News from St. Michael's Preparatory School ... - St. Michael's Abbey

Th e J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, Ms. 64, fol. 152 (detail)
The
Autumn 2010
St. Michael Messenger
The Choir Offi ce
When a priest or young man in formation at the abbey rises
at 5 o’clock in the morning to go to the church for Matins
and Lauds – it doesn’t seem like too striking a reality: but
it is. Th ere is a penitential aspect to rising so early each
morning, but many people on the workforce rise even earlier, so the early
rising is not what is unusual. But singing the praises of God in choir for
3-4 hours a day is unusual, yet something that is normal at the abbey, in
fact, part of the daily routine.
In Medieval society, it was a common thing for
the faithful to have large swaths of sacred scripture
memorized. In a contemporary biography of
St. Norbert, an account is given of the exorcism
of a 12 year old possessed girl. One of the signs of
possession given in the narrative is that she recited
the Song of Songs from memory in Latin, French
and German, whereas before her possession “she
only knew the psalter by heart.” Th e inference in
this is that it was a normal thing for a 12 year old
child in the 12 th century to know all 150 psalms
by heart, something that staggers the imagination
of our contemporaries.
Th e familiarity of what we do as a matter of course
in our daily life at the abbey does not take away
from the fact that it is unusual and rare – especially
in our part of the world, in Orange County, in
Southern California. In a sermon he made to the
priests of his diocese (Milan, Italy), St. Charles
Borromeo exhorted them to keep their prayer life
vital by avoiding distractions during the day and
guarding the spark of contemplation as one would
protect the pilot light in a gas stove from being
blown out by the wind. Th is is something that our
life as Norbertines takes care of by its nature.
Th e common prayers we chant each day (called
the Choir Offi ce) keep our work, recreation and
mission revolving around Christ. Th is is our great
patrimony – the life of canons regular, passed down
to us through the generations from St. Norbert
until our own times.
Photos: R. Belcher

Life at St. Michael’s
fr aters Nathaniel and Cyprian stand before the Abbot to
renew their profession.
fr ater Miguel signs his vows at fi rst profession.
Abbey Life
This article usually presents a serene unfolding of ordinations, professions and
liturgical celebrations – all a part and parcel of life at an abbey. Providence
seems to be lining things up as we approach our 50 th Jubilee, so the abbey is
experiencing growth and spiritual enrichments that are well-nigh overwhelming – and
for these we are grateful.
Th is past August 27 th , fr. Miguel Batres made his fi rst profession at Mass in the morning. Th at
aft ernoon, the abbey received 8 new postulants, and our number is now over 70 – an
astounding growth, more than 10 fold in 50 years. At the moment, they are happily
studying and working at the abbey as they prepare to be vested as novices and receive
new names in religious life at Christmastime.
Th e following day, August 28 th , Solemnity of St. Augustine, the abbey had the great joy
of the solemn profession of fr. Alan Benander and fr. Maximilian Okapal as well as the
renewal of vows of temporary profession of fr. Nathaniel Drogin and fr. Cyprian Fritz.
fr aters Maximilian and Alan prostrate themselves at the Litany of the Saints at
Solemn Profession.
Photos: R. Belcher

The Pioneer Press
News from St. Michael’s Preparatory School www.StMichaelsPrep.org
The new school year has seen a renewal of life and vitality at St. Michael’s Prep. From the
administration to the students, those with long years of experience have welcomed in a
fresh group of co-workers in faith. Th e fi rst week of school began with an orientation
program that provided an opportunity to greet the new students and faculty as well as catch up
with old friends. A representative from the University of Notre Dame, specializing in Augustinian
studies, fl ew out to speak to the school about St. Augustine’s wisdom on being a man of God
for others. Th en the seniors put this into practice by taking the freshman under their wing and
teaming up with them in various games that included - but was not limited to - water balloons,
bandanas and war paint.
Th e initial experience of upper
classmen putting their gift s at the
service of others carries over to the
dorm life where many are asked to
be room leaders. Th is privilege
of service gives the room leader
War paint.
a responsibility to make sure his
room and roommates are orderly and thriving. Moreover, dorm life allows students
the ability to enhance their academic schedule with evening activities and discussion
groups. For example, many seniors voluntarily participate in a philosophy seminar
led by a Norbertine priest who is a doctor of philosophy. In addition, the proximity
of the seminary to the school permits students at the prep school to study Greek
with seminarians. It’s no wonder St. Michael’s Prep has been named as one of the
top fi ft y Catholic schools in the U.S.
Prayer before playing.
Th e ability to balance classroom study with participation in extracurricular activities is an important part of
our program. Dedicated and experienced coaching has helped to make St. Michael’s football a well respected
team both for athletic skill and sportsmanship. Th e cross country team gives young athletes of varying degrees
of ability an occasion to compete. Besides a choir class, many students play musical instruments and use their
free time to hone musical skills with those who share their interests.
Although it is only the beginning of the school year, preparing students to be successful when they leave
St. Michael’s is our central concern and responsibility. Touring a university campus is an annual event and this
year students took advantage of an aft ernoon to visit Cal State San Marcos and Th e University of John Paul
the Great. While giving students the advantages they need to get into a university of their choice is important,
it is not the ultimate goal. Underlying all the eff orts of the faculty and staff at St. Michael’s is dedication to
instilling students with a profound knowledge and love of God and His Holy Catholic Church. Daily Mass
in the morning and a Holy Hour before the Blessed Sacrament in the evening are the two great hinges upon
which their days are lived and their
lives unfold.
Cal State San Marcos: Students making a college visit to Cal State San Marcos.
Mr. Frank Lieggi’s class.
Music practice.

