At the Abbey meeting Sr. Genevieve described Oblates as people called to live according to the spirit of St. Benedict. She talked a little about the history of the communities surrounding the monasteries, including the Oblates. Currently Oblates are people who find something nourishing for the spirit in being an Oblate. She mentioned that the Oblate program welcomes people of all Christian traditions – she referred to this as “underground ecumenism”. She suggested that we are all drawn together by a common (Benedictine) focus on the scriptures.
One of the parts I found very interesting was her mention of the different emphasis found in different orders. She mentioned how some orders are focused on the Father, some on the Spirit, etc. Both the Benedictines and Franciscans are totally focused on the person of Jesus Christ, but the Franciscans come to Jesus through the Blessed Sacrament, while Benedictines come to Jesus through scriptures (lectio, daily office).
I must say, I cannot do justice to her talk, but I will try to mention a few things that caught my attention. She said that spirituality has to do with a way of seeing, and Benedictines see through the scriptures.
One of the other points that stuck in my mind was her discussion about stability. She mentioned that it is a rootedness that allows growth, like a tree. Our discipline of stability is a way of channeling life and growth. These roots and growth are meant to bear fruit for other people. She pointed to Psalm 1 as a good description of what we hope to find in Benedictine spirituality. Without rootedness we become chaff, we blow everywhere and feed no one.
We are all twigs on the Benedictine tree, she told us, who in our Oblate program are all reaching out from a position of growth in stability.
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