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monks january 2025

Dear Friends in Christ, As we enter the New Year, I extend to you my prayers for peace and joy in your hearts and homes. This time of year invites us to reflect deeply on the gift of Christ’s coming into our world, a mystery that bridges the end of one year and the beginning of the next. In our day, it is common to think of Christmas as ending on December 25. The Church, however, only begins to celebrate the Christmas season on that day. The familiar “Twelve Days of Christmas”, as the song reminds us, carry us through the birth and infancy narratives of scripture, culminating in the feast of Epiphany commemorating the visit of the Magi. Even beyond these twelve days, the Church’s liturgical celebration of Christmas continues until the Solemnity of the Baptism of the Lord, observed this year on January 7. This extended time of celebration underscores the depth and richness of the Incarnation, the mystery of “God made man”. In this month’s newsletter, we have chosen to focus on the Incarnation of Christ to help us keep the sacred mysteries of this season close to our hearts. You will find two articles that reflect on this profound truth. Fr. Marion explores the Mystical Body of Christ and how, through the Incarnation, we are drawn into communion with God and one another. Br. Maximilian Mary offers a reflection on the baptism of Jesus, a moment that reveals Christ’s identity and mission while sanctifying the waters of baptism for all who follow Him.

As we set out into this new year, I invite you to consider a resolution inspired by Ebenezer Scrooge’s famous words: “I will honor Christmas in my heart and try to keep it all the year.” May we carry the light of Christ’s Incarnation into our daily lives, living with greater love, generosity, and attentiveness to the needs of those around us. May the Christ Child bless you and your loved ones with his peace throughout the year ahead. In Christ,

Abbot James R. Albers, O.S.B

IN THIS ISSUE Feature | The Mystical Body of christ �� 5 The Church Reveals Christ Incarnate Up Next | The Art of Living: Goodness �� 2 Reflections on the Book, Part V of IX

FULL TABLE OF CONTENTS ON PAGE 3

The Art of Living: Goodness Reflections on the Book

Part V of IX in a series about Dietrich von Hildebrand’s work on moral virtue. By Reid Bissen, Obl.S.B. Thus far Dietrich von Hildebrand has examined the moral life for us in different facets. Now he takes a step further and tries to articulate what it is more comprehensively to live uprightly and the effects of the good life that resound in a person’s attitudes and behaviors. “Good” can sometimes be seen as a filler word because it is so generic, but it is certainly not devoid of meaning because of this. A good person is someone who gives others their due, who is forgiving, who suffers and rejoices with others, who is willing to deny himself for their sake. Anybody lacking in one of these qualities would surely be deficient in goodness. In short, a good person is someone who loves well, and as Hildebrand puts it, “love is, as it were, flowing goodness, and goodness is the breath of love.”

It is important to clarify that a good person does not only love certain people well, nor does he only love well when it’s easy. His heart is for all men at all times. It is important to clarify that a good person does not only love certain people well, nor does he only love well when it’s easy. His heart is for all men at all times. This only becomes possible if we see others as innately worthy of love. We ought to recognize that we have a duty to love others because it is the only adequate response to the unique and indescribable

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beauty of each individual. This habit of sight is so necessary because it is impossible to love something you don’t find valuable. Returning to the qualities of the good man (generous, merciful, self-sacrificing) we can see that this loving response to the inexpressible value of the other is nothing short of a true gift of self. And again, not just in isolated circumstances; a good person lives in the mode of self-giving. This person’s stance and behavior towards others constantly says, “Yes, it is good that you exist the way you do. I want to work for your flourishing, and to be in right relationship with you.” A wise mentor once told me that perfect love cannot be improvised. It requires practice, failure, and a commitment to improve. Occasionally, our actions and attitudes instead say, “Sorry, you’re too much. I don’t really care what happens to you unless it affects me. You aren’t worth a thorough apology.” Most often these hurtful words show up in small ways. A lack of goodness—a deficiency in the ability to give of oneself—usually stems from hardheartedness or indifference towards our neighbors. Both are rooted in egocentrism but differ in the degree to which they allow a person to be affected by the value of others. A hardhearted person is affected by the suffering of others, and by extension their value, but chooses to not respond. An indifferent person is not affected by the value of other people, and so a response to value is not even prompted. It is easy to see how both attitudes are isolating for the person who adopts them. Refusing to give of oneself closes off any connection to others. A misconception about goodness is that it will cause someone to disassociate with anyone who exhibits ugly, corrupt, or malevolent behavior. However, it is only the good man that will engage with them most fully and directly because he is moved by their innate

