Holy Cross Monastery is located on

US 9W U.S. Route 9W (US 9W) is a north–south United States Numbered Highway in the states of New Jersey and New York. It begins in Fort Lee, New Jersey, as Fletcher Avenue crosses the US 1/9, US 46, and Interstate 95 (I- ...

West Park, New York West Park is a Hamlet (New York), hamlet on the west side of the Hudson River in the Town of Esopus, New York, Esopus, Ulster County, New York, United States. During the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the area became attractive to the ...

, United States. It is the mother house of the

Order of the Holy Cross The Order of the Holy Cross is an international Anglican monastic order that follows the Rule of St. Benedict. History The order was founded in 1884 by the Rev. James Huntington, an Episcopal priest, in New York City. The order moved to Ma ...

, an

Anglican religious order Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

inspired by the

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

tradition. The building, designed in a combination of

Mission Mission (from Latin 'the act of sending out'), Missions or The Mission may refer to: Geography Australia *Mission River (Queensland) Canada *Mission, British Columbia, a district municipality * Mission, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood * ...

Spanish Revival The Spanish Colonial Revival architecture (), often known simply as Spanish Revival, is a term used to encompass a number of Revivalism (architecture), revivalist architectural styles based in both Spanish colonial architecture and Spanish archi ...

and

Tudorbethan Tudor Revival architecture, also known as mock Tudor in the UK, first manifested in domestic architecture in the United Kingdom in the latter half of the 19th century. Based on revival of aspects that were perceived as Tudor architecture, in rea ...

styles by architects

Ralph Adams Cram Ralph Adams Cram (December 16, 1863 – September 22, 1942) was a prolific and influential American architect of collegiate and ecclesiastical buildings, often in the Gothic Revival style. Cram & Ferguson and Cram, Goodhue & Ferguson are partn ...

and

Henry Vaughan Henry Vaughan (17 April 1621 – 23 April 1695) was a Welsh metaphysical poet, author and translator writing in English, and a medical physician. His religious poetry appeared in ''Silex Scintillans'' in 1650, with a second part in 1655.''Oxfo ...

, both known for their religious buildings, began construction in 1902 and was dedicated two years later. It sits on a site overlooking the

Hudson River The Hudson River, historically the North River, is a river that flows from north to south largely through eastern New York (state), New York state. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains at Henderson Lake (New York), Henderson Lake in the ...

and the

Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site is a historic house museum in Hyde Park, New York, United States. Designated a National Historic Landmark in 1940, it is owned and operated by the National Park Service. The property, historically known ...

, which is just across from it in Hyde Park. The monastery dominates the view westward from the mansion grounds. In addition to the motherhouse, facilities include two guesthouses, the Monastic Church of St. Augustine, and the Monastic Enclosure. It is available for individual and group

retreats The meaning of a spiritual retreat can be different for different religious communities. Spiritual retreats are an integral part of many Buddhist, Christian and Sufi communities. There are many different types of spiritual retreats such as welln ...

Madeleine L'Engle Madeleine L'Engle (; November 29, 1918 – September 6, 2007) was an American writer of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and young adult fiction, including ''A Wrinkle in Time'' and its sequels: '' A Wind in the Door'', '' A Swiftly Tilting Planet'' ...

, author of ''

A Wrinkle in Time ''A Wrinkle in Time'' is a young adult science fantasy novel written by American author Madeleine L'Engle. First published in 1962, the book won the Newbery Medal, the Sequoyah Book Award and the Lewis Carroll Shelf Award, and was runner-u ...

'', ran a retreat in conjunction with a writers' workshop every January for much of her life.. The

monk A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...

s also sell

incense Incense is an aromatic biotic material that releases fragrant smoke when burnt. The term is used for either the material or the aroma. Incense is used for aesthetic reasons, religious worship, aromatherapy, meditation, and ceremonial reasons. It ...

perfume Perfume (, ) is a mixture of fragrance, fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), Fixative (perfumery), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agre ...

and operate the Monk's Cell, a book and gift shop on the property. In keeping with the order's devotion to progressive social causes, they kept a peace

vigil A vigil, from the Latin meaning 'wakefulness' ( Greek: , or ), is a period of purposeful sleeplessness, an occasion for devotional watching, or an observance. The Italian word has become generalized in this sense and means 'eve' (as in "on t ...

on Saturdays during the

Iraq War The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which ...

. It was the first house established in the order by its founder, The Rev. James Otis Sargent Huntington. It was created 20 years after he founded The Order of the Holy Cross, after the order used interim homes in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

and

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

. He is buried in the church on the grounds. Today it serves as the order's house of formation, where new initiates begin their training. It was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1995.

References

External links

Monastery website
* {{Authority control Anglican monasteries in the United States Religious buildings and structures in Ulster County, New York National Register of Historic Places in Ulster County, New York Religious buildings and structures completed in 1904 U.S. Route 9W Hudson River Properties of religious function on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state) Ralph Adams Cram buildings