Christmas 2013

We'll start this with a quick Christmas Card... I hope my readers have a Merry Christmas, and an incredibly blessed New Year for 2014.

I'll tell the story of this year's visit in just a bit, but first I have to answer the obvious question my youth group will ask - "why on earth would you visit a monastery for Christmas, George?"

I started going to Holy Cross several years ago for an individual retreat.  I wanted to discern some things going on in my life and a few of the men in our church's Men's Group had recommended the place based on a retreat they did in the past.  That lead to going up for other programs for a variety of reasons, and one year during a particularly tough Christmas, I stumbled up there and discovered an incredibly rich Christmas experience that is truly "Christ centered".

I've been coming back every year since.

So... on to this year's story.

Vicky (my fiancee) had to work on the 23rd, so we rushed up afterwards and pulled into the lower parking lot with 2 minutes to spare until Compline.  With our hearts racing, we tried our best to settle down and enjoy the service.  (I normally like to arrive a day or two early and decompress, but we used lots of vacation time during her father's recent visit and sometimes you just gotta go with the flow.)  After Compline, we unpacked the car and I drove up to the upper lot and walked back down.  As I was walking in the darkness (it gets really dark up there), I noticed some strange lights on the river, so when I got to our room, I pushed the camera out the window, steadied it on the sill, and took a 20 sec. exposure.  This was a complete act of trust as you couldn't see anything.  What was a black screen with a couple of pinpricks of light on the camera yielded this after some extensive post-processing.

I share that "act of trust" because this was my first visit to the monastery that was as devoid of electronics as possible... no computer... no iPad... no charger cable for the phone.  I wanted to eliminate the possibility that I'd spend all my brief time up there hunched over a computer, blogging.  (So I'm writing this now that I'm safely back in Keyport.)

So since we were in "the great silence" I put the camera away and we each got lost in our reading.

(I'm lying... Vicky did not share my desire to go without electronic diversions.  She was on a huge "Desperate Housewives" bender and couldn't leave her iPad in the car.  She did, however, give it up after the first night.)


Christmas Eve morning.

From wake-up until early afternoon, Christmas Eve is just like any other day at the monastery, except they have this gorgeous advent wreath in the chapel.

I caught up with Br. Jose.  (I'll always have a special place in my heart for him because we attended the "come and see" program together.)  He excitedly told me of a great photo opportunity and let me peek into the ambulatory (fancy monastic term for "restricted walkway behind the chapel") where they were staging the poinsettias before decorating the chapel later in the day.

During the morning, Vicky fell in love with the new guesthouse library, and had a great conversation with Andrew and Ellen from the Princeton area who share a love of Chinese tea and sailing.

Christmas Eve afternoon - Decking the Halls

After lunch (this day, dinner was served as the evening meal), we started decking the halls... mostly Pilgrim Hall (the main gathering room).  This is a very pleasant Christmas decorating experience.  I noted at one point that one thing that seems to be missing was the swearing that usually happens while decorating for Christmas.  One of the visiting nuns (and a guest or two) offered to swear at me if it would help my Christmas experience, but I declined.  I'll let the photos tell the story, but you can see there is a wide variety of all types of people who come here for the holiday.

We did have to talk Br. Ron down from the ladder... we didn't doubt his ability to juggle an oxygen tank and the ornaments... we just couldn't find an extra length of hose so he could lean over to the tree.

This photo was just to prove I did work (a little) rather than just taking photos...

(I never did figure out what all the origami was for... I thought it was a Christmas decoration, but it disappeared to make room for the later festivities.)

This year the brothers had enough help for decorating the chapel, so after we finished in Pilgrim Hall, we had some time to relax.  I used it to look around and capture a few more images.  The tree is in a little cloister area between the guesthouse and the chapel.  The soft lighting and pinkish sky seemed to bring out the textures.

Everyone was enjoying the decorations...


Christmas Eve - Vespers

I wasn't able to photograph during Vespers, where we have a nice procession to the creche (too much to juggle walking, holding a candle, and taking a photo).  But I did get photos of the Virgin Mary statue (relocated back to her original spot), and the creche.  You can click down to the my first Christmas here, to read about the history of this hand-made creche - the top of the star is about eyeball height.

Christmas Eve - Our First Feast & Meditation by Br. James

After Vespers, we gathered in the refectory (fancy monastic term for "dining hall") where we had a traditional feast on turkey, stuffing, cranberries, fresh asparagus and salad.

