News from Christ in the Desert
Ask The Abbot - Weekly Reflections - Week 13
"What are your views on infidelity and commitment?"
Visit "ASK THE ABBOT" page to see the other "Dear Abbot" videos.
Current Road Conditions to the Monastery
Update Posted 5/9/12
The road to the Monastery, Forest Service Road 151, is dry. It is still best traversed with a 4-wheel drive vehicle. We will keep you updated as conditions change.
Second Annual Monastery Raffle
Posted 5/23/12
We are pleased to announce the second annual raffle to support the general operating expenses of the Monastery of Christ in the Desert. Last year we held a very successful raffle and raised $17,000.
This year, we hope to raise over $34,000! This year the winner will get to select one of three different 2012 automobiles: a Toyota RAV4 - 4-wheel drive, a Toyota Prius - 3rd Generation, or a Toyota LE Sedan. We are grateful to Beaver Toyota in Santa Fe for donating half the cost of the prize. Proceeds from the raffle will raise the other half of the prize.
The raffle will be limited to 500 tickets. The donation for each ticket will be $100.00. The drawing will be held at the Monastery on July 11, 2012, the Solemnity of our Holy Father Benedict. The winner need not be present to win.
The cost of transporting the prize to the winner will be paid by Beaver Toyota and the Monastery of Christ in the Desert. The winner will be responsible for payment of taxes, registration, and insurance, in addition to the usual maintenance.
Tickets will be sold by unpaid volunteers of the Monastery or directly from the Monastery by contacting Brother Christian Leisy by phone at 505-990-5649 or by e-mail: monkchristian@gmail.com
Thank you and God bless you for considering this important project to benefit the Monastery of Christ in the Desert.
Just Released - New Compilation CD
Posted 4/24/12
Sony Masterworks released our Newest Compilation CD today, "Blessings, Peace and Harmony: Monks of the Desert". You can listen to samples of the chants or Order the NEW CD now by visiting our Monks of the Desert page.
We hope you will enjoy the new CD and thank you for your prayers and support.
Events to be Held in Houston, Texas April 21 - 22, 2012
Posted 4/6/12
Please join us in prayer, and in person if possible, as we make a return visit to a wonderful parish in Houston, Texas. We are being invited by our long-time friend, Msgr Adam McClosky, pastor of All Saints, the "Jewel in the Heights," as it has come to be called. The church is truly beautiful!
On Saturday, April 21st, our Father Christian Leisy and Berkeley Merchant (Oblate Brother Barnabas) will be leading a Morning of Monastic Reflection at the Parish of All Saints, Houston, Texas, located at 215 E. 10th Street.
The Morning of Monastic Reflection will begin at 9:00 am in the Parish Center adjacent to the big parking lot. Our time together will include chanting portions of the Divine Office (the Liturgy of the Hours), as well as presentations about principles and practices of monastic life and their application to one's spiritual journey, whatever walk of life or age. The Morning of Monastic Reflection will include some silence, chanting and discussion, and conclude about noon. We will have books and other items from the Monastery giftshop for sale as well. All are welcome for part or all of the Morning of Monastic Reflection on April 21st.
Father Christian will also be present at the weekend Masses of April 21st - 22nd at All Saints and be available to speak with people and will have Monastery giftshop items for sale after the Masses.
Mass schedule as follows:
Saturday evening Vigil Mass: 5:30 pm.
Sunday: 8:30 am, 10:30 am and 12:30 pm (in Spanish).
Thank you for your prayerful support and active presence if you live near or can travel to All Saints, Houston, the weekend of April 21st - 22nd.
Bishop James S. Wall of Gallup, NM, Visits Us
Posted 4/6/12
On Monday and Tuesday, April 2nd and 3rd, we were honored with a visit to our abbey by the Most Reverend James S. Wall, Bishop of the Diocese of Gallup, NM, along with his mother, Joan Wall of Arizona and Father Matthew A. Keller, priest of Gallup.
We enjoyed our time together and learning more about our "neighboring diocese" of Gallup (we are in the boundaries of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe). The Gallup diocese includes parts of New Mexico as well as Arizona. Territorially it is a vast diocese. The Benedictine nuns of Our Lady of the Desert, Governador, NM, are in the diocese of Gallup and very much supported by the bishop, clergy and people there.
May God bless and guide Bishop Wall and all the people of his diocese.
Holy Week and Easter Schedule Now Posted
Posted 3/30/12
Holy Week and Easter Schedule of Liturgical Services are now posted. Visit our Holy Week and Easter Page to see the 2012 schedule.
Film Recommendations
Posted 3/28/12
Occasionally quality yet unpretentious films come our way, well worth recommending to our friends. The first is called, "Letters To Father Jacob," by Finnish director Klaus Haro. The unlikely bonding of a pardoned female prisoner and a blind country priest revolves around letters the elderly priest receives petitioning his prayers. It is a tale of the power of prayer and forgiveness. The acting is flawless. Beautiful cinematography and a haunting score add to the overall effect of this 2010 film. Running time is 75 minutes.
Another film worth seeing is, "Young @ Heart," from 2007, the story (and songs) of a real-life chorus from Northampton, Massachusetts (called Young @ Heart), composed of a couple dozen seniors who clearly choose life (and song) at every turn. It is an encouraging look at later life and living in the present. The documentary centers around the chorus preparing for a concert, called, "Alive and Well," and sprinkled in are some very witty music videos by the chorus. Running time is 1 hour, 48 minutes.
