In the Footsteps of St. Dominic - Exploring Dominican Spirituality

[jwinch2]

In my opinion, to live as Dominic did, one needs to understand the influence of the Rule of St. Augustine, which the Order of Preachers adopted as their own, on the Dominican charism. As such, this book is probably worth picking up for anyone interested in life as a Dominican.

amazon.com/Dominican-Life-Commentary-Saint-Augustine/dp/1467959324

As for the Rosary, yes the OP has some differences in how they pray it. Though, since Our Lady gave the Rosary to St. Dominic to begin with, it is probably fair to say that everyone else prays it differently than the Dominicans, rather than vice versa.

These books on Dominican Spirituality are also all worth getting:

amazon.com/Seven-Last-Words-Timothy-Radcliffe/dp/0860123979/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1345671006&sr=8-4&keywords=timothy+radcliffe
amazon.com/Dominican-Spirituality-Exploration-Eric-Borgman/dp/0826456847/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1345670807&sr=8-3&keywords=dominican+spirituality
amazon.com/Sing-New-Song-Christian-Vocation/dp/0872432475/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1345671006&sr=8-6&keywords=timothy+radcliffe
amazon.com/Dominican-Spirituality-Anselm-M-Townsend/dp/1258129043/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1345670807&sr=8-8&keywords=dominican+spirituality

 

[Marian_Man]

As for the Rosary, yes the OP has some differences in how they pray it. Though, since Our Lady gave the Rosary to St. Dominic to begin with, it is probably fair to say that everyone else prays it differently than the Dominicans, rather than vice versa.

Yes indeed !

The opening Credo, Pater, Ave and Gloria in the rosary are transplanted from the Bridgentine rosary that uses the Pater and three Ave to bring the number of Ave to 63 (the number of years Our Lady lived on earth) and the 7 Pater for the seven Sorrows and Joys of Our Lady (keeping in mind there’s an extra decade in each chaplet of the Bridgentine Crown). I don’t know where the Credo and Gloria in the beginning come from, perhaps they’ve been added to flesh it out or perhaps the Credo is there because of the seven Credo in the Bridgentine form.

 

[OraLabora]

Do you ever pray the LOTH during your commute?

If I did, I’d cause one heckuva highway pileup! I drive to work (no public transit route from where I live to where I work).

My kids are largely out of the house so I have time to do it at home and my weekday schedule is, roughly, this:

Vigils (Office of Readings) 6 am
Lauds 7 am
Leave for work 7:30 am
Terce upon arriving at work (8:45-9 am)
Sext before lunch (just before noon)
None 3 pm
Vespers when I arrive home (6-7 pm)
Compline: before retiring (9-9:30 pm)

I’ll leave out one or two of the minor hours if work pressures oblige, but will always try to do the mid-day hour (Sext).

Weekends are considerably, er, more flexible as I tend to rise a bit later and go for long bike rides or hikes in the mountains with my wife, and I don’t lug around the extra weight of my breviary

The purpose of this thread more importantly was for all of us to think of ways we can incorporate a little Dominican spirituality within our lives. I believe all the Orders have nuggets of spirituality that we can benefit from.

I know next to nothing about Dominican spirituality so I’m looking forward to you exposing to us the fruits of your research

 

[JReducation]

That’s a nice way of looking at it!

I actually love the Divine Office. I’d like to work on saying the Lauds and Vespers at home though, not during my commute. I think I am a little bit distracted when I say it during my commute, plus I prefer to say it out loud rather than read it.

Do you ever pray the LOTH during your commute?

Eventually, you’ll learn something that we religious call subvocalization. It allows you to pronounce the words on the page without being a distraction to others. Begin with a whisper and as you progress through the Office, keep your lips moving, but become quieter and quieter until you can only hear your voice in head.

Whatever you do, don’t break out into chant on the subway.

The purpose of this thread more importantly was for all of us to think of ways we can incorporate a little Dominican spirituality within our lives. I believe all the Orders have nuggets of spirituality that we can benefit from.

