The Abbey of Our Lady of Gethsemani is a Catholic
monastery
A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...
in the United States near
Bardstown, Kentucky
Bardstown is a home rule-class city in Nelson County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 11,700 in the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Nelson County.
Bardstown is named for the pioneering Bard brothers. David Bard obtained a l ...
, in
Nelson County. The abbey is part of the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance (''Ordo Cisterciensis Strictioris Observantiae''), better known as the
Trappists
The Trappists, officially known as the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance ( la, Ordo Cisterciensis Strictioris Observantiae, abbreviated as OCSO) and originally named the Order of Reformed Cistercians of Our Lady of La Trappe, are a ...
. Founded on December 21, 1848, and raised to an abbey in 1851, Gethsemani is considered to be the motherhouse of all Trappist and Trappistine monasteries in the United States. Gethsemani is the oldest Trappist monastery in the country that is still operating.
Following the
Rule of Saint Benedict
The ''Rule of Saint Benedict'' ( la, Regula Sancti Benedicti) is a book of precepts written in Latin in 516 by St Benedict of Nursia ( AD 480–550) for monks living communally under the authority of an abbot.
The spirit of Saint Benedict's Ru ...
, the Trappist monks live a contemplative life of faithful prayer and work. The monastery is situated on a working farm of . The monks support themselves and the abbey through its store, Gethsemani Farms, offering handmade
fruitcake
Fruitcake (or fruit cake or fruit bread) is a cake made with candied or dried fruit, nuts, and spices, and optionally soaked in spirits. In the United Kingdom, certain rich versions may be iced and decorated.
Fruitcakes are typically served ...
and
bourbon Bourbon may refer to:
Food and drink
* Bourbon whiskey, an American whiskey made using a corn-based mash
* Bourbon barrel aged beer, a type of beer aged in bourbon barrels
* Bourbon biscuit, a chocolate sandwich biscuit
* A beer produced by Bras ...
fudge
Fudge is a type of confection that is made by mixing sugar, butter and milk, heating it to the soft-ball stage at , and then beating the mixture while it cools so that it acquires a smooth, creamy consistency. In texture, this crystalline cand ...
(both onsite and by
mail order
Mail order is the buying of goods or services by mail delivery. The buyer places an order for the desired products with the merchant through some remote methods such as:
* Sending an order form in the mail
* Placing a telephone call
* Placing a ...
).
Gethsemani was the home of Trappist monk, social activist and author
Thomas Merton
Thomas Merton (January 31, 1915 – December 10, 1968) was an American Trappist monk, writer, theologian, mystic, poet, social activist and scholar of comparative religion. On May 26, 1949, he was ordained to the Catholic priesthood and giv ...
from 1941 until his death in 1968.
History
Establishment
![KYMap-doton-Bardstown](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/KYMap-doton-Bardstown.PNG)
In September 1805, French Trappists from the Abbey of
La Valsainte
La Valsainte Charterhouse or La Valsainte (Latin: ''Vallis sanctorum omnium'', later ''Vallis Sancta'') situated in La Valsainte in the district of Gruyère, Canton of Fribourg, is the only remaining extant Carthusian monastery in Switzerland ...
in Switzerland traveled from Pennsylvania to
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...
. From Louisville, they traveled south to the area of
Bardstown
Bardstown is a home rule-class city in Nelson County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 11,700 in the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Nelson County.
Bardstown is named for the pioneering Bard brothers. David Bard obtained a l ...
to meet with
Stephen Badin
Reverend Fr. Stephen Theodore Badin (born Étienne Théodore Badin on July 17, 1768 – April 21, 1853) was the first Catholic priest ordained in the United States. He spent most of his long career ministering to widely dispersed Catholics in Cana ...
, the first
Catholic priest
The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the Holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in layman's terms ''priest'' refers only ...
ordained in the United States. Badin invited the monks and members of their Order to make their home in the area. Their stay was short-lived and they left in 1809 after a season of bad flooding.
