The closing of a monastery

[linnie]

https://films.radiowest.org/film/monastery

This has been so sad for our community.  They are wonderful men

[Nunsuch]

Yes, this is very sad. I have tried to learn where the remaining monks have gone. Did they return to Gethsemane? 

[Luigi]

The end of the film says they're in a nursing home in Salt Lake City, and they still celebrate Mass every day at 11:30 a.m. 

[Guest]

A moving and sad video.

[linnie]

Before they closed they made an extremely generous donation to our parish so that we could build a badly needed education building.  It was amazing

 

[Antonella]

Thank you for sharing the link. It's a beautiful little video. I think Thomas Merton wrote in his Journal about the foundation of this Monastery. I remember reading something about the trouble they had buying the land.

Do you know what happened to all of the books they had? 

Edited October 7, 2017 by Antonella

[nikita92]

Antonella- You can write or call St. Joesph's care facility where they moved to, and ask any of the 6 brothers what they planned on doing with their books! 

This is a sad situation for all concerned!

I am amazed and surprised, that in all those years they mentioned.. of never having had any "Come and sees"!!! 

Did they "get the word out", that they were in need of vocations to keep their monastery from closing??

To bad another community couldn't take it over and save it!!

[Guest]

I am hoping it will remain as a monastery too.  One thing sticks in my mind from the video.  An elderly priest comments to a visitor that the Peace is in side him - the monastic situation has only revealed it to himself ......... or similar words.  That so reflects the words of Jesus "My Peace I give to you" - not will give or can give.......but give.  We have the gift of Peace.

"Seek after Peace and pursue it"  (Psalm 34)

It will be very sad indeed if the property ceases to be Catholic monasticism or similar........a Catholic site.

[linnie]

The monks have donated the books to our parish to establish a library.  They had many opportunities for men to spend time with them, not just official "come and see" weekend.  Men were welcome to spend time with them throughout  the years.  

I also hope that a monastic group will someday take over the land.  But the man who bought it has promised that it will not be developed.  Its in God's hand now.

 

[Antonella]

Thanks for the info!

I think that men who were attracted to the Trappists went to Gethsemani. Thanks to Thomas Merton it's a well known Abbey.

It's interesting to look back at how many people were joining the Trappists in the '40 and '50. Now they are slowly dying out. I know an Abbey in Europe who was a fairly big Community and now the majority are old and sick. Even the Novice is 50. Other Orders seem to be doing fine. I don't know why the Trappists aren't that known. Maybe the lack of "official" saints. They are a great Order with authentic and loving members. Not to mention the books some of them (beside Merton) wrote... :D 

[Luigi]

Another Trappist monastery - Our Lady of the Assumption in Ava, MO - is not exactly closing, but it's transitioning. The aging Trappist monks have been hosting cistercian monks from Vietnam for several years. Brother Chronicler reports in the October newsletter:

"Fr. Alberic our Superior left in September to attend the Trappist General Chapter at Assisi. Our community's vote to dissolve itself, in order to make room for our Vietnamese brother monks to make a new foundation here in the monastery, was presented for the General Chapter's acceptance. They gave their almost unanimous approval. Now the question will go to Rome for a final decision. The seven or eight Vietnamese monks here have been guests in our Trappist community. After the transfer the four or five American Trappist monks will remain as guests in their Cistercian community. We can say it stays all in the family. ...

Peter Vo has been making an observership in our community. He will soon gain American citizenship. Then he will go to the mother house, Our Lady of Divine Grace in Vietnam, to do his novitiate. After that he can return to continue his monastic formation here. Fathers Thaddeus and Basil have applied for Permanent Residence (Green card). Four new Vietnamese monks have been chosen to become the next members in our community once they receive their visas as Religious Workers."

In a side note, which I probably ought to post under Monastic Humor...

"It is time for our fruit cake fliers to go out by mail to our customers. The inventory has been building up all year. There is an aging period for the flavor to blend and mellow all through a cake. We don't sell one until it has aged at least six weeks. Recently a frozen fruit cake was found in an Antarctic station over one hundred years old—possibly from Robert Scott's expedition. They claim it looked and smelled in good condition. However we limit our period within two years."