Volume 9 • Issue 1 • Spring 2009
A B B EY
BANNER Magazine of Saint John’s Abbey
Meet a Monk: Luke Dowal, OSB, 4 Printing ABBEY BANNER, 6 Abbey’s Vision Statement, 9 Saint Benedict’s Church, Avon, Minnesota, 10 Review of Abbot Boniface Wimmer’s Letters, 12 Retirement Center renovation, 14 Obituaries: Dietrich Reinhart, Bruce Wollmering, Simon Bischof, 16 Bottle building in Guatemala, 19 Architect awards, 20 Woodworking at St. Paul’s Monastery chapel, 21 Abbey Chronicle, 24 Monks in the Kitchen, 29 AND MORE
Brother Luke, OSB, at his easel
Contents Pages 4 and 5
Orchids, primrose and sand verbena flowers by Luke Dowal, OSB
Meet a Monk: Luke Dowal, OSB, self-taught artist
Simon-Hòa Phan, OSB
Aelred Senna, OSB
Cover Story
by Daniel Durken, OSB
Features 6 Printing ABBEY BANNER by Heidi Everett
12 Review of Wimmer’s Letters by Columba Stewart, OSB
10 Saint Benedict’s Church of Avon
14 Renovation of Abbey Retirement Center
Articles Editorials 3 From editor and abbot
Benedictine Volunteers 19 The bottle building
Monastic Matters 9 Abbey approves Vision Statement
Vocations 22 Two sponsored events
20 Architect awards for Guesthouse and Blessed Sacrament Chapel
Obituaries 16 Dietrich Reinhart, Bruce Wollmering, Simon Bishof
21 Abbey Woodworking’s furniture for Saint Paul’s Monastery
The Abbey Chronicle 24 November - March
Banner Bits 23 New publications 27 Carol Marrin retires 28 Sugar Shack 30 William Schipper, OSB, Ph.D Monks in the Kitchen 29 Distance Learning Spiritual Life 31 What is God like? Back Cover Poems by Kilian McDonnell, OSB
NOTE: Please send your change of address to: Ruth Athmann at rathmann@csbsju.edu or P.O. Box 7222, Collegeville, Minnesota 56321-7222 or call 800-635-7303. Editor: Daniel Durken, OSB ddurken@csbsju.edu Copy Editor and Proofreader: Dolores Schuh, CHM
Abbey Banner Magazine of Saint John’s Abbey Volume 9, Issue 1 Spring 2009
Designer: Pam Rolfes Circulation: Ruth Athmann, Cathy Wieme, Mary Gouge Printer: Palmer Printing, Waite Park, Minnesota
Abbey Banner is published three times annually (spring, fall, winter) by the Benedictine monks of Saint John’s Abbey for our relatives, friends and Oblates. Abbey Banner is online at www.sja.osb.org/AbbeyBanner Saint John’s Abbey, Box 2015, Collegeville, Minnesota 56321-2015
FROM EDITOR AND ABBOT
The might of night and light by Daniel Durken, OSB
T
he Collegeville campus had a surreal experience of the might of night and light on March 15-16 when a primary fuse of a transformer exploded at Saint John’s Xcel Energy substation, causing a power outage that lasted some 25 hours. The Record, the weekly student paper, reported how one student was caught off guard by the outage: “A few buddies and I were playing basketball and I was literally in mid-shot when the lights went out.” When the sudden silence of my humidifier, the blinking of my alarm clock and the darkness in the bathroom across the hallway convinced me of the situation, one of my first thoughts was of the first creation account in the Book of Genesis. What are the very first words the Creator says? “Let there be light.” The all-seeing God had to flick the primordial switch to find where to begin and what to do next.
Making a quantum leap to the vision of the New Jerusalem in the Book of Revelation, I recalled the resolution of this tension between night and light: “The city had no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gave it light. The nations will walk by its light. During the day its gates will never be shut, and there will be no night there” (21:23-26). During this Easter Season we remember the interplay of night and light that was the focus of the Easter Vigil. As the Easter Candle was lit in the dark church, we prayed, “May the light of Christ, rising in glory, dispel the darkness of our hearts and minds.” Rather than curse the darkness, the Easter Proclamation praised the night. “This is the night when first you freed the people of Israel from slavery . . . when the pillar of fire destroyed the darkness of sin . . . when Christians everywhere are restored to grace . . . when Jesus Christ broke the chains of death and rose triumphant from the grave to shed his peaceful light on all.” The Easter Season renews our gratitude for the risen Jesus who says, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12). +
“I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection.” (Saint Paul) by Abbot John Klassen, OSB
I
n listening to the accounts of Jesus’ resurrection, I am always struck by how the disciples undergo a conversion as they appropriate the fact and its meaning. In this closing Year of Paul, consider what happened to him as a result of his conversion. Saul becomes Paul; the one who harassed Christians now is a Christian; the Pharisee now becomes the premier Christian missionary to the Gentiles. Paul is utterly in love with Christ and has an intensely personal relationship with the Risen Christ. This is a powerful, mystical experience that pushes Paul beyond what would normally be possible. This kind of transformation can never be a surface phenomenon. Our inner attitude has to be transformed. Paul’s inner attitude becomes one of joy and inner peace. He writes in 2 Corinthians 7:4, “I am filled with comfort. With all our affliction, I am overjoyed.” This inner attitude is solid, not forced, sweet and pious, ignoring real hardships. Paul writes earlier in this letter, “We hold this treasure in earthen vessels, to show that the transcendent power belongs to God and not to us” (2 Cor. 4:7). Paul recognizes that this extraordinary joy comes from God— he could not possess it on his own. It is not merely the fruit of good character, good habits, a human gift. All Paul’s letters begin with a prayer of thanksgiving. His attitude of gratitude is not mere formalism but grows out of his sense of being blessed by God. Blessed because of the gift of his life, despite all the hardships, all the mistakes, all the stupid things he has said and done. Blessed because he has come to know Jesus Christ as his savior. Paul is no longer committed to the hopeless task of trying to earn his salvation by following the law perfectly. He is blessed because of the communities and individuals that crossed his path and enriched him immeasurably. Blessed because he has been given the mission to the Gentiles and is privileged to preach the Gospel across the entire Roman world. Blessed because on countless occasions he should have died, and for some reason he is still on the planet, breathing the air. Truly, he has come to know Christ and the power of his resurrection. + Abbey Banner Spring 2009 page 3
FEATURE
Aelred Senna, OSB
Sunrise at Mt. Hood by Luke Dowal, OSB
Meet a Monk: Luke Dowal, OSB, self-taught artist by Daniel Durken, OSB
“The dignity of the artist lies in his duty of keeping alive the sense of wonder in the world.” (G. K. Chesterton)
A
fter sixteen years of working off the east coast as a seaman in the United States Merchant Marine, in 1958 Zygmond Dowal traded his love for the sea for the monastic life of Saint John’s Abbey on the shore of Lake Sagatagan in the state that boasts of 10,000 lakes.
page 4 Abbey Banner Spring 2009
Upon his entrance into the novitiate, Zygmond traded his Polish first name and nickname “Ziggy” for Luke, the author of the third Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles. His new name is a link with the ancient Luke who gives readers of the Acts the whopping good sea stories of Saint
Paul’s and his sailing companions’ missionary journeys and also connects with the tradition of Luke being both a physician and artist. Brother Luke later became a registered nurse but his artistic accomplishments are the focus of this article.
FEATURE painting no more than two hours at a time. He makes his own picture frames.
Luke Dowal, OSB
During his early years as a monk, Luke worked in the garden, the carpenter shop, the monastic dining room, the sacristy and as a pioneer of Saint John’s foundation in Mexico. He obtained the nursing degree from the St. Cloud Hospital and had nursing duties at the abbey for six years. He then resumed sacristan duties for the next thirty years until his retirement in 2008 shortly before his 85th birthday.
Brother Luke’s paintings have succeeded wonderfully in “keeping alive the sense of wonder in the world.” +
A waterfall
Aelred Senna, OSB
Trees in autumn
Aelred Senna, OSB
Community Directory 2008
Luke has given away most of his paintings, often as gifts from the abbey to retiring employees. The offices of student accounts and registrar have his painting on display. One of his largest and most detailed paintings—“Sunrise at Mt. Hood” from a photo in National Geographic— enhances a wall of the Walter Reger dining room.
Luke’s artistic work is not an assignment but a hobby. He slowly developed his God-given talent that began as a youngster who enjoyed drawing and water colors. He moved into oil paintings in 1969. The only formal art class he took was a course on color from Sister Thomas Carey, OSB, of the College of Saint Benedict in 1975 for which he received an “A.”
