Change

“You change your life by changing your heart.” (Saint Benedict of Nursia)

Saint Benedict of Nursia (Unknown)

I have recently been reading about Saint Benedict of Nursia who died in 547 AD.  Saint Benedict and  his twin sister, Saint Scholastica, were born to a Roman nobleman and his wife in Nursia, Italy. Both he and his sister found in themselves a strong desire to escape the things of this world and enter into service to God.  And as a result of that calling, the Saint travelled to the mountains of Subiaco and lived as a hermit in a cave there leading a monastery (in the place of an abbot who had died).  Saint Benedict was too extreme in his lifestyle, and the monks of his monastery tried to poison him.  However, the Saint blessed the poisoned cup, and no harm came to him as a result of their efforts.  News of Saint Benedict’s sanctity began to spread, and he returned to his cave as a hermit.  A community of men soon surrounded him wanting to change their lives and live as he did.  In order to provide them with a place to live, Saint Benedit established twelve monasteries and provided them with a Rule to live by, which was called the Rule of Saint Benedict, which the Benedictian monks still abide by today.  Saint Benedict is known as the Founder of Western Monasticism because of the discipline and organisation he provided to monastic life. 

An excerpt from the Humility Rules in Saint Benedict’s Twelve Step Guide to Genuine Self-Esteem says, “Every human being is infinitely loved and infinitely precious. We haven't earned that divine dignity; it is a gift. Nonetheless, we convince ourselves that we must somehow show ourselves worthy of God's love – that if we are charming or charitable or brave enough, He will feel obliged to reward us. Self-abasement is the antidote to this delusion. It is the practice of reminding ourselves that we are nothing without God's grace and will never earn it. Ironically, this healthy sense of nothingness, understood correctly, brings with it a deeper sense of confidence and freedom.”

And I have been thinking of this today.  You see, change is so difficult.  It is almost impossible.  I have only to think of the number of times that I have promised myself that I would do something differently, and failed to change a single thing – when everything was under my own control and authority – to understand how difficult a thing change really is…

And yet, the human capacity to change is perhaps the greatest gift that God has allowed in our nature.  You see, we have the ability to try and try again…  We are not fixed and unchanging as God and the Angels are now.  We are instruments of change for ourselves – on our own journey to salvation – and for others, as they too need to change and grow…

“For ever, O Lord, thy word is firmly fixed in the heavens. Thy faithfulness endures to all generations; thou hast established the earth, and it stands fast. By thy appointment they stand this day; for all things are thy servants.” (Psalm 119:89-91).

And so today, as I pray to Saint Benedict, I ask for the Grace to change.  Because as Saint Benedict of Nursia said, “You change your life by changing your heart.”

And today, I really need to change my heart…

For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.