As I told you in a PM, this is a rather interesting subject. Because if you ask some Dominicans they say that there is a Dominican spirituality, yet Jordan Aumann, OP, the best Spiritual Theologian that the Dominicans had, said there was no such thing. He taught Spiritual Theology at the Angelicum and was the chair of that department. He was one of my professors there. He was an awesome man.

He taught us this. The spirituality of the Dominican is really the spirituality of the Augustinian, adapted to the penitential movement of the time. It’s almost a hybrid between Augustine and Francis with a little Carmelite in the middle.

My question to him always was, if you create a hybrid, isn’t that a new product? I understand that there is really only Christian Spirituality, in the Christian tradition. There is no such thing as Franciscan, Dominican, Benedictine or Carmelite spirituality. They are all expressions of Christ’s spirituality, placing the emphasis on different aspects of it. But I held that the hybrid was a new product and therefore, Dominican.

His argument was that it could not be labeled Dominican, because it’s not consistent through the ages nor across the order as are the Augustinian, Franciscan, and Carmelite schools. He explained that the reason that it was not consistent was the absence of a Dominican Rule. Dominican life of prayer is very much influenced by the Rule of St. Augustine.

I disagreed with him and still believe that the hybrid is uniquely Dominican, but for the sake of obedience I had to say that there was no such thing as a Dominican spirituality, but an Augustinian spirituality adapted to the life and work of the Friar Preachers. For a long time I was not allowed to think about this.

I do believe in the Augustinian influence. I found that a good place to start is a little book that I found, I can’t remember where. It’s called Augustine on Prayer by Thomas Hand, OSA. It is awesome.

This is interesting. I found this on the lay dominican site

.

I never heard that Dominicans pray the Rosary differently than anyone else. Has anyone heard of this or are there any orders that pray the Rosary differently?

There are many versions of the rosary. I’ve been telling the Trads this on TC forum for years and they keep arguing about the “traditional rosary”. I keep answering, “according to which tradition?”

Dominican, Carmelite, Brigettine, Franciscan and Redemptorist come to mind immediately. The number of Aves are different and the mysteries are also different. Some are found in all, such as the Crucifixion and Resurrection. Others are very specific to one form of the Rosary, such as the nailing to the cross is only Franciscan.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, FFV

 

[jwinch2]

Another excellent book on Dominican Spirituality. amazon.com/Catherine-Siena-Spiritual-Development-Teaching/dp/0809145472/ref=sr_1_13?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1345675725&sr=1-13&keywords=catherine+of+siena

Per Brother JR’s discussion on whether there is, or is not, a specific Dominican Spirituality, I have been told both by Dominican friars an frankly, I do not think there is much consensus within the Order of Preachers on if it exists and what it is if it does. The book on St. Catherine above, combined with the books by Radcliffe, and the book on the Rule of St. Augustine above, makes me believe that there is something unique when things are viewed in their totality.

Any discussion on what is or is not Dominican spirituality should, in my view, be viewed through the lens of understanding of the charism of the Friars which is that they will sacrifice their own spiritual good for that of others. For example, what the Friars believe to be the best thing for their own spiritual health is to stay in community and pray with their brothers. What they are typically called to do is to forgo what is good for them so that they can be useful to the spiritual health of others. Humbert of Romans talks about this is his treatise “On the Formation of Preachers” which can be found in the book Early Dominicans - Selected Writings. Therein, Humbert advises taking great care to determine the readiness of someone who be sent away from the brethren so that they are ready for the task of preaching, even though it is central to the Dominican vocation. His argument is that leaving the priory and life with the brothers is a hardship and can be detrimental to the spiritual life of the friars who are called to such service.

