Living by Rule (6)

Each day carries with it three duties: prayer, work, and reading. There should be no idleness in the monastery, and so instruction, writing, and the repair of clothing or other useful work should be provided as the Lord says, “that you appear not before me empty-handed.”
                                                            - Rule of the Céli Dé

Celtic monasteries were, at their best, places of intense and sincere piety and mutual love and edification.

They were also places of industry and culture – places of work. Each monk had a variety of duties to perform on a daily basis that required him to work in “mundane” capacities, whether within the monastery itself or among the members of the outlying community.

Monastic rules from this period give us some insight to the way monks were expected toe prosecute these responsibilities according to their daily “vocation” from the Lord. The Rule of Columcille was undoubtedly the foundation for the later Rule of the Céli Dé, cited above, in saying “Your daily occupation should be threefold, namely, prayer, manual labor, and lectio.” The Rule continues:

Your manual labor should have a three-fold division. First, fill your own needs and those of the place where you live. Secondly, do your share of your brothers work [that is, the work of the community]. Thirdly, help your neighbor by instruction, by writing, by making garments, or by providing for any other need of theirs that may arise. As the Lord says, “No one should come before me empty-handed.”

From these and the other monastic rules of this period, we may discern five general principles for the manual work each monk was expected to fulfill, according to his calling each day.

No begging
First, monks were forbidden from begging: “The life of a community free from the need to beg is something Satan detests. Begging prevents prayer and will not lead to heaven” (Rule of Ailbe). Apparently Celtic abbots considered the practice of begging from others to be a tool of the devil for undermining prayer and progress of the Kingdom of God. The Rule of Comghall instructs, “Do not go out begging, or send anyone to do so in your place. Instead, remain quietly at home in prayer, accepting your poverty.”

Monks were to accept that theirs would be an austere existence, and that whatever they needed in the way of daily bread would come from their own labors, whether directly, in the production of food and clothing, or indirectly, as an expression of gratitude from people served in the surrounding community. Monks probably did not charge for the work they rendered within the community, as the Venerable Bede notes that even their training of monks and missionaries, and the books that went along with that, were offered free of charge. The Rule of Comghall speaks specifically to this matter: “You may not buy, sell, or conceal the mercy of God.”

In worldly needs monks were expected to work at prayer, trusting the Lord to provide for them, and practicing contentment with whatever He saw fit to provide.

Personal needs
Second, monks had certain daily work to do which related to their personal needs or to the needs of the community. This could include making or repairing garments, washing themselves and their clothes, cleaning their cells, and especially, writing and studying and copying manuscripts. While this last area of work was really part of the larger community’s mission, monks were expected to make this labor their own, and to gain as much as possible from their studies and to share with their fellow monks whatever the Lord had given to them.

Monks were also expected to care for their bodies, but without extravagance or showiness. Later rules, such as Rule of the Céli Dé, go into great deal about meals and the regulation of appetites.

Monks were also to act as their brother’s keeper with respect to material concerns: “Out of compassion you should do without your due allowance of food and clothing so that you may share with your less fortunate brothers and with the poor in general” (Rule of Columcille). “Whatever you acquire over and above your needs is to be given to the poor” (Rule of Comghall).

Within the monastery itself monks would be assigned to render services to the whole fellowship, probably on some kind of rotation, such as reading Scripture or from one or another monastic rule during meals, so that “the minds of the monks may be centered on God rather than on food” (Rule of the Céli Dé).

Manual labor
A good deal of manual labor was essential to keep a monastery adequately provisioned and in good order. Monks were all expected to share in the various tasks, such as farming, animal husbandry, carpentry, carrying water, making and caring for fires, and the like, and to work hard at whatever assignment was appointed to them: “In Christ’s eyes they are truly clerics whose hands are calloused” (Rule of Ciarán). “The measure of your work should be to labor until tears of exhaustion come” (Rule of Columcille).

Helping
All work in every aspect of a monk’s vocation was to be done with a view to serving others, especially those in the monastic fellowship. This was especially to be the case with those who were in obvious need: “Let him be the servant of everyone…Let him satisfy the need of each infirm person, and let him assist everyone who is ill” (Rule of Ailbe). A monk “should never refuse assistance to a person who calls with insistence for it. Let him share generously and without measure with one who asks” (Rule of Ailbe). Every monk was to be of the mindset that he had some responsibility to help his brother complete his daily work, no matter what it might be (Rule of Columcille).

The Rule of Ailbe summarizes this aspect of a monk’s vocational disciplines:

Let the monks bear in mind that God is their father and holy Church their mother. Let their humility be not merely verbal, but let each one provide for his brother. When, through obedience, they go to carry out their duties, let their spirit be, “This is a heavy task, brother, let me do it.” Let their hearts be pure and holy; in time of unbelief let them remain steadfast. Let them be faithful in their speech, and unstinting with their help.

Work with integrity
Monks were expected to fulfill all the labors of their vocation in an orderly manner, with dignity and integrity. They were to regard all aspects of their work as the “service of the Lord” and to see it all as “light, wonderful, and pleasant” (Rule of Comghall). They were to do their work in silence, by “patience and humility” (Rule of Ailbe), with a view to praising God for work well done (Rule of Cormac Mac Ciolionáin).

Work, whatever it may have been, was not to be regarded as a burden. Rather, “You should be gentle, honest, and calm while carrying out your duties, performing each act, even if distasteful, with zeal and perseverance” (Rule of Carthage). They were to do their work as unto the Lord, and not as unto men: “The King above is worthy of having every action done with restraint of hands and feet, eyes and ears, mouth and heart” (Rule of Carthage). All work was to be done with skill (wisdom) and diligence.

The monasteries of Celtic Ireland produced thousands of strong, courageous, and capable missionary/monks, who took the Word of the Gospel throughout Europe. These were men who knew how to build a community and to do the hard work necessary to ensure that each man would fulfill his calling as unto the Lord. We can learn from their example in this matter of how we do our work, as in our spiritual and relational lives as well.

T. M. Moore