The Monastery of the Holy Spirit, officially the Monastery of Our Lady of the Holy Spirit, is a

Trappist 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 ...

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 ...

located near

Conyers Conyers is an Atlanta suburb, the county seat of and only city in Rockdale County, Georgia, Rockdale County, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States. The city is 24 miles (38.6 km) east of Atlanta, downtown Atlanta and is a part of t ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. As of 2022 the monastery is a community of twenty-eight monks spanning several generations, who live, work and pray at the

abbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns. The conce ...

. They were founded from the

Abbey of Our Lady of Gethsemani The Abbey of Our Lady of Gethsemani is a Catholic monastery in the United States near Bardstown, Kentucky, in Nelson County. The abbey is part of the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance (''Ordo Cisterciensis Strictioris Observantiae''), ...

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 ...

in the spring of 1944. The monks in Georgia are now self-sustaining, running a multitude of businesses on site. The monastery and grounds are a part of the

Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area Arabia Mountain, a part of Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area, is the northern of two peaks in the Davidson-Arabia Mountain Nature Preserve, in DeKalb County, Georgia, United States. A low saddle separates it from Bradley Mountain, several ...

and also serves as the southernmost point on the Arabia Mountain Path.

History

Monastery of the Holy Spirit was founded on March 21, 1944, by twenty monks from the

Abbey of Gethsemani The Abbey of Our Lady of Gethsemani is a Catholic monastery in the United States near Bardstown, Kentucky, in Nelson County. The abbey is part of the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance (''Ordo Cisterciensis Strictioris Observantiae''), ...

. On of land donated by the

Archdiocese of Atlanta In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associat ...

and silent film star Colleen Moore, these first monks lived in a barn while they built (by themselves) what would become known as the "pine board" monastery. They then lived in this monastery from December 1944 -1959 while they hand built the present Monastery, a concrete structure complete with a retreat house and cloister. In 2005, the pine board monastery which housed their carpentry and stained glass businesses was destroyed in a fire.http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-1547 New Georgia Encyclopedia Some previous abbots have been Augustine Moore, Armand Veilleux, Bernard Johnson, Basil Pennington, and Francis Michael Stiteler. The present abbot is Augustine Myslinski who received the abbatial blessing on August 15, 2016, the solemnity of the

Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary The Assumption of Mary is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Pope Pius XII defined it in 1950 in his apostolic constitution ''Munificentissimus Deus'' as follows: We proclaim and define it to be a dogma revealed by Go ...

Prayer, confession and spiritual direction

The main work of the monks at the monastery is prayer. The monks begin their day of prayer at 4 A.M. with

vigils In Christian liturgy, a vigil is, in origin, a religious service held during the night leading to a Sunday or other feastday. The Latin term ''vigilia'', from which the word is derived meant a watch night, not necessarily in a military context, a ...

and a half hour of contemplation. They break at about 5:30 and return at 7 A.M. for

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 ...

. Throughout their day of work in their many businesses and chores, the monks break for prayer at midmorning, midday (12:15), evening (vespers at 5:20) and compline (night prayer at 7:30). Grand silence for both monks and guests is required after 8 P.M. Retreat house guests are allowed and encouraged to pray with the monks in the Church. At least half of the monks at Holy Spirit Monastery are priests who rotate in administering the Sacrament of Penance (Confession) at the retreat house. Monks are also available for

spiritual direction Spiritual direction is the practice of being with people as they attempt to deepen their relationship with the divine, or to learn and grow in their personal spirituality. The person seeking direction shares stories of their encounters of the div ...

and welcome people of all faiths, including those of no faith.

Retreats

Retreat House refectory at Holy Spirit Monastery

The monks at Holy Spirit operate a self-sustaining retreat for people who wish to seek a religious retreat. On the premises and adjoining the church is their dormitory style retreat house where separate floors for men and women accommodate individual and groups of guests for retreats scheduled almost year-round. Food is served to the guests, and classes and retreats are offered on a variety of relgious topics.

