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The Order of Saint BenedictNews and Resources for Oblates |
Brother Jerome Leo Hughes OSB, St. Mary's Abbey, Petersham, MA, manages a private Facebook group page for Benedictine Oblates. Spring 2022, the page listed 2.7K members.
About 250 International Benedictine Oblates participated in their Third World Congress at the Pontifical Salesian University, Rome, 4-10 October 2013. Abbot Primate Emeritus Dr. Notker Wolf OSB delivered the opening and closing messages. Dom Michael Casey O. Cist. and Sr. Mary John Mananzan OSB addressed the theme of the congress, "Obsculta -- The Oblate Listening in the World." The agenda included day trips to Subiaco, Saint'Anselmo, and Monte Cassino. Dom Geraldo González y Lima OSB, treasurer of Sant'Anselmo, coordinated some details of the congress. The next Oblates' World Congress is scheduled for 2022.
Oblate Spring is a comprehensive website of resources designed by a married Oblate in Florida to "answer your initial questions about oblate monasticism." An especially helpful feature added in January 2010 is the page devoted to Benedictine Oblate Newsletters & Programs.
Website launched May 2006: <www.naabod.org/>
Saint Meinrad Archabbey hosts the biennial meeting of NAABOD, August 4 - 9, 2022.
Current officers are President Sr. Priscilla Cohen, OSB; Vice-President Sr. Celine Schock OSB; and Executive Secretary Sr. Linda Larkman OSB.
Abide: Keeping Vigil with the Word of God by S. Macrina Wiederkehr OSB. ISBN: 978-0-8146-3383-0 (Liturgical Press, Sept. 2011) $15.95.
In these scriptural meditations, the piercing reflective questions and personal prayers lead the reader into a deeper relationship with the Divine. Aware that drawing near the Word of God requires a special kind of presence, the author invites you to breathe in the Word, wait before the Word, walk through the pages of Scripture as a pilgrim, and, finally, abide in an intimate and transforming communion with God.
The Road to Eternal Life: Reflections on the Prologue of Benedict’s Rule by Michael Casey, OCSO, (Liturgical Press, 2011), $19.95 hardcover.
By reflecting on the Prologue one verse at a time, Michael Casey, OCSO, delves into the richness of meaning that can be found in Benedict’s words. These reflections, first given as talks and made available on his community’s web site, build a bridge between the sixth-century text and twenty-first-century Christians. In The Road to Eternal Life, Casey invites readers to reflect on the Prologue in light of their own experiences, to seek "the road that leads to salvation."
Finding
Sanctuary: Monastic Steps for Everyday Life by Dom Christopher
Jamison OSB, Abbot of Worth Abbey, UK (Liturgical Press, ISBN:
978-0-8146-3168-3, $19.95).
In Finding Sanctuary Abbot Christopher Jamison, host of the BBC television series “The Monastery,” suggests the teachings of St. Benedict are a tool for everyday life -- for those who are religious and for those simply searching for spiritual guidance.
In every generation monastics integrate modern realities and the wisdom of the Rule in a new fusion. That fusion is the spiritual energy enabling monasteries to be places of sanctuary today as they have been for centuries. And that sanctuary can be recreated in the hearts of people of good will. This book explains how St. Benedict's wisdom can be applied to busy modern lives, and how sanctuary, peace, and insight can be achieved by people living inside and outside of monasteries. Visit the Finding Sanctuary website, which offers further steps for finding sanctuary in your life.
Blessings
of St. Benedict by John Michael Talbot. ISBN: 978-0-8146-3385-4
(Liturgical Press, September 2011, $15.95).
Blessings of St. Benedict is a devotional that brings the Rule of St. Benedict t all people of every state of life. In these brief and accessible reflections on this ancient monastic rule, John Michael Talbot offers simple and timeless monastic wisdom for everyone.
Commentary for Benedictine Oblates: On the Rule of St. Benedict by G. A. Simon ( Wipf & Stock, Reprint ed., 2009).
Day
by Day with Saint Benedict by Terrence G. Kardong, OSB
(LP, ISBN 978-0-8146-3042-6, $14.95).
Reflecting on years of living the Benedictine life and of scholarly work on the Rule of Saint Benedict, monk and priest Terrence Kardong OSB offers his wisdom in Day by Day with Saint Benedict. These short, daily reflections on quotations from the Rule are accessible to lay people and religious alike and they will help the reader to incorporate Benedictine values in his or her own life.
Perspectives on the Rule of Saint Benedict: Expanding Our Hearts in
Christ
by Aquinata Böckmann OSB; Matilda Handl OSB and Marianne Burkhard OSB,
Translators; Marianne Burkhard OSB, Editor (LP, 2005, $21.95).