 

[JReducation]

Another excellent book on Dominican Spirituality. amazon.com/Catherine-Siena-Spiritual-Development-Teaching/dp/0809145472/ref=sr_1_13?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1345675725&sr=1-13&keywords=catherine+of+siena

Per Brother JR’s discussion on whether there is, or is not, a specific Dominican Spirituality, I have been told both by Dominican friars an frankly, I do not think there is much consensus within the Order of Preachers on if it exists and what it is if it does. The book on St. Catherine above, combined with the books by Radcliffe, and the book on the Rule of St. Augustine above, makes me believe that there is something unique when things are viewed in their totality.

Any discussion on what is or is not Dominican spirituality should, in my view, be viewed through the lens of understanding of the charism of the Friars which is that they will sacrifice their own spiritual good for that of others. For example, what the Friars believe to be the best thing for their own spiritual health is to stay in community and pray with their brothers. What they are typically called to do is to forgo what is good for them so that they can be useful to the spiritual health of others. Humbert of Romans talks about this is his treatise “On the Formation of Preachers” which can be found in the book Early Dominicans - Selected Writings. Therein, Humbert advises taking great care to determine the readiness of someone who be sent away from the brethren so that they are ready for the task of preaching, even though it is central to the Dominican vocation. His argument is that leaving the priory and life with the brothers is a hardship and can be detrimental to the spiritual life of the friars who are called to such service.

This is pretty much the same way that I learned this too. There is not a consensus among the Dominicans about a Dominican spirituality.

I believe that part of it stems from the founder himself. While Dominic did great things for the Church and was an inspiration for his sons and daughters, he did not bring much that was new to his order. He had an Augustinian background, unlike his counterpart, Francis, who gave his order his personality, his worldview, his interpretation of the Gospel, his understanding of the Church and ruled that no other form of thinking is allowed in the order and the Church confirmed this rule.

Dominic, on the other hand, focused on prayer, fraternity and preaching. These were not new. There were other communities that lived a life of prayer and fraternity, such as the Benedictines, Cistercians, Trappists, Camaldolese, and Trinitarians. There were also communities that preached such as the Augustinian Canons and the Norbertines. Francis of Assisi had already introduced the itinerant preacher friar. The friar part was new, but not the preacher. There were many itinerant preachers, most of them were heretics.

So what does Dominic bring to the table that is new? He brings organization. Unlike the Franciscans who were also preaching friars, the Dominicans had a system for preaching and they had specific rules in their statutes that governed their preaching apostolate. They also focused the attention on the heretics and non-Catholics. The Franciscans were already working on converting Catholics to Christianity. Between Dominic and Francis, they split the task of converting the world.

Dominic also brings a reorganization of the priorities. He says in his writings that if the friars need to ignore the constitutions for the sake of preaching, they may do so. Whereas, Francis said that if the friars needed to ignore the constitutions for the sake of preaching, they should give up the preaching.

Dominic also says that while the fraternal life is essential to the development of the friar, preaching is essential to the development of the Church.

Francis said that the fraternal life of the friars is essential to the development of the Church and their fraternal presence is a sermon, as long as their life in fraternity is as it should be.

We see the two great mendicant orders start off almost simultaneously, but we see Dominic deviate from tradition. Up to that time prayer and community took precedence over everything else. Dominic does not discard prayer and community. He elevates preaching to the same level of importance as prayer and community. This is different from other orders that existed at the time. It is this new vision of preaching that distinguishes a Dominican from an Augustinian, even though both have the same law-giver.

Is this new vision of the apostolate enough to say that this is a new form of Christian Spirituality, most Dominicans say, “No.” But there is no consensus and there probably won’t be, because the Dominicans are governed democratically. The founder does not hand down the spirituality. Dominic was more interested in what was happening in the world around him. He forms his friars to respond to that. Unlike his buddy Francis who was more interested in what was happening among his brothers and forms them to respond to each other and to him. Of course, there is a major difference here. Francis is following a Divinely Revealed Command. Dominic is following a Divinely Inspired mission. Because they’re not the same thing, the outcome is going to overlap, but be different.

