Benedict of Nursia, who had power from 480 to 543 A.D, established the most enduring pattern of western monasticism. He wrote the Rule of Benedict, which was the monk's law book to how to live. This rule told the monks what they could and could not do, and if they disobeyed they were subject to punishment. They had a strict lifestyle, but lived carefree of many of the world problems. It was a tough lifestyle and to be a monk, you had to be a highly motivated, truly dedicated follower of the Christ, as you will see in this paper.
In Monasticism, like any other group, it had a ruler, or a superior. In this case he is known as the Abbot. He was superior to all, and was believed to be Christ's representative. All of the monks in the monastery had to answer to him for anything they did. The Abbot, for example, was like a shepherd, and all of the monks were his sheep. This meant he had to watch out for them, and make sure they stayed on the right path. Another duty of the Abbot is if any conflict should arise, he must " Call in the brethren to take council ". What he does is gather the whole congregation together in the monastery, present the conflict to the men, get their advice, then make an educated guess on what should be done about it. That is how they take care of business.
The monks were subjective to the Abbot. They had to do what he said. Concerning Obedience, the first grade of humility is obedience without delay. This, meaning when the Abbot tells you to do something, you don't delay, you do it right away as if it was a divine command. They got this form of instruction from the Lord, who said, " As soon as he heard of me he obeyed me ". The sixth grade of humility is, a monk should be content with what he has, he must consider himself as a poor, and unworthy workman. Much like the sixth grade, the seventh grade of humility said that not only does he have to say he's worthless, but he must truly believe it in his heart.
