Notes, Homilies, and News
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Pentecost Sunday
Readings: Acts of the Apostles 2:1-11; 1 Corinthians 12:3-7,12-13; John 20:19-23 The Solemnity of Pentecost is a splendid reminder of the universality of the love God has for us. At Pentecost, fifty days after Easter, the Church celebrates the powerful presence of God...
May 18th: Ascension Thursday
Forty days after Easter the Church celebrates the Ascension of the Lord, when Christ returned in glory to the heavenly realm, when he lives and reigns with the Father and Holy Spirit forever. In modern times, this Solemnity is usually transferred to the Sunday...
May 16th: Spring Surprises
In the midst of desert beauty, we never tire of the sights of Spring, nor of the other three seasons for that matter. Spring certainly carries a distinctive face and scent, which we always welcome in late April or early May. Today's photo is from our cloister garden,...
Solemnity Of The Ascension Of The Lord
Scripture Readings: Acts of the Apostles 1:1-11; Saint Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians 1:17-23; Gospel According to Saint Matthew 28:16-20 We celebrate our Lord’s Ascension, which took place forty days after his Resurrection. We recount with joy the day when Christ...
May 11th: Rite of Spring
As we move through May, we are being treated with more flowering trees and blooming forsythia. Today's photo was taken from outside the Abbot's office. In the cloister garden, peonies will soon be ready to grace that space and to decorate the church. Predictably,...
Sixth Sunday of Easter, Year A
Readings: Acts 8:5-8, 14-17; First Letter of Peter 3:15-18; John 14:15-21 The readings for this Sunday are taken from the final days of Jesus' earthly sojourn as well as the first steps of the infant Church after the death, resurrection and ascension of the Lord. The...
Fifth Sunday of Easter, Year A
Readings: Acts 6:1-7; First Peter 2:4-9; John 14:1-12 We are drawing near to the Solemnity of the Lord's Ascension, forty days after Easter, just two weeks from now. Where does the time go? Like it or not, time tends to fly by quickly, even when we try to live it...
May 4th: Easter Continues!
We are now in the Fourth Week of the Easter Season, enjoying the arrival of Spring, as we contemplate the mystery of Christ's Resurrection and the redemption of the human race. Christ is Risen indeed! The weather is very pleasant just now, with daytime temperatures in...
Mary’s Garden at the Monastery of Christ in the Desert
Join Abbot Christian for a quick tour of our garden between our church and some of the workrooms of the monastery, dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
April 29: Spring Revival
True to form, the trees are now flowering in our cloister garden. The bees are flocking to the blossoming trees and we monks enjoy looking at this additional dimension of God's glory in our midst. We continue our celebration of Eastertide, with Alleluias ringing out...
April 25th: Monks’ Corner
A very quiet corner of the monks' quarters is called the "cloister garden." Our rooms (in a monastery, called "cells") surround the cloister garden, which changes in looks and colors throughout the year as the seasons change. We monks pass over the bricks-on-sand...
Fourth Sunday of Easter, Year A
Scripture Readings: Acts of the Apostles 2:14a, 36-41; First Letter of Saint Peter 2:20b-25; Gospel According to Saint John 10:1-10 This Sunday is usually called “Good Shepherd Sunday,” because of the focus of the Mass readings, especially the Gospel, where Jesus...
April 22nd: Not Hot Yet
While Spring has definitely arrived, we are still a little cautious about putting some of our indoor potted plants outside, including the variety of amaryllis in today's photo. Daffodils are blooming fine outside, and flowering trees are in bloom, so we will soon be...
April 20th: Oodles of Eggs!
With the return of warmer weather, we are being inundated with excellent eggs every day from our forty free-range hens. With a community of twenty monks and numerous guests, the henhouse is providing a very worthwhile service by enhancing our diet. When we first got...
Third Sunday of Easter, Year A
Scripture Readings: Acts of the Apostles 2:14, 22-28; First Letter of Peter 1:17-21; Luke 24:13-35 Perhaps the first question we want to ask after hearing this Sunday’s Gospel text is: why did the disciples not immediately recognize the risen Lord? Had they not known...
April 17th: Easter Greetings!
The Easter Season, often called Paschaltide, extends from Easter Sunday until Pentecost Sunday, which this year occurs on May 28th. This means that the Liturgy of the Church, the Mass and Divine Office, is filled with the great Easter cry of "Alleluia," and the...
Second Sunday of Easter, Year A
Scripture Readings: Acts of the Apostles 2:42-47; First Letter of Saint Peter 1:3-9; Gospel According to Saint John 20:19-31 We are still celebrating the Passover of Christ, his Resurrection from the dead, and today the Gospel shows us Christ in the midst of his...
April 12th: Spring In Full Swing
We've fairly quickly sprung from chilly mornings and days, to wonderfully warm, but not too warm, days again. The marvel of the Northern Hemisphere, that Easter coincides with Spring. New life is appearing all around us now, including wildlife and the return of birds....
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