September 3, 2014

The 12 Steps of Humility :: LISTEN MORE THAN TALK

EACH MONTH IN THE 12 STEPS OF HUMILITY WE ARE CLIMBING SAINT BENEDICT'S LADDER OF HUMILITY.  WITH EACH RUNG WE COME CLOSER TO THE PERFECT LOVE OF GOD.


The ladder is our life on earth, if we humble our heart God will raise it to heaven. ~ St. Benedict 



THE NINTH STEP OF HUMILITY: A monk restrains [her] speech, not speaking until an answer is required.


Too much talk leads to sin. Be sensible and keep your mouth shut. ~ Proverbs 10-19 (MSG)








In a culture big on watching most of us don't really know how to listen. Do you find yourself listening to friends or loved ones with virtually no eye contact or verbal responses while surfing email or social media on your smartphone? 

Turn listening into a living response rather than a cerebral activity. That means we may have to listen when we don't want to. If we pick and choose we may miss an important message God is trying to bring us. Besides that, it all comes back to honoring Christ in the other. It's basic Golden Rule behavior really.
To listen closely, with every fibre of our being, at every moment of the day, is one of the most difficult things in the world, and yet it is essential if we mean to find the God whom we are seeking.*

Benedictine spirituality calls us to listen to four things:
  • The Gospels. 
  • The Rule. 
  • Each other. 
  • Life around us.

We won't hear God through any of these unless we stop talking, typing or texting!
If we want to grow in grace, we must learn to talk less and listen more.** 

RESOURCES:
Wisdom Distilled from the Daily: Living the Rule of St. Benedict Today by Joan Chittister
Twelve Steps to Inner Freedom: Humility Revisited by Joan Chittister
A Guide to Living in the Truth: Saint Benedict's Teaching on Humility by Michael Casey
Saint Benedict's Toolbox: The Nuts and Bolts of Everyday Benedictine Living by Jane Tomaine
The Rule of Saint Benedict edited by Timothy Fry
Monk Habits for Everyday People: Benedictine Spirituality for Protestants by Dennis Okholm**
Seeking God: The Way of St. Benedict by Esther de Waal*

Image credit: tuk69tuk / 123RF Stock Photo