ABBEY BANNER - St. John's Abbey

A Triple Treat
by Daniel Durken, OSB
February 14, 2010, was
a Triple Treat Day:
1. Valentine’s Day
2. Chinese New Year 4708
3. Annual Monks’ Day at Saint
Benedict’s Monastery to celebrate
the feast of Saint Scholastica.
The original visit of our founders is recorded in Pope
St. Gregory’s Life and Miracles of Saint Benedict. When
Benedict was unwilling to talk all night with Scholastica
about the joys of heaven, she prayed earnestly and a rainstorm
kept her law-abiding brother from returning to his
monastery—a triumph of love over law.
Our celebration was highlighted by an inspiring DVD
honoring the 80th anniversary of the Sisters’ mission to
China and Taiwan. In 1930 the monastery was asked to
send teachers to the Catholic University of Peking. Of
the 992 community members, 109 volunteered. Six were
chosen.
Sisters’ letters describe conditions: “There is an abundance
of wiggly, wooly centipedes along with scorpions,
fleas and even a bed bug crawling on my scapular. The
chapel is so cold that we can see our breath. There is little
relief from homesickness.”
After two years of language study the Sisters opened
schools for young women. Their educational efforts were
disrupted by the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-1941),
World War II and the Communist takeover. From 1941-
1945 the Sisters were moved to concentration camps where
they were safe but with very little food. They moved to
Taiwan in 1948 and established a monastery which now has
independent status.
The Haehn Museum of Saint Benedict’s Monastery
features this extraordinary exhibit: “1930-2010—Mission
to China and Taiwan” from mid-March to December 23.
I highly recommend it. I also recommend that when the
Vatican-sponsored visitation of women’s religious life in
American reveals the stories of thousands of these valiant
and determined women, Cardinal Rodé should insist that
Benedict XVI follow the current “A Year for Priests” with
“A Year for Women Religious” and canonize hundreds
of them. +
Making a
vision statement
actionable
by Abbot John Klassen, OSB
FROM EDITOR AND ABBOT
In March 2009 the monastic
community finalized a vision
statement that takes us to 2015.
One of the traps in such statements is that they can take on
a life of their own. “If we edit this one more time, maybe
we will get it perfect . . . .” The real question is, “Is the
vision statement actionable?”
Here are the results of a planning process we did last
January. Each vision element (in bold) is followed by an
actionable goal for fiscal year 2011.
In our monastery we will:
• strengthen our Catholic, Benedictine identity
Beginning Ash Wednesday, each confrere commits to
being present for five liturgies or meals per week above
and beyond his current typical observance.
• support our apostolates and vital ministries
We will develop and solidify the recruitment, staffing,
formation, placement sites and funding for a Benedictine
Volunteer Corps for 20-25 SJU graduates for 2011.
• practice environmental and sustainable stewardship
We will serve one meat, one starch and two vegetables at
the evening meal. We also removed desserts from all meals
except on Sundays and feast days to reduce sugar sources.
• create stronger working relationships with laity
During 2010 we will develop an integrated volunteer
program with a coordinator [or team] to assist in essential
abbey operations.
• serve the poor and under-resourced, locally and
globally
We will provide educational, cultural and social support
to minority groups in transition, focusing especially on
local Hispanics and Somalis.
I appointed four confreres to coordinate the implementation
of these five elements and to assure leadership and
necessary resources in each area. Results will be reported
at the January 2011 community workshop. It should be an
exciting year! +
Abbey Banner Spring 2010 page 3