HR 20 – Prayer During the Night- The Holy Rule of St. Benedict with Fr. Mauritius Wilde O.S.B – Discerning Hearts Podcasts

Prayer During the Night – The Holy Rule of St. Benedict with Fr. Mauritius Wilde O.S.B In this episode of The Holy Rule of St. Benedict: A Spiritual Path for Today’s World, Fr. Mauritius Wilde, OSB and Kris McGregor explore St. Benedict’s striking attention to prayer during the night and in the quiet hours of early morning. Beginning with Chapter 8 of the Rule, Fr. Mauritius explains why Benedict structured the monastic day around Vigils, inviting the monks to rise while the world is still dark and quiet. These hours offer a particular openness to God, when the noise and activity of the coming day have not yet taken hold. Prayer at this hour does not require perfect concentration or extraordinary effort. Fr. Mauritius offers a wonderfully simple counsel: just be there. Bring yourself before God, pray the Psalms, and allow Him to speak and work within you. The conversation also offers beautiful guidance for anyone who awakens during the night with worries, fears, or an inability to return to sleep. Rather than struggling for control or immediately turning to work, television, or a device, Fr. Mauritius suggests receiving the unexpected wakefulness as an opportunity for prayer and surrender. Night exposes our vulnerability, but precisely there we can entrust ourselves more completely to God and encounter the light of Christ. Evening prayer prepares the heart to enter sleep in God’s presence, while morning prayer allows praise to become our first response to the new day. In this Benedictine rhythm, the night itself becomes a place of encounter, surrender, consolation, and unceasing prayer. From the Holy Rule of St. Benedict Chapter 8: From the Holy Rule of St. Benedict: CHAPTER VIII Of the Divine Office during the Night Making due allowance for circumstances, the brethren will rise during the winter season, that is, from the calends of November till Easter, at the eighth hour of the night; so that, having rested till a little after midnight, they may rise refreshed. The time, however, which remains over after the night office (Matins) will be employed in study by those of the brethren who still have some parts of the psalms and the lessons to learn. Discerning Hearts Reflection Questions What usually occupies the final moments of my day? How might evening prayer change the way I enter into sleep? When I wake during the night with worries or fears, what is my first response? Could I receive some of those moments as an invitation to turn toward God? Fr. Mauritius says that during early morning prayer we do not have to accomplish anything extraordinary: “Just be there.” What would it mean for me simply to place myself in God’s presence? What might I need to surrender to God before going to sleep so that anxiety does not accompany me through the night? How could I protect the first moments of my morning from noise, news, screens, and other distractions so that God receives my first attention? The monks begin their morning prayer with, “Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will proclaim your praise.” How might this prayer shape my words and encounters throughout the day? Fr. Mauritius describes sleep as an exercise in relinquishing control and allowing ourselves to be held by God. Where is the Lord inviting me to trust Him more deeply? How might establishing a simple rhythm of evening and morning prayer help me grow toward the unceasing prayer St. Benedict desires? For more episodes from this series and other podcasts, visit: Fr. Mauritius Wilde’s Discerning Hearts page Father Mauritius Wilde, OSB, Ph.D., did his philosophical, theological, and doctoral studies in Europe. He is the author of several books and regularly directs retreats. He serves as Prior at Sant’Anselmo in Rome.