The Life of St. Benedict

Saint Benedict of Nursia, born around AD 480, is the father of Western monasticism. According to Saint Gregory the Great’s “Dialogues,” Benedict abandoned worldly studies in Rome to seek solitude, initially living as a hermit in a cave at Subiaco. His holiness attracted followers, leading him to establish twelve small monasteries. Later, due to envy and opposition, he moved to Monte Cassino, where he founded his famous abbey and composed the Rule of Saint Benedict—a balanced guide for monastic life emphasizing prayer, work, and community under the guidance of an abbot. St. Gregory records numerous miracles, including St. Benedict’s prophetic insights and confrontations with demonic forces. He died around AD 547, standing in prayer after receiving Holy Communion, and was buried alongside his sister, Saint Scholastica. His Rule became the foundation of monasticism in the West.