About The Monastery

What do you do?

Our most important activity is our liturgical prayer and the Holy Mass. We meet for prayer at 6:00 a.m.., 12:00 noon, 5:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. Mass on weekends is at 11:30. We devote several more hours a day to personal reading and prayer. All the members of our community work together to operate the Abbey, it's schools, parishes, and it's guest and, retreat facilities. These jobs include teaching, counseling, helping pilgrims and guests, scholarly work, parochial ministry both full-time and weekend assistance, cooking, maintenance, bookkeeping, administration, and landscaping.

What is a monastery?

A monastery is a home for monks. Monks are celibate, living in a community of brothers where they seek God, support each other, and try to help others outside who come to us. When a monk joins a monastery (after a year and six weeks of formation), that monastery becomes his home, even if he should live elsewhere for a time.

What does Benedictine mean?

"The Rule of Benedict (RB) constitutes the basic guide for thousands of Christians who are committed to the monastic movement. Many disciples of Jesus followed the Rule in the past and many still do so today. Written in the sixth century the Rule was followed in thousands of monasteries in Europe, so much so that the Church of the early Middle Ages, beginning especially in the ninth century, was characterized as monastic."

from OSB.org

The Benedictine monks are a specific group of Christian monks who follow the Rule of St. Benedict. St. Benedict was a sixth-century Italian abbot (leader of a monastery) who wrote a Rule based on wide study of earlier monastic documents and his own experience in several different monastic settings. There are other "orders" of monks such as the Cistercians and Trappists who also follow the Rule of St. Benedict.

Can we visit you?

Absolutely. The Benedictines are known for their hospitality, St. Benedict say in his Rule that all guests are to be received as Christ. Let us known when you would like to visit and we will make room for you. please go to the "monastery Guest" page