Seventy years ago, today, the founding monks of Holy Cross Abbey arrived in Virginia from our Motherhouse in Massachusetts. We were founded at a time when great numbers of young men were entering our monasteries. Indeed, our founding was a consequence of this happy phenomenon that stands in such marked contrast to the smaller numbers of men and women seeking entrance into our monasteries. However, the ebb and flow of monastic vocations is not something new to monasticism—as the long history of the Cistercian Order shows.
The celebration of this milestone in our history is, like so much else, being impacted by COVID-19 and will be a simple monastic occasion—assisted by a contingent of our Sisters from Our Lady of the Angels Monastery (Crozet) who are joining us for the celebration. But please join us in prayerful thanksgiving for the many graces and blessings that God has showered on this community these last seventy years. May we continue to respond to God’s grace and mercy calling us to the fullness of Life in the Joy of the Spirit—the same Spirit that overshadowed and filled Our blessed Mother, Our Lady of the Holy Cross.
