Conception Abbey
Conception, Missouri

Tower Topics ~ Fall 2006

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Seminary unveils new crest

by Father Samuel Russell, OSB

Conception Seminary College has a new crest and motto; in fact, they are firsts for the seminary.

While abbots of Conception have had personal crests and mottos, and a crest was designed for the basilica when it was raised to the dignity of a minor basilica in 1940, the abbey and school have never had either. In the previous two academic years, the desire that the seminary have a crest surfaced in the Community Council, our student government. After a fair bit of research and experimentation, we finally settled on a design and motto.

The elements of the crest have two sources: the 1940 Abbey Basilica crest and the seal of the Abbey and Seminary Library that was created in the mid-1950s. In the lower section is a rendition of the Abbey Basilica, signifying the centrality of prayer at CSC. The mountain upon which the Basilica stands can be taken to represent Conception’s Alpine roots in our Swiss motherhouse, Engelberg. The fleur-de-lis is a symbol of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The upper section contains a moon and twelve stars, taken from the twelfth chapter of the Book of Revelation and traditionally interpreted as representing the Blessed Virgin, the woman having the moon under her feet and twelve stars around her head.

The letter M represents Mary. The well-known Chi-Rho, the first two Greek letters in the appellation “Christ,” represents Jesus. Notice that the Chi-Rho rests on the M, signifying that Jesus was born of Mary. It seems a fitting crest for a community dedicated to the Work of God (Opus Dei) under the patronage of Mary.

The motto-which is meant to be the seminary’s bottom line or basic program-is Caritas Christi urget nos, or “The Love of Christ Impels Us.” This is taken from 2 Corinthians 5:14-15: “For the love of Christ impels us, once we have come to the conviction that one died for all; therefore, all have died. He indeed died for all, so that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.”

Pope Benedict cites this passage in his encyclical Deus Caritas Est and comments on it thus: “The consciousness that, in Christ, God has given himself for us, even unto death, must inspire us to live no longer for ourselves but for him, and, with him, for others. Whoever loves Christ loves the Church, and desires the Church to be increasingly the image and instrument of the love which flows from Christ.” That’s a pretty good program for a seminary, if you ask me!

We welcome your comments:
communications@conception.edu
www.conceptionabbey.org

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