value to work for their happiness. We ought to likewise be involved with those who are far off. Sometimes our involvement with others will cause conflict, end friendships, or strain relationships. This is no cause for scandal, because goodness is unwilling to compromise another’s happiness. “I have not come to bring peace, but a sword” (Matt. 10:34-36). What would be scandalous is to reduce goodness to being nice. Saving face at all costs and allowing others to treat you poorly is inconsistent with an awareness of one’s own value and the other’s. It is in situation where one is unable to resist the malice of another that the good man chooses to humble himself and be treated poorly. In situations where he can resist, he ought to. Paradoxically, being good can get you in trouble. It can hurt you and even hurt others, but only temporarily.

True goodness reaps a harvest of joy and peace True goodness reaps a harvest of joy and peace not just for oneself, but for those we are involved with, too. Let us then ask the God who in his goodness calls us to perfect charity for the courage to imitate his uncompromising desire for our happiness.  Points for Reflection: • Think of someone you have difficulty loving right now. Consider his or her innate value, how he or she is endowed with God’s image, and how he or she was created as God chose. • Ask yourself: If I were God, would I choose to become man and die for his sake? Or would I be indifferent and hardhearted? • If you are in a situation of conflict, what is the difficult thing you can do right now—as much as you don’t want to do it—to respect yourself, God, and others the most? Next Month: Read the first of a two-part series from Fr. Jeremy Heppler, O.S.B. about his pilgrimage through the territories and abbeys where St. Benedict and St. Scholastica lived and served. Reid Bissen’s series on The Art of Living will return in April.

TABLE OF CONTENTS Abbot’s Note. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 The Art of Living: Goodness. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Mystical Body of Christ. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Fr. Marion gives insight on the ways in which the Incarnation of Christ is reflected in the Church’s members.

On the Baptism of the Lord. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Br. Maximilian’s article “Oh That You Would Rend the Heavens and Come Down!” explores why the sinless Jesus would have humbled himself to receive baptism.

Living the Liturgy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Reflect on the readings for this month’s Sunday and Holy Day Masses. In January, we focus especially on the how the turn of the year points to the divine humanity of Jesus.

General Update. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 The Abbey offers a few cheerful updates on the activities of the monastic community.

The mission of St. Benedict’s Abbey is to glorify God by seeking him through joyful self-sacrifice, by embracing fully the monastic and apostolic ideals, and by leading others to encounter Jesus Christ, who brings us all together to eternal life. The Kansas Monks newsletter is a monthly publication of the monastic community of St. Benedict’s Abbey to help fulfill this mission. Read our archives at www.kansasmonks.org/newsletter

Christ was made man that we might be made God. st. athanasius on the incarnation

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The Mystical Body of Christ The Church Reveals Christ Incarnate

Members of the Church are also members of the Body of Christ. Read on to learn how this sacred mystery is manifested in scripture and dogmatic teachings. By Fr. Marion Charboneau, O.S.B. In 1943, Pope Pius XII released the encyclical Mystici Corporis Christi to illuminate the doctrine of the Mystical Body of Christ. This teaching encapsulates the mystery of salvation and Christ’s union with his Church—a truth worthy of prayerful reflection. The concept of the Mystical Body of Christ has deep roots but has not always been easily defined. St. Paul frequently referred to the Church as the Body of Christ, though the term “mystical” wasn’t explicitly used. Early Church Fathers often associated the term “Mystical Body” with the Eucharist. Today, it is generally understood as encompassing all who live in Christ’s grace and favor:

the Church Militant on earth, the Church Suffering in purgatory, and the Church Triumphant in heaven. As we all know, “body” often means an assembly or gathering of people together in some sort of unity or purpose. Any assembly, however, inevitably contains within it parts and divisions, various functions and offices, yet all of them are combined to function joined and work together in some shared endeavor, as fingers on a hand we might say. This image of unity is central to St. Paul’s description of the Church in its relationship with Christ. In First Corinthians, Paul writes: “A body is one, though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body, so also Christ” (1 Cor 12:12). He continues, “Now you are Christ’s body, and individually

