Abbey News

Sunday, May 11, 2008

Normally multi-tasking is not a good thing especially for contemplative living but one wonders if the same thing can be said for multi-celebrating. No matter. Today we are doing just that as we add to the celebration of Pentecost itself Abbot John's birthday, the anniversary of his ordination and Mother's Day along with the silent celebration of the venerable Abbots of Cluny. May 11th marks the day we traditionally end the monastic fast at breakfast until September 14th, feast of the Holy Cross and we set aside wearing the cowls and cloaks until then. On with multi-celebrating. . .

Early Spring
Earlier than usual warm weather has spring blossoming all over the Genesee Valley much to everyone's delight. Because of the good weather our farm brothers were able to get an early start with their planting. This year they'll be putting in about 110 acres of peas, 300 acres of sweet corn and 20 acres of sunflowers in the field across from Bethlehem house.

The good news is that it looks like it will be a good year for the farm. But the sad news is that it will be the last year we do any farming ourselves. Because of aging and lack of vocations we are no longer able to spare brothers for farming operations but need to place them in other departments needing assistance thus bringing an end to an era of farming since the very beginning of the foundation in April, 1951.

Br. Alberic preparing the fields for planting for the last time.

For the past several years we have been leasing much of our fertile farm land to local dairy farmers who have been raising feed crops for their cattle. This arrangement has proven successful and so we will let out the remainder of the acreage to them under the supervision and management of the farm brothers.

Pentecost Lectio
The feature article in the May 10th edition of THE TABLET provides some good lectio in the spirit of St. Benedict and today's feast. It is located at How Our Hearts Burned Within Us.

New Poem
Our resident poet, Br. Isaac, (John Slater) has another poem published in the current edition of the Canadian Journal, The Queen's Quarterly. You'll find it at From the Hip.

The Holy Spirit is the author of our sanctification: he transforms man deep down, divinizes him, makes him a participant in divine nature, just as fire makes metal incandescent, just as spring water quenches thirst.

Grace is communicated by the Holy Spirit through the sacraments, which accompany man during the whole span of his existence. By means of grace, he becomes the sweet guest of the soul: he dwells in our heart; he is the animator of secret energies, of courageous choices, of unshakable faithfulness. He makes us live in abundance of life: divine life itself.

Precisely through this solicitude about the abundance of life, Christ reveals himself as the Good Shepherd of human souls: the Shepherd who foresees the definitive future of man in God; the Shepherd who knows his sheep to the very depths of the inner truth of man, who can speak of himself with the words of St. Augustine: My heart is restless until it rests in thee.

Angelus Message, May 10, 1981
Pope John Paul II