Faithful Response To A Divine Call

When one asks the question, “What is a Sacrament?” the traditional response, often drawn from the Baltimore Catechism, is that a sacrament is “an outward sign instituted by Christ to give grace.” While a Solemn Profession is not counted among the seven sacraments of the Church, it is nonetheless replete with external signs that point to a profound interior reality. Among these are the admonition offered by the Abbot, the singing of the Suscipe (Psalm 119:116 – “Receive me, Lord, as you have promised, and I shall live; do not disappoint me in my hope”), and the initial words of the rite, in which the Abbot proclaims, “Come, my son, hear me. I will teach you the fear of the Lord.” This invocation serves as a key to understanding what the external sign of solemn religious profession communicates: namely, the inward grace of returning to the Father.

On Friday, May 16, 2025, Br. Joachim Conti responded definitively to this call by making his Solemn Profession as a monk of Conception Abbey. After a period of discernment and formation within the monastic community, he committed himself to a lifelong journey of returning to the Father through the complete gift of self. In the presence of his family, friends, seminarians, and monastic confreres, Br. Joachim professed vows of obedience, stability, and fidelity to the monastic way of life (conversatio morum), thus entering permanently into the monastic life of Conception Abbey. This outward commitment is a visible manifestation of his inward resolution to live in continual response to God’s loving invitation.

Though God calls each of us individually to return to Him, this call is never purely private or isolated. The monastic tradition bears witness to the communal dimension of this return. The journey to the Father is one undertaken not alone, but as a community. Br. Joachim, through his generous service and gentle presence, has strengthened this communal bond and supported his fellow monks in their shared pursuit of the heavenly homeland. In his role as Guestmaster, he also extended this hospitality to countless visitors, creating an environment in which they, too, might hear the quiet and tender voice of the Father who calls all His children home.

Br. Joachim’s Solemn Profession stands as a profound testament to God’s grace at work in the human heart and within the life of the Church. His faithful response to the divine call reaffirms the enduring witness of monastic life in the modern world—a life rooted in prayer, community, and continual conversion. As he continues his journey in the monastery, Br. Joachim’s witness encourages all of us to discern anew how we, too, are being called to return to the Father, and to do so with the same courage, humility, and love.

—Br. Boniface Logan, OSB

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