What most often is called the “the church” or “the choir,” Saint Benedict simply calls “the Oratory,” that is, the place where his monks are to gather throughout the day, every day, to worship God and sing the praises of God in the Divine Office, the “Opus Dei” or the “Work of God,” the Church’s Liturgy of the Hours, as well as the daily Conventual Mass.
Since our 50th anniversary of our founding, celebrated in 2014, our monastic church has been blessed to have beautiful wooden choir stalls, the traditional “furniture” of a monastery’s Oratory, where the monks sit, stand and kneel during the chanting of the Mass and Offices.
While the entire monastic community comes together for Mass and the Divine Office, monks (and guests) are free to arrive early, stay after services or come into church when they wish, simply to pray and to be in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament, perpetually reserved in the tabernacle.
Our monastery church is dedicated to Saint John the Baptist, the “Forerunner of the Lord,” whose major feast is celebrated each year on June 24th. The Monastery of Christ in the Desert began on June 24, 1964, so we look forward to celebrating our 60th anniversary in 2024.
In meantime, be assured of our daily prayers, for all our families, many friends, benefactors and oblates.
In today’s photo, our Brother Isidore, a faithful attendee at all our liturgical gatherings, is pictured in his choir stall, as they are called, in the Monastery Oratory.
Abbot Christian and the monks
