Therefore if the one coming persevere in knocking, and after four or five days be seen to bear patiently the injuries inflicted on him and the difficulty of entrance, and to persist in his petition, let entrance be granted him, and let him be in the guest-quarters for a few days. But afterwards let him be in the cell of novices, where they meditate, eat, and sleep. And let such a senior be assigned to them as is fit for the winning of souls, who may watch over them with all care. And let care be taken whether he truly seeks God, whether he is zealous for the Work of God, for obedience, for reproaches. Let all the hard and harsh things through which one goes to God be foretold to him.
If he promise perseverance in his stability, after the round of two months let this Rule be read to him in order, and let it be said to him: "Behold the law under which you wish to serve as a soldier; if you can observe it, enter; but if you cannot, depart freely." If he still stand firm, then let him be led into the aforesaid cell of novices and again be tested in all patience. And after the round of six months let the Rule be read to him, that he may know to what he is entering. And if he still stand firm, after four months let the same Rule be read to him again.
And if, after deliberation with himself, he promise to keep all things and to observe all that is commanded him, then let him be received into the community, knowing that it is established by the law of the Rule that from that day it shall not be lawful for him to depart from the monastery, nor to shake his neck from under the yoke of the Rule which, under such prolonged deliberation, he was free either to refuse or to accept. Moreover, he who is to be received shall promise in the oratory, in the presence of all, concerning his stability, the conversion of his manners, and obedience, before God and His saints, so that if he ever do otherwise, he may know that he shall be condemned by Him whom he mocks. Of this his promise let him make a petition in the name of the saints whose relics are there and of the abbot present.
Let him write this petition with his own hand, or at least, if he does not know letters, let another asked by him write it, and let that novice make a mark and with his own hand place it upon the altar. When he has placed it there, let the novice himself at once begin this verse: Receive me, O Lord, according to Thy word, and I shall live, and let me not be confounded in my expectation. Let the whole community answer this verse three times, adding: Glory be to the Father. Then let that novice brother prostrate himself at the feet of each, that they may pray for him; and from that day let him be reckoned in the community.
If he has any goods, let him either first distribute them to the poor, or by a solemn deed of gift confer them on the monastery, reserving nothing at all for himself, since indeed from that day he knows that he will not have power even over his own body. At once, therefore, in the oratory let him be stripped of the personal things with which he is clothed, and clothed with the things of the monastery. But let those garments of which he was stripped be put away in the wardrobe to be kept, so that if ever, at the devil's persuasion, he should consent to depart from the monastery—which God forbid—then, stripped of the things of the monastery, he may be cast out. That petition of his, however, which the abbot took from upon the altar, let him not receive back, but let it be kept in the monastery. Chapter 59:
On the sons of nobles or of the poor who are offered. If perchance any of the nobility offer his son to God in the monastery, if the boy himself be of younger age, let his parents make the petition of which we spoke above, and with the oblation let them wrap that very petition and the boy's hand in the altar-cloth, and so offer him. Concerning their goods, let them either in the present petition promise under oath that never by themselves, never by an intermediary person, nor in any manner whatsoever, will they ever give him anything or afford him occasion of possessing; or at least, if they be unwilling to do this and wish to offer something as alms to the monastery for their reward, let them make a donation of the goods which they wish to give to the monastery, reserving to themselves, if they so wish, the usufruct.
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Atqueitaomniaobstruanturutnullasuspicioremaneatpueroperquamdeceptusperirepossit - quodabsit - quodexperimentodidicimus. Similiterautemetpauperioresfaciant. Quiveroextotonihilhabent, simpliciterpetitionemfaciantetcumoblationeofferantfiliumsuumcoramtestibus. Caput 60: DesacerdotibusquifortevoluerintinmonasteriohabitareSiquisdeordinesacerdotuminmonasteriosesuscipirogaverit, nonquidemcitiuseiadsentiatur. Tamen, siomnimopersteteritinhacsupplicatione, sciatseomnemreguldisciplinamservaturum, necaliquideirelaxabitur, utsicutscriptumest: Amice, adquodvenisti?
And so let all things be blocked off, that no suspicion may remain for the boy by which, being deceived, he might perish—which God forbid—as we have learned by experience. Let the poorer also do likewise. But those who have nothing at all, let them simply make the petition, and with the oblation offer their son before witnesses. Chapter 60: On priests who may perchance wish to dwell in the monastery. If anyone of the order of priests ask to be received into the monastery, let assent not too quickly be given him. Nevertheless, if he altogether persist in this entreaty, let him know that he will keep all the discipline of the Rule, and nothing will be relaxed for him, that it may be as it is written: Friend, for what have you come?
