After nearly two years of patient discernment and prayer our Brother Mark Amaral has come to the realization that he is not called to cloistered Cistercian life. His initial plans are to move to Massachusetts in order to be nearer his family. We are grateful for Mark’s time with us and trust that his stay […]
Reflection on the Memorial of the Queenship of Mary, 22 August, 2018
Readings: Isaiah 9:1-6; Luke 1:26-38 Although it may seem odd in this day and age to refer to Jesus and Mary in terms of royalty–the American fascination with royal weddings notwithstanding–today’s Gospel explains why we’d celebrate the Queenship of Mary. The Angel Gabriel announces to Mary that the Son to be born to her will […]
Solemnity of Saint Bernard
Greatness and littleness seem to be mutually exclusive. Any yet in the spiritual realm, as we know, littleness paradoxically opens us to greatness. Once greatness is achieved, however, littleness must be preserved if true greatness is not to be lost. Bernard, often mistakenly (but understandably) thought to be the founder of our Order, is someone […]
Fr. James’ Homily for the 20th Sunday, Year B
Proverbs 9:3-6; Ephesians 5:15-20; John 6:51-58 This is the fourth Sunday in a row that we’ve been celebrating Chapter Six of John’s Gospel and we are at a breaking point. At first, the crowd he had miraculously fed with a few loaves and fishes were about to make Jesus their king. Now the same people […]
Reflection for Thursday of the 19th Week
Readings Ezekiel 12:1-12; Matthew 18:21-19:1 I don’t think that the first debtor in today’s parable realizes that he’s been forgiven. My suspicion is that he only understands that his strategy was successful. Perhaps he’s the sort of individual who feels he shouldn’t have to suffer the consequences of his choices. I say this because he […]
Abbot Joseph’s Homily for the 19th Sunday of the Year
Saints are spiritual heroes we look up to and yet while they offer encouragement and inspiration they can also be intimidating in their radical commitment to Christ. And so we may find ourselves more inclined to admire rather than emulate them. This is because some of the saints seem to have been fearless, resolute, unwavering, […]
Tuesday of the 19th Week of the Year
The paradox of a scroll tasting sweet to Ezekiel despite being inscribed with lamentation and woe, suggests that it wasn’t the lamentations and woe, per se, that made it sweet, but rather that these were calling God’s rebellious people back to fidelity and friendship. In this sense, all suffering that serves to draw us back […]
Saturday of the 18th Week of the Year
Matthew 17:14-20 A man came up to Jesus, knelt down before him, and said, “Lord, have pity on my son, who is a lunatic and suffers severely; often he falls into fire, and often into water. I brought him to your disciples, but they could not cure him.” Jesus said in reply, “O faithless and […]
Tuesday of the 18th Week of the Year
The fear of failure can be a very inhibiting state of mind that can constrict our lives and interfere with our full human development—both spiritually and psychologically. Peter can serve as a powerful antidote to this fear. Despite several major failures in his life he doesn’t allow fear of further failure deter him. And so […]
Fr. James’ Homily for the Feast of the Transfiguration, 6 August, 2018
Readings: Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14; 2 Peter 1:16-19; Mark 9:2-10 As the days become noticeably shorter, the sun rising and setting further to the south, we celebrate the feast of Christ’s Transfiguration, when the supra-essential light of his divinity transforms the limits of his humanity. This year we celebrate the feast with Saint Mark’s Gospel in […]