Four decades later, in 1847,
Dom Dom or DOM may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Dom (given name), including fictional characters
* Dom (surname)
* Dom La Nena (born 1989), stage name of Brazilian-born cellist, singer and songwriter Dominique Pinto
* Dom people, an et ...
Maxime,
abbot
Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The fem ...
of the
Abbey of Melleray
Melleray Abbey (Abbaye de Notre-Dame-de-Melleray) was a Cistercian monastery, founded about the year 1134. It was situated in Brittany, Diocese of Nantes, in La Meilleraye-de-Bretagne in the vicinity of Châteaubriant (in present Loire-Atlantique ...
in France, sent two monks to Kentucky to find a tract of land on which the order could build a monastery.
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
Benedict Joseph Flaget
Benedict Joseph Flaget (November 7, 1763 – February 11, 1850) was a French-born Catholic bishop in the United States. He served as the Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bardstown between 1808 and 1839. When the see was transferred to Loui ...
in Louisville greeted the pair and guided them to
Nelson County, to a tract of land owned by the
Sisters of Loretto
The Sisters of Loretto or the Loretto Community is a Catholic religious institute that strives "to bring the healing Spirit of God into our world." Founded in the United States in 1812 and based in the rural community of Nerinx, Kentucky, the ...
that was called ''Gethsemani'' where the previous community of Trappists had lived. The two monks were able to contract a deal for the land.
On 26 October 1848, 44 monks of the Abbey of Melleray left France with their leader, Eutropius Proust. It was a timely departure as France was verging toward a revolution inspired by socialism and rising secularism had made the environment hostile toward the church. One of the monks died during the voyage, and the other 43 arrived on 11 December 1848 in
. They journeyed up the Mississippi River on the ''Martha Washington'', a steamboat, and arrived at Gethsemani on 21 December, celebrating Mass for Christmas a few days later.
[Kramer, 96–108]
Beginnings
![Farm fields (Abbey of Gethsemani)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e4/Farm_fields_%28Abbey_of_Gethsemani%29.jpg)
Life at Gethsemani at this time was exceedingly harsh. Shortly after their arrival, Proust came down with
pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...
and nearly died—recovering only after being administered the
Last Rites
The last rites, also known as the Commendation of the Dying, are the last prayers and ministrations given to an individual of Christian faith, when possible, shortly before death. They may be administered to those awaiting execution, mortall ...
. By 1849 the fledgling community had torn down the old cabins on the property and constructed a second
chapel
A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...
, and soon began planning for the c that place. So, in 1851, the grounds at Gethsemani were declared the "Proto-Abbey of the New World" and Proust became
Dom Dom or DOM may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Dom (given name), including fictional characters
* Dom (surname)
* Dom La Nena (born 1989), stage name of Brazilian-born cellist, singer and songwriter Dominique Pinto
* Dom people, an et ...
Eutropius Proust—first Abbot of Gethsemani.
With Proust having been installed as abbot the previous year, plans for construction of the three-storey monastery finally began in October 1852—to be designed by the architect William Keely. It was during these pre-Civil war years that the monastery was built, modeled after the Abbey of Melleray. It was made of brick walls with timber roof supports with a rectangular abbatial church (meaning a church belonging to an abbey) constructed as well, the interior of which was made of
lath and plaster
Lath and plaster is a building process used to finish mainly interior dividing walls and ceilings. It consists of narrow strips of wood ( laths) which are nailed horizontally across the wall studs or ceiling joists and then coated in plaster. The ...
in a
Neo-Gothic
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
style. The bricks were made on the work site, while the foundation was of limestone rock from Indiana. Later, windows were installed, and atop the church a large
steeple
In architecture, a steeple is a tall tower on a building, topped by a spire and often incorporating a belfry and other components. Steeples are very common on Christian churches and cathedrals and the use of the term generally connotes a religi ...
was mounted. Many local members of the community helped the monks in with construction, some of them were slaves. In exchange for the hard work, Proust promised the locals free schooling for their children. In 1859 Proust resigned as abbot and returned to the Abbey of Melleray in France. At this time Gethsemani had a total of 65 monks. Proust died in 1874 while serving as abbot of the
Abbey of Tre Fontane near Rome, Italy.
