Where do we expect to experience the presence of God? That is the question that comes from reading the passage from the First Book of Kings. God raises up Elijah as a prophet during a very difficult time in Israeli history. After the death of Solomon Israel became a divided kingdom into two kingdoms and […]
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As a new student monk residing at Sant’ Anselmo, the Benedictine motherhouse in Rome, one of the first small tasks I had to master was to memorize the Latin version of one of the traditional monastic forms for grace before meals. The opening of this prayer was an adaptation of the Psalm we sing together […]
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The Gospel begins with a series of short sayings about finding things of value; a buried treasure, a precious pearl, and a net full of fish. Jesus compares these to the Kingdom of Heaven. Jesus is instructing us that the Kingdom of Heaven is the most important and valuable treasure there is. Just like those […]
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The Book of Wisdom we hear from today was composed quite late in the Old Testament era, likely less than a hundred years before the birth of Jesus. Its inspired author wrote in Greek rather than the Hebrew language in which the earlier books of the Old Testament were written, and he had developed a […]
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When I read the Gospel I thought of a verse from the letter of St. Paul to the Galatians; ”Make no mistake: God is not mocked, for a person will reap only what he sows, because the one who sows for his flesh will reap corruption from the flesh, but the one who sows for […]
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Most Rev. Edward C. Malesic, Bishop of the Diocese of Greensburg, will preside at the Mass for Blessing of the Twelfth Archabbot of Saint Vincent Archabbey, Archabbot Martin de Porres Bartel, O.S.B., on Friday, July 10, 2020. The event will be broadcast live at 10 a.m. at this link: https://vimeo.com/436169336. Archabbot Martin, a monk of […]
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Archabbot Martin de Porres Bartel, O.S.B., will receive the solemn vows of Brother Placid Sellers, O.S.B., or vows for life, on the Feast of Saint Benedict, July 11 at 10 a.m. Brother Placid, of Penn Hills, is the son of the late Philip L. and Emmeline M. Sellers. Born on September 18, 1957, he has […]
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The Saint Vincent monastic community will receive the simple vows of one monk at 5 p.m. Friday, July 10 in the Archabbey Basilica. Brother Francisco Whittaker, O.S.B., will profess simple vows on July 10 at Vespers, while eight junior monks will renew their temporary vows for another year. Brother Francisco (Samuel James) is the son […]
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Two Saint Vincent College graduates will officially enter the monastery at Saint Vincent Archabbey as novices at morning prayer on Friday, July 10. They will spend a year in prayer and discernment as they determine their vocations as Benedictine monks. Alex “Jimmy” Rosa, of Odenton, Maryland, a 2016 graduate of Mount Saint Joseph High School, […]
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On Independence Day Americans remember our founding as a nation when the Declaration of Independence was approved by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. Traditionally this day is marked by celebrations of national unity and remembrance of those who have served in the armed forces to preserve our freedoms—especially those who have died […]
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