| Volume 35, Number 4 |
Richardton, ND 58652
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October 2007
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June
Chronicle
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During the week of June 17-22, three of our monks attended the General Chapter of the American Cassinese Congregation. Abbot Brian and Fr. James and Bro. Alban all flew to Atchison, KS, where St. Benedict’s Abbey hosted the event. Each monastery in the Congregation is represented by the superior and one elected delegate. Fr. James was our delegate. As for Bro. Alban, he served as the secretary for the Chapter itself.
The General Chapter is held every three years, or more often as needed. It deals with business that affects all the monasteries, as well as special problems that individual communities are experiencing. The Chapter also features presentations by invited speakers. This year Dr. Monica Applewhite lectured the monks on issues of personal interrelations with adults and children.
Some of the monks hit the road during June. Fr. Thomas traveled to Cody, WY, where he served as chaplain for Yellowstone Park for the summer. Fr. Terrence gave a retreat at Immaculata Monastery in Norfolk, NE. He also taught in the Junior Summer School at St. Benedict’s Monastery, Benet Lake, WI. Fr. Victor is serving in a parish in Cheyenne, WY, this summer. In fact, at one point we had five monks working in Wyoming this summer. Bro. Benedict spent the summer term studying Canon Law at St. John’s School of Theology in Collegeville MN.
Bro. Anthony is home from school at St. Meinrad, IN, but he is not taking it easy. During the second week of June, he worked as a counselor in Camp ReCreation here in Richardton. This camp, of which Fr. Boniface is also on the Board of Directors, is for disabled citizens. It is held at the Richardton-Taylor High School, but the campers come over to the Abbey for Mass and a tour. Bro. Aelred brought a crew of boys from Home on the Range to help set up for the camp. Bro. Anthony spent the rest of the summer running around watering various plants and flower gardens. Since the summer was extremely hot and dry after the Fourth of July, this was a strenuous job.
One of the more exciting things that happened to our members this summer took place up at Lake Sakakaweja. As is well known, Fr. Claude keeps a houseboat up there, a rather ramshackle old tub, but nevertheless it floats. He usually doesn’t try to go too far with it since it is no use tempting fate. Well, one night in June a terrific wind came up and struck that boat, ripping it loose from its moorings and propelling it all the way across the big lake. Captain Claude (a.k.a. Noah) was on board for all of this, but says he was not even scared enough to don his life jacket. Real sailors don’t scare easily. |
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July
Chronicle
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| Fr. Boniface got quite a surprise on July 11, the Feast of St. Benedict. He picked up the paper and, as is his wont, read through the Ann Landers column. Only this time it was different; this time HIS letter was printed and with his name on it! No, he wasn’t seeking help with his romantic life or with his bunions. He was acting like the good theologian he is in answering somebody’s question about whether Catholics can get married in a Baptist church. They can, with the right arrangements. Now, of course, Boniface has blown his cover and will be deluged with questions from all over the globe.
Summer is a very busy time for our gift shop, which is run by Bro. Basil. Even though he doesn’t have it open at set hours, he is more than willing to open it whenever customers show up. Our monastery is not in a densely populated area, to say the least, but there is a steady flow of visitors through here from Memorial Day to Labor Day. Basil keeps his boutique stocked with all kinds of religious items and other interesting stuff. The shop also features local art and crafts by such confreres as Bro. Llewellyn and Bro. Gregory. All in all, the gift shop is a going concern.
This July saw three of our monks change assignments and domiciles. Fr. Sebastian has retired from his pastorate in Glen Ullin to take a chaplain’s job in the Madonna Towers retirement center in Rochester, MN. Fr. Warren Heidgen, formerly of Holy Cross Abbey, has retired from a parish in Colorado to take up residence at Assumption Abbey. He is currently filling in at the Cathedral in Cheyenne, WY. Fr. Hugo has moved from Buffalo, WY, to Thermopolis, WY. In other words, he has moved from the east side of the Big Horn Mountains to the west side.
The place got a face-lift this summer in the form of some new carpets. The old rugs in the community rooms were replaced and the third floor east hallway got a carpet for the first time. Although carpets are harder to keep clean than tile, they help greatly to quiet down public spaces. In a monastery, where silence is a premium value, rugs help a lot. Too bad that the men who laid the third floor carpet had to do so in a heat wave. |
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August
Chronicle
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| This was a special month for us for two reasons: we had an ordination and we had a Visitation. For the former, see page one. For the latter, we were visited by two monks of our Congregation, namely, Abbot Claude Peifer of St. Bede Abbey and Fr. Simeon Thole of St. John’s. They were with us for the period of August 5-10, during which time they took a hard look at our monastic observance. The basic form that the Visitation takes is the interview. Each monk is expected to spend a half hour with the visitators discussing his perception of our situation. Since most monks express some misgivings about certain things, this can be a lot of negativity for the visitators to listen to. After they arrive at an assessment of the overall picture, they meet with the abbot, the council of seniors and the whole community to report. At this time they make suggestions, and if need be, lay down mandates for change. We wish them God’s blessing, for Visitation is a heavy labor for the good of the Order.
During the first week of August, Fr. Valerian spent time in Utah. He wasn’t vacationing but giving a retreat to the Benedictine Sisters at Mount Benedict in Ogden. This small community is a foundation of St. Benedict’s Monastery in St. Joseph, MN. They run a hospital in Utah and presumably give a good Catholic witness in that predominantly Mormon region.
Fr.Abbot stunned the monks on August 9 by announcing that Bro. Jacob is the new farm boss. The surprise was due to the fact that the real boss, Bro. Placid, had been reigning supreme for about 40 years. Farming is essentially a young man’s game and Placid is getting up there. Still, he is far from retired, and he is working as hard as ever. It’s just that now he’s number two. It is also rumored that there will be a ceremony of some kind in which a shovel or some other symbol will be handed from brother to brother.
An ordination is an elaborate affair, and no one has more to worry about than the Master of Ceremonies. Consequently, Bro. Alban had plenty on his plate on August 22 and for days before. Add to that the fact that he is also our kitchen manager, and had to feed 230 people right after the ceremony. When Bro. Alban was complimented on the flawless flow of the liturgy, he answered sadly that it was actually a chaotic mess. A very typical reaction by a Master of Ceremonies. |
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