Sabbatical in Sri Lanka and India 2023

Sabbatical in Sri Lanka and India 2023

Mountain panorama in Kerala, with Fr. John & driver Shijo

O God, lead me from death to life,                             from falsehood to truth.
Lead me from despair to hope, from fear to trust.
Lead me from hate to love, from war to peace.
Let peace fill our hearts,                                                         our world and our universe!
                                                                                        Upanishads      

Ayurvedic remedies and spices

2023 was a very special year for me. After 25 years of running the St. Benedict Center, I received  as a gift a three-month sabbatical! In November 2021, I had had Covid and from that time on I was constantly tired. Through our connections to India and Sri Lanka, the idea of an Ayurvedic cure came up. In a hotel near Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka, I was treated with traditional Indian medicine. A competent doctor, massages, detoxification and yoga exercises, stillness and daily swimming: All that together brought me real help and I feel much better now.

Sri Lanka

with Fr. Dorothick in the hut of Fr. Bede Griffith

with Mission Exposure group in Tanjavur

Five unforgettable weeks in India followed. A highlight was my private retreat at Shantivanam, the ashram founded by the English monk, Father Bede Griffith. Benedictine life is completely embedded there in traditional Indian culture. Every day two hours, one in the morning and one in the evening, are dedicated to silent meditation in the monastery church. In the Liturgy of the Hours, the monks sing the Psalms and listen to readings from the Bible. Texts from other religions, especially Hinduism, are also read regularly. The words from the Upanishads quoted above are recited every day at midday prayer. It was a special honor for me to meet with the prior, Father Dorothick, for spiritual direction every day in the very simple hut in which Fr. Griffith once lived and worked. My inner quiet, which had filled me during the cure already, now helped me during the retreat to face some of the things which still needed healing within me and to bring them to prayer.

Shantivanam

Kumily, with students of children’s home

For two weeks, I was able to join a group of young confreres from Germany, Tanzania and Zambia who were traveling in India for the purpose of "mission exposure" (getting to know our world-wide missionary work). Together we visited a number of Indian Benedictine monasteries and became familiar with the country, the people and the culture of India.

Indian Monasteries

Indian Temples

Indian People & Culture

Finally, I spent two weeks in Kumily in the state of Kerala, in the priory of our congregation, participating in the prayer and work of our Indian confreres and also enjoying some tourist experiences, including views of wonderful mountain panoramas – and an elephant ride! I often visited Don Bosco Bhavan, a home in which the monks of the priory welcome orphaned or destitute boys.

Elephant Ride in Kumily, Kerala

After India I spent four weeks in Germany where my sabbatical found its conclusion in enjoyable encounters with relatives, friends, and a class reunion after 45 years of high school! I am very grateful for this beautiful time of rest and renewal for body, soul and spirit.

Mother of God Icon, Malom, Kerala

In the second monastery of our confreres at Malom in the north of Kerala, I found in the chapel this icon of Mary, the Mother of God. Mary holds Jesus and shows him to us at the same time. Jesus has a scroll in one hand, the other hand is stretched out in a gesture of blessing. In our war-torn and fragmented world, may HIS word and blessing guide and strengthen us on all the journeys of our life!

                      Fr. Thomas

Kumily, kerala

Fr. Thomas' Spring Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Saint Francis de Sales

“A spoonful of honey attracts more flies than a barrel full of vinegar.” These are the words of Saint Francis de Sales (1567–1622). Francis ministered as a priest in Switzerland, became later the bishop of Geneva, and was known for his kind and gentle personality. Francis employed the most modern methods of evangelization at his time: printing his sermons on pamphlets that he fixed on trees, gates and doors of homes. Plus, he wrote the first book in Church history that was addressed specifically to lay people, the Introduction to the Devout Life.

In this work, he points out that the journey to a deeper relationship with God and to holiness looks differently “for the gentleman, the worker, the soldier, the servant, the prince, the married woman, the widow or widower and the young. But even this distinction is not sufficient.” For the spiritual practice “must also be adapted to the strength, temperament, activities and duties of each person.”

