Faithfulness to place and community... is the mian ingredient in the Benedictine vow of stability. It's a faithfulness expressed through action and it's biblical in its derivation. All stability, the Bible tells us, is possible because God is faithful. In the Hebrew Scriptures, hesed is the word given for God's faithfulness: we turn from God but God does not turn from us. We run after other gods, yet God reaches out to us to draw us back again. The Divine Presence is constantly with us even when we choose to ignore this Presence. Sin separates us from God through our own actions, yet our actions don't determine God's actions. In spite of everything, God stays with us.
God's faithfulness to us is the model for Benedictine stability. Benedict says that we can be faithful because God is faithful... God in Christ is our Rock and as Christians, we want to put on Christ and become a rock, too. We want to have a firm and solid center at the core of our being so that we can withstand the unpredictability and transience of our world. What makes us stead is having a heart that rests in God... Stability also means to remain, abide, be united to, live in, dwell in, or stay with.
St. Benedict's Toolbox
The Nuts and Bolts of
Everyday Benedictine Living
by Jane Tomaine
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