All who are led by God’s Spirit are God’s sons and daughters. 15 You didn’t receive a spirit of slavery to lead you back again into fear, but you received a Spirit that shows you are adopted as his children. With this Spirit, we cry, “ Abba, Father. ” 16 The same Spirit agrees with our spirit, that we are God’s children. 17 But if we are children, we are also heirs. We are God’s heirs and fellow heirs with Christ, if we really suffer with him so that we can also be glorified with him.
From the time it was first promulgated in the sixth century, "The Rule of St. Benedict "has been one of the most influential, enduring documents of Western civilization. Composed for the guidance of his own monks at Monte Cassino, St. Benedict's "Rule" has become the basis for the rules of practically every Christian monastic community in the West. In it are the guidelines for living the spiritual life -- through work, prayer, study, obedience, community, and moderate asceticism. This acclaimed edition of "The Rule of St. Benedict" is a highly accessible modern translation that conveys the spirit and logic of the original text. It contains an invaluable in-depth Introduction that explores the development and spread of Christian monasticism; a biographical sketch of St. Benedict; a discussion of the structure and implementation of his "Rule"; its value and impact on religious orders from the Middle Ages down through history; its tremendous influence on Western culture and civilization; and, finally, various texts of the "Rule."