St. Benedict is one of the most influential saints of all time. St. Benedict was born in the year 480 A.D. in the city of Nursia. St Benedict was sent to Rome so he could finish his education with a nurse. The school he enrolled in was meant for speakers and the students used the gifts and spent them in pursuit of pleasure over truth. St. Benedict did not agree with this. Benedict fled for Rome, gave up his inheritance and lived in a small village with his nurse. God called him to further solitude so he moved to the mountains of Subiaco. St. Benedict was a revolutionary. He went off the beaten path and created his own new way of monastery life that was very strict. His new monastery became the roots of the church’s monastic system. He gathered his disciples into a whole community instead of founding several separate communities, Benedict was very brave and went against what he knew because he …show more content…
Rhetoric could be used as a tool to build or break. Benedict believed the strongest and truest words were the word of god. He set aside 4-6 hours a day in his rule to study the scripture. He said the word should spoken from memory not a book. This was a study of love and faith over intellect. The scripture should be repeated over and over again until it seemed to come from the heart. Saint benedict worked many miracles. These brought many to him begging for his guidance. One of the most famous stories of the great saint benedict a poor man came to his monastery asking for a little oil. Although benedict commanded the oil to be taken for this poor man but the cellarer refused for there was only a small amount of oil left so the monastery would have none. Benedict took the oil lard and began to pray and the lard was filled until the lid was pushed off. In Benedictine prayer our hearts are empty vessels waiting to be filled by our trust in
Cahill illustrates how this new monastic system of learning proves to be one of the most important foundations established after the fall of the Roman Empire.
This quote shows the impact Saint Damien had on the island of Molokai, and the courage he had to complete this difficult task. Saint Damien exemplified many Catholic Social Teachings during his lifetime on the island of Molokai.
Boniface Wimmer is regarded as one of the greatest missionaries of the nineteenth century. His mission was to establish a Benedictine monastery abroad in the United States to help the thousands of Catholic Germans who fled from their homeland in search of a better life. “Today, there are over thirty Abbeys and monasteries that take their root from Archabbot Boniface Wimmer, O.S.B.” With the grace of God, Boniface Wimmer succeeded. He was considered to be a “man on a mission.” His tenacious attitude aided him in spreading the mission of the Benedictine Order across the Atlantic Ocean. The Benedictines were seen not only as missionaries, but also as teachers and priests. The strong sense of bonding and connection within the community was vital to the Benedictine Order then, as it still is today.
In the time of ancient Greece, there were a category of teachers called the sophists who believed that wisdom and Rhetoric could and should be used for profit and personal gain. Aristotle, a well-known teacher, disagreed with this completely and believed that while Rhetoric is persuasive, it should be used morally and with good intentions. He stressed the idea of using moral standards along with emotion, logic and truth to persuade any audience. Almost 1000 years later, Augustine took this step even further with the use of rhetoric within religion practice. He emphasized the idea that rhetoric is a means by which to promote good will and spread truth. Today, modern rhetorician Dubinsky would take this step even further, by stating that Rhetoric isn’t just a means to an end. Rhetoric improves our very lives and unites people under a common good with the proper ethics. While it is unfortunate that they are from different time periods, Aristotle, St Augustine, and Dubinsky would surely all agree that Rhetoric is a means by which regular people can be persuasive with their ideals. All while using the right morals, good intentions, and correct ethics to do so, so that any regular person can influence and change their world, from the simplest of arguments to the greatest of debates. That is why I believe we should study these famous rhetoricians, because their teachings teach us how to become better people and better writers. Aristotle, St. Augustine, and Dubinsky believed in Ethos, Pathos, and Logos, which means studying and working with your audience to persuade them in such way that you’re collaborating for the benefit of both the writer and the reader.
