What was, still is! What was effective for individual holiness in the fifth century, what was effective in making the Church strong, and what was effective in creating a Christian civilization, is still a viable option for Christians today in restoring all that is good in America.
From the depths of St. Benedict's solitude, meditation, and prayer, came forth as the answer to the problem of wide spread immorality among the people and the decline of the once great Roman Empire. The answer was not to be found in Rome's public institutions, nor in any policy or political program. Rather, it was to be found in the quiet of God's presence. As Pope Pius XII said, “Hidden with Christ in God, he there strove for three years with great fruit to acquire the perfection and holiness of the Gospels to which he seemed to be called by divine instinct.” The pope went on to say that during these three years St. Benedict shunned all earthy things so as to seek heavenly things; talking to the Lord day and night and learning to hear his voice.
With his eyes fixed on Christ as his model, he practiced penitential acts of self-denial. “In this way of life,” Pius added, “he found such sweetness of soul that all the former delights he had experienced from his wealth and ease now appeared distasteful to him and in a way forgotten.” Indeed, the answers to life’s greatest problems are to be found in prayer and good works. From prayer, the virtue of hope is born. From the practice of mediation, the source of strength is to be found. From manual labor and acts of charity, the spirit of sacrifice is fostered. What is more, from the Rule of St. Benedict in particular and the monastic life in general the dead-end roads of worldly pleasures and vice are seen for what they are.
Although the dark clouds had gathered in the fifth century with the Roman Empire having just fallen, the early Christians were full of hope. It was from this Christian virtue of hope that the old Roman society of the pagans gave way to the new civilization of the Christian era. Indeed, the dust that was kicked up from the collapse of the Empire had just begun to settle when St. Benedict forged this new life for the people in Italy. His followers developed new agricultural methods, a new cash economy, and a way of governing which was modeled on the father's authority in the family (later to be copied by civil authorities). The twelve monasteries that he founded also inspired principles of democracy whereby the monks were consulted before a rule or decree was enjoined. Also, we cannot forget the institutions that served the needy and unlearned such as hospitals, orphanages and schools. All of these Christian enterprises had emerged from monasteries amid the ruins of Rome.
Pius XII reminds us, “The Empire like all earthly institutions had crumbled. Weakened and corrupt from within, it lay in mighty ruins in the West, shattered by the invasions of the northern tribes.” Then, as if by a prophetic utterance, Pope Pius XII asked a question many Americans are asking today: “In such a mighty storm and universal upheaval, from where did hope shine? Where did help and protection arise in order to save humanity and what was left of its treasures from shipwreck?”
The answer: “It came from the Catholic Church.” The only institution or “nation,” as St. Peter would have it, gifted with immortality is the Catholic Church. Without sounding too triumphal, Pius XII goes on to remind the world that nations or institutions that are man-made are destined to perish. As such, we cannot put too much hope in them. But for those nations and institutions that cling to Christ “in” his Church, they can at least hope for a lengthy existence.
