Benedict sought to love God by eliminating distractions and temptations from his life and the lives of the brother monks so that each man could present himself to God. His desire was to follow God with his whole self.<\/p>\n

I first learned of this book when The Rev. Dr. Martyn Percy spoke to the Portland Seminary students in September 2023. Dr. Percy noted that The Rule of Benedict was one of the longest standing constitutions, having been written.[3]<\/a> What caught my attention was his focus on how the book began, \u201cListen carefully, my son, to the master\u2019s instructions, and attend to them with the ear of your heart.\u201d Benedict continually remindied the monks that the person giving the rule loved them as a father, which his role of Abbot personified.<\/p>\n

Benedict\u2019s rules seem harsh to the outsider. The monks maintained a rigorous schedule of manual work, study, and prescribed times for prayers day and night. By stripping the monks of worldly possessions and pleasures the men could focus their time, energy, and attention on God alone. I read this book a year ago and judged it as legalistic and purely punitive. I was mistaken.<\/p>\n

I entered the second reading with an open mind. Rather than cringing at the harshness of their surroundings or the rigidity of the rule, I read the rule with an eye on the leader. What was the motivation? Was the leader angry and thus negative? What I read seemed different. I did not expect to read that the abbot did everything out of love for the brothers.<\/p>\n

Other books I have read confirmed that hardship is often a tool that draws someone closer to God. In Mining for Gold<\/em>, Tom Comacho, a pastor and coach explains how leaders in God\u2019s kingdom are like gold that has been refined through the fire, making them better able to allow the Holy Spirit to guide them. His approach is less austere than Benedict\u2019s Rule, but Camacho acknowledges that gold is refined in fire. In a person, we are refined in the cross where God calls each Christian to consider where we need to die to self.[4]<\/a> Losing things in life that we cling to often opens us to a new beginning. For the faithful monk, it was a closeness to God.<\/p>\n

What does The Rule of Benedict<\/em> teach about leadership?<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. There are many ways people might become leaders. Some are hired for a specific position of authority; others are elected to a position. A person is not a leader if someone does not give either implicit or explicit authority to the person<\/strong>. Benedict became an abbot when other monks approached him seeking guidance for their spiritual wellbeing as they lived a monastic life.[5]<\/a> Benedict was not seeking to lead others yet responded favorably to their request. Today, over 1500 years later, when someone wants to join an abbey, the person willingly submits himself to enter that lifestyle, giving the abbot authority over him. The Rule of Benedict offers the incoming monk the ability to leave the abbey if at any time he does not want to remain. I believe God calls people to positions of leadership both within the church and secular world. The way that call is confirmed is when someone other than the specific leader in the position confirms the call. This could come in various ways such as through a job application process to lead a company or a pastoral search committee in a church setting.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

     <\/p>\n

      \n
    1. All leaders are accountable to someone.<\/strong> In business it could be to shareholders, customers or other employees. Benedict understood that as the abbot God would hold him accountable in how he led the brothers to Christ.[6]<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

       <\/p>\n

        \n
      1. Good leaders invite contributions from others<\/strong>. In Benedict\u2019s setting, whenever something important needed to be decided, the community of brothers were called together to offer their advice. While the abbot would still make a final decision, there is an understanding that other voices may be inspired by God to bring different ideas for consideration.[7] Leaders know that their authority is not held in isolation. From personal experience, I concur that sharing decision making and empowering others remains important skills of a leader.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        I still would not want to personally subscribe to a way of life described in The Rule of Benedict<\/em>, however, I do know that my best time spent with God is when there are few distractions. In those times I am nurtured and restored. Interestingly, those times always keep me grounded professionally as well. I have such a strong sense that I am better at leading from who I am first and foremost as a child of God, and not just relying on my experiences and knowledge. In the words of Simon Walker, practicing to be an undefended leader.[8]<\/a><\/p>\n

        [1]<\/a> Timothy Fry, OSB, ed., \u00a0Imogene Baker, OSB, Timothy Horner, OSB, Augusta Raabe, OSB, Mark Sheridan, OSB, eds., The Rule of Benedict in English<\/em>, Collegeville, MN, 2019), 11.<\/p>\n

        [2]<\/a> Ibid., 9.<\/p>\n

        [3]<\/a> The Very Revd. Professor Martyn Percy, Speaker at Oxford Advance for Portland Seminary DLGP students Sept. 25, 2023.<\/p>\n

        [4]<\/a> Tom Comacho, Mining For Gold, Developing Kingdom Leaders through Coaching<\/em> (London: Inter-Varsity Press, 2019), 94.<\/p>\n

        [5]<\/a>Timothy Fry, OSB, ed., \u00a0Imogene Baker, OSB, Timothy Horner, OSB, Augusta Raabe, OSB, Mark Sheridan, OSB, eds., The Rule of Benedict in English<\/em>, Collegeville, MN, 2019), 10.<\/p>\n

        [6]<\/a> Ibid., 25.<\/p>\n

        [7]<\/a> Ibid.<\/p>\n

        [8]<\/a> Simon P. Walker, Leading out of Who You Are, Discovering the Secret of Undefended Leadership<\/em> (Carlisle, UK: Piquant Editions Ltd, 2007), 5.<\/p>\n

         <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

        The Rule of Benedict dates back, approximately to the mid-600s AD. Today, it remains a constitution of sorts that men agree\u00a0 to follow when entering a Benedictine monastery. Although Benedict called the book, \u201ca little rule for beginners,\u201d it prescribed every aspect of the daily life for the community.[1] Benedict believed that by following the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":211,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[582,2967],"class_list":["post-38366","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-benedict","tag-dlgp03","cohort-dlgp03"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38366","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/211"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38366"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38366\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":38367,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38366\/revisions\/38367"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38366"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38366"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38366"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}