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DECEMBER 2007 |
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Sunday 2 – Our Sunday Mass was presided over by Fr. Graham. |
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Monday 3 – I had an appointment in Moncton. A neighbour,
Raymond Martin, drove me. Moncton is a fast growing city and my nerves are not
that strong. We had a fraternal
festive supper to say goodbye to Brother Albert of Gethsemani Abbey, Kentucky. Tuesday 4 – A big snowstorm had been forecast and we got it. It
began during the night and the lights went out before Lauds, which we postponed to later on in the morning. There were lots of power outages in the area, especially in the south east of the Province. Despite the storm, Br. Stephan had to drive Br. Albert to Bangor, in the US State of Maine. From there he was to catch a flight to Louisville. We enjoyed
Br. Albert’s stay here. He was always cheerful and had a great sense of
humour. Wednesday 5 – Mid-afternoon, Br. Stephan was back safe and sound, but the journey to Bangor had been
difficult with white-outs and bad road conditions, very slow going. This evening
we had our monthly community dialogue. We talked about the use of private rooms
for reading compared with the use of the scriptorium. People seemed happy with
the balance we currently have where most people make some daily use of the scriptorium but otherwise read in their rooms. A possible change of decor in the chapel was discussed without any real consensus. Thursday 6 – We had a video as usual. Friday 7 – In chapter, the Abbot took up his commentary on the rule again. We are still on the chapters on the Divine Office. Saturday 8 – Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception. A
feast that is always a big celebration here. We had a wonderful celebration of
the Eucharist and a festive dinner. Sunday 9 – 2nd Sunday of Advent. Apart from
that, nothing special, though there was a good group of guests making their retreat under the guidance of Sr. Ida Nolan.
Tuesday 11 – The abbot held a meeting of the business council. It was about buying two new heating boilers for the #3 chicken barn.
The current ones have served their time. The council also studied the
possibility of renewing our internal telephone system, since less and less of the current one functions, including the fax. Wednesday 12 – The last snowstorm dumped a nice blanket of snow that seems
determined to spend the winter with us. The winter has come very early this year. The abbot gave a talk on the seasonal liturgy about the church of Santa Maria Maggiore
which is the stational church for Christmas and where the relics of the manger are venerated.
It was built in celebration of the true doctrine of the Incarnation, that Jesus was God from all eternity and that
therefore Mary was the Mother of God. It was the propagation of this dogma at
the Council of Ephesus that gave the impetus to the celebration of the feast of Christmas. Thursday 13 – A priest, Fr. Timothy P. V. Nelligan of Green Wood, Nova Scotia,
is with us. He is a military chaplain and a very nice priest. Friday 14 – A doctor, Douglas Maynes, is also here. He came asking to be enrolled as an external oblate. We don’t
have a lot of these, but they have increased a little this summer. These are
people seeking to share in our Cistercian spirituality. Sunday 16 – More snow. Five years
since the abbot’s election.
Monday 17 – The problem with our internal telephone system and our fax has
not yet been sorted out. We are going to have to install a new system. Tuesday 18 – I had an appointment with the dentist. I took to opportunity to go and see the new church at Sainte Anne de Kent.
The church burned down a year ago. The faithful had wanted to have it
rebuilt. Wednesday 19 – We learned that Father Nicolas Kao, of our monastery of Lantao
in Hong Kong, China, had died on 11 December. He was 110 years and 11 months
old. He had been the oldest priest in the world. Saturday 22 – Dom Bernardo Olivera, our Abbot General, had brain surgery this
morning in Rome. This was because he seemed to have developed another aneurism. The exploratory operation showed that the situation was less serious than it had seemed
at first. The surgery had, nonetheless, allowed the doctors to assess the prognosis
with greater accuracy. The risk of a ruptured aneurism is very slight.
Monday 24 – We received lots of Christmas cards and the Abbot replied to over 200 by email! Our sisters form Assumption came to have supper and celebrate the Night Mass with us. The Abbot presided and Father Maurice preached. Tuesday 25 Christmas Day – The Abbot presided the Mass, as of right, with mitre and crozier. Thursday 27 - Br. Henry was driven to the Moncton Hospital by John bourque to have his left hip replaced. Friday 28 – We had a pleasant evening of conviviality with our employees and neighbours and an excellent
meal catered by the personnel of the Restaurant Chez Doris in Rogersville. Saturday 29 – The Abbot went to see Br. Henry in hospital and found him on excellent form and recovering
smoothly from his operation. We hope that the progress will continue without
any complications. Sunday 30 – With Br. Henry missing and the sisters’ chaplain away our concelebration is a bit
on the thin side. The Abbot went to say Mass for the sisters, I presided here
to free Fr. Graham for the schola. But Fr. Graham preached his sermon. Monday 31 – Fr. Graham went to Fridericton to renew his passport. This
is in connection with his upcoming trip to Rome and Assisi for the Monastic Formators’ Programme. This programme begun in 2002, is organised in conjunction with Sant’Anselmo, the Benedictine Academy
in Rome and is aimed at monks and nuns of the Benedictine tradition who are involved in monastic formation. So we will have another three months without Fr. Graham, but the Abbot thinks that the good of the community
requires Fr. Graham’s participation in this course. So it is for the greater
glory of God.
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