Two New Solemn Professions and the Renewal of Vows Reaching Back 70 Years
In the tradition of Saint John's Abbey, junior monks are welcomed into full membership of the Benedictine monastic community on July 11, the Feast of Saint Benedict. This year we have joyfully accepted Fr. Nickolas Becker and Br. Dan Morgan as full and permanent members of our common vocation, ministry and home. In addition to affirming and welcoming new members to the community, we gratefully celebrate the jubilees of our brothers who have supported, encouraged and developed our community for 25, 50, 60 and 70 years.
Abbot John Klassen spoke the following this last Feast of Saint Benedict:
Saint Benedict could have written the passage from Deuteronomy:
“This command which I give you today
is not too mysterious and remote for you.
It is not up in the sky
nor across the sea –
No, it is very near to you,
it is already in your mouths and in your hearts –
you have only to carry it out.”
Though he has a very positive view of human beings,
Benedict’s confidence is really in God’s grace
and in the human capacity to live into grace,
especially in the give and take of community living.
Today we celebrate the grace
that has been present to us in our jubilarians.
Seventy, sixty, fifty, and twenty five years ago,
our jubilarians professed their vows
in the presence of God, the saints, the abbot and the community.
We also celebrate the grace of God at work
in our Father Nickolas and Brother Daniel who desire to make solemn vows.
Father Fintan Bromenshenkel,
teacher of mathematics for thirty seven years,
first at Prep and then in the University
first director of the computer center on campus for fifteen years
and then a programmer and analyst for another twelve,
missionary monk at Saint Augustine’s in the Bahamas,
puller of weeds, whether preserving a running track or saving my patch of vegetables,
and splitter of many logs for firewood,
you make monastic life look natural and easy,
Fintan, thank you for faithful service and presence.
Father Magnus Wenninger,
grounded in the mystical tradition of John of the Cross
letting it shape the way you approach monastic life;
missionary monk at Saint Augustine’s in the Bahamas
international expert on the mathematics of polyhedrons,
- and the making of them -
you have shown how patience, intelligence, and diligent work
can open up a whole new field of learning.
Magnus, thank you for your creative response to the monastic call.
Father Martin Rath,
for many years the campus postmaster
before going on for ordination;
hospitable engagement with people of many different faiths;
co-founder of Nazareth House
a place for the broken-hearted,
a house of hospitality and prayer for the neglected or the weary;
dedicated pastor and chaplain in many of our parishes,
Martin, thank you for your engaged service and presence.
Father Wilfred Theisen,
teacher of physics in the wonderful journey
through Copernicus, Galileo, Newton, Maxwell, Einstein and others for forty years;
veteran and beloved liaison to scholars at the Collegeville Institute,
learned commentator on the impact of Darwin’s thought on theology;
practicing obedience to the abbot in making trips to England for “alchemy research”;
amassing detailed knowledge of the layout of many golf courses, near and far,
dedicated and generous monk in priestly service,
Wilfred, thank you for sharing your gifts in and through the community.
Father Daniel Durken,
beloved teacher of scripture,
lover of colorful, alliterative use of language, especially in preaching,
popular and skilled presenter on a variety of topics, especially scripture;
director of the Liturgical Press for ten years;
relentless writer of short pieces for Abbey Banner,
the bulletin and other venues;
inventor and editor of the Abbey Banner,
Daniel, thank you for being with us on this monastic road.
Father Knute Anderson
reader of everything, especially related to the Vatican II documents,
explorer of the woods, the footpaths, and the old logging trails,
thoughtful commentator on larger trends in the Church,
collector of many things, especially books;
daily, faithful service in delivering and distributing
the mail to the community,
thank you, Knute, for your service and presence in this community.
Brother Luke Dowal,
gentle, thoughtful, and diligent steward of the sacristy,
for years a caring nurse in the community,
singer with the stellar bass voice,
at 86 still able to lift iron and do other impossible exercises,
a gifted painter of still-lifes,
a baker with a keen sense for delicious desserts,
Luke, thank you being with us in our work and prayer.
Father Roger Klassen,
skilled and lively teacher of German;
energetic director of the International Studies program in the university
who initiated the expansive vision for the role of study abroad in our curriculum;
explorer and guide for so many to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area,
compassionate and tireless pastor for Saint John the Baptist, Saint Boniface,
and the tri-parish cluster of Freeport, New Munich, and Saint Rose;
tinkerer, inventer, problem-solver in the clutch, and beloved cousin,
Roger, thank you for being with us as a monk-priest.