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parts of it” (1 Cor12:27). Paul’s letter to the Ephesians further develops this theme, likening spiritual growth in Christ to the growth of a body, “held together by every supporting ligament” (Eph 4:16). At the heart of this image is the truth that Christ is the head of the Church. As the head directs the human body, so Christ guides his Mystical Body. But this headship is more profound than mere guidance—it reflects Christ’s unique role in salvation. That much may seem obvious, but it is when we consider just how Jesus is head that we see something especially significant. Jesus is the New Adam, the “firstborn from the dead” (1 Cor 15:20). Greater than Adam and any of Adam’s mortal descendants, Jesus’s headship comes through his resurrection and glorification. This victory establishes Christ’s supremacy over all creation. Furthermore, in his ascension, Christ was exalted to the Father’s right hand, there to be seated on a heavenly throne, receiving “a name above every other name” (Phil 2:9). His authority as head is both salvific and kingly; he reigns over his people with divine power and love. More significantly, Jesus is also the head because he alone is the source of salvation. In him, through the Holy Spirit, the grace of God is made to “overflow to the many” (Romans 5:15). Paul describes a “diversity of gifts”— wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, prophecy, and tongues (1 Cor 12:7-11)—but whatever they may be and whoever receives them, they are given to the faithful by Jesus through the Holy Spirit to energize, to give life, and to equip and empower each of the faithful for the good works and holy things entrusted to them. That bestowal of grace takes place most especially in the seven sacraments; in each one, Jesus through the Holy Spirit directs his grace to the members to enable them to act, just as a person’s head directs a hand or

Attributed to Athanasius. Blessed Be the Host of the King of Heaven. Mid of the 16th century, tempera on wood. Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia.

a foot to move. Among the seven, Baptism occupies a principal place among the sacraments. Quite simply, we are baptized into Christ’s body and thereby baptized into his glorious life and power, participating in it, sharing in it, and being graced by it to move and act in our lives as the head wills. Eucharist, too, holds an exalted place. The Eucharist nourishes the body, but also binds it together. As First Corinthians says, “We being many are one bread, one body; for we all partake of the one bread” (1 Cor 10:17). Matrimony and Holy Orders also deserve some mention, as they further manifest Christ’s headship. In Matrimony, the grace of Christ orders the relationship of husband, wife, and children in their actions to one another, while Holy Orders places bishops, priests, and deacons under the leadership of the Pope, the successor of Peter as Bishop of Rome. Always to be avoided is any tendency to see the Mystical Body as simply a visible reality, or to simply regard it in terms of sacramental office or hierarchy. Jesus once said, “I am the vine, you are the branches” (Jn 15:5), and all holy things given by him grow out of himself. Sacraments, offices, and charisms are expressions of the same divine life flowing from Christ through the Holy Spirit. None of them should be in any real conflict with another. These gifts work together harmoniously to create, build up, and deepen our unity with him and each other. The Mystical Body of Christ extends beyond the Church on earth. The Church Militant, Church Suffering, and Church Triumphant are united in grace and holiness, sharing the same faith and love. This

spiritual communion reflects the dynamic grace of Christ at work in all his members. Ultimately, the Mystical Body of Christ reveals the invisible reality of our union with him—a union destined to be fully revealed in eternity. All share in the same faith and love, and the splendid variety of charisms, sacramentals, heavenly blessings, and more have been given to all for the good of all. We must collaborate with one another to fully enjoy the richness of these divine gifts. The saints help us to fix our eyes on heaven, and the souls in purgatory and on earth join the saints in praising God and praying for one another. Through everything given by Christ as head, we are drawn together in his love, preparing for the day when we will dwell with him and one another in eternal glory. This is the heart of God’s plan of salvation: a visible and eternal union in the glory of his Son, Jesus Christ. 

Fr. Marion, O.S.B. is a priest and a fly fisherman. His passion for fishing started early in life; his passion for the faith came later on. He is an adjunct instructor of history for Benedictine College.

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Oh, That You Would Rend the Heavens and Come Down!

Though he was sinless, Christ sought out John’s baptism of repentance. There’s a lesson for us about God’s love of mankind in that act of humility. By Br. Maximilian Mary Anderson, O.S.B. Love makes one do crazy things. Whether to win the affection of the beloved or merely to give proofs of one’s own affection, the lover may do that which to others seems borderline ridiculous, even downright humiliating. Nowhere is this truer than in the life of Christ.

