News From the Monastero Di Benedetto In Monte

New Guardians for the monks

 A monk responds to questions about the decision to get dogs

 Q: Why did the monks decide to get dogs?

 A: The idea first arose once we realized how many stray animals, including wild boar, had started coming onto our property. They were especially coming onto our trail that leads to our little hermitage. Sometimes, because we walk at night or in the early, early hours of the morning, some of the monks have had close encounters with wild boars, myself included. It can be a frightening experience because boar can be dangerous. In Italy, there are special kinds of dogs that have been bred for hundreds of years to be guardians and protectors of property and livestock. So it wasn’t that the monastery needed pet dogs; rather, these are animals that can provide a service to the monks in the monastery. 

Q: How have the monks responded to the new “residents”?

 A: They are puppies right now, so everybody smiles when they see them. We’ve set them up in such a way that they don’t interfere with the daily lives of the monks. But this has been good for the puppies, because they are getting to know how the community functions while not being spoiled by the monks. One monk has been charged with the duty of looking after them, but the other monks see them as they go to and from prayers, for example, and when they do, they smile. 

Q: What breed are the dogs?

 A: The breed that we chose is the Maremmano-Abruzzese Sheepdog; it is claimed that it is one of the oldest breeds in the world of dogs. They have been raised here in central Italy for hundreds of years, if not back to the times of the Romans. They are large, white dogs, and they have this guardian, protective instinct built into them. They aren’t attack dogs and they don’t direct sheep, but they protect livestock. They naturally bond with animals or people or property and then they naturally want to protect those things from intruders. They are very smart and independent. 

Q: Is there a particularly Benedictine reason to have dogs? 

A: Monasteries have always aimed to be sacred places where, insofar as possible on earth, the disharmony between Man and Creation wrought by Original Sin is restored to harmony, because monasteries are places where men consecrate themselves to God. So monks really want to take care of their property, to make it look beautiful, to protect it. They want to make their land as fruitful as possible in terms of vegetables, fruits and herbs. In other words, all the things at a monastery should be oriented to serving their Creator. The Canticle of Daniel, the Benedicite, which we pray at Lauds on Sunday mornings, is basically a prayer commanding all living things to bless the Lord. So, in a little way, by having dogs and directing them to protect that part of Creation that is within our walls, as well as to aid us in our lives as monks, we bear witness to a restored Creation, which will only fully come to pass at the consummation of the world.