[.ca] A Guide to Living in the Truth: Saint Benedict's ... (ISBN 0764807390)

Up the Down Staircase:
In recent years a spate of popular books about monasticism has appeared, some tending to trivialize this relatively rare vocation, others subtly romanticizing it. In contrast, A Guide to Living in the Truth is one of the more realistic books in the genre. Monk and scholar Michael Casey focuses on the foundational virtue of humility, the subject of the seventh chapter of St. Benedict's Rule. After briefly considering what humility is not (passivity, self-hatred, or mere resignation), Casey provides a meditative, line-by-line commentary, drawing from sources as diverse as St. Bernard of Clairvaux and Albert Camus to clarify the sixth-century text. The reader may feel some resistance to the message of this book. St. Benedict's view of human nature is unflinching, and his emphasis on the effort required to purge our selfishness is not for the faint-hearted. But Casey does an admirable job of framing Benedictine spirituality in the contexts of common sense, psychological insight, and the mercy of God. Rather humbly, Casey largely leaves the reader to apply this ancient wisdom to less cloistered lifestyles. But be advised. You may find that this thoughtful introduction to the heart of the Church's original twelve-step program changes your spiritual life more than you expected.

The truth about humility:
Michael Casey (Trappist monk of Tarrawarra Abbey in Australia) turns a seemingly specialized topic into a readable and helpful book suitable for anyone seriously involved in the spiritual life. HUMILITY is not a popular term, often confused with humiliation. Drawing on the word's connection to its root (meaning "earth"), Casey treats humility as the result of deep self-knowledge: who you are, who you are not, and who you are in relationship to God. Drawing on insights from modern psychology, he considers the 12 steps in St. Benedict's ladder of humility as 12 ways of moving towards integration and transformation. Readers who are familiar with Benedictine spirituality will gain the most from this book, but it has much to offer the general reader.