Ef Monastery Becomes An Abbey

[Resurrexi]

Clear Creek Elevated to Status of Abbey

2/12/2010 - EOC Staff

The 33 monks of Clear Creek Monastery near Hulbert received the happy news that their priory has been elevated to the status of a self-governing Abbey. Dom Antoine Forgeot, O.S.B., Abbot of Clear Creek Monastery’s motherhouse in France, announced the change in status to the community on February 11, the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes.

At the same time, Father Phillip Anderson, one of the original 12 monks who came from the Abbey of Our Lady of Fontgombault in France to help found Clear Creek has been named Abbot of what will now be known as Our Lady of the Annunciation of Clear Creek Abbey. Father Anderson has served the monastic community since its foundation as its prior.

“It’s a moment of perfection and the moment you become fully what you were meant to be. To become an Abbey is to reach a certain point of maturity,” said Abbot Anderson.

Clear Creek Monastery was established in 1999 at the invitation of Bishop Edward J. Slattery. While the following 10 years were a time of decline for monasteries nation-wide and world-wide, Our Lady of Clear Creek Abbey has grown from the original 12 monks to its current population of 18 professed monks (12 priests-monks and six lay brothers), with seven junior monks (under their first vows) and another eight novices and postulants.

Abbot Anderson explained that following its initial foundation, a monastery must achieve a certain level of stability, manifested in both its ability to attract vocations and in its ability to become financially secure before it can be named an Abbey. In the Benedictine Congregation of Solesmes, to which Our Lady of Clear Creek Abbey belongs, this stability must be met within its first 13 years of existence. When those conditions were met, Dom Antoine Forgeot, Abbot of the Abbey of Notre Dame de Fontgombault, recommended the change in status to the Abbot of St. Pierre de Solesmes.

While final approval technically comes from the Holy See, that final approval has been delegated to the Abbey of Solesmes.

Clear Creek is the fourth daughterhouse of Fontgombault to be raised to the level of an Abbey and is the twentieth Abbey in the Congregation of Solesmes

Abbot Anderson said there will be very few changes in day to day life at Our Lady of Clear Creek Abbey, although his role will change dramatically in liturgical and governmental terms. The new Abbey will operate independently of the former Mother House and he will assume a role in the community which is similar to the role a bishop exercises in the diocese, that is, the three-fold role of sanctifying, teaching and governing.

“Abbot Forgeot hopes we maintain a close relationship with Fontgombault and so do we,” Abbot Anderson said. “Our spiritual roots are in France.”

The public is invited to attend the blessing of Abbot Anderson at Our Lady of Clear Creek Abbey on Saturday, April 10.

H/T to the [url="http://www.newliturgicalmovement.org/#7911573816492495784"]NLM[/url].

Edited February 13, 2010 by Resurrexi

[CatherineM]

That's a very pretty part of the state. My nephew used to live right outside there in Wagoner.

[Resurrexi]

[quote name='CatherineM' date='12 February 2010 - 09:13 PM' timestamp='1266027239' post='2056202']
That's a very pretty part of the state.
[/quote]

It's fitting that the most beautiful liturgies in the state should be there.

[jeffpugh]

Billy Bass probably approves, but I know I do for sure.

[sistersintigo]

If I read correctly, then the Vermont foundation of Solesmes Benedictine nuns (Immaculate Heart of Mary, Westfield, VT) has a chaplain who is professed at Clear Creek in Oklahoma. The Vermont nuns are not an abbey of course; they are more recent and they still have dependent status, as a priory founded from an abbey of nuns near Montreal, Quebec. I wonder how far the Westfield monastery of nuns has to go, in order to progress from priory to abbey...

[Hinter dem Horizont]

Wow, congratulations to Clear Creek Monastery. I have been watching their progress diligently. Their monastery is slowly building up. They are now working on the chapel section. The monks now have rooms, finally, for they used to sleep in barns. Bless them. I adore their traditionalism. In my opinion, there are not very many traditional monasteries compared to the liberal ones. There are far more liberal monasteries at the moment.

