Back in my university days, we all got a copy of the Rule of St. Benedict, a bit of an odd choice for a secular university – I started my academic career at the University of Maryland. I think it was for a philosophy or literature class. I don’t remember the class, but the little red book went everywhere with me, until it finally disintegrated.

All Christians should have a rule of life, states the Book of Common Prayer. But many Christians have never heard of such thing. What rules? Don’t we have the Ten Commandments and the great commandments? More rules?

But a rule of life is not a collection of “thou shalt” and thou shalt not”. A Rule of Life is not just about how you live your life: It is about why you live your life.

Just following some rules, keeping the commandments, is not enough if you do not know why you do these things. So the first part is simple: We obey God because we love God, and we love God because He first loved us. We want to become more like God, as we follow Jesus Christ, offered as sacrifice and ransom for our own deaths, and an example of what our lives are to be. Gentle, meek, humble, loving, peacegiving.

St. Benedict wrote his rule for monks. It is full of how to get along with other monks, how to get along with the world, how to keep good order. That is right for a rule. But most importantly, it is about Christ.

As Jesus Christ sacrificed Himself unto death, defeating death by death, so we are called to sacrifice our lives, first to His love and also to others. Self-centeredness has no place in Christian life. We are to be other centered, Christ-centered.

The second part of a rule of life is to have good order. Keep possessions to a minimum, keep them tidy, clean and mended. Return what you have borrowed. have a daily, weekly, seasonal routine. Stick to it. Sponteneity is not ruled out in relationships and experience, but it is not what directs daily life. Novelty ceases to be important; boredom disappears in the prayer life and the joy of work well done.

A good routine, and good order, make room for prayer, meditation, scripture and holy conversation. Holy conversation, while needful, is not of first order. Silence is. We are to listen to God, not ourselves.

A rule of life is creative. It creates time with God, and allows for the sponteneity of that joyous conversation, out of which good works will flow. Silence, prayer, good work will create peace, not just for the practitioner, but for all who are touched by that holy silence.

A good rule of life is about stewardship, about acknowledging God’s primacy in one’s life, about a humble obedience before God.