Monks Chanting
Posted 3/7/12
This Sunday, March 11, some of our monks will be at the New Mexico History Museum in Santa Fe, chanting from 2 - 4 pm. Please join us there. We and the Schola Cantorum of Santa Fe will offer a variety of sacred music in the lobby of the museum, a huge space with room for all. The museum is in downtown Santa Fe at 113 Lincoln Avenue. Phone 505-476-5100. Admission is free.
The wonderful Saint John's Bible exhibit is still going on at the New Mexico History Museum as well as the exhibit of photographs, including Tony O'Brien's stunning images from the Monastery of Christ in the Desert.
Ask The Abbot - Weekly Reflections Now Online
Posted 3/7/12
In anticipation of the release of our CD, "Blessings, Peace and Harmony: Monks of the Desert", on April 24th, friends at Sony and our monks have produced an online 15 weekly series of reflections by Abbot Philip Lawrence, called "Dear Abbot" This week's reflection, now online is called, "How Do I Balance a Strong Work Ethic and Peace of Mind?"
You can view the video at the top of this news page.
"Living the Rule of Benedict Everyday"
A program retreat at the Monastery of Christ in the Desert
June 17 - 21, 2012
Several of Saint Benedict's spiritual practices will developed and experienced in greater depth in this retreat. For those who've previously attended a Rule of Benedict Retreat - this retreat includes new material and themes.
If you wish to sign up for this or other retreats, please visit our
Program Retreats page for more information.
New Online Reflections
Posted 3/6/12
In anticipation of the release of our CD, "Blessings, Peace and Harmony: Monks of the Desert", on April 24th, friends at Sony and our monks have produced an online series of reflections by Abbot Philip Lawrence, called "Dear Abbot" The first one, now online is called, "What is the Value of Work in Life?"
Monks Chanting in Santa Fe, Saturday, February 25, 2012
Posted 1/27/12
Some of our monks will be chanting at the Monks' Corner in Santa Fe, on Saturday, February 25th, from 11 am - 1 pm. The chants will including the Offices of Terce, Sext and None for Saturday in Lent.
Please come and join us for this opportunity to participate in the life of prayer of the Monastery and to visit some with the monks. The Monks' Corner is at 235 Don Gaspar in downtown Santa Fe.
A Moving Story of Catholic Sisters Under Soviet Domination
Posted 2/22/12
As Lent begins, a time associated with repentance and new life in Christ, it is worth reflecting on the hidden lives of those who bear witness to the Gospel under trying circumstances. A fairly new documentary called, "Interrupted Lives: Catholic Sisters Under European Communism," is highly recommended. It is a one hour film presentation of the plight of thousands of Catholic sisters under Soviet domination from the end of World War II to the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989.
The lives portrayed and the interviews in the film bear powerful testimony to the deep faith and courage of these consecrated women. Monks of Christ in the Desert got to know some of the "secret sisters," as they were often called, from visits to our Benedictine brothers in Hungary in the early 1980's.
Now free, and some of them quite elderly, the sisters interviewed for "Interrupted Lives," did not let oppression or persecution deter their commitment to religious life in the Catholic Church. Though many endured imprisonment, exile and forced labor, it neither broke their spirits nor embittered their hearts.
The film is part of the Vision and Values series created by the Interfaith Broadcast Commission, of which the United Sates Conference of Catholic Bishops is a member. Major funding for the production came from the Catholic Communication Campaign office of the United Sates Catholic Conference and Collection for the Church in Central and Eastern Europe.
This not-to-be-missed film can be ordered by calling 1-800-235-8722. In the Washington, D.C. metro area or outside the U.S., call: 1-202-722-8716.
Monastic Exchange
Posted 2/15/12
Over the past many years, a number of monks of our monastery have had the pleasure of staying at Saint Michael's Abbey, Farnborough, near London, England. The occasion is usually while doing studies in Europe or attending meetings of our English Province of the Subiaco Congregation.
This year, during the month of February, Dom Michael Vician, originally from Slovakia and now a professed monk of Farnborough, is sharing our life here at Christ in the Desert.
Brother Michael is a hard worker and eagerly helping in various projects, including cooking, brewing our beer and maintenance tasks. He will return to his abbey in March and will be missed. Abbot Cuthbert Brogan and the monks of Saint Michael's Abbey, Farnborough, are good friends of ours. May God reward them now and always!
New Mexico Statehood Centennial
Posted 1/21/12
This year marks the one hundredth anniversary of New Mexico becoming the forty-seventh state on January 6, 1912.
As residents of this wonderful state we monks are rejoicing with fellow New Mexicans. We have no particular celebrations planned here to mark the occasion, but we pray each day for all who live and work in this "Land of Enchantment," as New Mexico is called.
To learn more about our state and its history, see:
www.newmexico.org/learn/timeline/statehood.php
Monastery Crafts
Posted 1/20/2012
In the colder months of winter, though with sunshine still abounding, a number of our monks have been busy during the work period with the making of our high quality soaps, lotions, lip balm, candles, as well as rosaries, and greeting cards. All of these items are sold at our Giftshop here and eventually online as well.
Guesthouse Repairs
Posted 1/19/2012
In these quieter weeks after Christmas, and with fairly good weather prevailing, we have been able to tackle some needed repairs at the main Guesthouse. The complete remodeling of the men's rest room and some exterior wall work are now nearly finished.
We are most grateful for the kindness of those who have contributed to make these projects possible and hope the work now done will enhance the stay of those who come here for private retreat. Our hospitality apostolate continues to thrive, especially in the spring, summer and fall months.