Dominic’s mission is much clearer than his spirituality.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, FFV

 

[jwinch2]

This is pretty much the same way that I learned this too. There is not a consensus among the Dominicans about a Dominican spirituality.

I believe that part of it stems from the founder himself. While Dominic did great things for the Church and was an inspiration for his sons and daughters, he did not bring much that was new to his order. He had an Augustinian background, unlike his counterpart, Francis, who gave his order his personality, his worldview, his interpretation of the Gospel, his understanding of the Church and ruled that no other form of thinking is allowed in the order and the Church confirmed this rule.

Dominic, on the other hand, focused on prayer, fraternity and preaching. These were not new. There were other communities that lived a life of prayer and fraternity, such as the Benedictines, Cistercians, Trappists, Camaldolese, and Trinitarians. There were also communities that preached such as the Augustinian Canons and the Norbertines. Francis of Assisi had already introduced the itinerant preacher friar. The friar part was new, but not the preacher. There were many itinerant preachers, most of them were heretics.

So what does Dominic bring to the table that is new? He brings organization. Unlike the Franciscans who were also preaching friars, the Dominicans had a system for preaching and they had specific rules in their statutes that governed their preaching apostolate. They also focused the attention on the heretics and non-Catholics. The Franciscans were already working on converting Catholics to Christianity. Between Dominic and Francis, they split the task of converting the world.

Dominic also brings a reorganization of the priorities. He says in his writings that if the friars need to ignore the constitutions for the sake of preaching, they may do so. Whereas, Francis said that if the friars needed to ignore the constitutions for the sake of preaching, they should give up the preaching.

Dominic also says that while the fraternal life is essential to the development of the friar, preaching is essential to the development of the Church.

Francis said that the fraternal life of the friars is essential to the development of the Church and their fraternal presence is a sermon, as long as their life in fraternity is as it should be.

We see the two great mendicant orders start off almost simultaneously, but we see Dominic deviate from tradition. Up to that time prayer and community took precedence over everything else. Dominic does not discard prayer and community. He elevates preaching to the same level of importance as prayer and community. This is different from other orders that existed at the time. It is this new vision of preaching that distinguishes a Dominican from an Augustinian, even though both have the same law-giver.

Is this new vision of the apostolate enough to say that this is a new form of Christian Spirituality, most Dominicans say, “No.” But there is no consensus and there probably won’t be, because the Dominicans are governed democratically. The founder does not hand down the spirituality. Dominic was more interested in what was happening in the world around him. He forms his friars to respond to that. Unlike his buddy Francis who was more interested in what was happening among his brothers and forms them to respond to each other and to him. Of course, there is a major difference here. Francis is following a Divinely Revealed Command. Dominic is following a Divinely Inspired mission. Because they’re not the same thing, the outcome is going to overlap, but be different.

Dominic’s mission is much clearer than his spirituality.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, FFV

I think you hit on something very important there. I believe that one of the main reasons that Dominic did not impart his own spirituality into the order more strongly is that he simply did not want to. Almost immediately after the founding of the order, he called a general chapter for the friars to vote on things. If he desired, he could have placed his stamp much more strongly, but he chose otherwise.

Of course, if the Order had been able to keep a hold of St. Dominic’s commentaries on the Gospels, that might have helped cement his personal spirituality into the brethren as well. Its such an incredible loss that those did not remain with the friars for their edification, and for the rest of the world as well. I have wondered several times what St. Dominic’s homilies on various parts of the Gospel would have been like. Its a shame that we don’t have them.

Peace,

 

[jwinch2]

amazon.com/treatise-spiritual-life-Vincent-Ferrer/dp/B0007EDMJ0/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=2T70ZJYNJ8XOE&coliid=I2WAT56233ZBIN

 

[JReducation]

I think you hit on something very important there. I believe that one of the main reasons that Dominic did not impart his own spirituality into the order more strongly is that he simply did not want to. Almost immediately after the founding of the order, he called a general chapter for the friars to vote on things. If he desired, he could have placed his stamp much more strongly, but he chose otherwise.