Civil War and later 19th century
![Garden entrance (Abbey of Gethsemani)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/Garden_entrance_%28Abbey_of_Gethsemani%29.jpg)
Benedict Berger was installed as the next abbot, just after the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
had commenced on April 19, 1861, though he had been leading the community since January of that year. Berger was known to have an astute business-sense about him and was diligent in ensuring his monks lived an austere existence—in fact, many locals viewed the monks as a strange and unhappy lot. He was equally remembered for his generosity and kindness to soldiers on both sides of the Civil War, accepting them in the abbey to provide nourishment, horses and/or
distilled spirits
Liquor (or a spirit) is an alcoholic drink produced by distillation of grains, fruits, vegetables, or sugar, that have already gone through alcoholic fermentation. Other terms for liquor include: spirit drink, distilled beverage or hard li ...
. Berger did sympathize with the
Union
Union commonly refers to:
* Trade union, an organization of workers
* Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets
Union may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment
Music
* Union (band), an American rock group
** ''Un ...
, however, and his monks enjoyed the protection of Union troops in the area. On May 1, 1864, the abbey opened their church in the public wing of their
basilica
In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building gave its name ...
to the general community, and France sent a priest by the name of Jerome Moyen to lead them.
On November 15, 1866, Gethsemani's abbatial church was
consecrated
Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...
by
Archbishop Purcell of the
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cincinnati
The Archdiocese of Cincinnati ( la, Archidiœcesis Cincinnatensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or archdiocese that covers the southwest region of the U.S. state of Ohio, including the greater Cincinnati and Dayton metropolitan a ...
, assisted by the bishops of Louisville and
Buffalo. Present at the consecration was
Bishop Spalding of
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
, who gave the
homily
A homily (from Greek ὁμιλία, ''homilía'') is a commentary that follows a reading of scripture, giving the "public explanation of a sacred doctrine" or text. The works of Origen and John Chrysostom (known as Paschal Homily) are considered ex ...
. That same year Gethsemani was given control over a nearby parish, and Dom Benedict also founded a religious order for women—the Sisters of the
Third Order Regular of St. Francis
The Third Order of Saint Francis is a third order in the Franciscan tradition of Christianity, founded by the medieval Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi.
The preaching of Francis and his disciples caused many married men and women to w ...
—who were assigned to teach at an all-girls school in
Mount Olivet, Kentucky
Mount Olivet is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of Robertson County, Kentucky, United States, located at the junction of U.S. Route 62 and Kentucky Route 165. The population was 299 at the 2010 United States census.
History
Long ...
. At this time, the abbey was not bringing in many new
postulant
A postulant (from la, postulare, to ask) was originally one who makes a request or demand; hence, a candidate. The use of the term is now generally restricted to those asking for admission into a Christian monastery or a religious order for the p ...
s, in part due to the strict leadership of Dom Benedict. In 1878 the abbey had roughly the same number of monks as when it was founded, and none of those present were American. As a result, Gethsemani leased some of its land to local farmers to avoid closure.
[Herbermann 788]
In 1884 the abbey suffered a devastating blow. Their
grain mill
A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that has been separated ...
—a major source of income and nourishment—was destroyed by fire. Despite this, Gethsemani managed a very large and productive farm by this time. In 1885 the community received its first lifelong American monk, a former
cowboy
A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the '' vaquer ...
from
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
. The number of monks at Gethsemani, however, had dropped to 34 by the end of Dom Benedict's tenure. In ailing health, Berger retired in 1889 and was confined to the abbey's infirmary until his death in August 1891.