Prayer, the sacraments, and growing in the virtues are important for everyone, he says. But these practices must be carried out in accordance with a person’s station in life and their calling. “The bee collects honey from flowers without harming them; it leaves them as whole and as fresh as it found them. True devotion is like the bee and even better: Not only does it not undermine any vocation or activity, but it makes it more perfect. Your care for your family becomes more peaceful; the mutual love of husband and wife, deeper…and every occupation, more pleasant and agreeable.”

Therefore, discernment is needed in terms of which spiritual practices are right for each one of us at this point in our lives. Going on retreat and stepping back from one’s everyday routines and duties can be helpful. A retreat, private and individual or in a group, can be a time of learning and practicing new spiritual disciplines. Meeting with a spiritual director can bring deeper understanding and more inner clarity. Please let us know when you are ready to go on retreat!

From St. Benedict Center I can report that we have made a number of improvements during the past months: new easy chairs in the concourse and the lobby, renovated bathrooms, and very good Wi-Fi now also in the Solarium. A second 85’’ Smart TV was added and a Kandao (Meeting Owl), a 360⁰ webcam with 8 microphones, which is a great improvement for Zoom meetings. 

Especially worth noting among the upcoming events of our program schedule is the weekend retreat on Astronomy and Faith on April 6 – 7 with Father Christoph Gerhard, OSB, an astronomer from Germany who will make you marvel about our wonderful cosmos! Also, our former prior, Father Mauritius Wilde, OSB, will come back to us who now is the Prior of the Benedictine Study House of Sant’ Anselmo in Rome, Italy. He will present a retreat on Contemplating the Holy Eucharist on May 3 – 5. – I am looking forward to seeing you again soon! 

Fr. Thomas Leitner, OSB, Administrator

Baptism of Our Lord

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Summer Newsletter from Fr. Thomas

Dear Friends, 

Milkweed and Butterfly, Chris Tomlin, Copyright 2002, The Saint John’s Bible, Saint John’s University, Collegeville, Minnesota USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

I marvel about the work of Chris Tomlin, a natural history illustrator, for The Saint John’s Bible. The plants and animals he depicts are of photographic accuracy and their beauty is stunning. Tomlins illumination, Milkweed and Butterflies appears at the end of Mark’s Gospel and points to the Resurrection of Jesus. He who gave his life for us now lives – and shows us the way to life with God and to life in fullness.

This truth is also expressed in the following parable that can give us pause: One caterpillar says, “Guess what, I’ve heard that we will perhaps be able to fly one day.” – “Nonsense!” the other replies. “You can slip and fly off the leaf, so you fall on your head, and it hurts. Our life is crawling and eating.” – “But don’t you think there is perhaps more than eating and crawling?” the one asks. “Fantasy pure, and empty talk,” the other retorts. “Have you ever seen a flying caterpillar? We eat, crawl, and someday we will die. Then it’s over.”

If the two only knew what will become of them: They will be beautiful, colorful, joyful butterflies! Of course, as long as they move only in their caterpillar world, they have no idea of what it is like to fly. As long as we move in our human caterpillar world, talk about resurrection appears enigmatic. Our life is crawling and eating. Pope Francis points out in his encyclical Laudato Si’ that it is necessary for us to step out of the “technocratic paradigm” of producing and consuming in which we so often live, in order to be able to see the beauty of creation and to discover the deeper meaning of life. – A retreat at St. Benedict Center can widen our horizon and open our hearts to the power and love of God.

Our permanent display of The Saint John’s Bible, this wonderful handwritten and illuminated seven-volume bible, is increasingly popular among groups and individuals. Please schedule your visit for a tour or a lectio and visio divina experience or take a self-guided tour! – Especially worth noting among the upcoming events of our program schedule is the weekend retreat on July 28 – 30 with Benedictine Oblate and author Judith Valente titled, Thomas Merton and Dorothy Day: Contemplative Wisdom for Crisis Times. Judy will show us how these two remarkable 20th century persons of prayer and action can help us deal with the personal and social challenges that we face today. – I am looking forward to seeing you again soon!

