The Winter 2024–25 issue of Abbey Banner honors Nicholas Black Elk, candidate for canonization. Father John Meoska introduces us to iconography, which he calls “a form of prayer,” and explores the prayerful encounter of the iconographer and the person or reality being depicted. Father William Skudlarek outlines the centrality of mercy in the life and ministry of Pope Francis. Father Michael Patella addresses the feast of the Epiphany, the moment that Jesus showed himself as the Messiah. Prior Eric Hollas identifies the organizational reforms (impositions?) of Pope Leo XIII on Benedictines—that he famously called “not an Order” but “a disorder”! In this issue we also learn about the 2024 Congress of Abbots, the concerns and recommendations of the Synod on Synodality, the value of fire in stewardship of the land, the latest titles from Liturgical Press, and more.