Lay associates

The Lay Associate movement began with a small group of people associated with Monastery of the Holy Spirit and led by Fr. Anthony Delisi, former abbott and current prior. These are groups of lay people who form a prayerful community that forms its members in

Cistercian 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 ...

spiritualty. These groups make annual retreats to the Monastery. Holy Spirit is now motherhouse to five different groups of Lay Cistercians. This movement has grown in popularity over the years and now there are Lay Cistercians all over the world who are affiliated with monasteries near their groups.http://www.trappist.net/ Holy Spirit Monastery web site

Monastery businesses

Following the precept of self-sustainment in the

Rule of St. 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 monks of Holy Spirit manufacture and sell

bonsai Bonsai ( ja, 盆栽, , tray planting, ) is the Japanese art of growing and training miniature trees in pots, developed from the traditional Chinese art form of ''penjing''. Unlike ''penjing'', which utilizes traditional techniques to produce ...

supplies either online or at their monastery bonsai garden store. They also operate a green cemetery located in a secluded section of the vast monastery property. Stained glass windows and doors are created onsite and sold online and the monastery also operates a fruitcake and fudge business. Their fruitcakes are sold both through their own religious store and also through Honey Baked Ham stores.

Visitor Center

New visitor center

The monks began construction in January 2010 on a new phase of their business featuring a public gathering place/Visitor Center. The barn, where the monks first lived when they began the monastery, was transformed into a museum. The Visitor Center was officially opened to the public in May 2011.

Additional images

File:Abbey of the Monastery of the Holy Spirit, Conyers, GA.png , Interior view of the Church File:Holy Spirit Monastery at daybreak.jpg , Holy Spirit church facade at daybreak File:Holy Spirit Monastery Church interior cropped and orientated.jpg , Holy Spirit Monastery monks at prayer in the main Church File:Interior of Monastery of the Holy Spirit at Conyers, Georgia.jpg , The interior of the Church at the Monastery of the Holy Spirit File:Holy Spirit Monastery, monks graveyard behind the Church.jpg , Monks graveyard behind the Church File:Holy Spirit Monastery, front lawn.jpg , Front Lawn File:Holy Spirit Monastery road to the welcome center.jpg , Road to Monastery Welcome Center File:Welcome Center.jpg , Monastery Welcome Center and Museum offers tours, history and videos. File:Gardens near retreat house of Holy Spirit Monastery.jpg, Retreat House gardens File:Cloister Garden at Holy Spirit Monastery.jpg, Statue of Jesus in the Cloister garden File:Chapter Room.jpg, The Chapter Room at Holy Spirit Monastery. Usually the monks meet together in this room for daily religious instruction and meditation but this photo shows a ceremony with the abbot and guests. File:Abbot Francis Michael and Prior Anthony Delisi.jpg, Abbot Francis Michael and Prior Anthony Delisi (on the left) File:Cloister gardens and walkway.jpg , A view of the Church from the cloister garden File:The Cloister Garden.jpg, Another view of the cloister garden File:Jesus statue in the cloister garden and walkway.jpg, The statue of Jesus in the cloister garden viewed from the walkway near the Church File:Monastery gift shop, exterior view.jpg, Exterior view of monastery gift shop File:Gift shop interior.jpg, Interior view of monastery gift shop File:Interior view of monastery gift shop.jpg , Interior view of monastery gift shop; books, CDs and video section File:Monastery of the Holy Spirit.jpg, Front of the Church File:Church at Monastery of the Holy Spirit.jpg, Side view of the Church File:Lake at Monastery of the Holy Spirits.jpg, Lake at Monastery of the Holy Spirit File:Rockdale River Trail Bridge.jpg, Rockdale River Trail Bridge near Monastery of the Holy Spirit

References

''Portraits of Grace: Images and Words from the Monastery of the Holy Spirit''
by James Stephen Behrens, OCSO

External links

Holy Spirit Monastery's website (trappist.net)Holy Spirit Monastery online Garden CenterHoly Spirit Monastery GiftsPATH Trail Map at Monastery of the Holy Spirit
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holy Spirit, Abbey Of The Christian organizations established in 1944 Trappist monasteries in the United States Catholic Church in Georgia (U.S. state) Buildings and structures in Rockdale County, Georgia Tourist attractions in Rockdale County, Georgia