I believe that he chose otherwise, because a new way of living the Gospel was not revealed to him. God inspired him to preach the Gospel. As far as how to live it, that was up to the friars to decide. Dominic could have decided for them, but it would have been artificial in that it came from Dominic, not from Christ.

In the case of the Franciscans, Christ literally revealed to Francis how he and his brothers were to live the Gospel. Francis makes this very clear in his Testament, "No one showed me what to do, not the Church or any man, but the most High Lord Jesus Christ spoke to me and told me what to do; and I command all my brothers to obey me, Brother Francis . . . "

Dominic could not make that claim, because it had not happened. Christ inspired him to gather brothers and form them as preachers. Dominic let the Rule of Augustine dictate the daily life of the brothers.

There is a difference between a mission and a way of life. The Dominican way of life is pretty much that of any other monastic community. It’s mission is very different, as monks are not sent to preach. The Dominican bridges the monastery and the pulpit. Where the Franciscan avoids the monastery as much as possible and all that would be identifiable as monastic. Obviously, some monastic traditions are preserved, such as the absolute obedience and the Divine Office and even collegiality among the brethren, where there are not special honors for the priests. Here is a difference between Dominic and the monks. In Dominic’s mission to preach, it is the priests who do the preaching. In essence, he is founding an order for priests. Whereas, in the Franciscan model, everyone preaches, ordained or not ordained. Any friar can be a scholar, ordained or not, which is not the case among the Dominicans.

Preaching is what defines the Dominican, more than anything else. Everything else you can find among monks, canons and other friars. This is Dominic’s fidelity to his vocation. He was called to preach and to form a brotherhood of preachers. He was not given a way of life and told to hand this down to his brothers. He was not given a spirituality and told that he and his brothers had to live by it and never deviate from it.

His good friend, Francis, got the opposite. Christ did not give him or his brothers a mission. The sky was the limit. They could preach or play golf all day as long as what they did fit into the way of life that Christ dictated to Francis: prayer, unquestioning obedience, brotherhood of equals, renunciation of material possessions and fidelity to the papacy. I guess golf is out of the question, since it is an expensive sport.

Of course, if the Order had been able to keep a hold of St. Dominic’s commentaries on the Gospels, that might have helped cement his personal spirituality into the brethren as well. Its such an incredible loss that those did not remain with the friars for their edification, and for the rest of the world as well. I have wondered several times what St. Dominic’s homilies on various parts of the Gospel would have been like. Its a shame that we don’t have them.
Peace,

Some say that the reason they were laid aside and eventually were lost was because the early Dominicans used the sermons of St. Anthony of Padua as their guide. Anthony was a Doctor of Scripture, but he was not a priest until three years before he died. For 15 years of religious life he could not preach at mass, unless it was a Franciscan mass. The local Dominicans would invite him to preach to them, because they were in awe of his knowledge of scripture. He was so knowledgeable of the Bible that he even spoke the ancient languages.

I know that it is true that the Dominicans made a lot of use of St. Anthony’s teaching and preaching. This has been written by several biographers on both sides. I don’t know if that’s that really explains how Dominic’s sermons came to be lost or if it’s just legend. I have never heard anyone affirm it or deny it.

What is interesting is that you cannot speak of Dominicans or Franciscans without including the other. The two are like the Ying and the Yang.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, FFV

 

[jwinch2]

What is interesting is that you cannot speak of Dominicans or Franciscans without including the other.

I enjoy that actually.

 

[Melchior_1]

In my opinion, to live as Dominic did, one needs to understand the influence of the Rule of St. Augustine, which the Order of Preachers adopted as their own, on the Dominican charism. As such, this book is probably worth picking up for anyone interested in life as a Dominican.

amazon.com/Dominican-Life-Commentary-Saint-Augustine/dp/1467959324

I want to second the recommendation for this book, and not just Dominicans. I found the book could easily be applied to any Rule, and even as a secular I found it incredibly useful.

