Daily wisdom from the cloister

Cloister Word offers a brief daily reading from two cornerstones of Christian contemplative life: the Rule of Saint Benedict and Brother Lawrence’s Practice of the Presence of God. Each day a short passage from each is offered, side by side, that they may speak quietly into the day ahead.

The Rule of Saint Benedict

Written around the year 540 by Saint Benedict of Nursia for his community at Monte Cassino, the Rule has shaped Christian monasticism for nearly fifteen centuries. It is read aloud in Benedictine monasteries on a three-times-yearly cycle, and the daily portions in this app follow that traditional cycle. The translation used here is Leonard J. Doyle’s of 1948.

Brother Lawrence

Nicolas Herman, known in religion as Brother Lawrence of the Resurrection (c. 1614–1691), was a lay brother of the Discalced Carmelites in Paris. He worked in the monastery kitchen and, later, mended sandals — and from that humble place taught a way of unceasing communion with God in the midst of ordinary work. The Practice of the Presence of God is a small collection of his conversations and letters, gathered after his death by Joseph de Beaufort. The translation used here is the 1895 edition published by Fleming H. Revell.

Daily reminders

If you would like a quiet notification each morning when the day’s reading is ready, you may enable reminders here.