Quick Facts

• Born: c 480 CE (twins); Scholastica died: c. 543 CE; Benedict died: c 547

• Scholastica founded the Benedictine order of nuns after her brother founded the order of monks

• Scholastica's feast day is Feb. 10; Benedict's is July 11

Sts. Benedict and Scholastica, Twins

St. Benedict is one of those important people we do not know much about. His name is celebrated throughout the Catholic world, most notably in the schools and hospitals established by the sisters and monks who live according to his famous Rule. His role as patron of Europe is rightly recognized when we honor his followers who preserved civilization in challenging times cruce, libro et atro—with cross, book, and plow. But Benedict the person is not well known. Many admirers do not even know he was a twin.

Most of the details of Benedict’s life come from the Dialogues of Pope Gregory the Great, written about fifty years after the death of the saint. In nearly forty chapters, Gregory narrates the adventures, trials, and tribulations that shaped Benedict’s remarkable life, including miracles, battles with the devil, and even assassination plots, not to mention the fall of the Roman empire. In one chapter, Gregory relates a story about Benedict’s twin sister, Scholastica. We learn a lot about someone when we learn about their family.

St. Scholastica reminds us that just a single act of clever love can earn you a place in world history. The story Gregory tells comes from the last phase of Benedict’s sixty-seven years. Evidently Scholastica pursued a life of intentional spiritual progress just like her sibling. For both of them it was a down-to-earth kind of spirituality, which meant they were quite busy, especially with the day-to-day obligations of maintaining the health and harmony of growing communities.

Once a year, sister and brother would take a break from their responsibilities and meet to enjoy each other’s company. Gregory describes a particular visit that ran right up to sundown. Benedict, exhibiting what Freud might have called an overly developed superego, insisted he had to go, despite Scholastica’s pleas for him to stay and relax. His still fledgling community, he feared, might lapse into chaos if he did not make it back to keep an eye on it.

Scholastica had other ideas. According to Gregory, she ignored her brother’s fixation on his own importance and started quietly to pray. Clouds darkened the sky, the wind picked up, and torrential rain began to pound the countryside. Benedict got the message and continued his talk with his sister all through the night. Neither of them knew it was their last time together. Scholastica died three days later.

Gregory’s book celebrates Benedict as a peerless spiritual athlete and hero of the church, almost a second founder of Christianity. But like all saints, the pope admits, Benedict was far from perfect. In this instance, he said, Scholastica proved mightier than her brother: “Hers was the greater love.”

-Dr. Peter Huff, Chief Mission Officer

See Pope St. Gregory the Great, Life and Miracles of St. Benedict, trans. Odo J. Zimmerman and Benedict R. Avery (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press).