 

[TrueLight]

Interesting comments all. I’m going to get the recommended book “Dominican Life: A Commentary on the Rule of Saint Augustine”.

It’s very interesting that there may not be a consensus on Dominican spirituality. Now I don’t know if there is a general consensus. I found this nice article on contemplation in the Dominican life which describes contemplation and how Dominic made it his own.

This article focuses on Dominican contemplation of TRUTH or VERITAS in a loving and mindful way.

I’m going to post the summary of the article and if anyone would like to discuss the specifics of the article, he can read the full article.

I’d be interested in any feedback.

Thanks so far for an interesting exploration.

Summary and Conclusion:

What I have sought to show in these remarks is that contemplation was ingredient in the spirituality of the Order from the very beginning, starting with Dominic himself. The vowed life, especially poverty, chastity, and for us Dominicans, study, and so-called “monastic” observances such as the common and, I should add, the public celebration of the liturgy, the peace and freedom of the cloister, and set times for meditation, are preconditions for developing a contemplative spirit. And while privileged moments of contemplative insight are graced visitations of the Holy Spirit, and can be neither earned nor exacted, our way of life calls for us to acquire a contemplative attitude, as taught by Thomas, Eckhart, and Catherine among our greatest saints and teachers.

I would also contend, especially with Thomas, Eckhart, and Catherine, that despite obstacles to contemplation presented by contemporary culture, especially the distractions of electronic media, active ministry and everyday life situations, far from blocking contemplation are, in fact, the ordinary condition for and normal occasion of contemplation - provided that we have first acquired a contemplative spirit - a heart and mind fixed on the Lord our God.

For Dominicans contemplation and action are not separate elements of our life, but conjoined moments of prayer and ministry. Long before Ignatius of Loyola enjoined his followers to be “contemplatives in action,” it was an intrinsic part of our spirituality. Still, I like to cite old Walter Burkhardt, who once described contemplation as “a long loving look at the Real,” which is as good a definition as any. As a gift, contemplation is there for the taking, provided we’re open to it. But learning how to be open to it usually takes some training, whether formally in the disciplines of meditation, or by responding to life itself as a call and a question, which is a lot harder. One way or another, as Dominicans, our life as a whole is supposed to lead us to contemplative vision and action. On this, Thomas is still probably the best teacher.

As I rummage through the many passages where Thomas discusses aspects of contemplation, it is striking how he always comes back to the notion that it is Truth (not just truth) that we contemplate, and that Truth is ultimately God’s own presence. Truth is more than the way things are. It is the way God is. The contemplative moment occurs when those ways are revealed to be one. That can happen anywhere, at any time, no matter how busy we are, or troubled, or hurting. Meister Eckhart’s teaching is the same and phrased a bit more engagingly.

Indeed, if a man thinks he will get more of God by meditation, by devotion, by ecstasies or by special infusion of grace than by the fireside or in the stable ?? that is nothing but taking God, wrapping a cloak around His head and shoving Him under a bench. For whoever seeks God in a special way gets the way and misses God, who lies hidden in it. But whoever seeks God without any special way gets Him as He is in Himself, and that man lives with the Son, and he is life itself. (21)

In terms of ministry, the contemplative dimension is perhaps best expressed for Dominicans (especially) as** loving “mindfulness.”** It is not so much what we do as how we do it that counts. A sermon attributed to Eckhart, and certainly Dominican, is particularly clear here, and it is worth quoting at length:

St Thomas says the active life is better than the contemplative, in so far as in action one pours out for love that which one has gained in contemplation. It is actually the same thing, for we take only from the same ground of contemplation and make it fruitful in works, and thus the object of contemplation is achieved… Thus too, in this activity, we remain in a state of contemplation in God. The one rests in the other, and perfects the other. For God’s purpose in the union of contemplation is fruitfulness in works: for in contemplation you serve yourself alone, but in works of charity you serve the many. (22)

Read more…

 

[TrueLight]

Yay! Just downloaded Dominican Life to My kindle, so maybe I’ll be able to post some stuff soon.

