Abbey News
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Good Ole Summertime
Mid-summer weather here in the northeast has been a bit cool and wet for the most part. The local dairy farmers have harvested an abundant first cutting of alfalfa from our fields and the corn and sunflower crops are doing well. Weather permitting the brothers will begin the wheat harvest this week. Meanwhile, the golden fields of wheat are beautiful to behold. As the psalmist says in the closing verses of psalm 65:
The hills are girded with joy,
the meadows covered with flocks,
the valleys are decked with wheat.
They shout for joy, yes, they sing.
New Gregorian Chant CD
Our Cistercian brothers of the Common Observance in Vienna recently came out with a CD of Gregorian Chant as chanted by them in their liturgy which has become a best seller. A product description has this to say about it:
Chant, is the most peaceful music imaginable. Chant: Music for the Soul, is the ultimate in relaxation and stress relief - the perfect antidote to our fast-moving modern world. Chant has proven to heal, calm and also give strength; its power is timeless and universal. Previous albums of chant have sold in the tens of millions. Further fueling the huge general demand is Chant's use in the smash-hit computer game Halo - this is chant for a new computer-gaming generation.
A June 13th article in the Rome based ZENIT has a lengthy article about it including an interview with Cistercian Father Karl Wallner, rector of the Benedict XVI Papal University of
Heiligenkreuz in Vienna. You'll find at: Cistercians Hit the Charts.
If you are interested you can check it out at
Spirit of St. Benedict's Rule
Candidates to monastic life and others trying to live according to the spirit of the Rule of St. Benedict often ask about the essential spirit of the Rule. In his homily for the solemnity of St. Benedict Fr. Justin goes to the heart of the matter and succinctly points out just what the spirit is. The homily is at Solemnity of St. Benedict.
|