Let it nevertheless be granted him to stand after the abbot, and to bless or to celebrate Masses, provided the abbot bid him. Otherwise, let him in no wise presume anything, knowing himself subject to the discipline of the Rule, and let him rather give examples of humility to all. And if perchance there be in the monastery a matter of an ordination or any business, let him regard that place which he held when he entered the monastery, not that which was granted him out of reverence for the priesthood. But of the clergy, if any wish with the same desire to be associated to the monastery, let them be placed in a middle rank; and even so, provided they promise concerning the observance of the Rule and their own stability. Chapter 61:
On how wandering monks are to be received. If any wandering monk come from distant provinces, if he wish to dwell in the monastery as a guest and be content with the custom of the place which he finds, and does not perchance disturb the monastery by his superfluity, but is simply content with what he finds, let him be received for as long a time as he desires. If indeed he reasonably and with the humility of charity reprove or point out anything, let the abbot deal with it prudently, lest perchance for this very purpose the Lord have sent him. But if afterwards he wish to confirm his stability, let such a will not be refused, and especially because during the time of his hospitality his manner of life could be discerned.
But if during the time of his hospitality he be found excessive or vicious, not only ought he not to be associated to the body of the monastery, but let it even be told him honestly that he should depart, lest by his misery others also be corrupted. But if he be not such a one as deserves to be cast out, let him not only, if he ask it, be received to be associated to the community, but let him even be persuaded to stay, that by his example others may be instructed, and because in every place one serves one Lord and wars for one King. And if the abbot perceive him to be even such a man, let it be lawful to set him in a somewhat higher place.
Moreover, the abbot may establish in a higher place than that at which they enter not only a monk, but also one of the aforesaid ranks of priests or clerics, if he has perceived their life to be such as deserves it. But let the abbot take care never to receive a monk from another known monastery to dwell with him without the consent of that monk's abbot, or letters of recommendation, for it is written: "What you do not wish done to yourself, do not do to another." Chapter 62: On the priests of the monastery. If any abbot should request that a presbyter or deacon be ordained for himself, let him choose from his own who is worthy to exercise the priesthood. But let the one ordained beware of arrogance or pride, and let him presume nothing except what is commanded him by the abbot, knowing that he must be all the more subject to the discipline of the Rule.
Nor, on the occasion of his priesthood, let him forget the obedience and discipline of the Rule, but let him advance more and more toward God. Let him always keep to that place which he held when he entered the monastery, except for his office at the altar—unless perchance the choice of the community and the will of the abbot should wish to promote him for the merit of his life. Yet let him know that he is to observe for himself the rule established for the deans or priors. But if he should presume otherwise, let him be judged not a priest but a rebel. And if, though often admonished, he does not amend, let even the bishop be brought in as a witness. But if not even thus he amends, and his faults become manifest, let him be cast out of the monastery—provided his obstinacy is such that he refuses to be subject to or to obey the Rule. Chapter 63:
On the order of the community. Let them keep their ranks in the monastery according as the time of their entry into the monastic life and the merit of their life determines, and as the abbot has appointed. Let this abbot not disturb the flock committed to him, nor, as though using unrestrained power, dispose of anything unjustly; but let him always reflect that he must render to God an account of all his judgments and works. Therefore, according to the ranks which he has appointed, or which the brothers themselves possess, let them so approach for the kiss of peace, for Communion, for intoning a psalm, for standing in choir. And in all places whatsoever, let age not determine the ranks nor prejudge them, for Samuel and Daniel as youths judged the elders.
Therefore, except for those whom—as we have said—the abbot by higher counsel has advanced, or for definite reasons has demoted, all the rest shall be in the order in which they were converted: so that, for example, he who came to the monastery at the second hour of the day shall know himself to be junior to him who came at the first hour, whatever be his age or rank. To the children let discipline be kept by all in every respect. Let the juniors therefore honor their seniors, and let the seniors love their juniors. In the very calling of names, let it be permitted to no one to address another by his bare name; rather let the seniors call their juniors by the name "brother," while the juniors shall call their seniors "nonnus," which is understood as paternal reverence.
But the abbot, because he is believed to hold the place of Christ, shall be called "lord" and "abbot," not by his own assumption but out of honor and love for Christ; and let him himself so reflect and so conduct himself that he be worthy of such honor. Wherever the brothers meet one another, let the junior ask a blessing of the senior. When a senior passes by, let the junior rise and give him a place to sit, nor let the junior presume to sit with him unless his senior bids him, that what is written may be fulfilled: "Anticipating one another in honor." Let the little children and the youths in the oratory and at table keep their ranks with discipline. Outside, however, and wherever it be, let them be under both supervision and discipline, until they reach the age of understanding. Chapter 64:
On the appointing of an abbot. In the appointment of an abbot let this principle always be observed: that he be set up whom the whole community, in accord and out of the fear of God, has chosen—or even a part of the community, however small, with sounder counsel. Let him who is to be appointed be chosen for the merit of his life and for the wisdom of his teaching, even if he be the last in the order of the community.