The Kindle is not helpful in my development of patience as a virtue!

 

[Melchior_1]

Yay! Just downloaded Dominican Life to My kindle, so maybe I’ll be able to post some stuff soon.

The Kindle is not helpful in my development of patience as a virtue!

I really want to hear your thoughts on when he talks about “the Rule allows you not to think about life”. I spent a lot of time reflecting on what he had to say on that.

 

[TrueLight]

I really want to hear your thoughts on when he talks about “the Rule allows you not to think about life”. I spent a lot of time reflecting on what he had to say on that.

Hmm okay. Will do!

 

[TimothyH]

For God’s purpose in the union of contemplation is fruitfulness in works: for in contemplation you serve yourself alone, but in works of charity you serve the many.

I understand what he is saying, but am confused a little.

I had always struggled with the idea that contemplation was a “Work” in-and-of itself, and had often wondered if it wasn’t a bit narcissistic. I had struggled to come to the understanding of contemplative prayer as being an important on it’s own, without it “Yeilding fruit” in love.

My exposure to Benedictine and Cistercian spirituality both in person and in writing, and reading most recently “The Cloud of Unknowing”, has helped me understand better - Mary chose the better part in sitting at Jesus’ feet for the sake of loving Jesus alone, while while Martha was troubled about all of her activities - but the article cited puts me back at square one.

Now I’m wondring if contemplation’s value in yeilding fruit through service to others and contemplation’s value in and of itself are not both correct, or if there are not two different but authentic ways of looking at it.

Or maybe I’m more Dominican than I thought. Or maybe I have to read the full article.

-Tim-

 

[TrueLight]

I understand what he is saying, but am confused a little.

I had always struggled with the idea that contemplation was a “Work” in-and-of itself, and had often wondered if it wasn’t a bit narcissistic. I had struggled to come to the understanding of contemplative prayer as being an important on it’s own, without it “Yeilding fruit” in love.

My exposure to Benedictine and Cistercian spirituality both in person and in writing, and reading most recently “The Cloud of Unknowing”, has helped me understand better - Mary chose the better part in sitting at Jesus’ feet for the sake of loving Jesus alone, while while Martha was troubled about all of her activities - but the article cited puts me back at square one.

Now I’m wondring if contemplation’s value in yeilding fruit through service to others and contemplation’s value in and of itself are not both correct, or if there are not two different but authentic ways of looking at it.

Or maybe I’m more Dominican than I thought. Or maybe I have to read the full article.

-Tim-

I take that to mean you receive from God through contemplation and then you share with others through your life and service, what God has given you.

St Dominic had a dream about two ladders:

For as he slept a light sleep, the head inclined to a wall, he saw the heaven open, and put down to the earth two white ladders, of which Jesu Christ and his mother held the end on high, and the angels descended and ascended by the ladders, singing. In the midst of the ladders there was a seat set, and upon the seat sat St. Dominic with his head covered like a friar. And Jesu Christ and his mother drew up the ladders into heaven so high, that he that sat was lifted up into heaven, and then the opening of heaven was shut and closed. And then the same friar came to Bologna, and found tbat the same day and the same hour St. Dominic died.

St Vincent Ferrer, in a sermon, interpreted St Dominic’s dream:

They tell of the glorious vision which God showed to him, of two ladders of which Christ
was holding the top of the first, and the Virgin Mary the other. And crowned with a
golden crown he entered glory. If one asks “Why two ladders? Is not one sufficient?”
The answer is, to indicate that the order of Preachers sends brothers not only by one
ladder, namely of the contemplative life, but also by the other, namely the way of the
active life. The Celestines and those like them ascend by the latter of contemplation.
The Knights of St. John, of St. James, of St. George, and the Brothers of Mercy, ascend
by the other scale, namely, of the active life. But the Brothers of St. Dominic by two,
namely the contemplative by study, and the active, by preaching. “Have salt in you, and
have peace among you,” (Mk 9:49).

