Abbot's Archives
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August 16th: The Sounds of Silence
For those who may be calling us or trying to leave a voice message, the phones here are down until some time next week, due to repairs underway by the satellite provider we use. It is possible to "leave a message," but in fact the message is not being recorded nor...
August 13th: Summer Rose
Our cloister garden always has roses blooming during the Summer months, and the one in today's photo is in full bloom just hours before the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary celebrated this Thursday, August 15th. One of Mary's most popular titles...
Twentieth Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year B
Scripture Readings: Book of Proverbs 9:1-6; Ephesians 5:15-20; Gospel According to Saint John 6:51-58 This Sunday we hear in the Gospel the concluding section of the Bread of Life discourse. Christ’s proclamation that the new bread from heaven is his own flesh results...
August 9th: Abundant Rains
Of late we have been blessed with rainfall, turning our Chama Canyon and cloister garden, pictured in today's photo, into almost-Irish lush green. It won't last forever, but certainly is being enjoyed for the time being. Another forest fire in Chama Canyon has been...
Nineteenth Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year B
First Book of Kings 19:4-8; Letter to the Ephesians 4:30-5:2; Gospel According to Saint John 6:41-51 Today’s Gospel passage continues the discourse on the Bread of Life from last Sunday. Who is the Bread of Life? Jesus himself, of course. The fact that Jesus claimed...
August 5th: New Pews Now in Place
We are very happy to have eight new pews in the guest section of our monastery church. The pews were produced by the same company in Mexico, EVOS, in San Miguel de Allende, that made our choir stalls for the monks ten years ago. The guest pews match well the design,...
August 1st: Monastery of La Soledad
Last month, from July 13th to the 17th, Abbot Christian was able to be at the Monastery of Our Lady of Solitude (Nuestra Senora de la Soledad), in the State of Guanajuato, Mexico, close to the colonial town of San Miguel de Allende. The monastery property was...
Eighteenth Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year B
Scripture Readings: Book of Exodus 16:2-4, 12-15; Ephesians 4:17, 20-24; Gospel According to Saint John 6:24-35 The essence of the Gospel message, the heart of what Jesus is trying to say to us, might be put in the form of a question. Jesus often used questions in his...
Seventeenth Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year B
We are told in the Gospel today that Jesus “went up the mountain.” Which mountain, we do not actually know, but in any case, the crowds followed him on foot. The setting is outside Jerusalem, on the other side of the so-called Sea of Galilee, that is, the enormous...
July 20th: Anniversary at Santa Maria y Todos Los Santos
On Thursday, July 11th, the Solemnity of our Holy Father Saint Benedict, the monks of the Monastery of Saint Mary and All the Saints (Santa Maria y Todos Los Santos), in the Mexican State of Veracruz, a foundation the Monastery of Christ in Desert, celebrated its...
Sixteenth Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year B
Scripture Readings: Prophet Jeremiah 23:1-6; Ephesians 2:13-18; Gospel According to Saint Mark 6:30-34 The emphasis in the Gospel text this Sunday on Jesus and his disciples going by themselves to an out-of-way place for prayer and rest. It is something that...
Fifteenth Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year B
Scripture Readings: Prophet Amos 7:12-15, Ephesians 1:3-14, Gospel According to Saint Mark 6:7-13 Behind every good sports team or individual athletic competitor there is usually a competent trainer or coach. That person indicates and even insists on what must be done...
July 7th: Easter Lilies in July
Each Spring we plant our Easter lilies in the cloister garden. They usually bloom at least once again in the later Summer or Fall. Some bloom from the previous year or years, such as the one in today's photo. Enough lilies are blooming now that we should be able to...
Solemn Profession on Solemnity of the Sacred Heart
On June 7th, the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, our Father Zachary Nelson made his solemn profession and received the monastic consecration, becoming a permanent member of the chapter of monks of the Monastery of Christ in the Desert. Numerous family and...
Fourteenth Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year B
Scripture Readings: Ezekiel 2:2-5; 2 Corinthians 12:7-10; Gospel According to Saint Mark 6:1-6 The first reading for Mass this Sunday is from the Book of the Prophet Ezekiel, who addressed the people of Israel while they were in forced exile, far from home, around...
Thirteenth Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year B
Scripture Readings: Book of Wisdom 1:13-15; 2:23-24; Paul’s Second Letter to the Corinthians 8:7,9,13-15; Gospel According to Saint Mark 5:21-43 The first reading for this Sunday, from the Book of Wisdom, was written about 100 years before the birth of Christ and...
Twelfth Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year B
Scripture Texts: Job 38: 1, 8-11; 2 Corinthians 5:14-17; Gospel According to Saint Mark 4:35-41 We might all agree that in daily life there are circumstances, events and realities that make us feel happy or joyful: getting a vacation, for example, or seeing old...
Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B
Scripture Readings: Ezekiel 17:22-24; Second Corinthians 5:6-10; Mark 4:21-34 Of late we have been celebrating a number of festive Sundays: Pentecost, Holy Trinity, Corpus Christi, as well as “non-Sunday” ones, such as the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate...
Summer Newsletter Monastery of Christ in the Desert 2024
FAITH OVER DOUBT What is doubt? Another word for the concept is uncertainty or unresolved questions. Who of us doesn’t doubt sometimes or often? Questions such as: will my health hold out and will I be able to keep this job if it doesn’t?; how will my children end...
Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of the Lord, “Corpus Christi,” Year B
Scripture Readings: Book of Exodus 24:3-8; Letter to the Hebrews 9:11-15; Gospel According to Saint Mark 14:12-16, 22-26 On the night before giving His life on the cross, Jesus instituted the Eucharist, the gift of his Body and Blood, in the form of bread and wine, as...
"Let everyone that comes be received as Christ."
— The Rule of St. Benedict
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