The Rule of Saint Benedict has shaped monastic life for centuries. Perspectives on the Rule of Saint Benedict provides a unique guide to the richness of this Rule. Sister Aquinata Böckmann OSB presents an interpretive key for understanding the Rule and appreciating its spiritual and practical values. Presenting a wealth of material, she never loses sight of the Christological center of the Rule or the questions involved in living it in our time, both in monasteries and the world.
Benedict's Rule: A Translation and Commentary. By Terrence G. Kardong, OSB (Liturgical Press, $59.95). The first line-by-line exegesis of the entire Rule of Benedict written originally in English. This full commentary -- predominately a literary and historical criticism -- is based on and includes a new translation, and is accompanied by essays on Benedict's spiritual doctrine.
The Radical Christian Life: A Year with Saint Benedict by Joan Chittister, OSB. ISBN: 978-0-8146-3365-6 (Liturgical Press, September 2011) $15.95.
In this book, The Radical Christian Life: A Year with Saint Benedict, Joan Chittister encourages us to look at that question. In an introductory essay she examines how the insights and values of the sixth-century visionary Saint Benedict can illuminate today’s search for a meaningful life. Then she leads us through the year, reflecting on twelve stories from Benedict’s life, anecdotes that give us glimpses into his soul. More than that, she draws from these stories daily thoughts for the development of our own spiritual lives in this day and age.
Benedict
of Nursia: His Message for Today. By Anselm Grün OSB.
Linda M. Maloney, tr. Liturgical Press, 2006, $7.95. Each
chapter concludes with a brief reflection on the state of contemporary
society and how the aspect of the Rule of Benedict
treated in the chapter applies to the needs of today.
A
Life-Giving Way: a Commentary on the Rule of St. Benedict by
Esther de Waal. ISBN: 978-0-8146-2358-9, LP, $19.95.
Esther de Waal comes to the Rule of St. Benedict as a lay woman who has studied the Rule and striven to live it. Benedict has been for her both supportive and challenging, both guide and prophet. His Rule asks not for blind obedience and conformity but for personal responsibility.
Liturgical Press has re-organized its website and online store making access by subjects more user friendly. A category, "Benedictina," brings together titles of interest to Oblates as well as a listing of the many medals of Saint Benedict for sale in a variety of sizes, materials and prices.
Sister Bonita Gacnik OSB, Sacred Heart Monastery, Yankton, South Dakota, has revised the website for the Benedictine Online Oblate Chapter (BOOC) to give laity not near an Abbey an opportunity to study Benedictine spirituality.
Father Hugh Feiss OSB, Monastery of the Ascension, has published numerous books and articles on medieval monasticism and revised a manual for Oblates of the monastery.
"Oblates in Western Monasticism" by Derek G. Smith first appeared in Monastic Studies 13 (Autumn 1982). The article traces the history of oblates from the infant oblates mentioned in Chapter 59 of Saint Benedict's Rule to the re-invigoration of Benedictine Oblates after Vatican II. "The free and supple structure of oblature adapts well to a wide variety of religious temperament and social circumstance. It seems to present marvelous and large opportunities for the life of intensive Christian meditation and prayer; it is a rich inheritor of, and contributor to, the life of evangelical humility and simplicity envisioned by Our Holy Father Benedict, a man of God for all times" (p. 84).
The Benedictine Handbook is a lifelong companion for oblates, associates, and friends of Benedictine communities. Assembled by the monks of Ampleforth Abbey, Yorkshire, the book was published 2003 in the US by Liturgical Press. It is possible to order the 320-page, hardcover book online. Lucie Johnson OblSB reviewed the Handbook in The Oblate 47:5 (Nov/Dec 2003).
Benedict in the World: Portraits of Monastic Oblates, edited by Linda Kulzer OSB and Roberta Bondi OblSB, tells the stories of nineteen Oblates varying greatly in time, place and circumstance. Oblate Phyllis Thompson spoke briefly about her research for the chapter on "Eric Dean, Presbyterian Pilgrim," at the 2002 ABA Convention in Bismarck, North Dakota.
In 1930 Dom David Knowles OSB (1896-1974), monk of Downside Abbey and, later in life, Regius Professor of History at Cambridge, published a popular essay entitled The Benedictines. An abridged version that includes the most important chapters that present the essential characteristics of Benedictine life is available online since the end of May 2002.
