In a world dominated by distorted values that lead to war and destroy the environment, a return to practicing Benedictine spirituality could preserve the planet for future generations, said Benedictine Sister Joan Chittister.

"The reality is that our world has knowledge and technology aplenty, but lacks wisdom and spirituality," said Sister Chittister, author of more than 30 books and a columnist for National Catholic Reporter.

She recently visited Southern California from Erie, Pa., to lead a day-long workshop at the St. Joseph Center Auditorium in Orange Nov. 17. More than 350 people --- the majority religious women --- attended the event which was co-sponsored by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Orange and St. Mary Episcopal Church in Laguna Beach.

A prolific nun who doesn't mince words, Sister Chittister spoke with the urgency of ancient Old Testament prophets and deploring the failures of U.S. foreign policies. Calling the United States "a rogue superpower," Sister Chittister chided the U.S. government for spending more than 50 percent of its general budget in 2007 on defense and war when the world's women and children cry out for food, education, healthcare and peace.

"The U.S. spends three times the amount on defense every year than the combined annual defense spending of Russia, China, Cuba, North Korea, Iran, Iraq, Libya and Syria --- and from what is it saving us?" questioned Sister Chittister.

She noted the irony of the U.S. selling arms around the world --- to its friends and to its enemies. "Eighty-five percent of the arms are provided by five members of the U.N. Security Council and the United States provides 48 percent of those," said Sister Chittister.

The tragedy is that wars increasingly hurt civilians, she said, noting that while World War I casualties were about 15 percent civilian, today's war casualties are about 75 percent civilian. Iraqi civilians, she said, have suffered the most in the current war.

"Your tax dollars are killing women and children," said Sister Chittister.

She challenged the fear that keeps Americans from dismantling the military-industrial complex, oftentimes because of concerns that the country is too economically dependent on arms manufacturing.

One billion dollars spent on the production of guided missiles creates about 9,000 jobs, she said. "If we spent the same amount of money on pollution control, however, it would create 16,000 jobs," asserted Sister Chittister. "If we spent $1 billion in local transit, it would create 21,000 jobs. And if we spent that billion dollars on educational services it would create 63,000 jobs."

But, she added, imagining a more hopeful future for the planet will entail letting go of corrupted values that drive modern society --- such as profit, personal comfort, exploitation, control, individualism and domination.

To create an alternative vision Sister Chittister delved into the life of St. Benedict of Nursia, the sixth century visionary who created the first Catholic religious order during a time when Rome was in chaos. The saint, she said, shaped a spirituality based on "creative work, holy leisure, wise stewardship, loving community, humility and a commitment to peace." The impact of his spirituality and the spreading of his ideas ultimately helped to preserve the best of European culture, said Sister Chittister.

St. Benedict's value in creative work comes from God's word, she said.

"Scripture tells us that our very purpose in life is to take responsibility for the co-creation of the world," said Sister Chittister. "Work is our gift to the world. It is our work that ties us to the rest of humankind and binds us to the future.

The purpose of holy leisure, added Sister Chittister, is to give people the time to evaluate the goodness of their work similar to how God reflected on the goodness of creation. "Contemplation is the ability to see the world as God sees the world," she said.

Wise stewardship, she added, entails awareness of the impact of consumption on the environment and a commitment to "sacred care" of the earth's resources.

Community also is a Benedictine value, said Sister Chittister. "Benedictine community calls for an open mind and an open heart. It calls for inclusion of differences, the enlargement of our comfort zones and the commitment to making strangers our friends," she said. "A commitment to the development of global community is the leadership needed in the new millennium."

Humility, she added, is the basis for union with God. "To live well in this world, we must steep ourselves in the mind of God. We must ask what God wants for the world, rather than simply what we want for our private, personal selves."

In response to the ongoing war in Iraq, Sister Chittister urged women to link themselves with groups involved with peacemaking.

"We have to let Arab women know that we are Christians and that they are not our enemy, and we have no desire to be their enemy," she told The Tidings. "We have to let Muslim women know that we do realize that they are suffering. Ask them what they want and what they need. In other words, what the government won't do, women can begin to do."