Aelred Senna, OSB
Calling his style “realistic,” Luke uses a composite of colored photographs from magazines as the models for his paintings of flower arrangements and landscape and seascape scenes. His meticulously detailed work demands intense concentration whereby he feels drawn into another world and immersed in color. His room in the Breuer wing of the abbey is his studio where he works on a Eagle Harbor on Lake Superior
Abbey Banner Spring 2009 page 5
FEATURE
Printing ABBEY BANNER: From Ideas to the Issue by Heidi Everett; photos by Steve Palmer Steve Palmer, owner and president of Palmer Printing
E
An inside look at Palmer Printing and its production process
stablished in 1966 in St. Cloud, Minnesota, by Mike Palmer and succeeded by his son Steve as president in 1987, Palmer Printing is the company that puts each issue of ABBEY BANNER on the paper that you now hold in hand. This tour of the production process moves the magazine from the original disk containing the layout of articles and photos through the massive and sophisticated printing machinery to the final trimmed, folded and stapled copies ready for distribution. When the articles for ABBEY BANNER have been written, edited, proofread and formatted and the disk delivered to Palmer Printing, the Prepress Department performs a preliminary check to make sure the original magazine file is correct. Photographs are checked to assure they are crisp, properly sized and color corrected. Then the team arranges the pages into press sheet forms.
page 6 Abbey Banner Spring 2009
on the front of the sheet and eight pages on the back. This sheet of sixteen pages is called a signature. Thus the 32-page ABBEY BANNER has two such signatures.
A 16-page signature of press sheets A press sheet measures 28” x 40” with each sheet holding sixteen different pages of the magazine, eight pages
Using integrated software, the Prepress team codes the files to run on the press. As Steve Palmer explains, “Our Prepress technicians protect the integrity of the magazine’s file with this amazing system. When they are done, this file information goes from the brains of their Macintosh computers to the brain of the press. The technical language is spoken and understood from one machine to the other so the press knows precisely how much ink to put on each press sheet without intervention of a press operator. This shared information between Prepress and the press room allows for greater quality and efficiency in the production process.”
FEATURE Before the actual printing begins a sample proof of the issue is reviewed and approved by ABBEY BANNER editor Father Daniel who makes sure that skin tones are accurate, glares are removed and images are true to life.
This final check ensures that copy and color are correct and represent what the printed product will look like before it is actually printed. With Daniel’s final approval, the files are digitally sent to the plate imaging machine. Each issue of ABBEY BANNER is alive with color from the calming hues of the Collegeville lakes and forest to the rich details of the stained glass window of the abbey church. The colors are made from combinations of only four colors identified as C (cyan or blue), M (magenta, a deep purplish red),Y (yellow) and K (black).
Final page-proofing by Father Daniel, editor, and Gwen Spengler, Palmer Printing sales reprentative
Each of these colors has its own re-
cyclable aluminum plate on the press that prints that color on the press in tiny dots too small for the eye Magnified dots on the to detect. The press sheet dots appear as a continuous tone even though they are not. Looking at a printed page with a magnifying glass will show the way the combined dots create the color images. The electronic file information from Prepress is then sent to a machine that interprets the information, separates the four colors and images four aluminum plates for each side of the press sheet. When these plates are put on
—K
—C
—M
—Y
—Composite The CMYK color separations
Abbey Banner Spring 2009 page 7
FEATURE the press and locked into position, ink is loaded in each of the four ink units, then applied to each of the four plates and transferred to the press sheet as it goes through each of the four color units. Palmer Printing uses vegetablebased, non-toxic, biodegradable and recyclable inks to reduce the company’s impact on the environment.
machine so the operator does not have to measure, re-measure and draw guidelines. Instead he sets up to 700 sheets of paper onto the cutter table and engages the cutter, watching swift, clean cuts made through the stack by a very large and sharp steel blade. Once the cutting is completed, the signatures go to the folder which is capable of many types of folds although ABBEY BANNER is a simple, single fold.
Aluminum plate being made
Most printing presses are made in either Germany or Japan. Palmer has both Heidelberg and Komori presses. The Komori press prints ABBEY BANNER and can run 16,000 28” x 40” sheets per hour. With 16-page signatures per sheet, that totals 128,000 pages per hour.
The folder
When each 16-page signature has been printed, cut and folded, it is dropped into a pocket on the collator/ stitcher. Signatures are loaded based on where they fall in the magazine. The middle pages are dropped on the conveyor belt followed by the outside pages. Much like a piggyback ride, the middle pages carry the outside
The automated cutter
pages to the stitcher where staples bind the two signatures together. The machine makes a final trim to the folded and stapled magazine so all the pages are even.
The collator/stitcher
Voila! The finished ABBEY BANNER is packed into cartons, delivered to the mailing center at Saint John’s where the issue is address-labeled, distributed and shipped to you, its readers. + Heidi Everett is the director of advancement communications for the College of Saint Benedict, St. Joseph, Minnesota.
PALMER PRINTING • produces zero hazardous waste. Fewer than 5% of Minnesota printers have this distinction. • recycles 98% of its production and office waste, including print, plastic and metals. The Komori 40-inch press
The printed BANNER signatures are then taken to the cutter for trimming. Each cut has automatically been pre-programmed into the
• follows Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification standards. • is a Printing Industry of Minnesota Great Printer. • in 2004 was named the Small Business of the Year by the St. Cloud Area Chamber of Commerce.
The mark of responsible forestry
SW-COC-003234
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© 1996 Forest Stewardship Council A.C.
FEATURE
Abbey approves seven-year Vision Statement Introduction
W
e, the monastic community of Saint John’s Abbey, affirm the life and work of our forebears and wish to hand on to future generations of monks of this house the gift we have received: a vital monastic witness. With gratitude we recognize the saving work of Jesus Christ in our life together. We affirm that witnessing to his Kingdom is central to our lives of prayer and work. The following statement grows out of this response to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the Rule of Saint Benedict. With these for our guide we put this Vision Statement forward for the next seven years.
Vision elements with goal statements for 2015 Our monastery will be a place where we: Strengthen our Catholic, Benedictine identity by • becoming a more vibrant monastic community, participating strongly in prayer • working toward creating a balance of prayer and work with a eucharistic spirituality • drawing vocations to the Benedictine wisdom tradition Support our apostolates and vital ministries by • invigorating and sustaining the Benedictine Volunteer program • retaining a commitment of presence to the local community as well as to our students • working to develop leadership and the monastic presence in the University, Prep School, Liturgical Press, pastoral ministry and the Abbey Guesthouse Practice environmental stewardship and sustainable living by • making a commitment to simplicity of life and frugality • deepening our commitment to moderation and sharing goods in common • having simple, nutritious food, produced here or purchased locally Create stronger working relationships with lay women and men by • continuing to strengthen the bonds that our Oblates and Benedictine Volunteers have with us • expanding the ability of Oblates to be a working part of the abbey’s mission • guiding the laity to administer some of our apostolates Serve the poor and under-resourced, locally and globally by • preparing alumni, Oblates and Benedictine Volunteers for service in poor countries • embracing inclusivity and diversity in our community and in the people we work with • engaging with Southeast Asian, African-American and Hispanic Catholics in the local communities and in ecumenical and inter-religious dialogue
Placid Stuckenschneider, OSB
Next steps We will begin the work of creating a five-year plan that orders and prioritizes the goals which make these vision elements concrete and that is grounded on the fiscal and human resources of our community.
This Vision Statement, of which the above is a synopsis, was approved by the monastic community on March 3, 2009. +
Abbey Banner Spring 2009 page 99
FEATURE
Daniel Durken, OSB
Saint Benedict’s Church of Avon, Minnesota
“The greatest memorial we can give to our pioneers is to fill with credit their places in the parish.”
By 1869 ten families had settled the locale and applied to Rupert Seidenbusch, OSB, first abbot of Saint John’s, for pastoral services. The abbot appointed Prior Benedict Haindl, OSB, to begin this new mission, dedicated to Mary’s Immaculate Conception that had been defined as a dogma of faith in 1854. The Keppers’ wagonshop served as the first church and school until 1871 when a new log house was built to house both entities. The following year James J. Hill, founder of the Great Northern Railroad, changed the name of the settlement to Avon; he liked to give English names to communities along his train page 10 Abbey Banner Spring 2009
route. Avon is the river in England associated with the city of Stratford and William Shakespeare. Avon parishioners were soon planning a new frame church, completed in 1878 and dedicated to Saint Benedict in honor of the first pastor. This building was in use for nearly half a century. Throughout these formative years the parish was served by a multitude of Benedictine and diocesan priests. The parish history, A Century of Sacrifice and Prayer, lists more than forty pastors assigned during these 100 years for as brief a time as two months and as long as thirteen years. In 1901 a two-story brick veneered rectory was built and is still in use. A grade school was added, built and owned by the parish but paid for by the city. This building now houses the parish center, a Montessori school for three to six year olds and several offices for local businesses.
