RULE, V, 33-36 accompanying a sick brother

 The Rule 

Chapter V,  33-36

"Accompanying a sick brother"

The part of the Rule which I read a while ago speaks something about the precepts on clothing and taking baths especially on the sick. From the book of Athanase Sage, AA, he divided chapter V of the Rule into four thematic parts, namely, first, “within the monastery” that covers only paragraph 30; second “The golden rule’ that discusses paragraphs 31 and 32; third, “Outside the monastery” that covers 33 to 36 and fourth, “various duties”, which speaks about paragraphs 37-40. Based from this pattern, Sage tells us the first process of interiority, which is from interiority to exteriority or shall we say “within the monastery” moving towards “outside the community”. The Rule, otherwise, is undoubtedly written logically by Augustine. Thus, with this ample time, let me share to you my reflection on the third thematic part, which is a precept about “outside the community”.

Contextually, going back to Augustine’s time, we speak here of the activities of the monks outside the monastery like for example public bath, wearing clean clothing and the required number of monks to be allowed to go out. As we all know ascetic monks at that time abstain themselves from bathing because private bathing in houses and monastery is not yet common and what is only available is public bathing. Which in Augustine’s time, it causes many scandals. That’s why there’s a precept that a brother must never deny himself use the bath when his health requires it. (masasabi natin na ang babaho ng mga monghe ng panahon ni San Agustin). Meaning, they will just take a bath if they got sick? Ancient therapeutics recommended bathing as a panacea, meaning a remedy for all ills especially overcoming fever. So, when monks are sick they have no choice but to take public bath but with a required number of two or three brothers to accompany the sick. But before one is finally send to the public bath he has first to pass the permission of the superior and the recommendation of the doctor.

My dear brothers, I hope you’ve seen and imagined the picture of why this part of the Rule was written. This precept pertains to travel outside the monastery is inspired by a concern for order and prudence.¹ We can clearly see in Augustine’s understanding of monastic asceticism how much consideration and discretion contributed to the formation of his ideals for monastic life.²

Above all else my dear brothers the underlying principle we can scratch out from this precept is the word “discretion”, which literally means to act out of one’s knowledge and be prudent about it. Zumkeller strongly affirms that the discretion of Augustine’s rule is rooted in caritas, Christian love. Rules are primarily to Legislate uniformity and order in monasteries, but Augustine was attempting through the spirit of Christian LOVE to help his monks to achieve their “holy enterprise” not by compulsion “as slaves under the law, but as free men established under grace.”³ This concept of discretion is applied not only to paragraphs 33-36 but runs all throughout the Rule, which is to abide the laws out love and not because it is compulsory. I think the Rule of Augustine had evolved so as to attune with modern world.

So, the challenge, my dear brothers, for this third part of Chapter five is not merely to observe them literally but rather to the wisdom behind it because, in one way or another, they are not literally observed at present unless otherwise you want to take public bath like spa when you get sick. But rather to act out the rules given to us out of love, especially of the rules that was presented to us at the beginning of the formation year. I hope you remember those rules, so am I. Sometimes, we don’t like it, so am I. But this is a point of reflection my dear brothers. How are we in our response towards the RULES. Think about it. 

1 Athanase Sage, AA pg. 80

2 Augustine’s Ideal of religious life, Adolar Zumkeller 232

3 Ibid, 232.