Christmas Eve, Sunday, 24 December, 2017: 10:00 AM: Mass of the Fourth Sunday of Advent, Year B 5:30 PM: First Vespers of the Nativity of the Lord (followed by Benediction of the Most Blessed Sacrament) 7:45-8:15 PM: Recital of Christmas Carols by Madeline MacNeil in Cool Spring House (the Mansion) 8:30 PM: Vigils and Christmas […]
Fr. James Homily for the Second Sunday of Advent, Year B, 10 December, 2017
Readings: Isaiah 40:1-5, 9-11; 2 Peter 3:8-14; Mark 1:1-8 Faced with my favorite passage from Isaiah and the opening of Mark’s Gospel, which always moves me, I was wondering where to begin. There’s too much richness here. What jumped at me from both readings was the desert setting; would anyone else describe these passages as […]
Dom Joseph’s Homily for the First Sunday of Advent, 3 December, 2017
Readings: Isaiah 63:16-17, 64:1, 3-8; 1 Corinthians 1:3-9; Mark 13:33-37 If you’ve ever received a speeding fine, you will know that the reason you were caught was because the State Trooper had cleverly hidden his vehicle so that by the time you saw it, it was too late. This same sense of entrapping us in […]
Round fruitcakes nearly sold out, but plenty of loaf cakes
If you are coming to the Gift Shop specifically to get the traditional, larger, 2.25 lb round fruitcake, you might want to come sooner rather than later, as the Gift Shop expects to sell out of that size over the coming weekend. If the Gift Shop does sell out and you strongly prefer to have […]
Friday, 8 December, 2017, The Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of Mary, the Mother of God
Readings: Genesis 3:9-15, 20; Ephesians 1:3-6, 11-12; Luke 1:26-38 The community Mass will be celebrated at 10:00 AM, Fr. Vincent Collins presiding and preaching. It is a Holy Day of Obligation and the Patronal Feast of the United States. It is a non-work day for the monastic community and we follow the Sunday schedule with […]
Sunday, 3 December, 2017, The First Sunday of Advent, Year B
Readings: Isaiah 63:16-17, 64:1, 3-8; 1 Corinthians 1:3-9; Mark 13:33-37 The community Mass will be celebrated at 10:00 AM, Dom Joseph Wittstock presiding and preaching. This Sunday inaugurates the new Liturgical Year and is the First Sunday of the Month; the monthly Eucharistic Adoration begins at 4:00 PM and concludes with Benediction of the Most […]
A Word From The Cistercian Fathers For December
Anyone who wishes to pray must choose not only the right place but also the right time. A time of leisure is best and most convenient, the deep silence when others are asleep is particularly suitable, for prayer will be freer and purer. Arise at the first watch of the night and pour out your […]
New icon of Our Lady
Recent and upcoming additions to our newly renovated chapel include the new Icon of Our Lady the new altar, installed in September (you can follow the link for more details) and a bell tower, coming soon! Every Abbey church of our Order is dedicated to the Virgin Mary, Mother of God. This is reflected in […]
Fr. James’ Homily for Christ the King
Readings: Ezekiel 34:11-12, 15-17; 1 Corinthians 15:20-26,28; Matthew 25:31-46 Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or ill or in prison and not minister to your needs? This is the response of those rejected by the Son of Man. You see, they are do-gooders, they are not criminals. […]
Dom Joseph’s Homily for Thanksgiving Day, 23 November, 2017
Readings: Sirach 50:22-24; 1 Corinthians 1:3-9; Luke 17:11-19 Every year we dedicate this fourth Thursday in November to Thanksgiving and this might suggest to some that we neglect giving thanks for the rest of the year. And there is a sense in which this is true: ingratitude is something we are all guilty of and […]