Daniel Durken, OSB
T
he village of Spunk Lake originated in 1858 when Nicolaus and John Keppers bought government land three miles west of a nascent Benedictine monastery for $1.25 per acre. The name may have derived from Ojibwa Chief Spunk whose tribe had sparsely inhabited the Indianbush area now called Collegeville.
(Abbot Baldwin Dworschak, OSB)
Blane Wasnie, OSB, pastor
Meinrad Seiferman, OSB, was pastor when the present church was built in 1928. Gilbert Winkelman, OSB, who taught architecture at Saint John’s, was the architect. When Abbot Alcuin Deutsch, OSB, inquired about the payment for Father Gilbert’s
FEATURE professional services, Father Meinrad replied, “Father Abbot, you promised us a donation, so let’s call it even.”
Small statues of saints and vigil lights occupy a space at the rear of the church.
This unique statue of Saint Benedict, the parish patron, is the work of Mark Kurtz, known locally as “The Chainsaw Man,” who carved it using only a large and small chainsaw. The white oak tree trunk is about 200 years old and was harvested from the Alfred Jacob farm near Holdingford, Minnesota. It weighs 800 pounds, stands 6’ 10” and was cured for fifteen years.
Daniel Durken, OSB
Inspired by their parish Mission Statement—“We are people of God, welcoming, proclaiming, celebrating and serving one another”—the 600 current Catholic households are dedicated to nurturing the seeds of faith, hope and love planted by their pioneers. In the spirit of Saint Benedict, “May they prefer nothing whatever to Christ, and may he bring them all together to everlasting life” (Rule of Saint Benedict, chapter 72). +
The renovated sanctuary. The oil painting is the work of B. Imhoff in memory of Eileen A. Roche, a young parishioner killed in a car accident in 1930.
Daniel Durken, OSB
Supported by the successful capital campaign initiated by pastor Eugene McGlothlin, OSB, a thorough renovation and updating of the present church was planned and supervised by the present pastor, Blane Wasnie, OSB, and parishioners. In early 2007 the project, which includes the following, was completed in six weeks of intensive labor without interruption of weekend liturgies. • expansion of the sanctuary with a new hardwood laminated floor and the leveling and partial carpeting of the nave • restoration and repositioning of the original main altar of gneiss, a beautifully mottled stone older than granite, and moving choir to area once occupied by the altar • new baptismal pool and font for adult and infant baptisms • renovated tabernacle • new sound system, lighting, organ, ambo and choir chairs • new cabinets in the sacristy
Aelred Senna, OSB
In 1997 during the pastorate of James Reichert, OSB, the entrance to the church was extended to create a gathering space that includes an elevator to the nave, stairway to the basement, reconciliation room, cry room and bathrooms.
Abbey Banner Spring 2009 page 11
FEATURE
Boniface Wimmer: Letters of an American Abbot Edited by Jerome Oetgen Reviewed by Columba Stewart, OSB
A
merican Benedictines of the German tradition, which includes Saint John’s Abbey and Saint Benedict’s Monastery, owe their presence in this country to Archabbot Boniface Wimmer (1809-1887). Sebastian Wimmer was a diocesan priest in his native Bavaria when he entered the recently refounded Bavarian monastery of Metten Abbey. He was given the religious name Boniface after the eighth-century English monk who brought Christianity to the Germanic world. The name was a foresightful choice, for Wimmer was to become one of the greatest German missionaries of all time, bringing both pastoral service and vibrant monastic life to the United States. Wimmer is a complex and controversial figure for American Benedictines. His undeniable energy in establishing monasteries and parishes created a monastic culture that often seemed more directed toward external mission than cloistered contemplation. His strong-willed direction of Benedictine expansion in America frequently led to clashes with his monks, with bishops, and with the Benedictine women whom he thought essential for Benedictine success in the United States.
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For some, Wimmer represents all that is dynamic and admirable in American Benedictine life. For others, he represents an authoritarian, patriarchal model of monastic leadership best left in the nineteenth century. Indeed, his favorite motto was omnis sanctus pertinax, “every saint must be stubborn.” Gaining a sense of the man is difficult for those who have heard the many caricatures that circulate in the oral history of American Benedictine life. The recent sesquicentennial celebrations of American monasteries have again brought Wimmer and his complexities to the forefront of our efforts to understand where we came from and where we might be headed in these early years of the 21st century. Now, in the bicentennial year of Wimmer’s birth, Jerome Oetgen has done a great service by providing us the best possible glimpse of Wimmer himself. The 200 letters in this selection open with Wimmer’s efforts to leave his diocesan parish assignment to become a Benedictine at Metten Abbey and close with his very last, unfinished letter. These are long letters, filling almost 600 printed pages. Wimmer was typical of the great men
and women of his age, who regarded the art and labor of letter-writing as a matter of daily obligation, but the unusual detail found in Wimmer’s letters sets them apart from the more banal correspondence of his contemporaries. Oetgen knows his subject well, having written a major biography of Wimmer (An American Abbot, rev. ed. Catholic University of America Press, 1997). The letters he has chosen are almost all translated from German, Wimmer’s preferred language. Gathered from archives in Rome, Germany, and various monastic foundations in North America, the majority were translated in the 1960s and 70s. Some letters of particular interest for the history of Saint John’s Abbey were published between 1958 and 1960 in The Scriptorium, a journal produced by the junior monks of Saint John’s. Given the fifty-year sweep of this collection and Wimmer’s incredible achievements during that half-century of activity, a review of this kind can only summarize major themes that recur throughout the correspondence.
FEATURE joined to a firm conviction that the Catholic Church was the best means to bring such faith to others. As he aged he wrote with touching honesty of his growing sensitivity to criticism and about the cracks developing within the cloisters he had labored so hard to build. Those interested in the history of the Minnesota foundation will find several letters to the first two abbots of Saint John’s, Rupert Seidenbusch and Alexius Edelbrock, as well as a letter Wimmer sent to Rome to explain his side of the legendary clash of wills with Mother Benedicta Riepp. Wimmer was also involved in the larger controversies of his day, writing to Abraham Lincoln in 1863 to request exemption from the draft for his monks and the following year urging one of his monks to vote against Lincoln in the hope of an early peace.
Archabbot Douglas Nowicki, OSB, presents the volume to Pope Benedict XVI.
A letter written and signed by Wimmer
First was his commitment to the German Catholic immigrants in the United States. Second was his belief that establishing rural Benedictine monasteries was the best means to care for German Catholics and to spread the Catholic faith. For Wimmer, missionary work was the highest form of Christian ministry, and he considered professed religious to be better suited than diocesan priests for such apostolic labor. Because monks settle in one place,
Historic Saint Joseph’s Mission Church, near Carrollton, Pennsylvania, visited by Wimmer
As someone who has struggled to make sense of Wimmer’s legacy, I am grateful for this chance to encounter this monumental monk more directly. +
immersing themselves in the culture and lives of the people they serve, he deemed monastic community to be the most successful means for missionary work. Wimmer wanted these Benedictine mission centers to be genuine monasteries, with strong monastic discipline and a full round of liturgical prayer and devotional practices.
Columba Stewart is Professor of Monastic Studies and Executive Director of the Hill Museum & Manuscript Library at Saint John’s.
Wimmer’s letters show him to be deeply pious in the traditional sense of having a lively, sure belief in God,
All photos courtesy Saint Vincent Archabbey, Latrobe, Pennsylvania
Boniface Wimmer: Letters of an American Abbot may be ordered from Saint John’s Bookstore at 1-800-420-4509 or www.csbsju.edu/bookstore.org. The price is $39.99 plus postage and handling.
Abbey Banner Spring 2009 page 13
FEATURE
The Renovation of the Abbey Retirement Center by Daniel Durken, OSB
“The abbot should be extremely careful that the sick and the elderly suffer no neglect.” (Rule, chs. 36, 37) Abbot John celebrates Mass in the chapel of the retirement center.