Fr. Thomas Leitner, OSB, Administrator  

Spring Newsletter from Fr. Thomas

Dear Friends,

In our monastery courtyard across the street from the retreat center, we have a beautiful garden fountain. It has several tiers: two smaller bowls on top, a mid-size one at the center, a large one and then a basin below. During our recreation time in the evening, when the weather allows it, we monks sit together in the yard, visit and listen to the gentle bubbling of the fountain.

The fountain has a water reservoir and a stem in which the water rises. The water flows into the first bowl and fills it. It overflows and fills the second bowl. The second bowl overflows and fills the third and so on. The Doctor of the Church, Saint Bernard of Clairvaux (c. 1090 – 1153) must have seen such a fountain when he wrote: Those who are wise will see their lives more like a fountain than like a canal. The canal simultaneously pours out what it receives; the fountain, on the other hand, retains the water till it is filled, then discharges the overflow without loss to itself. You, too, must learn to await this fullness before pouring out your gifts. “Do not try to be more generous than God. The fountain imitates the spring. Only when it is saturated with water, it flows to the river and becomes a lake. Do likewise. Start with filling; then pour out” (On the Song of Songs).

This is wonderful advice for our human and spiritual journey. We need times of being re-filled physically, emotionally, and spiritually. A retreat at St. Benedict Center can serve all three purposes. Particularly it can be a time of being replenished with the life-giving water of the Holy Spirit that wells forth in us so that we then can overflow in everyday life with the goodness of God.

Form our monastery I can report that Fr. Anastasius Reiser became the new prior of our monastic community in January. Fr. Anastasius was the abbot of a large Benedictine abbey in Tanzania for eleven years and has now lived with us in Schuyler for a year. Congratulations, Fr. Anastasius, we are happy!

Especially worth noting among the upcoming events of our program schedule is the weekend retreat on June 16 - 17 with best-selling author Kathleen Norris from Hawaii titled, Discovering What Matters: Embracing a Life of Meaning. Through storytelling and poetry, and inspired by the monastic tradition, Kathleen will help us ponder what is truly important to us in our lives. – I am looking forward to seeing you again soon! 

Fr. Thomas Leitner, OSB, Administrator            

Christmas Letter from Fr. Thomas

Schuyler, Nebraska, Christmas 2022
                                   
Dear Friends,

“The root of joy is gratefulness... It is not joy that makes us grateful. It is gratefulness that makes us happy.”                           

These words of Camaldoli Benedictine Brother David Steindl-Rast express a deep truth. "Our eyes are opened to that surprise character of the world around us the moment we wake up from taking things for granted… Surprise is the beginning of gratefulness," he writes. Standing by our lake often helps me to marvel again. St. Ignatius of Loyola considered gratitude to be one of the most important virtues. He said that ingratitude is the root of all sin, because sin is abuse of the gifts God has given us. If we are truly grateful for the gifts, then we will not abuse them. Therefore, I would like to share with you some of God's gifts that I have received during the past year.

Fr. Anselm explains rituals

Thinking of St. Benedict Center fills me with gratitude. It is well occupied again now, almost as it was before Covid. A highlight of our program schedule was a day with Fr. Anselm Grün in June. He gave us guidance and suggestions for good, supporting, religious rituals that we can practice in our everyday lives. – After some personnel changes, we now have a good team of co-workers again. Mark, Patty, and Liz: Your retirement is well-deserved; thank you very much for all the good you have done for us! Linda: May heaven reward you abundantly for your good and faithful service! RIP.

On July 7th we celebrated the Center’s 25th birthday. In a panel discussion, guests shared many wonderful experiences that they had while on retreat. Fr. Prior Joel’s summarizing words in the end were programmatic: “That we accept everyone as Christ is not just a saying on the wall, it is something we live. We let people be who they are; we do not judge. This is what hospitality is and it is absorbed into the culture of monastic life.”

