This was a very busy concert season in the Abbey church. Three groups held Christmas events in the building, which is highly prized for its acoustics. On Nov. 26, the Southern Manitoba Choral Union presented a Christmas program. These people came by bus all the way from near Winnipeg just to sing here. On December 6, the Richardton schools presented their annual program and on December 11 the Dickinson Choral Union and Orchestra presented Handel’s beloved Messiah to a packed house.

Since these concerts usually involve the displacement of the main altar, Fr. James has invented a device that enables that massive oak table to be moved in one piece. Previously, the table top was detached from the legs and both were moved separately. Now the whole thing can be transferred at once. But of course it takes twelve strong men to do it! Next someone will invent a system where the altar will disappear into the floor at the touch of a button.

Christmas this year called forth some extraordinary efforts on the part of the brothers. Fr. Thomas was responsible for cutting and mounting a massive, beautiful spruce tree for the church. This tree, which normally would never have been cut for that purpose, was blown over by the Father’s Day storm. But its roots were still in the ground, so it lived on. Even after ten feet were taken off, the tree stood about 15 feet high in church.

Brothers Aelred and Anthony were responsible for decorating the dining room and the community room, and they really went all out this year. Aelred built a fireplace for the refectory, with colored lights replacing the fire. In the community room he fabricated a crèche out of the art-deco footstool from the former bishop’s throne in Bismarck. Now that’s imagination!

Finally, Bro. Bertrand wrote an elaborate, witty skit for after-dinner entertainment for December 27. That was the evening when the Sisters of Sacred Heart Monastery were our guests for Vespers, dinner and visiting. This skit featured Prior Basil as the anchor of a TV news program. Various confreres made cameo performances on the show: Michael, Benedict, Bertrand, Alban and Anthony. Much appreciated.

As has become the custom for festive meals, the monks gave the cooks the day off and cooked for themselves. As usual, Bro. Alban was the head cook and delivered a very tasty meal for the community. Bro. Aelred produced some extraordinary desserts and other brothers concentrated on bread, salad, table-setting and so on. In this case many cooks did not spoil the broth. Anything but! They made it a communal labor of love.

These visitors are always welcome, of course. It is partly for them that we went to the great trouble and expense of renovating the great church these past several years. But visitors are also something of a burden to us since it is not always possible for us to provide guided tours for groups that ask. Therefore, the new brochure will help lighten our load as well as enlighten our visitors.

One of the many monks who work quietly behind the scenes hereabouts is Bro. Nicholas Erickson. In his role as Assistant Infirmarian, he assists the sick and elderly of the community. At the present time we happen to have a goodly number of these folks, so Bro. Nick is especially busy. Fr. Robert has moved full-time into the infirmary, while Bro. Pius and Fr. Wilfrid are recovering from leg injuries. Several of the monks now need assistance cleaning their rooms and in the dining room. Wherever he is needed, Bro. Nicholas is Johnny-on-the-spot.

Fr. Terrence continues his work with the Dakota Resource Council, a grassroots group for rural justice and environmental protection. This year he is secretary of the board of directors, a post he has filled about ten times in the past thirty years. This work requires attendance at board meetings in Bismarck, Jamestown and Minot, so a good deal of time and effort are involved. The old monks were told to “stay in your cell and your cell will teach you everything.” Nowadays, one has to venture out of one’s cell occasionally to find out what is going on.

Then there is this from the local police blotter: An elderly monk confided that he and a confrere were stopped recently by the cops while driving in Dickinson. When asked who the driver was, the monk said he could not remember his name, but “he’s the one who runs this place.” “You mean the Abbot?” “Yes, that’s his name.” “But what had he done? Speeding? Drunk driving?” “Oh no, it was a case of mistaken identity!”

Well, we should hope so.

The big bell is having some trouble. Since we installed it last spring, it has been ringing before all of our services. Or at least most of the services. It seems that it ceases swinging when the temperature dips down towards zero (Fahrenheit). The technician from the company has been out to inspect it. But one wonders if the problem might lie on another level. After all, “Tibati” (the big bell) was cast in the Netherlands, where it does not get as cold as North Dakota. Maybe it just can’t take it? Tried antifreeze?

Recently our tailor, Bro. Bertrand, has been making some new vestments. We already have a lot of them, but some of them are wearing out. For example, we bought a quantity of raw silk on the Tokyo market in the early 1960s. We had this lovely material sewed up by the vestment departments at Hankinson, Yankton and St. Meinrad. Raw silk is not shiny, and it wears like iron. But in this transient world nothing lasts forever, and the chasubles (especially the green ones) are now fit for the ragbag. So far Bertrand has turned out an exquisite new cope; we await more of his craft.

Over the weekend of February 17-21, Abbot Brian attended the annual Abbots’ Retreat at Conception Abbey in Missouri. The meeting had originally been scheduled for St. Joseph’s Abbey near New Orleans, but for obvious reasons it had to be moved. By some concidence, Fr. Abbot had to chair two meetings that weekend. First, he served as pro tempore chair for the annual board meeting of the American Benedictine Review. Second, he chaired the business meeting of the abbots. He served in the latter capacity not because he is a senior abbot, but because he is one of the junior abbots. The most recently elected abbots have to arrange the details of the abbots’ meeting.