T
he health care of the community was a priority for Saint Benedict as he wrote, “Care of the sick must rank above and before all else, so that they may truly be served as Christ, for he said: I was sick and you visited me (Matt 25:36) and, What you did for one of these least brothers you did for me” (Matt 25:40). In 1977 this solicitude was renewed with the construction of the original Saint Raphael Hall Abbey Retirement Center on the second floor of the monastic quadrangle to provide 24/7 care for fifteen monk residents. In successive decades more rooms were added to bring the current number to twenty-six.
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This past winter the Collegeville version of ABC-TV’s “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” was completed without sending the residents on a vacation. Lee Tollefson was the architect. The carpentry, electrical and plumbing work was done by area companies. The renovation includes the following: ■
All twenty-six resident rooms received new paint, flooring and grab bars in the half-bath. Aided by a $15,000 grant from Support Our Aging Religious, Inc., each room has a “Help Needed” signal button connected to corridor emergency call lights to assure rapid response.
■ The nurses’ station was relocated and a treatment room for special medical procedures, a medication room and an observation room for post-operation and injured patients were created. ■
The director’s office, laundry room, staff locker room, nurses’ bathroom, ice-pack and snack room, custodian’s room, linen and supplies areas were established.
■ A large walk-in whirlpool tub and shower were added to the bathing area. ■ An enlarged recreation area provides tables and chairs, a
FEATURE
A resident’s tidy room
Abbot John distributes communion to the residents.
piano, and a bird cage for two of the center’s favorite residents, parakeets Freddy and Frieda. A TV and two recliners are nearby.
■
The residents’ dining room was enlarged, new flooring, kitchen cupboards and appliances installed, tables refinished and new chairs purchased.
■ The renovated chapel includes the spatial rearrangement of the room, new flooring, refinished chairs and a new altar. The granite
altar—designed by Marcel Breuer, the architect of the abbey church, for a chapel origi- nally adjacent to the abbot’s office—was The recreation area of the center rescued from a disposal area, ■ Corridors and other open areas cleaned and polished. It replaces were recarpeted. New lighting the decoratively carved wooden considerably brightens the area. altar from the chapel of the former campus infirmary, now a student The staff of Saint Raphael’s Hall residence. numbers two registered nurses (RNs), seven licensed practical nurses (LPNs), seven certified nursing assistants (CNAs), seven provisional staff members and sixteen student workers who individually average eight hours per week of assistance. Carol Loch, RN, is the director of the facility. The current twenty-four residents, the nursing staff, visitors and the monastic community are very pleased with the extensive renovation of this essential facility. The cost of the renovation is close to a million dollars. +
The dining room of the center
Photos by Daniel Durken, OSB
Abbey Banner Spring 2009 page 15
OBITUARIES The following excerpt from Abbot John’s homily at Dietrich’s funeral recalls some of our confrere’s accomplishments. “Dietrich had many gifts—one of his strongest was a stereo-optic vision that allowed him to keep the big picture in focus while drilling down into the smallest details of a project. He made long-lasting friendships both inside and outside the monastery.
T
homas was the oldest of the four children of Donald and Eleanor (Noonan) Reinhart of Minneapolis. Following graduation from DeLaSalle High School, he enrolled at Saint John’s and graduated magna cum laude in history in 1971. That summer he entered the abbey as a novice and asked for the name Dietrich in honor of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the German Lutheran theologian who was executed by the Gestapo for his resistance to Nazism. Brother Dietrich obtained the doctorate in history at Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island. He taught in the SJU history department from 1981- 1988 at which time he was named dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. In 1991 the Board of Regents elected him the eleventh president of Saint John’s University, the first non-ordained monk of Saint John’s Abbey to hold this position. In 2003 he began his third term as president.
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“His willingness to take calculated risks is most obvious in the creation of The Saint John’s Bible when his initial reaction to the proposal was, ‘I need this like I need a hole in the head.’ But he quickly changed his mind and completely supported Donald Jackson’s dream to produce the first handwritten, hand-illuminated bible in 500 years. “As I prepared this homily, a thousand memories washed over me: Dietrich’s capacity to be late for any and all occasions because he was always getting one more thing done; his absolute commitment to never eat at a fast food restaurant; the countless times I heard the wheels of his luggage on the rough brick floor of the Breuer wing as he headed to the airport.
The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated for Brother Dietrich on January 6, 2009. May he rest in peace. +
Abbot Jerome Theisen, OSB, and Regents‘ Chair Thomas McKeown, invest Dietrich with the presidential medallion at his first inauguration in 1971.
Copyright by Photographic Service L’Osservatore Romano
Dietrich Thomas Reinhart, OSB 1949-2008
“He was truly an outstanding president because he cared for all of Saint John’s. He was aware of the needs of our undergraduate students, the challenges for the School of Theology•Seminary, the Hill Museum and Microfilm Library, the Collegeville Ecumenical Institute, the pottery kiln and studio, the prep school and of course the abbey.
“Dietrich struggled to live in the tension of accepting the tough prognosis of Stage IV metastatic melanoma in late September. He had a fierce desire to beat the odds, but wily melanoma does not yield to typical control strategies. Ultimately he was able to step into the new future with God that our faith promises. Truly Dietrich was a faithful servant, ready for our Lord’s call that came on December 29, 2008.”
On April 4, 2008, Dietrich witnessed the presentation by the Papal Foundation of the Wisdom volume of the St. Peter Apostles Edition of The Saint John’s Bible to Pope Benedict XVI.
OBITUARIES healthy spirituality. He was recognized as a hard worker, a skilled teacher, a good leader and a tireless administrator. Upon his retirement from the university, Bruce gave proof to the saying, “You can take the boy out of the farm but you can’t take the farm out of the boy.” He chose to concentrate his energy and enthusiasm on the good earth. Working with Paul Schwietz, OSB, he helped establish Saint John’s Arboretum and its restoration of prairie grass, wild flowers, oak savannah and marsh lands of the Collegeville campus. He served on the Arboretum Advisory Council and chaired the Abbey Forest and Lands Committee.
Bruce Luverne Wollmering, OSB 1940-2009
For the past four years Bruce increased the amount and variety of food grown and served at Saint John’s. His volunteer gardeners enhanced monastic dining with an abundance of fresh vegetables. He renovated the root cellar for the winter storage of vegetables and supervised the new “hoop house” nursery for the early and late growth of plants.
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uverne was the oldest of the five children of Gregory and Marie (May) Wollmering who farmed near Hastings, Minnesota. Before his fourteenth birthday he began studies at Saint John’s Preparatory School, entered the abbey as Novice Bruce and professed his first vows in 1961. He completed the undergraduate degree in philosophy and classical language and his seminary studies and was ordained in 1967.
Like his parents who died suddenly in an automobile accident in 2001, Bruce died unexpectedly on February 4 from a traumatic head injury caused by a collapse in the basement locker room of the monastery. In his homily Abbot John remarked, “I don’t think Bruce ever imagined becoming an elderly monk. He said more than once that he prayed that God would take him quickly when the time came. At the same time, I don’t think Bruce ever imagined dying in this particular way. But he would have had little patience with the year by year diminishments that are part of growing old. . . All of us will miss his outgoing energy and care.” The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated for Father Bruce on February 10, 2009. May he rest in peace. +
Bruce deserves the title “The Bird Man of Collegeville.” He identified 39 species of birds that visited the campus including his favorite, the Eastern bluebird. He built more than 70 nesting boxes to encourage the re-popula-
Aelred Senna, OSB
For the next thirty-six years Bruce dedicated his considerable talents to academic affairs, primarily as associate professor and chair of the department of psychology at St. John’s. He interspersed his teaching assignments with master’s and doctoral degrees in psychology at the University of Arizona.
Bruce and a blue bird nest
Aelred Senna, OSB
Bruce conducted more than fifty workshops and seminars on topics such as dream analysis, therapeutic hypnosis, human sexuality and
tion of the bluebird and kept meticulous records of the nesting success.
Bruce and his garden harvest
Abbey Banner Spring 2009 page 17
OBITUARIES
Entering the abbey after two years of college and receiving the name Simon, he made his first profession of vows in 1949 and continued his college and seminary studies. During the six years prior to ordination he was one of the four lead cantors of the monastic schola and sang with gusto the inspired music of Gregorian chant and Latin hymns. He was ordained in 1955.
