Abbey retreat – May 18- 22
There is an old expression that goes something like “it’s the Retreat Director that you remember.” This is certainly true as we remember a very good friend of the abbey, Abbot Christopher Jamison OSB, of Worth Abbey, England who conducted our spring retreat. He was able to make some very old material very relevant. Cassian was a monastic writer of the 2nd and 3rd century who wrote with common sense and a keen insight into human nature as he provided guidance for the monks of his age. Abbot Christopher led us through Cassian’s seven monastic sins in juxtaposition with the seven sacraments. Sometimes looking at the familiar with a new perspective makes all the difference in the world.
Retreat time is also a great time to see our brothers assigned outside the monastery and get caught up on the news. The abbot uses this time to speak to the whole community about present and future issues of importance.
Certainly a very special event took place on Thursday, May 21 as our Br. Pachomius Meade was ordained to the priesthood. It was a great day for his family and the monastic family to celebrate this special call to service. Fr. Pachomius will be busy with weekend assignments in our area parishes throughout the summer along with his summer assignment to the Printery House. He will be assigned to the seminary in the fall.
Infirmary renovation in full swing
As this column is being written the demolition work is raising a lot of dust and noise in St. Stephen’s Infirmary. The walls are being removed to make way for the new floor plans, as well as heating and cooling system changes. Asbestos removal is also a major factor in the demolition. While there will be only slight changes on the exterior of the building, our monks living in temporary quarters in the monastery will find a very different infirmary when they move back, perhaps in December around Christmas.
Season for retreats:
A good number of the monks have commitments to conduct group retreats in the course of the summer. Abbot Gregory, Fr. Patrick, and Fr. Xavier have already completed some of the retreats with several still to go before the end of the summer and the beginning of the school year.
Far Flung Assignments:
For the second year in a row Fr. Albert has been assigned to the Oklahoma City diocese for the summer. He has a special assignment to assist the diocese in the process of gathering testimony concerning the life and holiness of Fr. Stanley Rother, a missionary priest of the Oklahoma City Diocese who died a martyr’s death in Guatemala, July 28, 1981. This summer Fr. Albert will travel to Guatemala in order to interview those who knew and remember this heroic and dedicated young priest.Fr. Isaac True has been given a four week break from pastoral duties at his small rural parish at Bethany to serve the cloistered Benedictine Sisters of Regina Laudis in Connecticut.
Fr. Frowin Reed has begun his two year course of theological studies in Rome beginning with a month of intensive Italian studies at the monastery of Norcia in Italy. This will be a very challenging as well as rewarding experience for him.
Summer HeatAs we pass through the month of June we can wonder what the rest of the summer holds for us. The many days of rain at the beginning of the month morphed into many days of above average temperatures. We can only hope and pray that our local farming communities can find their usual resilience in dealing with the forces of nature and the economic stresses of the time.