Becoming a Community of Disciples

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Becoming a Community of Disciples

Discussion Questions

How does Benedict’s view that some kinds of monks are “detestable” compare with people and practices today that hinder authentic Christian community? Idleness is a dangerous thing not only for monks but for Christians today. Compare and contrast how monks and present-day Christians guard themselves against this pitfall. In North America’s “me-first” society, can everyone be equal? How does the monastic practice of keeping rank within the monastery guard our hearts from the spirit of our age?

In our “throw-away,” consumeristic culture, how could we recover a greater care for tools as “God’s instruments”?

What can we learn from the disciplined schedule and the seasonal rhythms of monks? How could we apply these practices to our twenty-first-century lives?