Benedictine Symbols and Traditions
The Medal of St. Benedict
For the early Christians, the Cross was a symbol and badge of their faith in Christ. From the writings of St. Gregory the Great (540-604), we know that St. Benedict had a deep faith in the Cross and worked miracles with the sign of the Cross. This faith in, and special devotion to, the Cross was passed on to succeeding generations of Benedictines.
Devotion to the Cross of Christ also gave rise to the striking of medals that bore the image of St. Benedict holding a cross aloft in his right hand and his Rule for Monasteries in the other hand. Thus, the Cross has always been closely associated with the Medal of St. Benedict, which is often referred to as the Medal-Cross of St. Benedict.
In the course of time, other additions were made, such as the Latin petition on the margin of the medal, asking that by St. Benedict's presence we may be strengthened in the hour of death, as will be explained later.
It is not known when the first medal of St. Benedict was struck. At some point in history a series of capital letters was placed around the large figure of the cross on the reverse side of the medal. For a long time the meaning of these letters was unknown, but in 1647, a manuscript dating back to 1415 was found at Metten Abbey in Bavaria, giving an explanation of the letters—the initial letters of a Latin prayer of exorcism against Satan.
Medal Obverse
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On the back of the medal, the cross is dominant. On the arms of the cross are the initial letters of a rhythmic Latin prayer: Crux sacra sit mihi lux! Nunquam draco sit mihi dux! (May the holy cross be my light! May the dragon never be my guide!).
In the angles of the cross, the letters C S P B stand for Crux Sancti Patris Benedicti (The cross of our holy father Benedict).
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Above the cross is the word pax (peace), that has been a Benedictine motto for centuries. Around the margin of the back of the medal, the letters V R S N S M V - S M Q L I V B are the initial letters, as mentioned above, of a Latin prayer of exorcism against Satan: Vade retro Satana! Nunquam suade mihi vana! Sunt mala quae libas. Ipse venena bibas! (Begone Satan! Never tempt me with your vanities! What you offer me is evil. Drink the poison yourself!)
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There is no special way prescribed for carrying or wearing the Medal of St. Benedict. It can be worn on a chain around the neck, attached to one's rosary, kept in one's pocket or purse, or placed in one's car or home. The medal is often put into the foundations of houses and building, on the walls of barns and sheds, or in one's place of business.
The purpose of using the medal in any of the above ways is to call down God's blessing and protection upon us, wherever we are, and upon our homes and possessions, especially through the intercession of St. Benedict. By the conscious and devout use of the medal, it becomes, as it were, a constant silent prayer and reminder to us of our dignity as followers of Christ.
The medal is a prayer of exorcism against Satan, a prayer for strength in time of temptation, a prayer for peace among ourselves and among the nations of the world, a prayer that the Cross of Christ be our light and guide, a prayer of firm rejection of all that is evil, a prayer of petition that we may with Christian courage "walk in God's ways, with the Gospel as our guide," as St. Benedict urges us.
A profitable spiritual experience can be ours if we but take the time to study the array of inscriptions and representations found on the two sides of the medal. The lessons found there can be pondered over and over to bring true peace of mind and heart into our lives as we struggle to overcome the weaknesses of our human nature and realize that our human condition is not perfect, but that with the help of God and the intercession of the saints our condition can become better.
The Medal of St. Benedict can serve as a constant reminder of the need for us to take up our cross daily and "follow the true King, Christ our Lord," and thus learn "to share in his heavenly kingdom," as St. Benedict urges us in the Prologue of his Rule.
Medal Reverse — The Jubilee Medal
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This medal’s features were incorporated in a newly designed medal struck in 1880 under the supervision of the monks of Montecassino, Italy, to mark the 1400th anniversary of the birth of St. Benedict. The design of this medal was produced at St. Martin's Archabbey, Beuron, Germany, at the request of the prior of Montecassino, Very Rev. Boniface Krug O.S.B. (1838-1909). Prior Boniface was a native of Baltimore and originally a monk of St. Vincent Archabbey, Latrobe, Pennsylvania, until he was chosen to become prior and latter archabbot of Montecassino.
Since that time, the Jubilee Medal of 1880 has proven to be more popular throughout the Christian world than any other medal ever struck to honor St. Benedict.
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On the face of the medal is the image of Saint Benedict. In his right hand he holds the cross, the Christian's symbol of salvation. The cross reminds us of the zealous work of evangelizing and civilizing England and Europe carried out mainly by the Benedictine monks and nuns, especially for the sixth to the ninth/tenth centuries.