So to go back to your original question, if you spend time in the presence of the Lord, you can do nothing but share that joy, that love, that charity with others.

 

[JGMendes4049]

I never heard that Dominicans pray the Rosary differently than anyone else. Has anyone heard of this or are there any orders that pray the Rosary differently?

Yes, I find the Dominican way of praying it is very interesting. Similar to the Divine Office.

What do you most love about Dominicans and Dominican spirituality?

Not sure. I’m not too familiar with it, but I love to educate (teaching is one of the possible career paths about which I am thinking) and that is part of the Dominican spirituality, I believe.

 

[TrueLight]

I really want to hear your thoughts on when he talks about “the Rule allows you not to think about life”. I spent a lot of time reflecting on what he had to say on that.

Okay I read that section.

I shall have to reflect a lot more on what it means, but in the meanwhile, I thought I’d type a section so that others can read and offer their opinions. My apologies ahead of time for any typos.

This book is a collection of transcripts of retreat conferences offered by Fr. Walter Wagner, O.P. They were transcribed by the Dominican Nuns of Summit.

…the Rule allows us to not think about life. I remember when i would teach the novices. I would have to say on the first day, “How do we begin office?” and I would say, “What we do…we do… what *do *we do?” Because I just did it, you know what I mean? You come in and you think “Now when we say ‘O God, come to my assistance’ do I make the sign of the cross when he is singing, or when I am singing? I don’t know! I cannot remember, I just do it!”

Well, that is the Rule, that is the freedom of the Rule. There is always the sister sacristan who remembers all these things, but most of us forget, we just do it. That is very important because once you have forgotten what you do you are being freed from self-consciousness, and once you are freed from self-consciousness and labor these gestures and words and actions that make up life according to the Rule have the power to be formative. It is the impact of the ordinary which works like the grass growing: it is happening all the time and you do not know it, just by living your life.

…Now this freedom from self consciousness is key. It is key to our time. As you know, there is a a great renewal of religious life happening, a great renewal of traditional religious life. That is wonderful, but ultimately, that renewal has to be free from self-consciousness. Life according to the Rule is the vehicle for that. We cannot live in a vocation poster: “Here we are! We are wearing the habit! WE are using Latin” I am singing the Latin chant and here I am thinking about myself: “I am now a renewed sister singing Latin!” Singing Latin is not why nuns exist is it? Singing Latin is formative, wearing the habit is formative and powerful, but only when you forget that you singing Latin and wearing the habit. That is when it is powerful.

That is why we live according to a Rule, because what does the Rule do? The Rule becomes boring! The Rule creates a life which ceases to be interesting, and my point is that in overcoming novelty, the Rule is leading us beyond self-consciousness, leading us beyond the quest for stimulation, leading us beyond statement-making and leading us to quite frankly, finding all of those things to be unsatisfying precisely so that we can do what the monastic life is calling us to do, which is t pursue God. Period. This is why we are here, to pursue God.

 

[Melchior_1]

It threw me for a loop, the first time I read it. And the second. And the third. It’s something that gets drilled into us a lot of the time, “be actively conscious with what you’re doing” and “make sure you are not doing things for the sake of doing things”, to the point of when we aren’t thinking/acting in that fashion we begin to worry if we’re doing things right.

Then I got thinking; this isn’t about that. Instead, it’s about how there’s some things which if we no longer need to actively think about, it frees us up to communicate with God. If something becomes as natural as breathing, we no longer need be concerned. It also points us towards not over thinking things.

I’ll share more later, once work settles down.

I find this section is applicable to all Rules, including those who are professed members of secular orders.