Mount Saint Mary’s Abbey is a

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 ...

community of some fifty Trappistine

nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 599. The term is o ...

s in Wrentham,

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. The more complete, formal name of the Order is the

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 ...

of the Strict Observance, whose founding at Cîteaux,

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

dates back to 1098. This community follows the reforms of the Cistercian Order as established by the 17th-century

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 ...

Armand de Rancé at the Abbey of

La Grande Trappe La Trappe Abbey, also known as La Grande Trappe, is a monastery in Soligny-la-Trappe, Orne, France. It is known for being the house of origin of the Trappists, to whom it gave its name. History The site of the famous La Trappe Abbey was for cen ...

. This community was founded in 1949 by nuns of an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

monastery, St. Mary’s Abbey, located in Glencairn,

County Waterford County Waterford ( ga, Contae Phort Láirge) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is part of the South-East Region, Ireland, South-East Region. It is named ...

. It was the first community of Cistercians nuns in the United States. The foundation was so successful that, by the mid-1950s, all of the Irish nuns had been recalled to their original community. Following the standard need of self-support, this community developed as their main means of income a line of candy for which they are noted. Recently the abbey had some

wind turbines A wind turbine is a device that converts the kinetic energy of wind into electrical energy. Hundreds of thousands of large turbines, in installations known as wind farms, now generate over 650 gigawatts of power, with 60 GW added each year. ...

built, as part of their effort to help in their fuel needs and at being better stewards of the

environment Environment most often refers to: __NOTOC__ * Natural environment, all living and non-living things occurring naturally * Biophysical environment, the physical and biological factors along with their chemical interactions that affect an organism or ...

. The abbey partnered with Kearsarge Energy of Watertown to develop and lease 2 solar panel farms since 2013. The first produces 3.6 megawatts of direct current, the second produces 4.8 megawatts of direct current, covering 40 acres, of which the electricity is sold to neighboring Franklin, MA to provide 80% of the town's power. Combined with the wind turbines and the geothermal system, it is the first property in the state to have 3 renewable energy sources. With the steady growth of the community, new communities of the Order were founded by this abbey in

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

(

Our Lady of the Mississippi Abbey The Abbey of Our Lady of the Mississippi is located near Dubuque, Iowa. The nuns there are members of the branch of the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance, commonly referred to as Trappistines. They are a part of the Catholic Church in ...

, 1964),

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

( Santa Rita Abbey, 1972) and

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

( Our Lady of the Angels Monastery, 1987).

References

External links

* https://web.archive.org/web/20100325232141/http://abbey.msmabbey.org/ Official website {{Authority control Buildings and structures in Norfolk County, Massachusetts Christian organizations established in 1949 Trappistine monasteries in the United States 20th-century Christian monasteries 1949 establishments in Massachusetts Wrentham, Massachusetts History of women in Massachusetts