Simon Robert Bischof, OSB 1926-2009
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obert was the third son of the nine children of Nicholas and Tecla (Lauer) Bishof who farmed near Eden Valley, Minnesota. Born during a 1926 mid-December blizzard so severe that his father had to pull the doctor’s car to the farm house with a tractor, he was fittingly buried the day after a late February six-inch snowfall. Robert began his studies for the priesthood at Saint John’s Preparatory School in 1942. An older and a younger brother also received their education at Saint John’s and two of his sisters are members of Saint
Simon’s grandniece sleeps in his arms.
page 18 Abbey Banner Spring 2009
The bulk of Simon’s priesthood was dedicated to pastoral ministry. For a decade he served as associate pastor of Saint Augustine’s Church, St. Cloud. For two years he was chaplain of the prep school and for another two years was the abbey’s director of vocations. He then resumed his ministry as pastor of parishes clustered around the abbey as well as chaplaincy and parish assignments in the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis and the Dioceses of Duluth and Crookston. He concluded his parish ministry with another decade of service at Saint Augustine’s Church before his retirement in 2002. A strong focus of Simon’s ministry was music. In the years following Vatican II he visited many Minnesota parishes to introduce and promote congregational singing. His favorite motivational motto was, “If God gave you a bad voice, Sunday Mass is the time and place to give it back to God.” Simon’s hope for a restful retirement was not realized. Early on he enjoyed working for the grounds crew, zooming over campus lawns atop a power mower. He also helped in the production of the Saint
John’s Cross. But it soon became apparent that Simon was to do more than make crosses. He became the cross of the suffering Christ as he experienced debilitating problems in his spine, heart and feet. The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated for Father Simon on February 27, 2009. May he rest in peace. +
Abbey Archives
Benedict’s Monastery, Saint Joseph, Minnesota. While in the prep school Robert began his life-long love of music, singing in the glee club and learning to play the cello.
Simon blesses his parents, Nicholas and Tecla Bischof, at his First Mass.
Remember our deceased loved ones: Joan Andert Andrew Auer Vada Berhow Galen Doub Isabelle Durenberger Mary R. Garcia Stella Jirik William Macomber Dottie Maiers Dr. John Murphy Joe Parisella, Sr. Jeanne Remmick Bernard Schlumpf Sr. Barbara Schwan, OSF Michael Steinke Michael Taylor Paul Wahler
May they rest in peace.
BENEDICTINE VOLUNTEERS
Benedictine Volunteers build a library out of trash and bottles by Daniel Durken, OSB
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an you construct a building out of trash-filled bottles? Michael Anderson and Liam Sperl, last year’s Benedictine Volunteers at the Abbey of Jesus Christ Crucified in Esquipulas, Guatemala, decided to try it. They learned that a nearby orphanage called “City of Joy” needed a library and decided to kill the proverbial two birds with one . . . bottle, namely, clean up area trash and build the needed structure. With the help of Andrea Francia, an Italian engineer who has spent the past seventeen years on the construction of similar orphanage projects, and the advice of members of the Congregation of Martha and Mary who sponsor the City of Joy, these two SJU 2007 graduates went to work. Michael and Liam visited local schools and talked to classes about
“We are amazed at how much trash can be forced into a bottle.” the importance of recycling trash and litter, how the students could help and how their efforts would pay off. Using bamboo sticks to force trash into 20-ounce plastic bottles, the students received 25 centavos (about three US cents) for each bottle they filled. The bottles become as tough as rocks. To pay for the needed bottles and the construction of the building, Michael and Liam raised over $14,000 from their families and friends, with a good portion of that amount raised by Sister Stefanie Weisgram, OSB, a CSB/ SJU librarian, along with a $300 grant from Saint John’s. Over 4000 bottles were used, amounting to over 2000 pounds of primarily recycled plastic material. The basic construction strategy used the bottles as insulation within an encase-
ment of cement. The structure was made of wood with studs every square meter and chicken wire on both sides of the frame. The filled bottles were secured within the two sides of the chicken wire and cemented over. To insure that the cement stayed in place, the gaps not filled by the bottles were filled with loose assortments of trash. This year’s Volunteers, Theo Eggermont and Phil Hanson, have purchased a thousand dollars worth of books for the library and added an outdoor shelter to the building. They plan to build a playground out of wood and recycled tires as well as a pure water project for which they are currently looking for funds. For information about this project, please contact Theo at taeggermont@gmail. com. +
A new Benedictine Volunteer, Brian Adamek
Daniel Durken, OSB
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rian Adamek, 2006 SJU management and economics graduate, volunteered for two months of service at the Benedictine Monastery of the Resurrection in Coban, Guatemala. This foundation of Blue Cloud Abbey, Marvin, South Dakota, is situated in the highlands approximately 120 miles northeast of Guatemala City. The community numbers thirteen monks, ten of whom are Guatemalans.
Brian arrived at the monastery on February 2 and returned home April 1. His work was different each day. He quickly established himself as the top dish dryer in the community and worked in the carpenter shop and laundry. He helped install a Wii Nintendo system and projector in a community room used by all and installed computers in classrooms of a nearby school. He also helped students with their English classes. + Abbey Banner Spring 2009 page 19
MONASTIC MATTERS
Abbey receives two architectural awards
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Paul Crosby
n December 5, 2008, Saint John’s Abbey and the architectural firm of Vincent James Associates Architects were presented with two awards for design and architecture from the American Institute of Architects—Minnesota. The awards were presented for the Abbey Guesthouse and the Abbey Church Blessed Sacrament Chapel. Below are the jury comments.
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overlapping L-shaped structures around the central court . . . Inside, the ingenious use of custom-designed concrete block filters light, reduces noise, and echoes the patterned block screens that Breuer used in the original abbey buildings. The interiors also
retained the spare modernist aesthetic of Breuer’s best work, warmed with wood finishes where needed and illuminated with translucent glass-plank walls where privacy is required. +
visitor with a warm, wooden interior whose single built-in bench and small built-in shelf for the placement of candles all focus on the reredos, an ornamental screen that serves to block the light from the rear window and highlight the spiritual sense of light
in the room. One juror said, “It’s a breathtaking little project” and another, “Loved the juxtaposition between the brutalist concrete of Breuer’s building and the warm, wood-lined space of the chapel.” +
Paul Crosby
djacent to Marcel Breuer’s Abbey Church, this guesthouse greatly impressed the jury with its minimalist handling of materials and details and the clever way in which it handles the complex program with the simple plan of two
his tiny chapel sits in a small, trapezoidal space between Marcel Breuer’s Abbey Church and the adjacent cloister walk. Visible from inside the church as a sliding wood door and a small window with a lit candle in it, the chapel surprises the page 20 Abbey Banner Spring 2009
MONASTIC MATTERS
Abbey Woodworking produces chapel furnishings for Saint Paul’s Monastery Dave Hrbacek, The Catholic Spirit
by Daniel Durken, OSB
“Our goal was to have chapel furnishings that would be beautiful in simplicity, authentic and above all, feminine in character.” (Mary Lou Dummer, OSB, liturgist)
Dave Hrbacek, The Catholic Spirit
The new Saint Paul’s Monastery
It was in 1948 that 178 members of Saint Benedict’s Monastery, St. Joseph, Minnesota, founded a daughter monastery in a residential complex close to the Saint Paul Cathedral. Ten years later this community had built and staffed the Archbishop Murray High School on an 86-acre plot bordering St. Paul. In 1965 the community completed its new 100,000
square-foot monastery, adjacent to the school, to house the more than 200 monastics engaged in religious formation, education and health care ministries. As the sisters aged and numbers decreased to the current 53 members, the community decided to build a smaller monastery directly behind the larger structure. This building was occupied this past February 10, the feast of Saint Scholastica.
Susan Bourauel, OSB, liturgical musician of Saint Paul’s Monastery, praised the efforts of the woodworkers: “The sensitivity of the craftsmen to our design was always met with respect, reverence and a willingness to adapt.” For information about Abbey Woodworking, go to their website: sjawood.org or e-mail at sjawood@csbsju.edu. +
Saint John’s Abbey Woodworking was chosen to build the furnishings for the new monastery’s chapel. This major project included the design and construction of sixty-two chairs with upholstered seats and backs, the wooden altar top, ambo, prayer leader’s stand, presider’s table and credence table, all made of hard, white maple wood or maple veneer. Under the direction of Christopher Fair, OSB, shop steward, John Meoska, OSB, office manager, Jim Tingerthal, OSB, shop assistant, Robert Lillard and Michael Roske, master craftsmen, and the work of their crew, the project was completed in eight months.
Daniel Durken, OSB
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arol Rennie, OSB, prioress of the Benedictine women of Saint Paul’s Monastery, St. Paul, states, “It was clear from the beginning that we would engage the Woodworking Shop at Saint John’s as our continued commitment to the abbey in order to sustain our relationship since 1948.”
