3 Questions for the Junior Monks

Br. Gabriel Chinn, OSB

1. Clarence, Missouri
2. I enjoy reading and maybe just anything I can take outdoors or do outdoors. Recently it’s been taking my schoolwork to “my office” in the Infirmary Garden.
3. The list is long, but it can be encapsulated in an ancient monastic story: A visitor to a monastery once asked the abbot what the monks did there. He responded, “We fall and are raised up, we fall and are raised up.” I’ve learned that this is the life I want to live—to be certain that when I fall, which is often, I will be raised up.

Br. Joachim Conti, OSB

1. Arroyo Grande, California
2. Spending time outside; learning about theology, philosophy, and ancient languages; doing handstands.
3. I continually relearn that there is an important distinction between exterior and interior silence.

Br. Francis Todd, OSB

1. Lee’s Summit, Missouri
2. I enjoy reading and using my typewriter.
3. Since entering the monastery, I have continued to learn about the complexity of the human person.

Br. Boniface Logan, OSB

1. Salina, Kansas
2. Watching the Kansas City Chiefs, playing the harp, and growing sunflowers.
3. I’ve learned how to sing well since entering the monastery. Dr. Stephen Town, Professor Emeritus of Music at Northwest Missouri State University, visits us monks in formation on a regular basis for singing lessons to improve our chanting at the Divine Office and Mass.

Novice Eric Lindsey

1. Strawberry Plains, Tennessee
2. In my spare time, I am usually reading, exercising (lifting weights, playing sports, biking, etc), or walking along one of the trails on campus.
3. “How good and how pleasant it is when brothers live in unity.” (Psalm 133:1)

Novice Logan Kroeze

1. Cedar Rapids, Iowa
2. In my free time, I enjoy lifting, spending time outdoors, and playing chess.
3. Since entering the monastery, I’ve learned how to manage my time more effectively.

Novice Daniel Martin

1. St. Louis, Missouri
2. I like to run and read. I also enjoy biking with my novice brothers.
3. One thing I have learned about myself is that growing closer to God takes a great deal of patience and time, potentially even a lifetime.

Novice Trevor Fisher

1. Grand Island, Nebraska
2. I love lifting weights and going camping with close friends.
3. Since entering the monastery, I’ve learned how weak I am and how much I truly need Jesus to hold me and save me day after day.

Novice Nicholas Bowlan

1. Shawnee, Oklahoma
2. Lifting weights, reading, partaking in anything competitive or arduous, going outside. I have learned that no monk is the same.
3. Having different personalities and personal devotions is what gives LIFE to the community and what makes coming together in community so special.

Novice Nathan Woolgar

1. Menasha, Wisconsin
2. Reading, playing disc golf, board games, and exercising. I am interested in gardening though I would not consider myself skilled or practiced at it.
3. Broadly speaking, I’m learning through experience the Benedictine, monastic rhythm of life.