Keynote address by Rev. John Ross

Our permanent and interactive exhibition on The Saint John's Bible continues to give me joy, too. July 17 was also the day of its Grand Opening. As mentioned earlier, The Saint John's Bible is the first handwritten and illuminated Bible in over 500 years, commissioned by a Benedictine monastery: St. John's Abbey in Collegeville, MN. Our Heritage Edition, which we received as a gift from Allen and Vivian Hager, is a fine-art, leather-bound, seven-volume reproduction, whose gold and silver leaf were applied by hand and which in its size and beauty is not inferior to the original. The Rev. Dr. John Ross, Executive Director of The Saint John’s Bible’s Heritage Program, emphasized in his keynote address that we have lost the skill of patient and prayerful reading. The beautiful text of the Bible with its impressive illuminations invites us to do so.  

"Gratitude creates a space of peace in the human heart", P. Prior Joel recently said in a sermon. I wish you gratitude for God's gifts during this Christmas Season, in spite of and even in the midst of difficulties and suffering.  May this gratitude create a space of peace in you! May God bless your Year 2023 abundantly!

See you again soon!

Fr. Thomas

Fall Newsletter: Fr. Thomas Leitner, OSB

Dear Friends,

Luke Anthology, Donald Jackson with contributions from Aidan Hart and Sally Mae Joseph, Copyright 2002, The Saint John’s Bible, Saint John’s University, Collegeville, Minnesota USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

During the Eucharist on Sundays, we hear passages from the Gospel of Luke this year. In the illumination, Luke Anthology of The Saint John’s Bible, artists Donald Jackson, Aidan Hart and Sally Mae Joseph present several of these together. In my prayer with this image, several details drew my eye. The colorful garment stands out that the father holds in hand while running toward his wayward son. The father is ready to embrace his son who has turned away from the pigs that represent the poor choices he has made. The father, with an expression of goodness and mercy on his face, is going to clothe him with the festive garment and to put a ring on his finger as an expression of his dignity as son of this merciful father.

I also feel drawn to the gold of the angels who rejoice about the sheep, lost in a dark place who has been found, and who also joyfully surround the poor man, Lazarus, who rests securely in the embrace of Abraham. Then my eyes wander to the representation of the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center, which are bathed in that same golden light; and this gives me goose bumps. Can it be that the forgiving love of our heavenly Father even embraces those who have committed these atrocities? Certainly, the red that dominates this whole illumination so strongly also is the color of blood. Jesus did not only tell the parable of the Good Samaritan, he himself became that Samaritan to the point of shedding his blood for a lost and wounded humanity…

On July 17 we celebrated the grand opening of our permanent and interactive display on The Saint John’s Bible. The Rev. Dr. John Ross, Executive Director of its Heritage Program, said in his keynote address: “We have lost the skill of patient and prayerful reading… The opportunity to experience The Saint John’s Bible is to encourage a space for rest, a time to slow down, and an invitation to carry this slower pace into our daily lives.” – Please come to pray with this 21st century hand-written bible and its stunning illuminations, alone or with your group!

On this same day, we marked the 25th anniversary of St. Benedict Center’s opening with a panel of friends sharing their experiences at the retreat center and about ideas on how it can continue to fulfill its mission in the future. – I am looking forward to seeing you again soon!

Fr. Thomas Leitner, OSB, Administrator

Summer Newsletter: Fr. Thomas Leitner, OSB

Dear Friends,
Twenty-five years ago, St. Benedict Center opened its doors! The first overnight groups and private retreatants came in June. On July 11, 1997, the Feast of Saint Benedict, the center, and its chapel was solemnly dedicated. Later in July, Sr. Rosann Ocken, the current prioress of our Missionary Benedictine Sisters in Norfolk, NE, offered the first sponsored one-day retreat titled, Anger: Changing Curse into Blessing. Milestones since then were an addition with 16 single guest rooms, three spiritual direction rooms, and an exercise room in 2005, and the completion of our new permanent displays of The Saint John’s Bible Heritage Edition and on our worldwide missionary work in 2020.