Abbot Edward Chaix-Bourbon's resignation amidst scandal
Dom Edward Chaix-Bourbon was the next Abbot of Gethsemani, installed on May 9, 1890; his abbatial benediction took place in September. Dom Edward applied himself to caring for the all-boys school the abbey ran on the grounds, transforming it into
Gethsemani College (or Gethsemane college
). The college received numerous applications, mainly from Kentucky. Abbot Edward initiated the construction of new buildings and hired
Darnley Beaufort as principal of the boarding school. Beaufort claimed to be an aristocrat and an expert educator, but he was subsequently convicted of sexual abuse. The 1895 scandal remained with the monastery and its school many years.
Abbot Edward knew about Beaufort's offenses but did not intervene for years. After the scandal was made public, he submitted his resignation at the General Chapter, but it was rejected twice. Nonetheless, he remained in France. The abbey remained without an abbot for years. After a visitation in January 1898, Dom Edmond Obrecht from La Trappe was appointed the administrator and then elected abbot in 1898.
Dom Obrecht's collection of manuscripts
Obrecht, originally from Alsace, had been at the
Sorbonne
Sorbonne may refer to:
* Sorbonne (building), historic building in Paris, which housed the University of Paris and is now shared among multiple universities.
*the University of Paris (c. 1150 – 1970)
*one of its components or linked institution, ...
before becoming a monk. In 1875 he entered La Trappe, and later served as secretary to Procurators General François-Régis Martrin-Donos (1808-1880) and Stanislaus White (1838-1911), working in Rome until 1892. From 1893 to 1897 he collected donations in Europe and in the United States for the construction of
Tre Fontane Abbey
Tre Fontane Abbey ( en, Three Fountains Abbey; la, Abbatia trium fontium ad Aquas Salvias), or the Abbey of Saints Vincent and Anastasius, is a Roman Catholic abbey in Rome, held by monks of the Cistercian Order of the Strict Observance, better k ...
in Rome. He collected medieval manuscripts (and documents from the time of the French Revolution), kept today at
Western Michigan University
Western Michigan University (Western Michigan, Western or WMU) is a public research university in Kalamazoo, Michigan. It was initially established as Western State Normal School in 1903 by Governor Aaron T. Bliss for the training of teachers ...
.
Trappists as writers
Two Gethsamni monks of the 20th century are well known for their writing: Thomas Merton and
Raymond Flanagan. Merton wrote on the spirituality of the Cistercians, while Flanagan's work was aimed at a more popular audience. Both published widely and had their books translated into several languages.
Present
The current abbot is Elias Dietz.
Silence is still encouraged. The 40-odd monks who make up the community mingle with visitors and leave the monastery grounds for medical appointments and business concerning the abbey. The monastery uses hired help for some of their maintenance, construction tasks and to staff their mail-order phone center.
Mass
Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...
is held every weekday at 6:15 a.m., and at 10:30 a.m. on Sundays in the main
chapel
A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...
. There are also
vespers
Vespers is a service of evening prayer, one of the canonical hours in Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Catholic Church, Catholic (both Latin liturgical rites, Latin and Eastern Catholic Churches, Eastern), Lutheranism, Lutheran, and Anglican ...
and other services interspersed throughout most days.
[Strecker 64–66]
William Least Heat-Moon
William Least Heat-Moon (born William Lewis Trogdon August 27, 1939) is an American travel writer and historian of English, Irish, and Osage ancestry. He is the author of several books which chronicle unusual journeys through the United States, ...
wrote about his 1978 visit to the monastery in his book ''
Blue Highways
''Blue Highways'' is an autobiographical travel book, published in 1982, by William Least Heat-Moon, born William Trogdon.
Summary
In 1978, after separating from his wife and losing his job as a teacher, Heat-Moon, 38 at the time, took an extende ...
''.
List of abbots
*Eutropius Proust (1848–1859)
*Benedict Berger (1861–1889)
*Edward Chaix-Bourbon (1890–1896)
*Benedict Dupont (1896–1898)
*Edmond Obrecht (1898–1935)
*Frederic Dunne (1935–1948)
*James Fox (1948–1968)
*Flavian Burns (1968–1973)
*Timothy Kelly (1973–2000)
*Damien Thompson (2000–2008)
*Elias Dietz (2008–present)
Life at the abbey
Monastic admission
Admission into the abbey is a difficult process for those interested in entering
monastic life
Christian monasticism is the devotional practice of Christians who live ascetic and typically cloistered lives that are dedicated to Christian worship. It began to develop early in the history of the Christian Church, modeled upon scriptural ex ...
