Ezekiel 18:21 – 28 & Matthew 5:20 – 26 The theme of our first reading evokes some of the controversies implicated in the Protestant Reformation concerning faith and good works. Unlike some retirement fund that allows one to stop working and enjoy the fruit of one’s labors, virtues and good works cannot be similarly accumulated […]
A Word from Our Cistercian Fathers
O happy the humility of those who repent; O blessed the hope of those who confess. How mighty you are with the Almighty; how easily you conquer the unconquerable; how quickly you turn the dreadful judge into a devoted father. We have heard today to our great edification of the prodigal son’s sorrowful journey, tearful […]
Fr. James’ Scripture Reflections
Thursday of the 7th WK of the Year: Sirach 1:1-10; Mark 9:14-29 Mark loses no opportunity to underline the coincidence between our faith, and God’s healing power in Jesus. The variant in this episode is the transparency, the honesty and lack of pretension of that human faith. Whose faith is not as deficient as that […]
Saturday of the 6th Week of the Year
We are so used to considering faith primarily as that by which we believe what we cannot yet see or touch. As such, faith relates to something intangible and out of our grasp. However, the Letter to the Hebrews suggests that this perception needs to be qualified. Faith is the realization of what is hoped […]
Fr. James’ Reflection for Monday, February 13
Thursday of the 5th WK of the Year: Genesis 4:1-15, 25; Mark 8:11-14 After such a good start in the Book of Genesis, human affairs rapidly go from bad to worse. Things are not much different in Jesus’ ministry as portrayed by Mark. That it is why it is so important that […]
Fr. James’ Reflection for Thursday, February 9
Thursday of the 5th WK of the Year: Genesis 2:18-25; Mark 7:24-30 This Syrophoenician woman, a pagan, refuses to be sidelined by Jesus. Being as insightful and patient as she is courageous and desperate, she meets Jesus on his own ground, his own logic and opens his eyes to a broader mission than just […]
HOLY WEEK RETREAT HOUSE AVAILABILITY
There are still several openings for those who wish to spend the Sacred Triduum at our Retreat House. Arrival is on Wednesday, April 5 and departure after lunch on Easter Sunday, April 9. Reservations can be made at 540-955-4383 or you can leave a message at information@hcava.org
Fr. James’ Homily for the 5th Sunday
Fifth Sunday, Year A, 5 February, 2023: Isaiah 58:7-10; 1 Corinthians 2:1-5; Matthew 5:33-46 Salt does not choose to be salty nor does light make any effort to shine: it is part of their natures. I believe the problems begin when, hearing this parable, we force ourselves to imitate the salt of the earth […]
Monastery Reopens to the Public
We are happy to announce that the Chapel is once again open to the public. However, please be aware that the monastic community recently experienced an outbreak of Covid in which most of the monks were sick. Although we have recovered, it is well to remember that entering the chapel does place you at some […]
A Word from Our Cistercian Fathers
Let faith be for us, then, like the first day on which we believers are separated from unbelievers, as light from darkness. Let hope be the second day: through it, dwelling in the heavens and through the merits of faith hoping only for things above the heavens, with God urging us on, we are distinguished […]