Prioress Carol Rennie, OSB, at the entrance to the new chapel with chairs in background
Brother Christopher Fair, OSB, and the chapel chair
Abbey Banner Spring 2009 page 21
VOCATIONS
Abbey Vocation Office sponsors two events by Paul-Vincent Niebauer, OSB
Paul-Vincent Niebauer, OSB, at the Los Angeles Religious Education Convention
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he Abbey Vocation Office sponsored a booth at the Los Angeles Religious Education Congress, February 26-March 1. With over 35,000 attendees and approximately 150 exhibitors, the L.A. Congress is one of the largest annual gatherings of Catholics in North America. David Paul Lange, OSB, and I personally handed out over 4000 wallet-sized magnets featuring an image of the young Saint Benedict created by Brother David Paul. The new vocation website address is included on the magnet.
A booth at the Los Angeles Religious Education Congress and a house for the Central Minnesota Habitat for Humanity
A number of connections were made with men interested in exploring monastic life at Saint John’s as well as participating in the annual summer Monastic Experience Program (MEP). The second event, sponsored by the Abbey Vocation Office, was an alternative spring break retreat, March 2-6. Participants resided in the abbey in the same area where the monastic candidates, novices and juniors live. Their schedule focused on lectio divina (prayerful reading), both private and as a group, as well as public prayer, meals and recreation with the monastic community.
two of the units worked alongside the retreatants and made the experience particularly rewarding. When all stopped for lunch, a hymn was sung and Midday Prayer recited. No disposable paper or plastic products were used for the meal. Though the weather was very cold, the participants were most enthusiastic about being involved with the local community in this Habitat project. This was the first time for such a retreat. Given the positive response, it will be repeated next year. +
During three days the retreatants performed volunteer work with the Central Minnesota Habitat for Humanity at a project in St. Cloud. Immediately after Morning Prayer, they boarded a van with a good supply of soup, bread, fruit, fresh vegetables and beverages and headed for the building site.
The young Benedict by David Paul
page 22 Abbey Banner Spring 2009
Most of the work took place outdoors with the construction of four decks on the back side of a four-plex unit. The families that will move into
Volunteers at the Habitat for Humanity project: l. to r., Jason Ziegler, PaulVincent Niebauer, OSB, Michael Wollmering, Joe Weichman, Nick Kleespie
Paul-Vincent Niebauer, OSB, is the abbey’s vocation director.
BANNER BITS
New publications by monks – from piano to poetry “Great editors do not discover nor produce great authors; great authors create and produce great publishers.” (John Farrar)
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obert Koopmann, OSB, has recorded a second collection of seventeen piano improvisations of hymns, spirituals and chants. Entitled Wondrous Love: More Sacred Improvisations, this 58-minute CD includes “Nobody Knows,” “Jesu Dulcis Memoria,” “Were You There?” and “Wondrous Love.” Father Robert is joined by clarinetist Bruce Thornton on three spirituals: “Deep River,” “Swing Low,” and “Precious Lord.” $15.95. Saint John’s Bookstore: 1-800-420-4509.
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ichael Kwatera, OSB, writes in a down-to-earth, crisp style What Every Catholic Needs To Know About The Eucharist (San Jose, CA: Resource Publications, Inc.). With abundant references to the Bible, documents of Vatican II, comments of early and contemporary theologians and homespun anecdotes, Father Michael helps readers better understand and celebrate the Eucharist. The 56-page booklet is ideal for school and parish study. $9.95. Saint John’s Bookstore: 1-800-420-4509.
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nthony Ruff, OSB, took seriously the U.S. bishops’ recommendation that for daily Mass the Responsorial Psalm be sung “in a simple chanted setting.” He produced Responsorial Psalms for Weekday Mass (Liturgical Press) for Advent, Christmas, Lent and Easter. Father Anthony intends these psalms to be sung unaccompanied and led by a single cantor. Keyboard accompaniments and guitar chords are provided. 148 pages, spiral-bound. $34.95. Liturgical Press: 1-800-858-5450. +
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ilian McDonnell, OSB, entitles his third book of poetry God Drops and Loses Things (Saint John’s University Press). He has picked up those dropped and lost things and made poignant poems of the pieces. Most of the 46 poems are headed by a biblical quotation that sets the stage for Father Kilian’s re-imaging the text in a surprising and delightful way. See the back cover of this issue for two of the poems. $11.95. Liturgical Press: 1-800-858-5450.
Robert Koopmann, OSB, is the abbey’s director of music. Michael Kwatera, OSB, is director of abbey liturgy and Oblates. Kilian McDonnell, OSB, is professor emeritus of theology and founder of the Collegeville Institute for Ecumenical and Cultural Research. Anthony Ruff, OSB, is assistant professor of theology and founder of the National Catholic Youth Choir.
Abbey Banner Spring 2009 page 23
THE ABBEY CHRONICLE God’s design of an ice crystal cross
What’s Up? The Abbey Chronicle
We worship you, Lord, we venerate your cross, we praise your resurrection. Through the cross you brought joy to the world. (Good Friday Antiphon)
Between November and March, Saint John’s experienced a winter worthy of MinneSNOWta. Lake Sagatagan iced over on November 21 and the first sub-zero temperature was December 10. Twenty-five inches of snow in December made for a White Christmas. We had ten more in February and twelve in March. Forty-one days of below-zero temperatures were recorded with the lowest a frigid -31 on December 16. A hint of spring arrived in mid-March and 2 ½ inches of rain fell on the 23rd. page 24 Abbey Banner Spring 2009
November 2008 ■ On November 8 the Great Hall bulged with sellers and shoppers at the annual Collegeville Craft Fair. The wares of community members included polyhedrons by Magnus Wenninger, OSB; photo greeting cards by Fran Hoefgen, OSB; cards, framed dried flowers, homemade jams and jellies by Dunstan Moorse, OSB; hand knitted items, greeting cards, jellies and bread by Aelred Senna, OSB.
■ Saint John’s Annual Family-Style Student Thanksgiving dinner was served on November 19 to 1,345 university, 90 School of Theology and
Daniel Durken, OSB
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here is a better answer to the above question, “What’s up?” But the Easter Season rephrases the question—“Who’s up?” Of course, Jesus is up! But he is not the only one, for we pray, “Let our celebration raise us up and renew our lives by the Spirit that is within us” (Easter Sunday, Opening Prayer). The editor and staff of ABBEY BANNER wish readers an uplifting Easter celebration.
Light or dark meat?
Daniel Durken, OSB
Fran Hoefgen, OSB
by Daniel Durken, OSB
Dunstan Moorse, OSB, and his Craft Fair items
98 prep school students by 65 volunteers. Dining service director Dave Schoenberg reported that eager eaters consumed 210 turkeys, 800 lbs. of mashed potatoes, 600 lbs. of corn, 425 lbs. of dressing, 70 gallons of gravy, 210 pumpkin pies, 60 pounds of whipped cream, 115 gallons of milk, and 230 bottles of catawba juice.
THE ABBEY CHRONICLE
Daniel Durken, OSB
■ The monastic community celebrated Thanksgiving Day as Mark Thamert, OSB, and Walter Kieffer, OSB, prepared several turkeys on outdoor grills to add to those cooked by the kitchen staff. To create a turkey flambeau effect, waiters attached firework sparklers to the trays of turkeys paraded from the kitchen into the serving area. The community enjoyed mincemeat pies by Raphael Olson, OSB, and pumpkin and apple pies by Aelred Senna, OSB.
hymns honoring Our Lady of Guadalupe. This feast celebrates the appearance of the Blessed Virgin Mary to Juan Diego in 1531. ■ Nominated and endorsed by his supervisors and co-workers at Liturgical Press, Daniel Durken, OSB, received the fall 2008 Extraordinary Performance Award given by the College of Saint Benedict and the Order of Saint Benedict to a designated administrator. At a luncheon on December 15 he received an engraved commemorative clock plus a donation to his designated charity. Father Daniel began his association with Liturgical Press in 1967, served as its director from 1978-1988, and has continued writing and editing for over twenty years.
January 2009 ■ The opening session of the annual Community Workshop, held January 5-7, was an inspiring DVD presentation by Elizabeth Johnson, CSJ, on “The Banquet of Faith: Reflections on Trinitarian Theology.” Several senior panelists considered, “What it meant to be a Catholic monastery when they entered and how that has changed.” Younger panelists spoke of “What it might mean to be a Catholic monastery in the next ten years.” ■ Every three to five years a Benedictine community has an official Visitation by several monks of other
■ As the Christmas Season approached, the monastic community decided to continue last year’s pine tree conservation program. Whereas Walter Kieffer, OSB, at the grill
Daniel Durken, OSB
(l. to r.) Brothers Aelred, Efrain and Gregorio sing to Our Lady of Guadalupe.