. The monastery requires applicants to make several visits to Gethsemani and encourages them to look into other communities as well. Finally, before being admitted they must pass
psychological testing
Psychological testing is the administration of psychological tests. Psychological tests are administered by trained evaluators. A person's responses are evaluated according to carefully prescribed guidelines. Scores are thought to reflect individ ...
. Once accepted, an individual spends six months as a
postulant
A postulant (from la, postulare, to ask) was originally one who makes a request or demand; hence, a candidate. The use of the term is now generally restricted to those asking for admission into a Christian monastery or a religious order for the p ...
and is then given his white robe. He then spends two years as a
novice monk. If the monk is then found to be competent, he is approved by a council of "fully professed" monks and spends an additional three years as a "junior professed" monk. After these three years the monk can request to take his final,
solemn vows
A solemn vow is a certain vow ("a deliberate and free promise made to God about a possible and better good") taken by an individual during or after novitiate in a Catholic religious institute. It is solemn insofar as the Church recognizes it a ...
, and become a "fully professed" monk.
Gethsemani Farms
Gethsemani once sustained itself solely through donations, by growing its own foods and selling
timber
Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, wi ...
. Today, in keeping with the observance of the Rule of St. Benedict, the monks of Gethsemani raise money for the monastery by producing
fruitcake
Fruitcake (or fruit cake or fruit bread) is a cake made with candied or dried fruit, nuts, and spices, and optionally soaked in spirits. In the United Kingdom, certain rich versions may be iced and decorated.
Fruitcakes are typically served ...
and
fudge
Fudge is a type of confection that is made by mixing sugar, butter and milk, heating it to the soft-ball stage at , and then beating the mixture while it cools so that it acquires a smooth, creamy consistency. In texture, this crystalline cand ...
; they also collect
royalties
A royalty payment is a payment made by one party to another that owns a particular asset, for the right to ongoing use of that asset. Royalties are typically agreed upon as a percentage of gross or net revenues derived from the use of an asset o ...
received from sales of
Thomas Merton
Thomas Merton (January 31, 1915 – December 10, 1968) was an American Trappist monk, writer, theologian, mystic, poet, social activist and scholar of comparative religion. On May 26, 1949, he was ordained to the Catholic priesthood and giv ...
's books. The fruitcake is made with
Kentucky
Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...
bourbon Bourbon may refer to:
Food and drink
* Bourbon whiskey, an American whiskey made using a corn-based mash
* Bourbon barrel aged beer, a type of beer aged in bourbon barrels
* Bourbon biscuit, a chocolate sandwich biscuit
* A beer produced by Bras ...
as well as cherries, pineapples, raisins, dates and nuts. The months of November and December are particularly busy for Gethsemani Farms, with the monks receiving and filling large orders for the holiday season.
Retreats
![Guest quarters at the Abbey of Gethsemani](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ed/Guest_quarters_at_the_Abbey_of_Gethsemani.jpg)
The tradition of Gethsemani accepting guests is in keeping with ancient Benedictine culture. Guests have ample opportunity to roam the abbey grounds. The trails, woodlands and expansive fields are suitable for quiet walks and reflection. Gethsemani has a retreat house with 30 rooms complete with private baths and
air conditioning
Air conditioning, often abbreviated as A/C or AC, is the process of removing heat from an enclosed space to achieve a more comfortable interior environment (sometimes referred to as 'comfort cooling') and in some cases also strictly controlling ...
. Both men and women are welcome. Male visitors are discouraged, and female visitors are barred, from entering the
enclosure
Enclosure or Inclosure is a term, used in English landownership, that refers to the appropriation of "waste" or " common land" enclosing it and by doing so depriving commoners of their rights of access and privilege. Agreements to enclose land ...