Every mystery of the life of Jesus Christ reveals his love for us, one and all. Every mystery of the life of Jesus Christ reveals his love for us, one and all. The baptism of Christ in the Jordan is no different: it testifies to the vastness of his love and his desire for our salvation. Here, his love manifests itself in a curious and almost disconcerting humility. Through an anointing of the Holy Spirit, heights of glory open up for us that were thitherto utterly closed off. These two keys, humility and the Spirit, offer a way to look more deeply into this mystery and see how God is moving through it to effect our redemption and sanctification out of a limitless love for us. John’s protest when Jesus approaches him for baptism is more than valid: “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” (Mt 3:14). John knows who he is and that he has no need to repent of his sin and be baptized. Yet in this profound act of humility, Jesus chooses to put himself among the sinners waiting to be baptized. There is a duality of both fulfillment and foreshadowing here: Isaiah’s prophecy of the suffering servant 6 | St. Benedict’s Abbey, Atchison, KS

comes to mind, especially since the waters of baptism symbolize death to oneself, to one’s former way. “He was numbered with the transgressors” (Is 53:12). Jesus refers to baptism again later in his ministry, especially while rebuking the brothers James and John, but he refers to his baptism as something yet to occur, not as something already accomplished by the Baptist in the Jordan. “Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” (Mark 10:38). This refers to his imminent Passion and Death on the Cross. Here then are the lengths to which he is willing to go out of love for us. Jesus insists on his baptism by John “to fulfill all righteousness.” What is this righteousness? The Father’s will—and his Father’s will is that the sinner not die, but repent and live. How is this repentance possible for us? The Holy Spirit, the Spirit of the Love so intense between the Father and the Son that he is the third person of the Trinity, descends upon Jesus at this moment of his baptism by John. This anointing by the Spirit is another great mystery, for the Son of God from all eternity cannot be said to have been apart from the Holy Spirit. This is something that does happen to Jesus, the God-Man, in history though. It does not change any of the things that have always been true about the eternally begotten Son of the Father or his relationship with the Father, but it does have a huge impact on us and our relationship with the Trinity. Heaven, being closed to us after the Fall of Adam and Eve, is opened again and the Spirit comes down to humanity in the person of Jesus Christ. He is anointed for his messianic mission and, in the hearing of everyone there, is told by his Father, “Thou art my beloved son; with thee I am well pleased” (Lk 3:22). We are members of Christ’s body, the Church, by

virtue of our baptism. What Jesus, the bridegroom, accomplishesas a man in history unfolds throughout history in the members of the Church, his bride. The words of the Father are also spoken to us because Jesus comes to dwell in us and we in him. The waters of baptism, now sanctified by the sacred humanity of Jesus, are for us not just a death, but a participation also in Jesus’s resurrection. Jesus goes to the depths for us, to pursue us and give us what we cannot give ourselves: the grace that’s needed to enjoy communion with him and his Father, the joy of Trinitarian life and love dwelling in our hearts. John could not have foreseen all this before it happened; if he could have, I doubt he would have tried to prevent Jesus’s baptism.

his humanity to anoint us to whom and for whom he gives himself. Let us remember that “he saved us, not because of deeds done by us in righteousness, but in virtue of his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit” (Titus 3:5). Because we in no way deserve this, it seems just plain crazy… but that’s love for you. 

Jesus’s love for us is manifested nowhere more powerfully than on the Cross. Everything else in his life becomes distorted if not read in light of that. His manifestation, his epiphany here in his baptism only makes sense when considered within the context of his mission of love he received from the Father: to save us, to redeem us. At his baptism, he debases himself out of love for us in order to be anointed by the Holy Spirit in

Br. Maximilian, O.S.B. is a former FOCUS missionary (and current monk). He recently became vocations director for the Abbey.