Daniel Durken, OSB
■ A special devotion for the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe was celebrated before Morning Prayer on December 12. Gregorio Congote, OSB, a native of Colombia, South America, and a monk of St. Michael Abbey, Elkhorn, Nebraska; Efrain Rosado, OSB, a monk of the Abbey of Tepeyac, Mexico; and our own Aelred Senna, OSB, prepared a brief ceremony of Marian prayers and
Daniel Durken, OSB
December 2008
A wreath replaces a Christmas tree.
in the past, nine Christmas trees were decorated, only three survived the elimination process, namely, the monastic dining room and the quadrangle’s third and fourth floor recreation areas. Not even the popular Christmas Cookie Tree was spared.
(l. to r.) The Visitators: Fr. Charles, Abbot Hugh, Br. Alban, Abbot Barnabas
monasteries who interview members and then share their observations with the host community. From January 21-27, Saint John’s Abbey was visited by Hugh Anderson, OSB, Abbot of St. Procopius Abbey, Lisle, Illinois; Barnabas Senecal, OSB, Abbot of St. Benedict’s Abbey, Atchison, Kansas; Father Charles Buckley, OSB, Vocation Director, St. Gregory’s Abbey, Shawnee, Oklahoma; and Brother Alban Petesch, OSB, Novice Master, Assumption Abbey, Richardton, North Dakota. Abbey Banner Spring 2009 page 25
THE ABBEY CHRONICLE
Luigi Bertocchi, OSB
possessions that we could not bear to part with will all be sorted, dispersed or dumped.”
March 2009
■ At the Vigil Service of the Feast of Saint Benedict on March 20, the monastic community received the prestigious gift of the Books of Wisdom volume of the ■ To celebrate the Chinese New Heritage Edition of The Year on January 25, Chinese students Saint John’s Bible. The of the School of Theology•Seminary Heritage Edition is the were dinner guests of the monastery. full-size (24 inches by Their token gifts were taped to the 36 inches when open) bottom of chairs and Chinese symbols fine art reproduction of decorated the room. Chinese underthe original version of graduate students at SJU and CSB The Saint John’s Bible. number 54. There are 13 in the prep This Number One set of school and 5 in the School of the 299 published sets is the gift to Theology for a total of 72. the abbey from Saint John’s University and the Hill Museum & Manuscript Library. The seven volumes of the Heritage Edition are intended for display by churches, museums, libraries and other cultural Chinese students celebrate their New Year: l. to r., Fr. Augustine institutions to Wang, Sr. Therese Ge, Abbot John, Sr. Johanna Jiao, Br. Aelred Senna, OSB, Br. James Phillips, OSB, Fr. John Bai, and make better Sr. Joyce Zhang. known this first handFebruary 2009 written and hand-illuminated Bible produced in the last 500 years. The ■ Abbot John opened the Lenten stand for the Bible was made by Saint season with a conference to the moJohn’s Woodworking. nastic community on the theme of simplicity and frugality. One point that struck home was the reminder that “within 48 hours of our death, the clothes, books and other personal
page 26 Abbey Banner Spring 2009
■ Walter Cardinal Kasper, President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, received the Pax Christi Award, Saint John’s highest honor, and delivered the Godfrey Diekmann, OSB, lecture on March 23. The Pax Christi citation highlighted the Cardinal’s aim in ecumenical di-
David Manahan, OSB
In their report to the community, the visitators concluded: “One of you in his interview said that he is witnessing a ‘real springtime’ at Saint John’s. What you need to take with you from this ‘springtime’ is a sense of hope and courage for the future so that you not only survive but thrive. Considering your past and your present and God’s grace, you may do that with a lot of hard work and prayer.”
Abbot John blessing the bible
logue to “find and foster unity among Christians by resisting facile fraternity in favor of genuine concord based not on compromise, but on the full expression of faith and meaning.” The Cardinal spoke on “The Timeliness of Speaking of God: Freedom and Communion as Basic Concepts of Theology.” +
Walter Cardinal Kasper
BANNER BITS
“I always felt at home as a woman at Saint John’s.” (Carol Marrin)
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fter eight years of service as director of The Saint John’s Bible project, Carol Marrin officially retired on June 30, 2008. On December 2 her retirement was publicly recognized and properly celebrated as her colleagues and friends gathered in the Hill Museum & Manuscript Library to honor her leadership and wish her well. Columba Stewart, OSB, executive director of the Hill Library, said of her, “Carol has been part of Saint John’s as long as I have been here. When The Saint John’s Bible was moved under the umbrella of HMML and I became Carol’s supervisor, she would periodically stop by my office and say, ‘You can tell me if I’m out of line for bringing this up, but . . .’ I never did tell her she was out of line. Her wisdom and insight were precious gifts that helped me immensely.” As a token of appreciation Carol was presented with Thomas Ingmire’s illumination of the messianic prophecies of Isaiah in the Prophets’ volume of The Saint John’s Bible.
Carol began her work at Saint John’s on September 11, 1972, as assistant to the book manager of the Saint John’s Bookstore, then housed in the quadrangle area now occupied by Information Technology Services. Three years later she became manager of the book department and in 1980 was named director of the SJU Bookstore. Because she was one of the few early women administrators at Saint John’s she served on seven different committees.
In 2000 Carol was asked to accept the directorship of The Saint John’s Bible project, a position she embraced with her customary enthusiasm, efficiency and professionalism. In early March, 2008, Carol was diagnosed with breast cancer which was successfully treated. This past March, she was diagnosed with Stage IV metastatic breast cancer and has begun weekly chemotherapy. Carol, her husband Kevin (KC) and their son Matthew and daughter Annie ask for our prayers. +
In 1991 Carol was appointed the director of both the SJU and CSB Bookstores. Two years later she directed the move of the Saint John’s Bookstore to the newly constructed Sexton Commons and managed the two stores for the next seven years. During this time she was active in the National Association of College Stores and the Tri-State Bookstore Association. Customers at the bookstores could always count on Carol to recommend a good book, whether it be a new mystery, a Father Columba, OSB, presents Carol with an illumihistorical novel or a work nated page of The Saint John’s Bible. by a classic author.
Wayne Torborg
Alan Reed, OSB
Carol Marrin retires as director of The Saint John’s Bible
Abbey Banner Spring 2009 page 27
FEATURE BANNER BITS
Daniel Durken, OSB
The Maple Sugar Shack is enlarged
The section to the right of the door is the new addition. Deacon Walter welcomes visitors.
Fire destroyed the original shack in 1971. The following year Operation Maple Syrup was relocated near the present soccer field and radio antenna. A larger 26’ x 16’ building was erected through the labor of Sebastian Schramel, OSB (deceased), and Fintan Bromenshenkel, OSB, and in 1996 yet another 8’ x 14’ addition provided more space for the cooking equipment, a stepped down firing area and a south entrance. With the growth of Saint John’s Aboretum and the increase of visitors to observe the syrup-making procedure and sample the product, an enclosed space for classes and hospitality was needed. As the 2009 sappage 28 Abbey Banner Spring2009
to-syrup season began in mid-March, a new 26’ x 14’ addition neared completion. This extension doubles the size of “The Shack” and offers shelter during inclement weather for the daily groups of students and visitors. Last year 900 students came during the month of syrup production. The addition will now attract year-round visitors wishing to learn more about the flora and fauna throughout the four seasons of Saint John’s extensive forest. A generous donation from Larry Schwietz, father of Paul Schwietz, OSB (deceased), the founder of the Arboretum, made the addition
Adjacent to “The Shack” is the extensive supply of wood used to fire the cooking operation. This wood pile is covered by a 32’ x 32’ roof. The wood chopping crew includes Fintan Bromenshenkel, OSB, Knute Anderson, OSB, and Walter Kieffer, OSB. In the silence of the woods the slow and steady drip-drip-drip of maple sap is witness to this welcome rite of spring and a credit to those who work hard to convert 40 gallons of sap into one gallon of maple syrup that makes pancakes, waffles and ice cream doubly delicious. +
Daniel Durken, OSB
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ong before William P. Young named his current best-seller The Shack, the Collegeville campus had its own shack in the woods. In September, 1942, the original “Sugar Shack” was built at the entrance to the Mount Carmel ski hill on the north side of the former entrance road to the abbey. The structure housed the equipment used to produce maple syrup from the many sugar maple trees of Saint John’s forest.
possible. Deacon Walter Kieffer, OSB, who became involved as a prep school sophomore in 1962, begins another season as the leader of the labor intensive operation that begins with the insertion of nearly a thousand spiles or spouts into tree trunks and ends with bottling the luscious liquid. A crew of eager and experienced assistants is on hand to keep the schedule moving and manage the many details.
