Caput XI. Operetur manibus, ornetur verecundia.
Work, Modesty, and the Recluse's Speech
The recluse is urged to work for necessity and charity, and to adorn every movement and word with modesty that restrains the tongue and avoids dishonorable speech.
So work at the things that either necessity requires or usefulness recommends, and let what you earn from them go to your own needs; but if you have no need of them, give the proceeds either to the church or to the poor, as we have said. Let modesty also adorn all your movements and all your words — that modesty which holds the tongue in check, softens anger, and avoids quarrels. How right it is to feel shame and to speak honorably of honorable things! And yet what great shamelessness it is for a recluse to speak dishonorable words — even if provoked by injuries or stirred up by fury!
Read the original Latin
Operare proinde ea, quae vel necessitas poscit, vel praescribit utilitas, et eorum pretium tuis usibus cedat, quibus si non egueris, aut necessaria ecclesiae, aut pauperibus, sicut diximus, tribuas. Ornet etiam omnes motus, omnes sermones inclusae, verecundia, quae linguam compescat, iram mitiget, jurgia caveat. Quam enim pudere decet honeste honesta loqui; quantae impudentiae est, ut inhonesta, licet lacessita injuriis aut stimulata furore, loquatur?
De institutione inclusarum (A Rule of Life for a Recluse) companion
A rule only lives if you keep it daily
Chosen Portion gives your new rule its anchor: one free devotional portion every day.
Aelred built his sister's day around fixed times of prayer and meditation; Chosen Portion supplies the fixed daily portion that makes a modern rule of life keepable.
- Anchor your rule with a fixed 10-minute daily portion
- Practice Aelred's threefold meditation with guided daily prompts
- Review and adjust your one-page rule after 30 days of tracked practice