I plan to do a retreat with the Benedictines at Clear Creek. Their gregorian chant is so gorgeous!

[Micah]

Great news! I thought the title of this thread was Elf Monastery becomes abbey, which would have been almost as cool.

[holly.o]

Praise God!

I don't know how these things work, but I wonder if this would encourage some of the EF French women's Benedictine communities to send some nuns over...

[Klaudi87]

[quote name='holly.o' timestamp='1290293145' post='2188263']
Praise God!

I don't know how these things work, but I wonder if this would encourage some of the EF French women's Benedictine communities to send some nuns over...
[/quote]


I was just thinking that.....that would be so wonderful!!! I think they would attract ALOT of vocations on this side of the world! Thieir traditionalism is so attractive!

[sidemunch88]

[quote name='Micah' timestamp='1290291457' post='2188254']
Great news! I thought the title of this thread was Elf Monastery becomes abbey, which would have been almost as cool.
[/quote]
thought the same thing

I was sad when i double checked

[reminiscere]

There are two Oblate Sisters at Clear Creek, Sr. Catherine and Sr. Annunciata who are preparing to become Moniales eventually. A few months ago when I visited they had an aspirant or postulant with them.

Visiting Clear Creek for an Ordination to the Priesthood and a Solemn Profession, both according to the traditional Roman and Benedictine Rites were two of the most blessed experiences of my whole life.

[Starets]

I am always glad to hear news like this. Maye they can send professed to help out the other Solesmes congregation houses, as not all is well in that congregation, vocationswise. Still, I am happy for them and pray for them regularly.

[reminiscere]

All of Fontgombault's daughter houses are doing very well. As a fact - not that I'm being supportive - the SSPX-associated Benedictines in France, Germany, Brazil and the United States are also receiving many vocations, and for what it's worth Silver City just became a priory.

[quote name='Staretz' timestamp='1290903611' post='2189580']
I am always glad to hear news like this. Maye they can send professed to help out the other Solesmes congregation houses, as not all is well in that congregation, vocationswise. Still, I am happy for them and pray for them regularly.
[/quote]

[mommas_boy]

Help me please: what is the distinction between, say, a monastery, an abbey, and a priory? Is there a hierarchy of rank? What must a community do in order to advance through those ranks?

[sistersintigo]

[quote name='mommas_boy' timestamp='1290925930' post='2189637']
Help me please: what is the distinction between, say, a monastery, an abbey, and a priory? Is there a hierarchy of rank? What must a community do in order to advance through those ranks?
[/quote]
The forum to look in, for that info, is Vocation Station in the Phormation section; a search on "Benedictine" with the use of those words -- monastery, abbey, priory -- would probably get you what you are looking for. The Vocation Station thread is the natural place to post your question and expect informative responses.

I'm not the person to give you a definitive answer.
All I can offer is an example.
Before the United States had a Benedictine foundation from Fontgombault (?) in France, there were foundations in North America. As you might guess, the Solesmes Benedictines of France (Fontgombault is founded from Solesmes) made foundations in Canada, in Quebec.
The monks got there first. They had to start with a Priory; only later could the Priory be elevated to an Abbey. It is outside of Montreal and named Saint Benoit du Lac.
Later, some Montreal families had young women who wanted to be Benedictine nuns. One such family already had had a son enter Saint Benoit du Lac where he became the cellarer of the abbey of monks. This was a wealthy family and they owned land near St Benoit du Lac. This land became the location of Sainte Marie des deux Montagnes which began as a priory. Many more years passed before the nuns' priory could be elevated to the status of an Abbey.
From this latter abbey of Benedictine nuns, came Immaculate Heart of Mary Priory in Westfield, Vermont, which remains a priory today, and it is described as "a priory dependent upon the Abbey of St Marie des deux Montagnes".

In short: although both Clear Creek's Abbey in Oklahoma and the Priory in Westfield, Vermont belong to the Benedictine congregation founded from Solesmes in France, only one of them (the men) come from Fontgombault; the Benedictine Nuns in Vermont trace their ancestry through Montreal, Quebec to Wisques, France, and thus to Solesmes.