But if even the whole community should with one accord choose a person consenting to their vices—which God forbid—and these vices in some measure come to the notice of the bishop to whose diocese that place belongs, or become known to neighboring abbots or Christians, let them prevent the consent of the depraved from prevailing, but appoint a worthy steward for the house of God, knowing that for this they will receive a good reward if they do it chastely and with zeal for God, just as, on the contrary, it is a sin if they neglect it. But the abbot once appointed, let him always reflect what a burden he has undertaken, and to whom he must render an account of his stewardship, and let him know that it behooves him rather to profit than to preside.
It is fitting therefore that he be learned in the divine Law, that he may know whence to bring forth things new and old; that he be chaste, sober, merciful, and that he always exalt mercy above judgment, so that he himself may obtain the same. Let him hate vices, let him love the brothers. In correction itself let him act prudently and not overmuch, lest in seeking to scour away the rust too much the vessel be broken. And let him always be mistrustful of his own frailty, and remember that the bruised reed is not to be crushed. By this we do not mean that he should allow vices to be nourished, but that he prudently and with charity prune them away, as he shall see to be expedient for each, as we have already said; and let him strive to be loved rather than feared.
Let him not be turbulent and anxious, let him not be excessive and obstinate, let him not be jealous and overly suspicious, for then he never finds rest. In his very commands let him be foreseeing and considerate, and whether the task he enjoins be according to God or according to the world, let him discern and temper it, mindful of the discretion of holy Jacob, who says: "If I make my flocks labor too much in walking, they will all die in one day." Taking therefore these and other testimonies of discretion, the mother of virtues, let him so temper all things that both the strong may have what they desire and the weak may not draw back. And above all, let him keep this present Rule in all things, so that, when he has ministered well, he may hear from the Lord what the good servant heard who gave the wheat to his fellow servants in due season:
"Amen I say to you," He says, "He set him over all his goods." Chapter 65: On the prior of the monastery. It has often happened that, through the appointing of a prior, grave scandals arise in monasteries, while some, puffed up by an evil spirit of pride and esteeming themselves to be second abbots, assume to themselves a tyranny, foster scandals, and stir up dissensions in communities—especially in those places where the prior is ordained by the very same priest or by the same abbots who ordain the abbot.
How absurd this is, is easily perceived; for from the very beginning of his appointment material for pride is given him, while it is suggested to him by his own thoughts that he is exempt from the power of his abbot, "because you were ordained by the very ones by whom the abbot also was." Hence are stirred up envies, quarrels, slanders, rivalries, dissensions, and disorders; for while the abbot and the prior hold views contrary to each other, of necessity their own souls are imperiled under this dissension, and those who are under them, while they flatter the factions, go to perdition. The evil of this peril looks back chiefly upon the heads of those who made themselves the authors of such disorder.
Therefore we have judged it expedient, for the safeguarding of peace and charity, that the disposition of his monastery should depend on the abbot's discretion. And if it can be done, let all the affairs of the monastery be administered through deans, as we have arranged before, according as the abbot shall dispose, so that, while it is committed to several, no single one may grow proud. But if either the place demands it, or the community reasonably and with humility requests it, and the abbot judges it expedient, let the abbot himself, with the counsel of God-fearing brothers, appoint as his prior whomever he shall choose.
Yet let that prior do with reverence whatever shall have been enjoined upon him by his abbot, doing nothing against the abbot's will or arrangement; for the more he is set above the rest, the more anxiously it behooves him to observe the precepts of the Rule. If this prior be found to be vicious, or, deceived by self-exaltation, to grow proud, or be proven a despiser of the holy Rule, let him be admonished by words up to four times. If he does not amend, let the correction of regular discipline be applied to him. But if not even thus he correct himself, then let him be deposed from the rank of prior, and another who is worthy be put in his place. And if even afterward he is not quiet and obedient in the community, let him even be expelled from the monastery.
Yet let the abbot reflect that he must render to God an account of all his judgments, lest perchance the flame of envy or jealousy should consume his soul. Chapter 66: On the porters of the monastery. At the gate of the monastery let there be placed a wise old man, who knows how to receive an answer and to give one, and whose maturity does not allow him to wander about. This porter ought to have a cell near the gate, so that those who come may always find one present from whom they may receive a reply. And as soon as anyone knocks, or a poor man calls out, let him answer "Thanks be to God" or "Bless me," and with all the meekness of the fear of God let him give his reply promptly, with the fervor of charity. If this porter needs help, let him be given a junior brother.
