Abbot's Notebook

The Abbot’s Notebook for July 25, 2018 My sisters and brothers in Christ, Blessings to you!  Another quiet week at home is always a gift for me.  Some monks have returned from their family visits and others have gone.  Another postulant has joined the community. ...

The Abbot’s Notebook for July 18, 2018 My sisters and brothers in Christ, Blessings to you!  Another week has gone by.  One of the decisions that I have been praying about is whether to continue to write or not once I am retired.  My resignation as abbot will take...

The Abbot’s Notebook for July 11, 2018 My sisters and brothers in Christ, Blessings to you!  I got home just last night, July 10th, and today is the Solemnity of Saint Benedict, the author of the monastic rule that we follow and the Patriarch of Monasticism in the...

The Abbot’s Notebook for July 4, 2018 My sisters and brothers in Christ, Blessings to you! In the United States the 4th of July is a celebration!  It is our Independence Day.  Patriotism of the right kind can be a wonderful blessing to a country.  Today there can be...

The Abbot’s Notebook for June 28, 2018 My sisters and brothers in Christ, Blessings to you!  Surely the most important event of this past week was the solemn profession of vows of our Brother Charles and our Brother Bede.  We are incredible blessed by these two...

The Abbot’s Notebook for June 20, 2018 My sisters and brothers in Christ, Blessings to you!  Prior Benedict and I are still in New York.  I return to Christ in the Desert tomorrow and he returns on Saturday.  We came here last Friday in order to have some meetings and...

The Abbot’s Notebook for June 13, 2018 My sisters and brothers in Christ, Blessings to you!  It has been a quiet week in the community.  In the past couple of weeks we have received a 21 year old postulant from Malawi, bring the number of Malawians in the community to...

The Abbot’s Notebook for June 6, 2018 My sisters and brothers in Christ, Blessings to you!  Last Wednesday Prior Benedict and I went to Costa Rica and returned on Saturday.  It was a very quick visit, too short, but very important.  We help a small community of monks...

The Abbot’s Notebook for May 30, 2018 My sisters and brothers in Christ, Blessings to you!  Father Thomas-Benedict is now out of the hospital and at home, feeling much better.  Father Andrew continue to struggle with his recovery from open heart surgery to repair the...

The Abbot’s Notebook for May 23, 2018 My sisters and brothers in Christ, Blessings to you!  This week I have been challenged to write because my mind seems caught up with other things.  That does not happen often to me.  Usually I can just sit down and write a letter...

The Abbot’s Notebook for May 16, 2018 My sisters and brothers in Christ, Blessings to you!  Christ is risen!  Alleluia!  I am still in Mexico as this letter goes out but tonight I will be back at Christ in the Desert.  The time here has been joyful as well as...

The Abbot's Notebook for May 2, 2018 My sisters and brothers in Christ, Blessings to you!  Christ is risen!  Alleluia!  Our life here at Christ in the Desert continues always to be a challenge.  One of the great challenges is language.  Father Simeon has arranged for...

The Abbot's Notebook for April 25, 2018 My sisters and brothers in Christ, Blessings to you! Christ is risen! Alleluia! I have returned home from a few days at our Monastery of La Soledad in Mexico and then a few days in the now independent Monastery of Thien Tam in...

The Abbot's Notebook for April 18, 2018 My sisters and brothers in Christ, Blessings to you!  Christ is risen!  Alleluia!  One of the challenges of serving a community is to know that when I am about to leave for a trip, there will be no time for myself because so...

The Abbot's Notebook for April 11, 2018 My sisters and brothers in Christ, Blessings to you!  Christ is risen!  Alleluia!  Already the Easter Season moves on and it will go by quickly.  All the dogs are home and none are in the hospital.  All the brothers are home and...

The Abbot's Notebook for April 4, 2018 My sisters and brothers in Christ, Blessings to you!  Christ is risen!  Alleluia!  Probably for me one of the greatest struggles in the spiritual life was to come to believe that Jesus Christ truly is man and truly is God.  Many...

The Abbot's Notebook for March 28, 2018 My sisters and brothers in Christ, Blessings to you!  Thumper the Dog ended up in the hospital again and perhaps he has primary heart disease.  The other possibility is that he suffered some trauma when he was out and running....

The Abbot's Notebook for March 21, 2018 My sisters and brothers in Christ, Blessings to you!  Last week Brother Benedict Hall had a bad day and even went to the hospital.  It seemed in the end, however, that what was happening to him was an allergic reaction to three...

The Abbot's Notebook for March 14, 2018 My sisters and brothers in Christ, Blessings to you!  We are having a good week here in the Monastery.  Brother Vincent Mary returned from Vietnam.  Abbot Anselm of Pluscarden, the Abbot Visitor of the English Province, arrived...

The Abbot's Notebook for March 7, 2018 My sisters and brothers in Christ, Blessings to you!  The grandmother of our Brother Jude seems to be dying and so he has gone to be with his family in New Jersey.  Father Mayeul and Brother Bonaventure are still in Vietnam and...