[A blessed Solemnity of the Passing of Our Holy Father Benedict to you all. The passage below is from chapter thirty-seven of Book Two of the Dialogues of Saint Gregory. It is interesting that whereas Saint Gregory’s account of Saint Benedict’s life teems with instances of miracle and visions, the Rule of Saint Benedict reflects none of this. Instead, it is about moderation and being open to the grace of living an ordinary life with extraordinary fervor. Saint Benedict, pray for us.]
In the year that was to be his last, the man of God foretold the day of his holy death to a number of his disciples. In mentioning it to some who were with him in the monastery, he bound them to strict secrecy. Some others, however, who were stationed elsewhere he only informed of the special sign they would receive at the time of his death.
Six days before he died, he gave orders for his tomb to be opened. Almost immediately he was seized with a violent fever that rapidly wasted his remaining energy. Each day his condition grew worse until finally, on the sixth day, he had his disciples carry him into the chapel where he received the Body and Blood of our Lord to gain strength for his approaching end. Then, supporting his weakend body on the arms of his brethren, he stood with his hands raised to heaven and, as he prayed, breathed his last.
That day two monks, one of them at the monastery, the other some distance away, received the very same revelation. They both saw a magnificent road covered with rich carpeting and glittering with thousands of lights. From his monastery it stretched eastward in a straight line until it reached up into heaven. And there in the brightness stood a man of majestic appearance, who asked them, “Do you know who passed this way?”
“No,” they replied.
“This, he told them, is the road taken by blessed Benedict, the Lord’s beloved, when he went to heaven.”
Thus, while the brethren who were with Benedict witnessed his death, those who were absent knew about it through the sign he had promised them. His body was laid to rest in the Chapel of St. John the Baptist, which he had built to replace the altar of Apollo.
St. Benet Biscop Chapter of St. John's Oblates 