This anniversary fills my heart with much gratitude. The Lord has done such great things at this place in the hearts of so many throughout these years! As a retreat leader, spiritual director, and confessor, I have been privileged to experience the goodness of so many people, their sincere seeking of God, their perseverance in their faith and their strength in dealing with numerous challenges.

At the dedication, our abbot at the time from our German motherhouse, Fr. Fidelis Ruppert, Ph.D., spoke in his keynote address about Benedictine hospitality. Saint Benedict writes in his Rule: “All guests who present themselves are to be welcomed as Christ for he himself will say, I was a stranger and you welcomed me.” The dignity of the guest is the dignity of Christ. The guests are to be offered food and drink, but they also need nourishment for soul and spirit, which satisfies their hunger for love and acceptance, their hunger for God and peace of heart, their hunger and longing for orientation, and a deeper understanding of life and love. Fr. Fidelis continued, “Saint Benedict’s hospitality should be like an oasis in the desert of life, where people can find spring waters of new life and a place of rest and relaxation in the shadow of God’s presence.”

In St. Benedict Center’s kitchen, we have a very good new team under the leadership of Bradley Weber and Andrew Janousek. Brad worked even as a schoolboy in the kitchen of Mark and Patty who have now retired. – Plus, excellent food for the soul continues to be available here on the hill. Among our upcoming sponsored retreat offerings, I’d like to point you, especially to the weekend about mindfulness, sobriety, and mercy on July 29 – 31 with our former prior Fr. Mauritius Wilde, OSB, Ph.D., who comes to us from Rome, Italy. – I am looking forward to seeing you again soon!

Fr. Thomas Leitner
OSB, Administrator

Spring 2022 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Once the Prophet Ezechiel had an impressive vision of a whole valley filled with dry, lifeless human bones (Ch. 37:1-14). God asked him, “Can these bones come to life?” Ezechiel, aware of his own powerlessness but filled with deep trust in God responds, “You alone know that.”

Donald Jackson, illuminating this passage for The Saint John’s Bible, presents us with the dry bones of our time. He shows broken glass from terrorist attacks, the eye glasses taken from Jewish people before they were gassed at Auschwitz, and the skulls of other genocide victims of the twentieth century. The junk car points to environmental degradation.

Above all this, however, he depicted the rainbow, representing God’s unconditional faithfulness to humanity. And the little golden squares of God’s working in the world even find their way into the scenario below. If we would look at the whole illumination we would see God’s words written across the bottom: “I will put my Spirit into you and you shall live.”

This Scripture passage and its illumination fills me with hope. We can hold out in prayer to God the victims of war, terrorism, abortion, domestic violence, and environmental destruction, the suffering of refugees and immigrants, etc., and the perpetrators of such injustice. We also can respond to God’s question, “Can these bones live?” with: “You alone know that.” We may trust that God’s Spirit can work even at these places of desolation and that He will show us how we can cooperate with the Spirit bringing resurrection and new life.

A good place for such hope-inspiring prayer is St. Benedict Center and especially our display of The Saint John’s Bible. Please spread the word about it and bring your own group or church for a retreat or just for a tour! Especially worth noting among the upcoming events of our program schedule is the one-day retreat on June 25 with our brother monk from Germany and best-selling author Fr. Anselm Gruen, OSB, on Sacred Rituals for Our Everyday Life. These rituals will help us let our faith shape our day-today living.

At Christ the King Priory, you will see a new face: Fr. Anastasius Reiser came from our motherhouse in Germany, the Abbey of Münsterschwarzach, to be a member of our monastic community. Welcome to Nebraska, Fr. Anastasius! - I am looking forward to seeing you again soon!

Fr. Thomas Leitner, OSB, Administrator