Rule for Associates of Holy Cross
Introduction
The Order of the Holy Cross is an Episcopal/Anglican monastic community for men founded in the Lower East Side of New York City in 1884 by the Rev. James Otis Sargent Huntington. Like most Anglican religious communities founded in the 19th century, the Order sought to achieve a "mixed" life of active work in Church and society combined with and rooted in individual and corporate prayer and monastic discipline. As the first American community for men, the Order also stressed a degree of individuality and personal initiative which was unusual for its time. Over the next years, the community moved several times, finally settling in West Park, New York, from which houses and works of the Order were established in the United States, Africa, the Caribbean and Canada. In its centennial year, 1984, the Order formally adopted the Rule of St. Benedict to stand with the Rule of Father Huntington as one of the foundational documents of the Order. This move resulted, in part, from increased ecumenical contacts with other religious communities, affirming the essentially Benedictine character of Holy Cross. The adoption of the Rule of Benedict recognized and openly embraced this identity and led the Order to closer relationships with the international Benedictine family. As is true of all Benedictine communities, however, Holy Cross lives the Benedictine Life in a particular way, one which reflects the unique origins and history of this household of God.
St. Benedict
St. Benedict (480 - 547 AD), the Father of Western monasticism, lived at a time of tremendous social upheaval and cultural change. Wanting to insure a way of life which was both stable and flexible, he wrote his Rule for monasteries. Borrowing heavily from previous monastic sources, he crafted a Rule which was distinguished by a high degree of balance and sanity. Benedict himself says that in drawing up his rule, he hoped "to set down nothing harsh, nothing burdensome." Rather, outlining a day divided between prayer, work, study and sleep, and in tune with the seasons, both ecclesiastical and natural, he hoped to provide a model of Christian living. Like the good abbot, Benedict desired to: "so arrange everything that the strong have something to strive for and the weak nothing to run from." (RB 64:19) It was the eminent practicality and good sense of this Rule which lead to its ultimately being adopted as the normative guide to Western monastic life.
Confraternity of the Christian Life and Associates
As early as 1887, the fledgling Order of the Holy Cross instituted its first associate group comprised of laity who were involved in some way with the life, work and vision of the Order. Known as the Confraternity of the Christian Life (CCL), its Rule of Life set out a pattern of observance which was simple but comprehensive, explicitly intended for those who worked actively in secular environments.
The CCL proved so popular, that other similar fellowships were established. Among the earliest of these were the Priest Associates and the Seminarist Associates. These groups adopted a more stringent and demanding Rule of Life, modeled on a pattern thought appropriate for parish clergy and those preparing for ordained ministry.
In the 1970's, the priest and seminary Associates were combined and the fellowship was opened to men and women, lay as well as ordained. It became known as simply the Associates of Holy Cross.
The Rule
The following Rule of Life represents a response to the expressed desire of many CCL members and Associates for an updated Rule which allows for more flexibility and reflects more accurately the explicit Benedictine identity of the Order of the Holy Cross, with all its practical wisdom. It is intended to unite the two affiliate groups into a single whole, while allowing for the differences in emphasis and practice which have traditionally characterized each fellowship.
Principles
Holy Cross Associates intend to love and serve God through a relationship with the Order of the Holy Cross, adapting to their lives the Benedictine principles on which the monks base their common life.
- As the monks are grounded in obedience, so we will listen for the voice of God speaking to us in Sacred Scripture and the traditions of the Church, in our daily circumstances and relationships, in the words of other people and in our own hearts. And hearing, we will try to translate God's word into action.
- As the monks center their lives in stability, so we will be steady and regular in our prayer life and in the obligations of family, work and community.
- As the monks seek conversion of life, so we will reflect on our own lives in regular self-examination, believing that what God wants of us, as of every human being, is growth toward the fullness of the Image in which we are made. We will strive to be open to the changes required by and for that growth.