Moreover, the monastery, if it can be done, ought to be so constituted that all necessary things—that is, water, mill, garden, and the various crafts—may be exercised within the monastery, so that there be no need for the monks to wander outside, for that is by no means expedient for their souls. We wish this Rule to be read frequently in the community, so that no one of the brothers may excuse himself on the ground of ignorance. Chapter 67: On brothers sent on a journey. Brothers about to be sent on a journey shall commend themselves to the prayer of all the brothers and of the abbot; and always at the last prayer of the Work of God let a commemoration be made of all who are absent.
But brothers returning from a journey, on the very day on which they return, shall, throughout all the canonical hours, when the Work of God is being completed, prostrate themselves on the floor of the oratory and ask the prayer of all on account of their excesses, lest perchance something be detected on the way—the sight or hearing of an evil matter, or of idle talk. Nor let anyone presume to relate to another whatever he may have seen or heard outside the monastery, for it is a very great destruction. But if anyone should presume this, let him be subject to the discipline of the Rule. Likewise also he who shall presume to go beyond the enclosure of the monastery, or to go anywhere, or to do anything whatever, however small, without the command of the abbot. Chapter 68:
If impossible things are enjoined upon a brother. If anything perhaps grievous or impossible be enjoined upon a brother, let him indeed receive the command of the one who orders with all meekness and obedience. But if he sees the weight of the burden altogether to exceed the measure of his strength, let him patiently and at a fitting time set forth to the one who is over him the reasons of his inability, not in a spirit of pride, resistance, or contradiction. But if after his representation the superior's command should still persist in his decision, let the junior know that it is thus expedient for him, and out of charity, trusting in the help of God, let him obey. Chapter 69:
That in the monastery one shall not presume to defend another. Care must be taken lest on any occasion one monk presume to defend another in the monastery, or as it were to take his part, even if they be joined by some bond of kinship. Nor let this in any way be presumed by the monks, since from it a most grievous occasion of scandals can arise. But if anyone transgresses this, let him be more severely restrained. Chapter 70: That no one shall presume to strike at random. Let every occasion of presumption be avoided in the monastery; and we ordain that it be lawful for no one to excommunicate or to strike any of his brothers, unless authority has been given him by the abbot. But let those who offend be reproved before all, that the rest may have fear.
But over the ages of children up to fifteen years let there be by all a diligent care of discipline and watchfulness; yet this too with all measure and reason. For if anyone in stronger age presumes in any way without the abbot's command, or in the case of these very children flares up without discretion, let him be subject to the discipline of the Rule, for it is written: "What you do not wish done to yourself, do not do to another." Chapter 71: That they be mutually obedient to one another. The good of obedience is to be shown by all not only to the abbot, but let the brothers also so obey one another, knowing that by this way of obedience they shall go to God.
Therefore, the command of the abbot or of the priors appointed by him being foremost—to whom we do not permit private commands to be set forth—for the rest, let all the juniors obey their seniors with all charity and solicitude. But if anyone be found contentious, let him be rebuked. And if any brother, for any most trivial cause, is in any way rebuked by the abbot or by any senior, or if he perceives even slightly that the mind of any senior is angered or stirred against him, however little, let him at once, without delay, lie prostrate on the ground at his feet, making satisfaction, until that disturbance is healed by a blessing. But if he should disdain to do this, let him either be subject to corporal punishment or, if he be obstinate, be expelled from the monastery. Chapter 72:
On the good zeal that monks ought to have. As there is an evil zeal of bitterness which separates from God and leads to hell, so there is a good zeal which separates from vices and leads to God and to eternal life. Let the monks therefore exercise this zeal with the most fervent love: that is, let them anticipate one another in honor; let them most patiently bear with one another's infirmities, whether of body or of character; let them vie with one another in showing obedience; let no one follow what he judges useful for himself, but rather what is so for another; let them chastely render the charity of brotherhood; let them fear God in love; let them love their abbot with sincere and humble charity; let them prefer absolutely nothing to Christ, who may bring us all together to eternal life. Chapter 73:
On the fact that not the whole observance of righteousness is set down in this Rule. We have written this Rule that, observing it in monasteries, we may show ourselves to have in some measure either honesty of conduct or a beginning of the monastic life. But for him who hastens toward the perfection of the monastic life, there are the teachings of the holy Fathers, the observance of which leads a man to the height of perfection. For what page, or what utterance of the divine authority of the Old and New Testament, is not a most upright rule for human life? Or what book of the holy catholic Fathers does not resound with this, that by a straight course we may come to our Creator?
And likewise the Conferences of the Fathers, and the Institutes and their Lives, and also the Rule of our holy father Basil—what else are they but instruments of virtue for monks who live well and obey? But for us slothful, ill-living, and negligent there is the blush of confusion. Whoever you are, then, who hasten toward the heavenly homeland, with the help of Christ fulfill this least rule of a beginning that has been set down; and then at last, under God's protection, you shall come to those greater heights of teaching and virtue which we have mentioned above. Amen.