Benedictine Blessings: Monastery of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Vermont

Now it's time for an American Benedictine cloister! The Monastery of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in Westfield, VT is a real gem. A newer community, it was founded in 1981 as a foundation of Abbaye de Sainte-Marie in Canada. This monastery is also a member of the very solid Congregation of Solesmes.

While the website of the Monastery of the Immaculate Heart of Mary's website is simpler than those of the previous featured monasteries in this series, it has alot of great content. I really like it's integration of quotes fron Scripture and the Rule of Saint Benedict in the description of the spirituality of cloisters and the Benedictine Order. Also, check out the "Modern Desert" page on the website- I thought that was a very nice term for a cloister.

I'll end with a beautiful quote from the web page:

At the very outset of his Rule for monasteries, Saint Benedict appeals to the innate desire for JOY present in every heart:

Is there anyone who yearns for life and desires to see good days? (Prologue to the Rule of Saint Benedict, RB prol.)


But true joy is a CHALLENGE: it can blossom only in the soil of self-forgetfulness and self-giving to love, especially to the only LOVE than can completely fill the human heart. To the unfathomable love of God for us—
God so loved the world (each one of us) that He gave His only Son (Jn 3:16)—