The wood pile under roof
MONKS IN THE KITCHEN
Distance Learning . . . Vietnamese cuisine in a Belgian kitchen by Aelred Senna, OSB
Aelred Senna, OSB
“From holy Easter to Pentecost, the brothers eat at noon and take supper in the evening.” (Rule 41)
Simon-Hòa Phan, OSB, prepares vegetables for one of his famous stir-fry dinners with a small group of confreres.
V
ietnam native Simon-Hòa Phan left the home of his birth at the age of eleven upon the fall of Saigon. Though far from his homeland, he was never far from its culinary traditions as his family kept them alive when they came to the United States. Brother Simon-Hòa’s mother made sure that dishes such as pho (a rice noodle soup with thin slices of beef), goi cuon (spring rolls) and sup mang cua (asparagus and crabmeat—see recipe on page 30) remained family favorites. In 1986, however, while at graduate school in Belgium, this young student found himself far from the family kitchen with its familiar tastes and smells. He began to yearn for the
comfort of his beloved Vietnamese cuisine. Beginning to experiment on his own, he searched for the ingredients he remembered from his youth and combined them with success in his away-from-home kitchen. With a bit of practice and some long distance help from his mother and sisters, he was soon able to perfect his technique and satisfy his cravings for the foods of his native land. Simon-Hòa made his profession of monastic vows at Saint John’s in 1993, and shortly thereafter he occasionally began to prepare Vietnamese cuisine for his monastic confreres. While he still prefers to cook Vietnamese foods, he has expanded his culinary range to include dishes from other parts of
Asia, most notably China and Thailand. He shares these delectable delights with the monks, preparing meals for small groups for special events or for the occasional informal get-together. When Simon-Hòa visits his family, however, his nieces and nephews press him to prepare Western-style desserts, especially cakes and pies. It seems those of us at Saint John’s have some cajoling to do during the festive days of Eastertide—just the right season for a lovely sweet treat baked up by our Brother Simon-Hòa. + Aelred Senna, OSB, is parish product manager for Liturgical Press.
RECIPE ON PAGE 30! Abbey Banner Spring 2009 page 29
BANNER BITS
MONKS IN THE KITCHEN
Simon-Hòa Phan’s delicious soup recipe...
meat Soup b a r C d n a s u g a Aspar INGREDIENTS: ck 6 cups chicken sto nger, gi sh fre 1-1/2 inch to pieces peeled and cut in taste fish sauce or salt, to stock (optional, only if needs salt) d onion 1/2 cup finely dice inced 1-2 cloves garlic, m l 1 tsp. vegetable oi ed lump nn ca or sh 8 oz. fre over and crab meat, picked drained s, woody 1 lb. fresh asparagu ends removed h, dissolved 2 tbsps. corn starc in 2 tbsps.water n and chopped green onio ish cilantro, for garn
(Sup mang cua)
DIRECTIONS: h sauce sliced ginger and fis ith w ck sto n ke ic 1) Combine ch 20 minutes. a boil, simmer for or salt. Bring to inch lengths. ears and cut into 2sp us ag ar sp aa e 2) Julienn rlic and crabmeat et; saute onion, ga ill sk all sm in l oi t 3) Hea five minutes. slices from stock. 4) Remove ginger 5 minutes until pieces and cook 35) Add asparagus and stir. er. Add crab meat asparagus is tend rnstarch/water s to a boil. Add co rn tu re up so til un 6) Cook clear. until thickened and mixture, stirring egg drop nsistency similar to co a ve ha ld ou sh n and The soup chopped green onio ith w ed ish rn ga e soup. Serv cilantro.
William Schipper, OSB, completes doctoral studies
W
illiam Schipper, OSB, has received the Doctor of Philosophy in Interdisciplinary Studies with a concentration in Psychology and a specialization in Men’s Studies from Union Institute & University, Cincinnati, Ohio. The title of his doctoral thesis is “Masculinity, Spirituality, and Sexuality: The Interpreted, Lived Experience of the Traditional Age College Male.” Father William gathered data from twenty traditional age (18-22) college men at two small private men’s colleges in the Midwest. Of the page 30 Abbey Banner Spring 2009
twenty men, nineteen reported that spirituality influences their decision about sexual activity. They believe that integrating spirituality and sexuality is beneficial and desirable. William grew up in Cincinnati and has been a member of Saint John’s Abbey since 1997. He is a faculty resident in student housing, the coordinator of the men’s spirituality program on campus and an adjunct faculty member in Men’s Studies at Saint John’s University. Congratulations, William. +
SPIRITUAL LIFE
What does God look like? by Robert Pierson, OSB
“Fiction can often take us to a place of acceptance in a way that doctrine and dogma and preaching can’t.” (Tom Gilbert, reviewer)
thing the authorities find is her bloodstained dress in an old shack far out into the woods.
R
ecently I read a book that changed my life, or at least changed the way that I answer some of Life’s Big Questions. The book is entitled The Shack by William P. Young. The story’s protagonist, Mack, is a Christian who had a difficult upbringing but nevertheless continues to believe in God. That is until one day his youngest daughter, Missy, is kidnapped and presumably killed. After a lengthy search the only
Mack’s faith is seriously challenged by the loss of his daughter. He begins to experience a depression he calls “The Great Sadness.” While he tries to continue to believe, he is confused and not sure about who God really is. One day Mack finds a typewritten note from God in his mailbox, inviting him to come to the shack. (Yes, this is fiction.) After struggling about whether or not to go, he ends up going to the shack one weekend. There Mack encounters God as three persons. And how unique they are! His interactions with God help him
to understand and accept not only what happened to his daughter but also what happened to him as a child growing up. The book provides some compelling answers to questions such as, “Why does God allow bad things to happen to innocent people?” and “How is forgiveness possible when the guilty are not able to acknowledge what they have done?” I was persuaded to read The Shack after three retreat directees in the same day asked if I had read it. I now know why it has been on the best seller list for some time, and I highly recommend it. +
Upcoming Events in the Spiritual Life Program May 2, 2009 – “Fearproof Your Life.”
D
r. Joseph Bailey will speak on his new book, Fearproof Your Life: How to Thrive in a World Addicted to Fear, from 9 a.m. to noon at the Abbey Guesthouse. The suggested offering for his presentation is $25.00.
May 29-31, 2009 – Pentecost Retreat presented by Fr. Don Tauscher, OSB.
T
he Holy Spirit is alive and well and closer to us than many realize. During this retreat we will trace the path of the Spirit of God in the Old Testament, in the life of Jesus, in the early church, and in the Christian life today, praying for a new Pentecost in our lives. Contact the Spiritual Life Office at spirlife@osb.org or call 320-363-3929 to register for either or both of these events. + Robert Pierson, OSB, is the director of the abbey’s spiritual life program and guest master. Abbey Banner Spring 2009 page 31
Nonprofit Organization U.S. Postage
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Saint John’s Abbey
PO Box 2015 Collegeville, MN 56321-2015 www.saintjohnsabbey.org CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED
Two Poems by Kilian McDonnell, OSB So when he had dipped the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas son of Simon Iscariot. After he received the piece of bread, Satan entered into him. John 13:26,27
Judas takes the bread I dip into the wine, extend across
heart, no doubt wanting a different kingdom. When he eats my body, a dark presence enters him and I must let my Judas go. I urge my friend to act quickly. Before we say the last prayer, sip the last cup of wine he slips into the black night and scuttles toward the temple.
who stood beside me when Lazarus stumbled from the tomb.
[Jesus] said to her, “Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.” Mark 7:27
the table. He knows I know, but won’t betray him. A twisted
He once loved me, loves me now. I grieve for the companion
THE WOMAN WRESTLER WINS
Tired of bickering with scribes about clean/ unclean, he crosses the border between Jewish lands and Gentile country for the first time; only to call a Greek woman dog, you know the kind: little yapping lap beasts with angry teeth. She brushes off his words as if swatting picnic flies. And like a wrestler using her opponent’s weight against him, nails him on the Kingdom of God. This dog says, let the children be fed first, but even dogs under the table eat scraps your children give them. Like a woman erasing chalk that marks the hem from upper skirt, with her wet dishrag she wipes away the line dividing Jew from Greek.
From God Drops and Loses Things. To order the book, please see page 23.
Luigi Bertocchi, OSB
JUDAS RECEIVES THE BODY OF CHRIST