Father Blane Wasnie,
student of patristics at the Sorbonne in Paris for three years,
study that shapes and defines your understanding and appreciation
of faith, prayer, liturgy, and the mystery of the Church;
teacher of theology in the seminary and graduate school for six years;
pastor and chaplain over the next thirty plus years
at Hastings, Barnesville, Detroit Lakes, Duluth,
Saint Cloud, Collegeville, and Avon;
a keen eye for beautiful art,
and a bias toward engaging humor,
Blane, thank you for your devoted service
and presence in this community.
Father Michael Naughton,
a master organist for monastic liturgies;
skilled counselor and teacher of counseling
with training at the famed Menninger Institute;
editor at and then Director of the Liturgical Press for 13 years;
monastic leader at Mary, Mother of the Church abbey
and Sant’ Anselmo in Rome;
a veteran walker and hiker;
compassionate pastor, creative homilist,
and a practiced facilitator in complicated conversations,
Michael, thank you for your service and presence in the community.
Father Joel Kelly,
fluent in Spanish because of four years as
a missionary monk, teacher, and pastor at our mission in Puerto Rico,
trained counselor and chaplain,
chaplain for the university for eight years
and then through the surprise transformative experience
at the Minnesota Corrections Facility in Saint Cloud for thirteen years,
and now a hospital chaplain in San Bernadino, California;
always a compassionate, outgoing and easygoing shepherd
Joel, thank you for your joyful witness and presence in our community.
Father Roman Paur,
skilled counselor, teacher, and nationally recognized lecturer,
with demonstrated administrative skills as head of student development
in the university for 13 years;
executive director of the Interfaith Sexual Trauma Institute;
dynamic prior of Trinity Benedictine Monastery,
working with the monks on the nitty gritty of being a community;
designer and maker of furniture in our woodworking shop,
Roman, thank you for sharing your energy and talent so generously.
Father J P Earls,
teacher of English in the university for twenty three years,
skilled VP for student development for seven years
in the vexed 1970s,
faculty resident for more than 25 years;
formation director,
writer of hymn texts and reliable cantor,
faithful practitioner of vipássana meditation,
fine homilist and generous chaplain to Saint Benedict’s Monastery
and many other communities;
JP, thank you for your service,
good humor and loving presence in our community.
Brother Mark Kelly,
I was thinking one word – “grass”
but way too reductionist;
head of the grounds department for 49 years,
through ice, snow, and cold,
stewarding the beauty of this large, complicated campus
with the help of dedicated co-workers and an army of students;
Number One fan of SJU football,
a special place in your heart for those in the hospital or ailing,
Mark, thank you for dedicated service and presence in our community.
Father Kevin Seasoltz,
coming to us from Saint Anselm’s Abbey in Washington, DC,
passion for liturgy, especially Eucharist
beloved teacher, speaker, writer, scholar, and thinker,
especially about things liturgical and monastic;
great love for the relationship between the design of liturgical spaces
and the way we pray in them;
editor of our flagship publication Worship
Kevin, thank you for your service and presence in our community.
Father Peter Kawamura,
professed for 25 years at Trinity Benedictine Monastery,
quiet leader in the Japanese fashion,
keen observer and tender of the fabric of human community,
deep intuitive knowledge of the Buddhist tradition in Japan
and its most beautiful sites,
caring deeply for the growth of monastic life in Japan.
Kawamura san, thank you for your service and presence
at Trinity Benedictine Monastery.
Father Nickolas and Brother Dan,
today you make solemn vows to God and to this community.
As you can see from the lives of these confreres,
you can expect your life to take many twists and turns.
But the community is constant in opening itself to the mystery of God’s love.
None of us knows what will be asked of us.
We do know that Christ will be with us
to support and sustain us on this journey.
Surely God’s promise is being fulfilled in our midst:
Abundant blessings have been poured our lap
because of the graced commitment of these men,
who have preferred nothing to Christ.
As we celebrate the Eucharist in this community of faith today,
we trust that God’s grace will bless all of us,
our solemnly professed,
our jubilarians, confreres, oblates, and guests,
with a joyous and blessed Feast of Benedict.
Abbot John Klassen, OSB
July 11, 2010
