The community Mass will be celebrated at 11:00 AM; Abbot Robert Barnes will preside and preach. It is a non-workday and we follow the Sunday schedule.
This Wednesday we celebrate the Solemnity of St. Benedict, known as the Father of Latin Monasticism and the the Patron of Europe. You may find more information on St. Benedict on this Website, especially under “Monastic Life”. St. Benedict synthesized monastic values from the eremitical (hermit) tradition, as interpreted by the Latin writer John Cassian and the cenobitic (communal) tradition of St. Basil the Great. St. Benedict’s spirituality, as described in his Rule, is also influenced by St. Cyprian’s treatise on the Lord’s Prayer and the writings of St. Augustine of Hippo (especially his Rule for communal life). His Rule for Monasteries became normative for Western Monasticism in the Ninth Century under Louis the Pious, the son of Charlemagne. As such it became a vehicle for preserving and propagating civilization throughout Europe.
For monks and nuns, however, the Rule is an inestimable resource of experiential wisdom for living the Gospel in community. Benedictine spirituality and discipline has inspired lay people, as well as monastics, for many centuries. For Benedictines, Camaldolese and Cistercians, the Solemnity of St. Benedict is the great celebration of our common vocation.