The power of Benedict’s Rule was this: in a world that was falling apart, it gave structure to small communities of faith that could experiment in a new kind of community. It did not aim to restore Rome to its former glory or even to reform the church. The Rule simply offered people a way to live a vision of life together rooted in service, humility, and love. Throughout the Dark Ages, the Rule guided communities that existed as points of light in a sea of dark despair. By some estimates, it was the monks who saved civilization. At the very least, they established hospitals and sowed the seeds of democracy in Western culture.

An excerpt from an article by Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove about Occupy Wall Street and how the Rule of Saint Benedict could be a guide in a “sea of dark despair” once again.

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Sketch above by James Jean

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