Oblation: Meditations on St. Benedict's Rule

by Rachel M. Srubas

Book Overview

Thousands of spiritual seekers are discovering and re-discovering the wisdom of Saint Benedict, embracing the balanced, Christ-centered, and practical approach to daily living that he espoused for his monks almost 1500 years ago in Europe. By some estimates, Benedictine oblates outnumber vowed monks and nuns by ten-to-one. Rachel Srubas writes these uplifting, thought-provoking reflections out of her own profound experiences of learning the Rule,...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1557254885
• ISBN13: 9781557254887
• Release Date: February 2006
• Publisher: Paraclete Press (MA)
• Length: 84 Pages
• Weight: 0.36 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 5.4" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Carrying Me Like a River

Benedictine spirituality is experiencing a resurgence in the world at this time. One manifestation of this resurgence is a growing number of articulate women are writing and are being heard. Some of the best writers are not vowed monastics. Beverly Lanzetta, Kathleen Norris, Norvene Vest, Esther deWaal, and Angeles Arrien come to mind as true monastics of the heart. Now in our midst is a startlingly fresh poet/monastic: Benedictine Oblate Rachel Srubas. Srubas, who is a married Presbyterian clergywoman, uses the practice of lectio divina to present to us reflections on the Rule of Benedict which are raw, real, and riveting. When you pick up this book, read Srubas' meditations aloud and slowly---to yourself and/or to another person. Her responses to the Rule are sure to reach you in a sensitive, visceral place. Turbulent as times are today, Srubas' words carry me the way a mountain stream burbles, sparkles, and plays over hard, slippery stone. Srubas' reflections feel bathed in God's sunlight. They dance and bring me home to the Source of Life.

A Poetic Reflection of the Rule of Benedict

Skillfully combining images that are personal and universal, practical and mystical, sometimes whimsical, Rachel Srubas offers a unique perspective on the Rule of Benedict. By training she is writer, poet and pastor, a mix that accords well with Benedictine tradition and spirituality. In a lively and perceptive introduction, she describes how her practice of Scriptio Divina (sacred writing) is an adaptation of the ancient monastic practice of Lectio Divina (sacred reading). Accustomed to using this writing practice for meditation on Scripture texts, when she encountered the Rule Benedict wrote 1500 years ago, she used the same method. The 73 Benedictine prayer-poems in this slim book are the fruit of these reflections, her "Oblation" (offering) to others who wish to savor the wisdom in that ancient text. This is a book to which thoughtful readers will want to return again and again.