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Genesee Community

- GENESEE COMMUNITY
  
  Back Row (left to right): Br. David Wilson, Br. Luke, Fr. Isaac, Fr. Stephen, Br. Mark, Br. Paul, Fr. John Vianney
  
  Middle Row: Br. Louis, Br. Benedict, Fr. Justin, Br. Anthony, Fr Aelred, Fr. Gabriel (Novo Mundo, Brazil), Br. James, Br. Augustine
  
  Front Row: Br. Lawrence, Br. Gregory, Fr. John, Fr. Gerard, Br. David Baumbach, Br. Christian, Br. Brian, Br. Alberic

cistercian life

Captivated by the divine love revealed in Jesus Christ, monks withdraw from conventional life to seek union with God in prayer. As Roman Catholic religious, at the Abbey of the Genesee we live according to the Rule of St.
Benedict in the Cistercian tradition reformed at the monastery of La Trappe in France (hence the name “Trappist”) in the direction of greater simplicity of life.

“This Order is a monastic institute wholly ordered to contemplation. The monks lead a monastic way of life in solitude and silence, in assiduous prayer and joyful penitence.”
(Constitutions of the Monks 2)

The first Cistercians conceived of the monastery as a “school of love.” Love is the heart of Cistercian spirituality –the monk makes of his life a gratuitous gift in response to the free gift of God in Jesus Christ. As St Bernard wrote: “Love is sufficient of itself; it gives pleasure by itself and because of itself. It is its own merit, its own reward. Love looks for no cause outside itself, no effect beyond itself. Its profit lies in its practice. I love because I love; I love that I may love.”

- liturgy
  
  Seven times a day we gather to celebrate the liturgy, the “work of God,” praying with and for the world, and making of our lives, in union with Jesus, a lifelong song of thankfulness and praise to God for his faithful love. At the heart of this song is the daily, communal celebration of the Eucharist, which is “the source and summit of the whole Christian life and of the brothers communion in Christ.” (Constitution 18)
- Prayer
  
  The ancient practice of lectio divina, a prayerful rumination of the scriptures, allows us to deepen our reception of the word proclaimed in the liturgy and to prepare to hear the word anew at each celebration. The rhythm and climate of monastic life support the solitary, silent prayer in which over a lifetime we grow in ever deepening intimacy with God.

Community

While solitary, monks do not live in isolation. Their contemplative life in community is profoundly social and communal. Each day brings occasions to practice the asceticism of relationship, to “bear one another’s burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ.”

Abba Poemen said to Abba Joseph, “ Tell me how to become a monk.” He said, “If you want to find rest here below, and hereafter, in all circumstances say, ‘Who am I?’ and do not judge anyone.”
(Galatians 6:2)

Monks deliberately cultivate an environment of mutual acceptance and cooperation that leads in time to a profound sense of belonging, a belonging that supports the flourishing of the unique and distinctive gifts of each brother. Monks experience the human condition at a deep level and seek to live in solidarity with the entire human family, especially those who are suffering.

- work
  
  As part of both our practice of prayer and our commitment to poverty, we give time each day to manual labor. Given the needs and the nature of the community at a given time, this work may include baking, farming, carpentry, plumbing, painting, cooking and more.
  
  Simple manual work fosters patience, cooperation and creativity, and makes space and time for insights gained in reading and prayer to be assimilated. St Benedict wrote, “Then they are truly monks when they live by the work of their own hands.”
- vocation
  
  If you are considering a call to our way of life we encourage you to contact our Vocation Director, Fr. Isaac Slater.
  
  For those who are early in the process of exploring an attraction to monastic life, it is sometimes possible to stay in the community as a Vocation Guest, for a week or so. For more information contact: [email protected]
- foundations
  
  We are part of the U.S. Region of the Cistercians of the Strict Observance
  
  The website for the Order worldwide
  
  Genesee has three "daughterhouses" or foundations, two in Nigeria, one in Brazil:
  
  Awhum, Nigeria
  
  Illah, Nigeria
  
  Novo Mundo, Brazil