Aristotle believed that rhetoric is a skill habit of mind that is, in itself, morally neutral and can be used for good or ill. He believed th...
closer to God. The monasteries were a place to get away from evil and anything
In his youth, St. Boniface encountered many priests or clerics who traveled from town to town. Through these spiritual conversations, it became evident to St. Boniface that he wanted to pursue a life with God. Eventually, after continuos begging and his fathers fatal sickness, he was sent to the care of the Monastery of Examchester. (Appleton) It is here, that St. Boniface expressed to the Abbot at the time, that he wanted to live a monastic life. The father of the monastery, after council, granted him his wish. Here is where the saint began to prove his love for God, and could begin his journey of the Christian life. After exceeding all expectations and surpassing the knowledge of his teachers, he moved to a neighboring monastery, called Nursling, whereby he studied under the influence of Abbot Winbert.(St. Boniface Church) Here he gained vast knowledge of scriptures and the spiritual exposition of the Bible. Here, he gained such a reputation that men and women from far and wide traveled to study scriptures under his guidance. At the age of 30 he was humbly ordained a priest and yet another branch of his life was fulfilled.
In Dr. Osman’s lecture and in Life and Miracles of St. Benedict, monasteries were portrayed as places for people to escape the harsh times and live together worshipping God. In The Dark Ages, the narrator discusses how many nuns and monks would try to escape because they were forced to go there, some even going as far as scaling the walls of their convent or monastery. These holy places offered many people the escape and religious freedom that they craved, but not everyone loved the strict life that monks and nuns lived. (The Dark Ages, “Marriage of Monks and
In that light, it is interesting to analyse what it is that made these artistic words such a difference. A difference that persuaded people to change their behavior. Thankfully, human history has created a term to define these great speeches. It is called rhetoric. In this essay we will try to determine whether rhetoric is an art, or merely a
Another saint who played a major influence on the church was St. Augistine. St. Augistine held the idea that Christianity gave ones life meaning and purpose. He believed that “Christians are not born but made. ” St. Augistine was the author of a very influential book in the history of the church. This book was “The City of God.” This book told the history of the church and proved it to be a historically valid one. He believed that there was no use to civilization, and as faith increases civilization should decrease. The “City of the World” is the opposite of the “City of God”, and brings temptation and must be resisted. This reference to civilization was aimed towards Rome.
One of the values Francis instilled the most in his monks was obedience to God. In his life, Francis was devoted to serve God and gave God complete control over his life. Part of this trust that Francis had was that God would provide for him in same way ...
Rhetoric, the art of speaking, is vital in everyday life. Whether it is to convince others of one’s worth as Sojourner Truth does in, “Ain’t I a Woman” or to pledge to a larger audience like Martin Luther King Junior in his “I Have a Dream” speech, rhetoric plays a significant role because it is the key that unlocks the door to self-expression. Without it, nobody would be able to convey his/her message or to get any thoughts across. A silent world, lacking communication, would therefore emerge. Trust would not be present as there would not be any words for someone to convince their beloved ones of his/her sincerity. Proper diction and syntax must be employed in order for one to effectively get others to share his/her beliefs, or at least to respect them.
The teachings of sophism stressed highly on the importance of rhetoric and overall excellence. Even though sophists are often looked on in a negative light, lessons can be learned from the fifth century scholars. The art of rhetoric can get one far in life. When man can defend both sides of an argument or persuade his objective, there is no limit to what man can achieve.
Christian monasticism began when the early Christians began to move to the desert to get closer to God. The desert was seen as a place where one could return to God as well as receive spiritual renewal.
Saint Francis of Assisi was a uniquely spiritual man who gave up a life of wealth and position to lead a life of poverty in accordance and service to God. Embracing a life according to the Gospels, Francis went on to establish a Monastic Order, known as the Franciscans. In the midst of the political climate within the religious community of Italy, Francis emerged a champion for the poor and sick, with humility and no regard for himself. Francis exhibited his love for God through his love and admiration for all of God's creation including nature. The principles of Saint Francis are as relevant today as they were in thirteenth century Italy; service and love to all of God’s creation.