Giotto. The Baptism of the Christ. 1305, fresco. Scrovegni (Arena) Chapel, Padua, Italy

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Living the Liturgy

Commentary on the Liturgical Year Reflect on the readings for this month’s Sunday and Holy Day Masses. In January, we focus especially on the how the turn of the year points to the divine humanity of Jesus. By Tom Hoopes

A Month of Beginnings The Catholic Liturgy is more January than January now. Let me explain. January was originally named for Janus, a god focused on all kinds of beginnings: Physical beginnings such as gates and doorways, and beginnings of wars, journeys and religious festivals. This made sense in the ancient world, when you could picture the sun being “birthed” and in its infancy in the short days after the Winter Solstice, growing stronger through the change in seasons, hitting its peak in the summer, then becoming feeble again in its “old age” at the end of the year. Christianity did its best to “rebrand” this phenomenon or, better, to crowd out this false narrative with a fuller understanding of the real beginnings we need to pay attention to. You can see it in the Liturgy as every Sunday in January tells the story of a different beginning. First, there is the beginning of Jesus Christ’s revelation to the Gentiles on the Epiphany of the Lord, and then Jesus has his big debut at his baptism by John in the Jordan River. After that each Ordinary Time Sunday marks another beginning: At the Wedding Feast at Cana we see “the beginnings of his signs at Cana in Galilee” with his first public miracle. At the synagogue at Nazareth he makes the first big announcement of his identity as the Messiah. In an ironic twist, though, in January 2024 we see far fewer secular beginnings than the pagan world had. The school year begins at the end of summer. So does the football season. Basketball season starts in autumn; baseball starts in spring. American government’s fiscal year starts in October; Canada’s and Great Britain’s start in April. It’s no wonder they avoid the month of January. Surveys say it is the least popular month; it is the time when both average temperatures and average bank account balances are at their lowest all year. But it is providential that the Church still chooses the dead of winter to celebrate the beginnings of the revolutionary works of grace God brings. The timing says something important about Jesus Christ. He doesn’t come at the beginning of things — he comes in the middle of things. He comes when you least expect him, when it makes the least sense for him to come. Then he redefines reality such that his Incarnation, which is the Church’s January theme, reveals life’s deepest truth.

OUR NEW FAMILY January 1 | Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God Ask why Jesus came and you will hear a number of answers: “To save us,” “to teach us to love,” and “to build his kingdom.” They are all true, but the most profound one is the one we find in the Second Reading for the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. Jesus came “That we might receive adoption as

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sons,” Hebrews says. “You are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son then also an heir.” This gives us a radically different future from what we would expect. Jesus came not just to prevent something bad from happening to us, not just to be an example for us, but to take us out of one family and embed us in an entirely new, Divine one. Think of it as moving from Adam and Eve’s family

to Mary’s family, the family of Our Father, who we can now call “Dad,” or “Abba” according to Hebrews. What does life in this new family look like? It looks like a blessing instead of a curse. The First Reading describes it as an arrangement where the Lord will “keep you … let his face shine upon you and be gracious to you … look upon you kindly and give you peace.”

JOIN GOD’S GRAND PLAN January 5 | Epiphany of the Lord On the Epiphany of the Lord, we hear some pretty astounding promises about what will follow the arrival of the newborn king. More than 2,000 years later, we can ask: Did those predictions come true? “Nations shall walk by your light, and kings by your shining radiance,” says the Frist Reading. “Every nation on earth will adore you” and “he shall rescue the poor” and “the afflicted,” says the Psalm. The Gospel tells us

that assembled scribes confidently predict that from Bethlehem “shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people.” Did these things happen? They certainly did as regards spiritual warfare. The sacraments of the Church that have brought forgiveness and a path to heaven to people worldwide. But they have even happened in secular politics. Tribal brutality, propped up by paganism, was swept aside by Christ, from Siberia to Suriname. Christian politics was never perfect, but the “Light to the Nations” that guided the Magi did change the world to a place that looks after the poor and afflicted instead of abandoning them. Meanwhile, wherever Christianity has waned, violence, abortion, pornography, human trafficking and crime has grown. Now, all that is left for his great project to reach its full stature is for more of us to love like Jesus.

Luca Giordano. The Adoration of the Magi. Oil on canvas.

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JOIN GOD’S GRAND PLAN January 12 | Baptism of the Lord The Church does something brilliant as we move from the Epiphany to the Baptism of the Lord. The Church reminds us that, while baby Jesus is wonderful, adult Jesus offers us even more. The First Reading, from Isaiah, describes him: “Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one with whom I am pleased. I formed you and set you as a covenant of the people, a light for the nations, to open the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners from confinement and from the dungeon those who live in darkness.” This is the man the baby Jesus becomes: No longer someone we visit bearing gifts but someone who visits us with his gifts. St. Peter sums him up in the Second Reading, from Acts, by saying, “He went about doing good.” As Ordinary Time begins, we don’t have to regret that “Christmas magic” is over. Instead, we can be like the people described at the beginning of the Gospel this Sunday. Luke reports: “The people were filled with expectation.” So are we. Jesus is just getting started.

