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Fr. Timothy Enters Eternal Rest
At 9:10 p.m. on Wednesday, 2 March 2016, our beloved confrere, Father Timothy Schoen, O.S.B., passed unexpectedly into eternity. Earlier in the evening, Father Timothy had informed our Infirmary staff that he was having difficulty breathing. He was taken by ambulance to the emergency room of the Mosaic Life Center in St. Joseph, MO, where efforts to…
Lenten Conferences
On Tuesday evenings during Lent, the monks have a community conference after Vespers. Abbot Gregory decided to have some of the members give presentations on the Spiritual and Corporal Works of Mercy. These works are particularly good areas of reflection during this Jubilee Year of Mercy. This evening Br. Anselm gave a conference on the…
F.I.R.E. Retreat
I had the privilege of traveling to Prairie Star Ranch in Williamsburg, Kansas to help out with the 2016 F.I.R.E. Men’s Retreat. I was invited to help out with confessions on Saturday evening, but I arrived there Saturday morning to participate in the activities and interact with the 90 men attending the retreat. When I…
Blessing of New Crucifix
The new crucifix which was hand carved specifically for the monastery dining room was mounted on Tuesday. The monastic community gathered for the blessing of this crucifix before supper. Abbot Gregory blessed the crucifix which all of the monks will look upon whenever we gather in the dining room. It is situated between a mural of Martha…
Celebrating with our Neighbors
Every year for the Feast of St. Scholastica, the sisters (our Benedictine neighbors) invite the monks to join them for Vespers and supper. The Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration are just 2 miles down the road and we have a great relationship and a long history. The Feast of St. Scholastica was transferred one day…
Lent Begins
The monastic and seminary community gathered today in the Basilica to celebrate Ash Wednesday Mass. The formula used for imposition of ashes: “Repent, and believe in the Gospel.” Abbot Gregory presided and preached at today’s liturgy and Fr. Brendan Moss, Rector of Conception Seminary, helped distribute ashes. St. Benedict encourages his monks to live a…
Celebrating Culture
This afternoon monks and seminarians celebrated with the CMC Community, our Vietnamese brothers who are on campus studying at Conception Seminary. Tet or Vietnamese New Year, is the most important celebration in Vietnamese culture. We recognized the Vietnamese New Year by a presentation and plenty of good food. Above: Fr. Pat and Fr. Samuel enjoy the festivities. Below:…
Aerial Video from the Abbey
The monks of Conception Abbey used a drone with video camera to capture these stunning shots of campus. Even during late January and early February the campus reflects God’s beauty. Please pray for vocations.
Living the Gospel
I completed a video featuring several aerial shots of the Abbey. You don’t get to see these angles all that often. Please share this video with any young men who you feel may have a monastic vocation or anyone who could benefit spiritually from a visit to our monastery.
New Monastery Stained Glass in Progress
I learned the art of stained glass while studying at St. Vincent Seminary in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. I always enjoyed getting involved in different types of arts or crafts, but was never really good at them. I made several small windows during my time in theology school and always thought about the possibility of continuing to make…