St. Michael’s Prep Alumni News
Terry Weeden ’65aa and his family came from
England to study the topography of California
and its fault lines. While here, they visited with
Fr. James Smith ’68.
Kevin Garth Flint ’87 contacted the school
and stated, “St. Michael’s and the experiences
I had as a student there hold a special place in
Fr. James and Terry Weeden
my heart.”
Michael Fuess ’88 works for the Nevada Department of Transportation in Reno,
Nevada, as the District Engineering Manager.
Michael Tucker ’97 and Richard Yang ’97 visited recently and both are well.
Aft er graduating from UCLA in 2005, Derek Lee ’00 attended law school at
USD. He recently sat for the California Bar
Exam and is waiting anxiously for results in
November.
Frater Cyprian Fritz ’04 renewed his vows in
August on the Feast of St. Augustine. Frater
Cyprian is continuing his philosophy studies in
the Oratory in Toronto, Canada.
fr . Cyprian ’04 renewing his vows to
Abbot Eugene. Photo: R. Belcher
Jim Mazzo in the theater lobby aft er the viewing.
11th Annual
VANTAGE POINT GALA
Fr. Augustine sang for several numbers and delighted the crowd.
Ryan Holke ’04 professed his temporary
vows of Obedience, Poverty and Chastity
in the Parish of Christo Rey in Sao Paolo
Brazil in August. Th is is the fi rst of his
vows to be followed by permanent vows in 5
years. During this time he will continue his
schooling and missionary duties in Brazil.
Even though Johnathan Koh ’05 will be
in China for a year teaching English, he
and Fr. Victor Szczurek, O. Praem. are
currently in the process of re-energizing
the St. Michael’s Prep Alumni Association.
Interested alumni may send their contact information to Fr. Victor at: frvictor@
stmichaelsabbey.com.
Joseph Rivero ’10
Paul Musco talking to Rick Sherman and Mel Rogers.
Dean Koontz, Richard Molokie, Abbot Eugene and
Loretta McNerny-Molokie.
Isaac DeRobles ’07 recently sent a note expressing
appreciation.
Joseph Rivero ’10 is helping with our football program
this fall as well as attending Cal State Fullerton as a fulltime
student. Joseph told Fr. Gabriel that now he now has to get
up earlier and travel farther in order to attend his classes,
not to mention having to work in order to pay his bills.
Frannie Maguire and Fr. Vincent.
Holke Family in Brazil: Ryan Holke at
his fi rst profession with brother, Jake and
parents, Debbi and Matt Holke.
For more alumni news, go to www.StMichaelsPrep.org.
Do you want to stay in touch with teachers and friends from your days on the hilltop? Please send us news about and photos of yourself and your family. You
can do this by sending an email to alumni@StMichaelsPrep.org. Be sure to tell us whether you wish to make your contact information available to others, so we
can respect your wishes.
Photos: R. Belcher
Fr. Prior presents an icon of Our Lady to the Holtoms.