. Speaking is allowed only in designated areas.
[Johnson 51–52]
Cemetery
![Thomas Merton (Abbey of Gethsemani Gravesite)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/37/Thomas_Merton_%28Abbey_of_Gethsemani_Gravesite%29.jpg)
Like many other monastic graveyards, the cemetery at Gethsemani is marked by uniform crosses. It rests on a buttressed embankment and overlooks the valley and woodlands below. The monks are buried in the traditional Trappist manner, in their monastic habit and without a
casket
A casket jewelry box is a container that is usually smaller than a chest, and in the past were typically decorated. Whereas cremation jewelry is a small container, usually in the shape of a pendant or bracelet, to hold a small amount of ashes.
...
. Thomas Merton's grave is located here and it is often arrayed with various mementos left by visitors. His grave marker reads, in the same basic style as all the others there: "Fr. Louis Merton, Died Dec. 10, 1968."
Monastic interreligious dialogue
Gethsemani Encounter I
For the week of July 22–27, 1996, The Abbey of Gethsemani played host to its first groundbreaking
dialogue
Dialogue (sometimes spelled dialog in American English) is a written or spoken conversational exchange between two or more people, and a literary and theatrical form that depicts such an exchange. As a philosophical or didactic device, it is c ...
between
monastic
Monasticism (from Ancient Greek , , from , , 'alone'), also referred to as monachism, or monkhood, is a religion, religious way of life in which one renounces world (theology), worldly pursuits to devote oneself fully to spiritual work. Monastic ...
s of various Catholic and
Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
orders. Among the issues discussed were topics on
prayer
Prayer is an invocation or act that seeks to activate a rapport with an object of worship through deliberate communication. In the narrow sense, the term refers to an act of supplication or intercession directed towards a deity or a deified a ...
,
meditation
Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique – such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally cal ...
, work ethics, and monastic roles. According to the
14th Dalai Lama
The 14th Dalai Lama (spiritual name Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso, known as Tenzin Gyatso (Tibetan: བསྟན་འཛིན་རྒྱ་མཚོ་, Wylie: ''bsTan-'dzin rgya-mtsho''); né Lhamo Thondup), known as ...
—who was present at the encounter—these discussions were important in paving the way for future dialogues between the two religions. The idea to establish such a connection between them first came about at the
Parliament of the World's Religions
There have been several meetings referred to as a Parliament of the World's Religions, the first being the World's Parliament of Religions of 1893, which was an attempt to create a global dialogue of faiths. The event was celebrated by another c ...
in 1993, when Julian von Duerbeck and
Wayne Teasdale
Wayne Robert Teasdale (16 January 1945 – 20 October 2004) was a Catholic monk, author and teacher from Connecticut, best known as an energetic proponent of mutual understanding between the world's religions, for an interfaith dialogue which he te ...
asked the Monastic Interreligious Dialogue (MID) to host an
interfaith
Interfaith dialogue refers to cooperative, constructive, and positive interaction between people of different religious traditions (i.e. "faiths") and/or spiritual or humanistic beliefs, at both the individual and institutional levels. It is ...
dialogue between Buddhists and Catholics; MID accepted, and that morning they held a meeting at the Parliament.
[Mitchell xvii]
Gethsemani Encounter II
The second Gethsemani Encounter was held at the abbey during the week of April 13 to April 18, 2002.
See also
Trappist abbeys in the U.S.
*
Abbey of New Clairvaux
*
Abbey of the Genesee
The Abbey of the Genesee is a community of more than two dozen contemplative monks located near Piffard in the town of York, New York. They are a member of the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance, commonly known as the Trappists. They we ...
*
Assumption Abbey
*
Holy Cross Abbey, Virginia
Holy Cross Abbey is a monastery of the Catholic Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance (OCSO), popularly known as the Trappists. The monastery is located near Berryville in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, United States.
History
The o ...