GOD LOVES LIKE A LOVER January 19 | Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C God, in the First Reading from Isaiah, sounds like a character in a romantic movie whose love has become too intense to hold back. He says, “I will not be silent, for Jerusalem’s sake I will not be quiet. … No more shall people call you ‘Forsaken,’ or your land ‘Desolate,’ but you shall be called ‘My delight,’ and your land ‘Espoused.’ For the Lord delights in you and makes you his spouse.” Think of what that means. We are used to saying we love all people. But we don’t love them the way a bridegroom loves his bride. That’s a special, intense, focused kind of love. But God loves us that way. We see it in the Gospel, when he chooses a random couple’s wedding as the place where he will begin his public ministry with his first miracle. But he offers that same miracle at every wedding: Wine always starts as water, then it is filtered through God’s creation using processes he invited that change it into wine. God always changes water into wine; and he changes human love into sacred love. 10 | St. Benedict’s Abbey, Atchison, KS

God is in love with human love: He invented it, he celebrates it, he sustains it. Pope Benedict XVI pointed out that “God loves with a personal love … an elective love: among all the nations he chooses Israel and loves her—but he does so precisely with a view to healing the whole human race.” God loves like a lover. “His love may certainly be called eros, yet it is also totally agape,” Pope Benedict said. And now, all of his love is trained on us.

VENERATE THE WORD January 26 | Third Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C “The Church has always venerated the Scriptures as she venerates the Lord’s body,” says the Catechism (No. 103). This Sunday’s readings teach us to take that seriously. The First Reading from Nehemiah records the reaction of the people when they encounter the Word of God that has long been absent from their lives. They had been exiled in Babylon, unable to worship, without access to the Torah. Now, Ezra the scribe climbs a wooden platform and “he read out of the book from daybreak to midday … and all the people listened attentively.” And how do they respond? “They bowed down and prostrated themselves before the Lord,” says the reading. They acted as if God himself was there before him—because he was, in his Word. The Gospel echoes the First Reading in an extraordinary way. First, it shares how the Gospel was written, with Luke promising a man named Theophilus—the name means “God-lover”—that he will accurately present the story of Jesus. Then, it jumps forward three chapters to when Jesus stands before a crowd in his hometown with the scroll of Isaiah and reads the words about the Messiah, which he applies to himself. The power of Scripture has only grown between the time of the priest Ezra and Jesus of Nazareth. “Your words, Lord, are Spirit and Life,” we pray in the Psalm and St. Paul shows just how true that is: His Spirit and Life make us into one body in Christ. 

Updates from the Abbey A New Addition to the Herd: The Abbey welcomed a new billy goat to our farm! He will help diversify the gene pool. If he sires a son, we won’t name the baby billy—boys are destined for the dinner table. Perhaps we’d call it “Delicious”.

Our New Roof is Underway: Thanks to the generosity of our capital campaign supporters, construction began on December 9 to replace our 100-year-old slate roof with one designed to last another century. We are deeply grateful to all who made this possible!

Learning About Blessed Stanley Rother: In November, at the invitation of the monks, Susan Rother Bond helped St. Benedict’s Catholic School students learn about Blessed Stanley Rother, the first U.S.-born priest to be beatified. Did you know he’s a distant cousin of both Abbot James Albers and Fr. Meinrad Miller?

A New Name for Our Novice: On December 7, our new novice received his monastic name. (We like to keep them around longer than billy goats.) The man formerly known as CJ Neumann is now Brother Fulton! Please keep him in your prayers as he spends the next year discerning his vocation. Preparing for the Jubilee Year: On December 24, St. Peter’s Basilica opened the first of several pilgrimage doors in Rome for the 2025 Jubilee Year of Hope. The monks encourage you to reflect on this theological virtue in the coming year as the Church embarks on that spiritual celebration.

Brothers Return to Atchison: You may have missed seeing Br. Jean-Marie Hogan and Br. Angelus Atkinson around town. They have been studying at KenrickGlennon Seminary in St. Louis. For the next two semesters, they’ll continue their formation remotely and be back in Atchison among their brother monks— what a blessing!

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