Mass Readings: Acts 4: 32-35; Philippians 4:4-9; John 17,: 20-26 The whole Church, not just our Cistercian Order or the larger Benedictine family, celebrates the feast of St. Benedict today. Because his monastic Rule influenced the entire continent of Europe during those desperate centuries called the “dark ages”, the Church honors Saint Benedict as the special patron of […]
Abbot Robert’s Homily for the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus
The Church has always nourished its life on the personal revelations given by the Spirit to chosen souls. The first we encounter was Saint Stephen the protomartyr; he saw the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God. A witness to Stephen’s stoning was later to have his own […]
Abbey Calendar on the Way
Now don’t buy your 2015 calendar at Staples or Office Depot because the new, beautiful…stunning really…Holy Cross Abbey Desk Calendar will be published soon. Based on the Liturgical Calendar running from Advent to Advent (November ’14-November ’15) the Abbey edition is designed to serve both as a reminder of the beauty of the HCA through […]
Br. Barnabas Brownsey, 5 January, 1934 to 16 June, 2014
Lawrence Joseph Brownsey, the future Br. Barnabas, was born to Lawrence and Mary Kathleen Brownsey in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on 5 January, 1934. The Depression was gripping the country and even when he was old enough to remember, he recalled his mother helping to support the family as a cook to the well to do in the environs […]
Abbot Robert’s Homily for Br. Stephen’s Funeral
To each of you here today at this Mass for our Brother Stephen, to you who are Brother Stephen’s family–and those who cannot be here with you; to you Betty and Sister Rosemary, Brother Stephen’s two sisters, and to E.J. and Berta, to Frank and Marian and your families, I offer you the sympathy and […]
Br. Stephen Maguire 10 October, 1929-27 May, 2014
Brother Stephen was born and baptized William Joseph Maguire, Jr., the second of six children born to Martha Kelly Maguire and William J. Maguire. A few years after his birth in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, the family moved to Northern Virginia. Br. Stephen grew up in Falls Church. When he was the Abbey’s Bakery Manager, I remember him […]
24 May, 2014, Lay Cistercians Reaffirm Their Commitment
The Lay Cistercians of Holy Cross Abbey are observing their annual retreat at the Abbey this weekend. On Saturday, after Midday Prayer, the professed members of the group gathered in the monastic choir to re-affirm their original promises. This is not a ceremony like the renewal of vows–the promise that each had made at profession is […]
Humility According to the Rule of St. Benedict, Part Eight
When we celebrated Holy Thursday, I believe that we reached the culmination of the meaning of humility in the life of the monk. The Rule’s teaching on humility reflects Gospel humility and that, of course, is best found in the example of Jesus Christ. The Holy Thursday’s liturgy crystalizes his humility in the Gospel and action […]
Reflections on the New Evangelization
From a Chapter Talk by Abbot Robert When St. John Paul II announced the Jubilee of the Third Millennium in 2000, he proclaimed a new evangelization. His diminishing health slowed down the thrust of his promulgation which he had hoped to promote. Just a year and a half ago, Pope Benedict XVI called the Synod […]
Humility According to the Rule of St. Benedict, Part Seven
I began these reflections on humility exploring what the Fear of the Lord is and what it isn’t. In essence that is the First Step of Humility that St. Benedict mentions in Chapter Seven of his Rule. Today I’d like to introduce the Biblical image of the Shekinah, the overshadowing presence of God. In the Lenten […]