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In St. Benedict's left hand is his Rule for Monasteries that could well be summed up in the words of the Prologue exhorting us to "walk in God's ways, with the Gospel as our guide." On a pedestal to the right of St. Benedict is the poisoned cup, shattered when he made the sign of the cross over it. On a pedestal to the left is a raven about to carry away a loaf of poisoned bread that a jealous enemy had sent to St. Benedict.
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Above the cup and the raven are the Latin words: Crux s. patris Benedicti (The Cross of our holy father Benedict). On the margin of the medal, encircling the figure of Benedict, are the Latin words: Eius in obitu nostro praesentia muniamur! (May we be strengthened by his presence in the hour of our death!). Benedictines have always regarded St. Benedict as a special patron of a happy death. He himself died in the chapel at Montecassino while standing with his arms raised up to heaven, supported by the brothers of the monastery, shortly after St. Benedict had received Holy Communion.
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Below Benedict we read: ex SM Casino MDCCCLXXX (from holy Monte Cassino, 1880). This is the medal struck to commemorate the 1400th anniversary of the birth of Saint Benedict.
St. Maurus Healing the Sick by Francesco Solimena, 18th century
St. Maurus Blessing
St. Maurus was a monk and protégé of St. Benedict. The son of a Roman nobleman, young Maurus entered the monastery at Subiaco, at about the age of 12. Another, younger boy, Placidus, entered the monastery sometime around then as well. In those days, it was not uncommon for parents to offer their children as “oblates” to a monastery where the boys would be given a sound education intellectually and morally. This was the case with Maurus and Placidus, whose families placed them under the care of St. Benedict.
The First Miracle of St. Maurus
In his book, The Life of Benedict, Pope St. Gregory the Great gives an account of St. Benedict’s life based on testimony of monks who actually lived with St. Benedict. Most notably, these included Constantinus, who succeeded St. Benedict as Abbot of Monte Cassino and Honoratus, the Abbot of Subiaco at the time when St. Gregory wrote about Benedict. In Chapter Seven, he tells of how Brother Maurus saved the young Placidus from drowning:
“…as Benedict was in his cell, young Placidus, the holy man’s monk, went out to take up water at the lake, and, putting down his pail carelessly, fell in after it. The water forthwith carried him away from the land as far as one may shoot an arrow. The man of God, being in his cell, by and by knew this. He called in haste for Maurus, saying: ‘Brother Maurus, run as fast as you can, for Placidus, who went to the lake to fetch water, has fallen in, and is carried a good way off.'”
Brother Maurus rushed post-haste, to the lake and ran out to Placid, grabbing him by the hair of his head and pulling him to safety. Apparently, Maurus thought that he had been running on land. Actually, though, he had run across the water of the lake. This, he determined after dragging young Placid to safety. St. Maurus attributed the miracle to St. Benedict’s intervention, and St. Benedict, a master of humility himself, attributed it to the humility and obedience of St. Maurus. Placid, for his part, recalled seeing the Abbot’s (Benedict’s) garment on his head at the time of the rescue, pointing to St. Benedict’s involvement, together with that of St. Maurus, in his rescue.
Foundations of the Blessing of St. Maurus
Of course, the rescue of Placidus from the lake represents just one of many miracles attributed to St. Maurus’ intercession. Through the sign of the cross and prayers, the blessing of St. Maurus healed numerous other people afflicted with ills and injuries over the years. One such healing from the blessing of St. Maurus involved a mute and crippled boy whose parents beseeched the Deacon Maurus for aid. Maurus made the sign of the Cross over him, telling him, in the name of the Holy Trinity, and through the intercession of Benedict, to rise, stand up and be cured. With that, the boy rose and began walking around, praising God for all to hear.
Similarly, the blessing of St. Maurus cured a badly injured priest who had fallen headlong down a long staircase at Monte Cassino. In this incident, Deacon Maurus utilized a relic of the true cross from the altar at the abbey. Exposing the relic, Maurus made the sign of the cross and prayed over the priest’s terribly injured arm and shoulder. Upon Maurus’ completion of his prayer, the priest’s arm healed miraculously, although they initially thought they would have to amputate it.
The Blessing of St. Maurus
Many other miraculous healings occurred through the blessing of St. Maurus over the years, through the use of the sign of the cross and the relic of the true cross. Because of this, the custom of blessing the ill with a relic of the true cross and an approved blessing of St. Maurus continued on. However, a relic of the true cross often is hard to come by. Therefore, in 1959 the Sacred Congregation of Rites approved the use of the Medal of St. Benedict in place of a relic of the true cross for the blessing, with the following form of blessing.