Why Saint Benedict?

We chose Saint Benedict as our patron because we see in him God’s wisdom. Benedict lived in a time of great cultural upheaval, a time when the Roman empire was crumbling, and the prevailing culture had lost its way. He responded to this crisis by forming oases of sanity, communities with an eternal vision, focused on the highest things. These God-centered communities created what we call “spiritual gravity,” a kind of divine attraction which drew people to them. The monks often started in the wilderness, but soon people came to them and farms cropped up, eventually leading to villages, towns, and cities with the monastery at the center. In this way, Benedict was able to draw people to God, but also preserve what was best in the culture. Monasteries were places of learning, wisdom, innovation, and, of course, holiness. It is this kind of fellowship that we hope the Saint Benedict Institute will cultivate among our students and community.