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Let the brothers serve each other, so that no-one is excused from the work of the kitchen, except for sickness or if he is occupied in a matter of great usefulness; for from this greater reward is acquired.
Fratres sic sibi invicem serviant, ut nullus excusetur a coquina officio, nisi aut aegritudine, aut in causa gravis utilitatis quis occupatus fuerit; quia exinde maior merces acquiritur.
The weak, however, should be given assistance, so that they do not do it with sadness, but having assistance according to the size and location of the community.
Imbecillibus autem procurentur solatia, ut non cum tristita hoc faciant, sed habeant omnes solatia, secundum modum congregationis aut positionem loci.
If the congregation is larger, the cellarer shall be excused from the kitchen; or anyone, as we have said, who is engaged in matters of greater utility.
Si maior congregation fuerit, cellerarius excusetur a coquina; vel si qui, ut diximus, maioribus utilitatibus occupantur.
The rest, however, should serve each other in charity.
Caeteri vero sibi sub caritate invicem serviant.
Let him who is finishing his week do the washing on Saturday.
Egressurus de septimana, sabbato munditias faciat.
Let him wash the towels, with which the brothers have washed their hands or feet: and let both he who is beginning, and he who is finishing [his service] wash the feet of all.
Linteamina, cum quibus sibi fratres manus aut pedes tergunt, lavet: pedes vero tam ipse, qui egreditur, quam ille qui intraturus est, omnibus lavent.
Let him return the vessels of his service clean and whole; which the cellarer gives to those beginning, so that he knows what he gives and what he receives.
Vasa ministerii sui munda et sana cellerario reconsignet; qui cellerarius item intranti consignet, ut sciat quid dat aut quid recipit.
One hour before the meal, let the weekly servers receive, over and above the normal allowance, a drink and piece of bread: so that at the mealtime, they may serve their brothers without murmuring and great toil.
Septimanarii autem, ante unam horam refectionis, accipient super statutam annonam singulos biberes, et panem: ut hora refectionis, sine murmuratione et gravi labore, serviant fratribus suis.
However, on solemn days they should wait until after Mass.
In diebus tamen solemnibus usque ad Missas sustineant.
On Sundays, when Matins has finished, the incoming and outgoing weekly servers, should fall on their knees in the oratory, asking all to pray for them.
Intrantes et exeuntes hebdomadarii, in oratorio mox Matutinis finitis, Dominica, omnium genibus provolvantur, postulantes pro se orari.
The one finishing their week should say this verse: Blessed are you, O Lord God, for you have helped me and consoled me.
Egrediens autem de septimana dicat hunc versum: Benedictus es Domine Deus, qui adiuvisti me, et consolatus es me.
This being said three times, let the outgoing [server] receive the blessing.
Quo dicto tertio, accipiat benedictionem egrediens.
The incoming server then follows and says: O God come to my aid, O Lord make haste to help me.
Subsequatur ingrediens et dicat: Deus in adiutorium meum intende, Domine ad adiuvandum me festina.
And this is then repeated three times by all.
Et hoc idem tertio repetatur ab omnibus.
And having received a blessing, let him begin [his service].
Et accepta benedictione, ingrediatur.
Comment
We are now in the practical parts of the Rule. This contains instructions for those doing the cooking and serving at the table. In the later medieval period, the concept of Laybrother was invented to do much of the manual labour - those who were not obligated to sing all the Divine Office every day and were drawn mostly from the lower, often illiterate classes. However when St Benedict was writing his view was that everyone should take part in the manual work involved in running a community.
The traditional monastic communities who survive today still practise this, though sometimes the cooks vary from day to day, to avoid overburdening the monk with a weekly tour of duty. The servers at table, though, are still required, especially in a large community.
Their duties, though not spelled out here, are to serve the food to the brothers who sit at their places in the refectory, collect plates and tidy things away. They may also do some of the washing up. These days, monks may help themselves to some of the meal, though the infirm still need to be cared for. But, for example, a pudding would need to be left in the oven to keep warm and then be served at the monks’ seats.
The servers are allowed some food and drink before the meal, but they will only eat their proper meal after everyone else has finished and left.
The mention of the eucharistic fast here reminds us that all meals were cooked and served, including breakfast. These days it is possible, for example, to cook porridge and make coffee in automated ways with electronic timers, and breakfast is often a smaller meal. A simple meal of bread, butter and marmalade is very much self-service. But in a community which only had two meals per day, the first one would necessarily be bigger than breakfast often constitutes these days.
Monks would wash their hands and sometimes feet before going into choir for the divine office and especially before meals. The medieval monasteries had very large “lavers” for this purpose, sited in the cloister and where they had running water, operated by taps. They were mostly stripped out after the Dissolution of the Monasteries, so all we have left often is the space where they were, such as this one at Whalley Abbey.
Here is a rare survival; an in-situ sink near the door to the chapter house of Ripon cathedral. On the left you can see the hole where the piping was for the water, and in the middle you can see the drain.
The mention of washing the feet and towels of the brethren is something which hasn’t really survived to today, according to my admittedly limited knowledge. Modern laundries in monasteries do what those of us in the world do - throw everything in a washing machine. And washing of feet in a cold climate where everyone wears socks isn’t really a thing. But the mention of it reminds us that even the supremely practical duty of cooking and serving food should be treated as a religious activity, as is seen by the request for God’s grace when beginning the week.