Since I will be in Boise (don't ask) on the feast of Saint Benedict, I thought to anticipate the celebration.I've several times mentioned the Australian Trappist, Michael Casey, as one of my favorite spiritual writers. He has a relatively new book of reflections on the "Prologue" to the Rule of Saint Benedict, entitled The Road to Eternal Life. Here is a verse from the "Prologue" followed by part of Cassey's reflection:

What is sweeter for us, dearest brothers, than this voice of the Lord inviting us? (Rule of Saint Benedict, Prologue, verse 19)Following Christ is what we were made to do; every step we take in this direction is an affirmation of our God-given nature. Just as a drink is delightful when we are thirsty and a rest when we are weary, so the sense of being called by God and invited to follow Christ wakes us from our drowsy half-life and opens before us the abundance of a more complete human existence.The renunciation that the monastic life and every serious spirituality demand is built on the premise that we have first experienced some attraction beyond the visible world of sense and feeling. It is in the pursuit of the delight promised by this transcendent reality that we let go of lesser gratifications and begin our journey. First comes attachment and only then detachment, and not the other way round. In the course of our lifetime we are encouraged to go further by sometimes experiencing again the sweetness of the Lords ongoing invitation. As the psalmist says: Taste and see how good the Lord is (Ps 33:9).