St. Michael’s Michael’s Abbey Abbey Foundation
Foundation
Singing the Ave Maria at the Gala.
On September 25 th the abbey and
school had the 11 th Vantage Point
Gala at the Marconi Automotive
Museum in Tustin to honor Tom and Mary
Anne Holtom. Th e Holtoms came to know
the abbey through Norbertines coming to
the St. John Vianney Chapel on Balboa
Island to say Mass.
Th e Gala did very well this year, and guests enjoyed seeing the fi lm as well as bidding on auction items that
Sherry Van Meter
included dinner with Abbot Eugene on St. Joseph’s day and a trip to Paris with a personal Norbertine
chaplain. Proceeds from the evening went to help defray costs for the prep school and to raise funds for
the expansion project. For the fi rst time at a gala, newly appointed director of the St. Michael’s Foundation, Travis King, spoke of the community’s
growth and the important role it will play in Southern California in the future.
We thank Tom and Mary Anne for their staunch friendship.
Photos: R. Belcher
Preparations for the Golden Jubilee have begun for several months now and will only escalate until the year of celebrations opens on
August 15, 2011 – the 50th anniversary of St. Michael’s opening its doors. Yet despite this layer of activity—abbey and school development
work has moved along as usual.
Th e fi lm that was shot last May at the abbey and at the Ferrucci vineyards was given fi nal editing all summer long to prepare for its showing at the
Vantage Point Gala on September 25th . Before that —Dean and Gerda Koontz hosted a premiere party for the fi lm, Th e Vineyard of Light, for 32 invited
guests at their Newport Beach home. Among the guests was Tim Maguire, who generously underwrote the fi lm. Tim is the son of Jim and Frannie Maguire
of Philadelphia, who flew out with other members of the family to be present
at the occasion. It was a lovely evening in every way. Dean and Gerda give an
attention to every detail and fuse it with warmth. Everyone left feeling that
they’d been privileged to attend.
Dean and Gerda with Fr. Abbot.
Paul Musco arrives and is greeted by Fr. Abbot.
Th e Maguire family with Dean Koontz and Fr. Abbot.
Th e guests applaud Tim Maguire aft er viewing the fi lm.

From From the Hilltop
Hilltop
News from St. Michael’s Abbey www.StMichaelsAbbey.com
Since the abbey will be singing at the Orange
County Performing Arts Center in February
on a program with organist Paul Jacobs and
the Pacifi c Symphony, it seems like a good
time to devote this installment of From the
Hilltop to the Gregorian chants that we sing each day in
our prayer at the abbey.
Gregorian chant has been described by some music historians as “the most
perfect music ever created”. Th is can set up expectations in an inexperienced
listener, expectations that can be disappointed when an unsuspecting ear is
confronted with the stark simplicity of the chant.
Gregorian’s suitability for its purpose is one point of its excellence. Contemporary
classical music lovers can be surprised at hearing the word “purpose”
Photo: R. Belcher
enter into a discussion of music. Aft er all, is not music something that is
enjoyed for its own merit? Besides enjoyment, does a Beethoven symphony have a purpose? In the case of Gregorian chant, the
answer to that question is in the affi rmative. Th e chants of the Church are settings of texts to tone, settings of texts that form a
part of the liturgy.
Photo: R. Belcher
Liturgy – the public praise
of God and the prayer of
the Church in both east and
west, is a complex, composite
thing. It unites texts (spoken
aloud and silent), gesture,
song and vesture in a work
to sanctify (make holy) time
itself. Th is is done mainly
in the Mass and the prayers
chanted during the rest of the
day at different hours. These
other prayers are referred to as The Office. So when a Norbertine says, “I’m
going to the office…” chances are, he’s not going in to a granite topped desk in
Newport Beach, but going to the abbey church to sing to God for a chunk of time.
Th e hours of the offi ce are 7 in number: Matins, Lauds, Terce, Sext, None, Vespers
and Compline. Diff erent monasteries and abbeys have slightly diff erent schedules,
but at St. Michael’s, Matins begins at 5:45AM.
In future issues of the Messenger, we will take a look at the chants found in the Mass
(Winter 2011) and those found in the Offi ce (Spring 2011).

