Map of Benedict's Italy
Preface
Introduction
Chronology
Medieval biography
Gregory and Benedict
A golden Roman
In a dark time
Family and education
School of rhetoric
Disinheritance and a cracked sifter
Unwanted celebrity
The rock and the bell
Solipsistic hermithood?
Vicovaro and Subiaco
Miracles of lake and spring
A bored monk and bad bread
Turning pagan rites into Monte Cassino
Writing down a little rule
How Benedict heals a boy
Scant bread, scarce olive oil
King Totila's farce
Totila's genuine visit
Greed and a lamp
Impolite pride
Tarracina
The poor and oppressed
Resurrection child
Benedict's final heartaches
Conversation and a cloud
The death of twins
A posthumous touch.