In his Second Dialogue, the earliest notice we have of the life of Benedict of Nursia, Pope Gregory the Great (590–604) concludes his tale of miracles and wonders with a simple direction: “Anyone who wishes to know more about [Benedict’s] life and character can discover in his Rule exactly what he was like as an abbot, for his life could not have differed ¶ from his teaching.” Nevertheless, as biographical sources, both the Second Dialogue, written a halfcentury after Benedict’s death, and the Rule itself, require caution.

One reason Benedict’s life is not noticed in contemporary …