Special Special Event
Event
“Sonic Cathedral”
Carl St. Clair and the Pacifi c Symphony
Something new was reported in our last newsletter in news that Pacifi c Symphony
music director and conductor, Carl St. Clair, has become interested in the chant
of the abbey and wants to feature it in a concert at the Segerstrom Hall in February
2011. Th e concert will be on the nights of February 24, 25 and 26 and will feature a fi rst
half of Gregorian chants and organ music, and a second half of the 9 th symphony of Anton
Bruckner. Bruckner was a composer steeped in Catholicism and the Catholic tradition, and he
was a church organist as well. Maestro St. Clair wants to bring Bruckner’s towering 9 th (which
he thinks carries a message sorely needed by our time) to audiences in its proper context.
Th e chants and organ music of the fi rst half will prepare listeners for the symphony.
Th is event will help the abbey in innumerable ways – by making the community better
known and bringing the treasure of the Norbertine chant before a wider local audience
than ever before. More details to follow in the Winter newsletter.
“IN MEMORIAM ARLENE HAGAN”
Our dear friend Arlene Hagan, wife of Foundation Board
member Mike Hagan, died peacefully on the morning of
September 27, 2010. She will be greatly missed. May she
rest in peace.
“IN MEMORIAM JOSEPH AUGUSTYN”
It is with great sadness we
heard of the death of our
friend Joseph Augustyn on
September 25, 2010. Joe
and his wife Gretchen have
been faithful supporters of
St. Michael’s Abbey and
the Prep School for years
now. May he rest in peace.
Photo: R. Belcher
Norbertine Saints
Patron saints are chosen as special protectors or guardians
over areas of life that are important to us. The saints
listed are either Norbertine saints or patrons of the
confreres of St. Michael’s.
October 4 St. Francis
Patron saint of animals, environmentalists, lacemakers and
zoologists
October 6 St. Bruno
October 18 St. Luke
Patron saint of artists, doctors, sculptors, surgeons and
unmarried men
October 20 Blessed James Kern, O.Praem.
October 20 St. Jacob
October 24 St. Anthony Claret
Patron saint of Catholic press and weavers
October 26 St. Gilbert, O.Praem.
November 1 All Saints’ Day
November 3 St. Hubert
Patron saint of forest workers, hunters, mathematicians and
metal workers
November 3 St. Martin de Porres
Patron saint of Afr ican-Americans, barbers, hotelkeepers,
public health and television
November 10 St. Leo
November 11 St. Th eodore
November 13 St. Stanislaus
Patron saint of broken bones and last sacraments
November 13 All Saints of the Norbertine Order
November 14 St. Siard, O.Praem.
November 23 St. Clement
November 23 Blessed Miguel Pro
November 24 St. Andrew Dung-Lac
December 6 St. Nicholas
Patron saint of brides, children, druggists, judges, longshoremen
and travelers
December 7 St. Ambrose
Patron saint of bee keepers, candle makers, schoolchildren and
students
December 25 Christmas - the Birth of Our Lord
December 26 St. Stephen
Patron saint of coffi n makers; deacons and stone masons
January 7 St. Raymond of Penafort
Patron saint of lawyers
January 14 St. Godfrey, O.Praem.
Patron saint of benefactors
January 14 St. Gerlac
January 20 St. Sebastian
Patron saints of athletes
January 25 Conversion of St. Paul
Patron saint of public relations personnel

MOVING?
St. Michael’s Abbey & Preparatory School
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Please let us know before you move. Send us both your current
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you will not miss an issue of the St. Michael Messenger.
If you receive duplicates, please send us both mailing addresses,
and tell us which one is correct.
Calendar of Events
October
18 Prep School Open House, 3:30-5:00 p.m.
31 Eve of All Saints
November
1 All Saints’ Day, 11:00 a.m. Mass
2 All Souls’ Day, 7:00 a.m. Mass, 11:00 a.m.
Mass, 5:00 p.m. Vespers, 7:00 p.m. Mass
7 Daylight-Saving Time Ends
13 Prep School Open House, 3:30-5:00 p.m.
25 Th anksgiving Day, 11:00 a.m. Mass
December
5 Prep School Open House, 3:30-5:00 p.m.
8 Feast of the Immaculate Conception,
11:00 a.m. Mass
12 Advent Lessons and Carols, 7:00 p.m.
24 Christmas Eve
25 Christmas Day, 12:00 a.m. Midnight Mass,
11:00 a.m. Day Mass
27 St. John’s Day, 11:00 a.m. Mass
31 New Year’s Eve, 11:30 p.m. Solemn Th anksgiving
Benediction (Te Deum)
January
1 New Year’s Day, 11:00 a.m. Mass
2 Th e Epiphany of the Lord, 11:00 a.m. Mass
8 Prep School Open House, 3:30-5:00 p.m.
22 Prep School Entrance Exam, 8:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
*Mass is celebrated each day at 7:00 a.m. and on Sunday at
11:00 a.m.
Updated Mass Request information and forms are available
online at www.StMichaelsAbbey.com/massrequests.
All schedules of liturgies and events are subject to change,
please visit www.StMichaelsAbbey.com for more information
and updates.
Photo: R. Belcher
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