Following dinner, Br. James lead a meditation on "Shepherds, Motown, and DuPont Circle".  This was a touching retelling of a couple of key stories in his personal faith history.  I won't go into too much detail since there is no way I could do justice to his telling.  But he told how over the years he connected his catholic Sunday school teachings with Jimmy Ruffin's "What Becomes of the Broken Hearted" and then connected that to an experience he had while working in DC.

The meditation had the whole place (and especially Vicky) buzzing about shepherds and angels - even while waiting for the music to start before the Midnight Mass.  This is one of the biggest blessings about visiting the monastery.  The brothers come from such diverse backgrounds that you never know what you're gonna hear, but I guarantee it will be good.


Christmas Eve - Midnight Mass

The chapel was decked out in all the Christmas finery as we entered to wait for the midnight mass.  A lot of local folks come to join us for the Christmas Eve services, so we were advised to get there early.  Even an hour ahead of time, it was pretty full when I got there.

At 10:30, Br. Scott lead a vocal trio consisting of him, Br. Charles (a novice) and - I forget his name - a gentleman who is visiting the monastery for 2 weeks to discern if he wants to join.

Brother James was kind enough to give me permission to try and capture some of the grandeur of the Christmas processional.  I didn't do it justice since I wanted to stay somewhat discrete (OK, as discrete as you can be with a big SLR camera).  Br. Bernard was leading the procession with the (I'm sure there's a fancy monastic term for this) swinging incense thingy, and the robes on the celebrants were incredible.. what appears yellow in the photo is really like a bright gold thread.

Christmas Eve Day - Christmas Merriment

After the mass ends at midnight, we head over to Pilgrim Hall for "Christmas Merriment" (a fancy monastic term for "lots of great food and eggnog").

Vicky was talking all evening about Br. James' meditation and wanted her photo taken with him.  We had Br. Ron try and take a photo of the two of us by the tree, but I couldn't get it to come out right and the photo editor for this blog didn't give approval.


Christmas Day

Since the merriment part usually ends after 1:00 AM, the brothers wisely skip the normal time for matins. We had breakfast at 8:30.  This year we didn't have a feast breakfast this year - I'll admit I missed the thick-cut applewood smoked bacon from last year - but the normal monastery breakfast.  There was no silence this morning... everyone was talking freely.

We had time to leisurely exchange some simple gifts - Vicky received a pair of earrings and I got another volume of my St. John's Bible (The Historical Books), and then pack up, make the beds (saying a prayer for the next occupant), and get ready for Matins at 11:00.

After matins, we visited in Pilgrim Hall for a bit, then we went into the refectory for our final feast.  I won't begin to try and name it all.  The monastery has a new chef and he really worked wonders - not only today, but throughout the weekend.  Thunderous applause was received by all the kitchen and guesthouse staff.

When we get to Laurie's special desert - I forget the exact name but I think it has "sticky" and "toffee" in the name - I know it's the end of another Christmas.  (Thanks, Kate, for being the hand model.)

So, I hope you enjoyed sharing our monastery Christmas with us.  Again, I hope you have a Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year!

Getting ready to head back for Christmas

The tree in our condo is up, and the crèche is out... soon we'll be lighting the 4th candle...

I have most of the shopping done for nieces and nephews...

All the Christmas Cards are filled out...

I've eaten more cookies than I probably should have...

I need to shop for Vicky (can't forget that)...

And of course we MUST watch "It's a Wonderful Life"...

Then we can make our pilgrimage... and greet the Christ child while spending a couple days contemplating His work in this world. We made the reservations... we're heading back to Holy Cross for Christmas Eve & Christmas Day again this year. 

Visiting with our Youth Group

Tomorrow's lesson in our Youth Group is about religious orders and living a life devoted to prayer.  I knew that this close to tax time, I'd be feeling a bit lazy and so I decided to take my older kids up to the monastery, then they could teach the lesson.  (OK, perhaps I wanted them to see it first-hand and experience the place.)  So after leaving NJ at the ungodly hour of 6:00 AM, we arrived a bit before the Eucharist service. 

Note that this is a long post - one to tell about our whole day, so grab a cup of coffee and enjoy!  Let me first introduce you to my friends, Matt, Susan and Sara. 

