Two books were always displayed at the medieval bishops' synods
and meetings of the Reicherat of the Holy Roman Empire: the
Bible and the Rule of St Benedict. Promoted actively by Emperor
Charlemagne (742—814), the Rule was accepted throughout Europe
as a guide for Christian conduct, and still today committed
Christians around the world use it as a guide to godly life. The
Rule, comprising seventy-three chapters, was originally
conceived as a code to govern the everyday lives of monks.
Regulating monastic life in astonishing detail, it even
admonishes monastery cellarers to serve their fellow monks "the
proper amount of food and drink" without "treating them with
condescension or keeping them waiting". The humanity which is
apparent in every part of the Rule and its quiet, almost
democratic, tone guaranteed its success. In fact, it became the
model Rule of conduct for monks and monasteries in other Orders
too — and, today, the Rule is still observed in a number of
recently established Benedictine monasteries