The Benedictine Handbook is a lifelong companion for oblates, associates, and friends of the Benedictine communities. Many people who visit communities for retreats and quiet days look for help in integrating into their daily lives some of the things they see and experience. This handbook will help people follow the Rule of Benedict as it explains the essential elements of Benedictine spirituality. It provides information on the spread of the Benedictine movement, its outstanding figures, and the main branches of the Benedictine family today. It also includes a simple version of the Daily Office and a collection of Benedictine devotions. It is a "member's handbook" that deepens the sense of belonging among those who seek regular contact with a Benedictine community.

The Benedictine Handbook will appeal to a broad range of readers who may or may not be familiar with Benedictine literature. The contributors to The Benedictine Handbook come from Benedictine backgrounds in the United States and Europe.

Chapters and contributors include in Part One: Tools of Benedictine Spirituality “The Work of God,” by Demetrius Dumm; “Lectio Divina,” by Michael Casey; “Prayer,” by Mary Forman; “Work,” by Lauren McTaggart; “Perseverance,” by Kym Harris; “The Vows,” by Richard Yeo; and “Hospitality,” by Kathleen Norris. Part Two: The Benedictine Experience of God includes “A Simple Daily Office,” by Fr. Oswald; “Benedictine Prayers,” by Fr. Anthony; “A Benedictine Who’s Who,” by Robert Atwell; and “Benedictine Holy Places,” by Colman O’Clabaigh. Part Three: Living the Rule includes “In Community,” by Columba Stewart; “In Solitude,” by Maria Boulding; “As Oblates,” by Patrick Phelan; and “In the World,” by Esther de Waal. Part Four: The Benedictine Family includes “A Short History,” by Joe Rippinger; “Benedictine Orders,” by Dominic Milroy; and “The Cistercian Tradition,” by Nivard Kinsella. The contributors to Part Five: A Glossary of Benedictine Terms are Terrence Kardong and Jill Maria Murdy. A Benedictine Handbook also includes “Preface to the Rule,” by Patrick Barry; and “The Rule (Patrick Barry’s Version).”