*
Mepkin Abbey
Mepkin Abbey is a Trappist monastery in Berkeley County, South Carolina. The abbey is located near Moncks Corner, at the junction of the two forks of the Cooper River northwest of Charleston, and is located in the Diocese of Charleston.
History ...
*
Monastery of the Holy Spirit
The Monastery of the Holy Spirit, officially the Monastery of Our Lady of the Holy Spirit, is a Trappist monastery located near Conyers, Georgia in the United States.
As of 2022 the monastery is a community of twenty-eight monks spanning severa ...
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New Melleray Abbey
New Melleray Abbey is a Trappist monastery located near Dubuque, Iowa. The abbey is located about 15 miles southwest of Dubuque and is in the Archdiocese of Dubuque. Currently the Abbey is home to about 16 monks. Several of the monks work in the ...
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Our Lady of the Mississippi Abbey
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St. Benedict's Monastery
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St. Joseph's Abbey
Related topics
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Abbey of Our Lady of the Holy Trinity
The Abbey of Our Lady of the Holy Trinity was a Trappist Cistercian monastery in Huntsville, Utah, United States. They were Catholic contemplative monks of an enclosed religious order known as the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance (OC ...
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Cîteaux Abbey
Cîteaux Abbey (french: Abbaye de Cîteaux, links=no ) is a Catholic abbey located in Saint-Nicolas-lès-Cîteaux, south of Dijon, France. It is notable for being the original house of the Cistercian order. Today, it belongs to the Trappists ...
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Cistercians
The Cistercians, () officially the Order of Cistercians ( la, (Sacer) Ordo Cisterciensis, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint ...
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Gethsemani
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List of basilicas
This is a complete list of basilicas of the Catholic Church. A Basilicas in the Catholic Church, basilica is a church with certain privileges conferred on it by the Pope.
Not all churches with "basilica" in their title actually have the ecclesia ...
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Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Louisville
The Archdiocese of Louisville is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church that consists of twenty-four counties in the central American state of Kentucky, covering . As of 2018, the archdiocese contains appr ...
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Roman Catholicism in the United States
With 23 percent of the United States' population , the Catholic Church is the country's second largest religious grouping, after Protestantism, and the country's largest single church or Christian denomination where Protestantism is divided i ...
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Trappists
The Trappists, officially known as the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance ( la, Ordo Cisterciensis Strictioris Observantiae, abbreviated as OCSO) and originally named the Order of Reformed Cistercians of Our Lady of La Trappe, are a ...
References
* Aprile, Dianne. ''The Abbey of Gethsemani: Place of Peace and Paradox''. Winnipeg, Manitoba: Trout Lily Press, 1998. .
* Hales, Mick. ''Monastic Gardens''. New York: Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 2000. .
* Herbermann, Charles George, et al.. ''The Catholic Encyclopedia''. Robert Appleton Co., 1913.
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* Mitchell, Donald William; Wiseman, James A.. ''The Gethsemani Encounter''. Continuum International Publishing Group, 1999. .
* Olsen, Brad. ''Sacred Places North America: 108 Destinations''. CCC Publishing, 2003. .
Further reading
* Merton, Thomas. ''
The Seven Storey Mountain
''The Seven Storey Mountain'' is the 1948 autobiography of Thomas Merton, an American Trappist monk and priest who was a noted author in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. Merton finished the book in 1946 at the age of 31, five years after entering Get ...
''. Harvest Books, 1948.
* Merton, Thomas. ''The Waters of Siloe''. Harvest Books, 1949. .
* Flanagan, M. Raymond. ''Burnt Out Incense. (The saga of Citeaux, American epoch.''
history of the Trappist monastery at Gethsemani, Kentucky Benziger Brothers, 1964.
External links
Official websiteGethsemani FarmsLay Cistercians of Gethsemani AbbeyMonastic Interreligious Dialogue (MID)
Notes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gethsemani
19th-century Christian monasteries
Religious organizations established in 1848
Basilica churches in Kentucky
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Louisville
Churches in Nelson County, Kentucky
1848 establishments in Kentucky
Trappist monasteries in the United States
19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United States