Benedict's Dharma

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Chapter 1: Buddhists Reflect on the Rule of Saint Benedict
The root meaning of the Latin and Greek words translated as 'rule' is trellis. Saint Benedict was not promulgating rules for living; he was establishing a framework on which a life can grow.

Chapter 1: Buddhists Reflect on the Rule of Saint Benedict, Part 2
Quite frankly, we hope to sneak up on you. Anecdotal responses to the Rule convey the authors' surprise as they ponder a text about which they thought they would have nothing to say. What they bring to their reflections is experience.

Saint Benedict's Rule - a set of guidelines that has governed Christian monastic life since the sixth century-continues to fascinate laypeople and monastics alike. Buddhist monks and nuns have been intrigued by Benedict's insights into human nature and by the similarities between Christian and Buddhist traditions. Now, through personal anecdotes and thoughtful comparison, four prominent Buddhist scholars reveal how the wisdom of each tradition can revitalize the other. Theirs is a lively and compelling dialogue which will appeal not only to Buddhists and Christians, but to anyone interested in rediscovering the value of an ancient discipline in the modern world.

Patrick Henry was a professor of religion, specializing in early Christianity, at Swarthmore College for seventeen years. He is now executive director of the Institute for Ecumenical and Cultural Research at Saint John's Abbey and University in Collegeville, Minnesota. He is the author of The Ironic Christian's Companion: Finding the Marks of God's Grace in the World and co-author with Donald Swearer, of For the Sake of the World: The Spirit of Buddhist and Christian Monasticism.

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