Ch. 20 Reverence in Prayer

After the theological chapters on obedience, silence, and humility, Benedict turns to liturgy. He spends twelve chapters laying out in detail how the monks are to observe the liturgy of the hours. Benedict ends this section of the Rule in chapter 20, focusing on the correct attitude in prayer, which is the central activity of the liturgy. The monks must always enter into it with reverent awe.

There has long been a dispute concerning what style of church music is appropriate to Christian worship. In the dispute, there are “high” church Christians and “low” church Christians. High church Christians favor venerable hymns, organ music, and solemnity. Low church Christians favor spiritual songs, contemporary instruments, and celebration. Low church Christians are concerned that hymns and organs are too formulaic. They worry that the movement of the Holy Spirit gets lost in the formality. High church Christians fear that the sentimentality of modern music substitutes emotional fervor for spiritual substance.

Christians have analogous concerns when it comes to prayer. Some Christians favor spontaneous, individual, silent prayer and question the formality and repetition of communal, pre-written prayers of the sort used in liturgical traditions. Pre-constructed prayer will hinder the movement of the Holy Spirit, they say. On the other hand, some Christians argue that spontaneous prayer too often reduces to shallow requests for wish fulfillment and an irreverent familiarity that comes from an exaggerated emphasis on God as “Abba, Father.”

After laying out the formality of the liturgy, Benedict is clearly concerned that the monks’ proper attitude does not get lost in the structure. But his concern is equally relevant to the problem of shallow, irreverent familiarity.

Benedict looks back to obedience, silence, and humility as most important in the context of prayer. “Before the Lord God of the universe” (20.2), these qualities alone are appropriate. Purity of heart becomes the prevailing theme of the chapter. Kierkegaard famously taught that “Purity of heart is to will one thing.” Benedict might say our prayers are to express willing one thing – devout worship. Familiarity breeds contempt, whether the familiarity arises from long observance of the liturgy or from the presumption of God’s presence and favor. We must remember that our “Abba, Father” is the Lord God of the universe. We must also remember that the Lord God of the universe is our “Abba, Father.” The liturgy is intended to keep the right understanding of God and ourselves ever before us.

Benedict likes the doubling of nouns for stylistic emphasis. He teaches us to come to God with humility and respect (20.1). And again, with “utmost humility and sincere devotion” (20.2). What really matters are “our purity of heart and tears of compunction” (20.3). Our prayers should be “short and pure” (20.4). That Benedict employs his technique in all but the last sentence of the chapter speaks volumes to the importance he places on reverence in prayer.