An article first published in 1949 traces the origin, history and development of "The Medal of Saint Benedict." The essay was written by Frater Bernardine Patterson OSB, a junior monk of Saint John's Abbey who later became one of the early members of St. Maur Priory, the first bi-racial Benedictine monastery in America, founded in 1947 from Saint John's at South Union, Kentucky.
Authentic Medals of Saint Benedict are available from Liturgical Press. Any Roman Catholic priest or deacon, not necessarily a Benedictine, may validly bless and exorcise the medal using the suggested prayers.
Saint John's Abbey, Collegeville, makes available online Abbey Banner. Founded by Fr. Daniel Durken OSB (1929-2014), Abbey Banner's colorful design and expanded content lend itself to the .pdf format for which an Acrobat Reader is required. The magazine is written for oblates, friends and benefactors.
The OSB Website Store supports the Internet apostolate of Saint John's Abbey. Items for sale (mugs, mouse pad, tote bag, T-shirts, cap, etc.) incorporate the Cross and Medal of Saint Benedict or other Benedictine images. Special items are frequently offered for a limited time. New product designs appear seasonally.
Liturgical
Press, Collegeville, Minnesota, offers a new book on Camaldolese
spirituality.
The
Privilege of Love: Camaldolese Benedictine Spirituality (edited
by Fr. Peter-Damian Belisle OSB Cam., with an introduction by Michael
Downey) features a dozen chapters by Camaldolese monks, nuns, and oblates.
Beginning with a general historical overview of Camaldolese history and
spirituality (Part I), the book includes three chapters that focus on
particularly Benedictine aspects of Camaldolese spirituality (Part II) and
seven chapters that center on the uniquely Camaldolese dynamics (Part III),
with a "Concluding Remarks" by the Prior General, Emanuele Bargellini OSB
Cam.
A small group of Benedictine Oblates and Friends associated with monasteries throughout the US meets in Atlanta on a bi-monthly basis. All interested in Benedictine life are welcome. These social gatherings include Prayer, Discussion about the RULE, materials about formation and refreshments. The next meetings are on Sundays at 2 - 4 p.m. at 1748 Vickers Cir., Decatur, (Near Emory Univ.) Call 678-817-6901 or 404-378-4881 for further information.
The Calendar of Benedictine Feasts and "Prayers for Benedictine Saints and Celebrations" are available online.
From the OSB-L: "Searching for Christ: The Spirituality of Dorothy Day by Sr. Brigid O'Shea Merriman OSF [Notre Dame, 1997] includes a very substantial and documented chapter, 'The Impact of Monasticism,' some 58 pages long, with 150 footnotes. The author traces the many and substantial connections between Dorothy Day (and the Catholic Worker movement) and various abbeys and currents of monastic spirituality -- the liturgical, communal, hospitality, etc., etc. It certainly makes evident how Dorothy's oblature was a deep rooted commitment. Peace, Robert Hale, OSB Cam, Incarnation Monastery" (OSB-L, 7 March 2000).
The president and board of The American Benedictine Academy invite oblates to join the Academy. Oblates have actively participated in past conventions, and oblates have served on the ABA Board. For "Reading the Signs of the Times: The Good News of Monastic Life" over half of the pre-convention papers were written by oblates. The academy publishes The American Monastic Newsletter that frequently contains items of interest to Oblates.
Terra Sancta Guild <www.terrasanctaguild.com>
produces a
gold-plated, hand enameled oblate pin for sale online at $4.75.
Saint John's Abbey's Oblates maintain a website and make available their newsletter, The Oblate.
Holy Wisdom Monastery (formerly Saint Benedict Center), Madison, WI, offer a lively program for oblates.
Douai Abbey in England, like many monasteries around the world, maintains a well-organized secular oblate program. Douai Oblates now have their own website at which you will find more information.
Locate Benedictine monasteries anywhere worldwide using the OSB Atlas. Check with a monastery near you about opportunities for participation as an oblate.
Esther de Waal delineates her Anglican perception of the "The Benedictine Charism" as one of the "monastic" laity.
Kathleen Norris spent more than a year with Benedictine monks and learned about their philosophy of simple living, inner harmony, and communion with God through reading and prayer. Kathleen's book, The Cloister Walk, was published by Putnam (NY, 1996) and is also available in paperback and large type editions. Kathleen returned to Collegeville as a writer-in-residence at the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University from 1-14 March 1998. Kathleen edited The Psalms: The Book of Praises (Riverhead, 1997). Kathleen is an oblate of Assumption Abbey, Richardton, North Dakota.
The Monastic Studies Program in the School of Theology at Saint John's University is open to oblates, monastics, and men and women of any religious tradition. Many oblates regularly participate in The Monastic Institute, an annual Collegeville summer event.
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