This summary follows a reflection with the Oblates and guests of St. Paul's Monastery on 17 Apr 2016, co-facilitated with S. Jackie Leiter OSB.

Benedict of Nursia (ca. 480-547) is one of the voices from Christian tradition who continues to help us understand what it means to walk together toward Christ the Light. The grand finale to the Rule of St. Benedict (RB) comes in chapter 72 on the topic of what Benedict calls "good zeal". (Bit of trivia: scholars agree that RB 73, the actual last chapter, functions as a bibliography). Having reached the bookend of all the wisdom collected in previous chapters, we might rightly wonder about Benedict's punch line for this vision of life in Christian community.

Here is the full text of RB 72 as translated by Leonard Doyle (Liturgical Press, 2001):

Just 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 life everlasting. This zeal, therefore, the sisters should practice with the most fervent love. Thus they should anticipate one another in honor (Rom. 12:10); most patiently endure one another's infirmities, whether of body or of character; vie in paying obedience one to another -- no one following what she considers useful for herself, but rather what benefits another; tender the charity of sisterhood chastely; fear God in love; love their Abbess with a sincere and humble charity; prefer nothing whatever to Christ. And may He bring us all together to life everlasting!

What is good zeal?

Making some allowances for the harsh language of ancient times, my reading of RB 72 suggests that Benedict is essentially urging against lukewarm discipleship. That may still leave the modern Christian wondering, what does good zeal look like? What's the point of its exercise? How do we foster it in our own relationships? I'll share some of what I bring to these questions before giving you an opportunity to pause and reflect about the call to good zeal in your own life.

I myself have long been drawn to the monastic impulse: the vision for Christian life, the sense of rhythm and structure, and the idea that a community can be built upon the footings of common commitment. The notion of good zeal, it seems to me, holds these elements together. I understand good zeal to mean the intention to continually turn toward Christ and exercise my gifts in increasing alignment with the calling of God. That calling inevitably leads toward service.

And yet, as central as the notion of zeal might be, it sometimes proves the weakest link. I don't always feel it. I don't always have great clarity about God's call, nor do I always have an overflowing reservoir of vigor and enthusiasm so great that I am unaffected by the real challenges of living with human frailty and the disappointments that come from seeing the ways we treat one another in community.

I come to RB 72 with curiosity and hope. How can the notion of good zeal help me hold to the vision of what a Christ-centered life might look like--a life of community, simplicity, and service rooted in the Word? I want the sense of good zeal to inspire my hope that God's grace and God's possibilities are present in the midst of human frailty even when I cannot see them, even when I'm not "feeling it". Thomas Merton wrote, "Courage comes and goes . . . Hold on for the next supply" (location unknown). If the same might be said of good zeal, then I am curious about its coming and hopeful that we are afforded a little room to experience its occasional absence and practice holding on for the next supply!

Pause for reflection: What does zeal look like from you own perspective? In whom have you recognized the signs of good zeal--fervent love, respect, patience, and focus upon Christ?

What's the point of good zeal?

It's easy enough to recognize good zeal in action and to accept, in principle, that it is something that might be cultivated, but is it worth the lifelong effort? Let's briefly explore some possible motivations behind Benedict's punch line. What makes zeal important? Indispensable?  What's the purpose of zeal that makes it worthy of our practicing toward it? Scripture and the Prologue to the Rule offer some clues.

For example, in Colossians 3:12-17 (World English Bible) we hear a biblical call to the kind of life in community that resembles the spirit of RB 72: "Put on therefore, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, a heart of compassion, kindness, lowliness, humility, and perseverance; 13 bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, if any man has a complaint against any; even as Christ forgave you, so you also do. 14 Above all these things, walk in love, which is the bond of perfection." Good zeal points toward loving and compassionate action in community.

Similarly, Philippians 2:1 - 8 (WEB), describes an exercise of mutual service which reflects the model of Christ: "5 Have this in your mind, which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, existing in the form of God, didn’t consider equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to the point of death, yes, the death of the cross." The fulfillment of good zeal in Christ continues to look like selfless service in community.

And if we want to search out Benedict's motivations as he comes to the end of the Rule and speaks of good zeal, we need look no further than his beginning. Already from the RB Prologue, Benedict describes a "school for the Lord's service" in which disciples are progressing, running the path, delighting in love, faithfully observing God's teachings, exercising patience and sharing in the sufferings of Christ. That is what Benedict means by good zeal--loving action in community, eyes fixed upon Christ, and participating in the kingdom of God.

How do we cultivate good zeal in our own lives?

It might be tempting to let notions of good zeal slip into the nether or to pretend we're always waiting for the next supply. Benedict urges us instead to find grounding in in the actual exercise of life in community. Everyday women and men like you and me are called to cultivate good zeal and to support one another in that process of discipleship. Try this exercise to keep things immanently practical:

Step 1: Fill in the blank with the names of real people (you may select one person or up to five different ones) with whom you choose to foster good zeal.

"This then is the good zeal which I choose to foster with fervent love: That I begin being the first to show respect to someone else (Rom 12:10):

with the greatest patience, supporting _______________ in her/his weaknesses of body or behavior;

and earnestly competing in obedience to _______________,

pursuing not what I judge better for myself, but what I judge better for_______________.

To my fellow _______________ I again show the pure love of a sister/brother;

to God, loving fear, to my _______________, unfeigned and humble love.

Step 2: Now, for each of the blanks you filled in above, commit to one concrete action that will help you practice good zeal in the way it is described. The simpler the action, the easier it will be to remember and practice in the heat of the moment.

Conclusion

Stay with these texts from Scripture and from the Rule for a time. Find a quiet place, take in some art, go for a walk, keep writing . . . See how they continue to intersect with the names of the person/people the Spirit has laid upon your heart and watch for how the simple, concrete actions begin to affect you and those around you. My friends, that mutually beneficial service, inspired by Christ, is the cultivation of good zeal.

Finally, in the words of Benedict from RB 72, "Let us prefer nothing whatsoever to Christ, and may he bring us all together to everlasting life."