As we arrived, the monastery was still in The Great Silence (and we weren't yet) so we explored the grounds a bit, checked out the cloistered porch, and the chapel before folks arrived.

I'll spare you all the photos of the places we've seen before, but I will note that we're in Easter season so the place was decked out with beautiful flowers - especially lilies.  The other thing I'll note is that the new guest library is finished and it's incredible.

After Eucharist, we met briefly in St. Mary's parlor which was to be our base of operations for the day.  We met briefly with Brother James R. who was going to be our host, and afterward we had some free time.  I heard the Kairos group (the Monastery's Choral group) rehearsing in the chapel so I sat and listened to them (I was told I also had a brief nap, but Vicky woke me when I started snoring too loudly). 

We went searching for the youth and found they had moved outside to the Middlehouse porch since someone else was using the parlor (it was a very busy weekend).



So when the bell rang, we went in to Diurnum (Noon prayer), had Dinner (Noon meal - incredible baby back ribs, potato salad and coleslaw) and then met up with Br. James.  He shared with us some basic history of the monastic movement and talked about how someone becomes a monk, sharing a bit from his personal history (he used to be a teacher).  The kids had a fair number of questions, but eventually the post-lunch period took it's toll and as heads started nodding, to walk around a bit and get a tour while continuing the discussion. 

 

Here's where it got interesting, I wasn't expecting the tour to include portions of the "Monastic Enclosure", the area where the monks live, work and interact.  We started talking about their rule of life - the Rule of St. Benedict and he brought us to the Chapter House - where the brothers meet every day to read a chapter of the rule to each other.  It is a square room with an octagonal center that is quite striking and has the initial words of the rule painted on the lower border.

 

Br. James showed us an example of a monk's cell (room).  We didn't actually go to their rooms, but one of the offices occupies the same amount of space and is laid out the same way (without the bed and desk).  We did get to peak briefly into their common room, a sort of living room for the brothers.

Br. James then shared about the importance of work and so we went to the basement where we saw the laundry, met briefly with Br. Robert (the Superior of the Order - in charge of all four monasteries), and then saw their incense manufacturing operation.  Holy Cross Monastery is known far and wide for the quality of their liturgical incense. 



We got to see exactly what frankincense is and then see how they blend it with essential oils to color the fragrance it gives off when burning.

And then since we were in the basement of the monastic enclosure, we got to tour their library.

Following the library tour, Br. James showed around outside of the monastic enclosure explaining how they shared a number of items (including cars).  We also briefly met Br. Scott, the house Prior who was returning from inspecting Br. Bernard's efforts with the honeybees.  (They were worried that they had lost another hive, but there seemed to be adequate activity.)


 From there we went in and explored the Crypt
 

After the Crypt, we had a few minutes to visit the Gift Shoppe, where Br. Jose was quite helpful.  We ended up with a small selection of stick incense, post cards and I got the next volume for my St. John's Bible.  Matt was very interested in the liturgical incense and wanted to buy a small pack and some charcoal.  I obtained photographic proof that he promised to check in with his mother before trying to burn it in the house... we also found a fellow guest (I think a seminary student) who was very helpful in supplying tips on how to use it indoors properly.

 
 

Finally, our last item of the day was having Br. James explain a labyrinth and how it might be used in our personal spirituality.  One woman came up and started to use it while we were talking, so they got to see it in action.

 Though as Vicky and I departed to let them at it, I wasn't certain that there would be any takers...
 

In the end, they chose to go down by the river for a while before Vespers and Supper.  Vicky and I passed the time on a bench at my favorite spot (top of the hill overlooking everything), and then in pilgrim hall.

 

We finished with a group photo just before Supper (Gyros!).

I think we had a great time.  One interesting tidbit is that after an intensely contemplative day, the car EXPLODED into noisy conversation just as we pulled out of the monastic driveway.  My youth friends are in 8th and 9th grade after all, and I'll admit it's a bit of a stretch to make desert fathers, monastic living, work and contemplation interesting, but everyone seemed to have a great time. 

 

And who knows... someday maybe I'll go up for a visit and meet up with Br. Matt.

 

 

 

 

 

One last thing... this was my first visit up there with my new camera.  It turns out it has a "pencil sketch" feature (whatever that means).  If you want digitally generated pencil sketches of the Middlehouse door or of the Chapel, here they are...