You are invited to explore the first
Mewsletter
A Brand New Publication from the
Feline Benedictine Cloister
Summer, 2022
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Hello. Welcome to the first Benedictine Mewsletter. Thanks be to God that you are here!
I’m Br. Ricky, Novice Master and Mewsletter editor. I am delighted to bring you Benedictine wisdom from the Feline Cloister.
May what you read here not only give you a path to a fulfilling and peace-filled life, but also offer a chuckle or two.
A Word from Jane: Hello! I have sent this email to my entire mailing list. Subsequent issues will be sent only to those who have subscribed to the Mewsletter. If you have not subscribed already and wish to (and I hope you do!), scroll to the bottom of this email for the signup link. Thank you and bless you.
Mewsletter Contents
Here’s what you will find in the Mewsletter. Read it all or scroll down to the section you want to read.
- Visit the Feline Cloister
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Mewsings from the Feline Cloister - "Getting into Trouble for Being Ourselves"
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Felines Unpack the Rule of St. Benedict - "Prologue 1 - Listen!"
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Learning Benedictine Lingo - Who is the Cellarer?
- New Novices
- Novice Application
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Visit the Feline Cloister |
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Meet the members of the Order of St. Benedict-Feline (OSB-F).
They will mew the fine points of The Rule of St. Benedict.
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Their mission is to teach felines and humans about The Rule of St. Benedict and how the Rule can help us find peace and joy in daily life. |
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Mewsings from
the Feline Cloister
"Getting Into Trouble for Being Ourselves"
by Sr. Esperanza (Espy)
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Sr. Espy, OSB-F - Heading for trouble with Cloister Abbess, Amma Jane |
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Have you ever gotten into trouble for just being yourself?
You are being who you are and someone else takes offense and gives you a nasty look, a word of reproach or a hard time.
Like me, have you then been puzzled and wondered why the kerfuffle?
The other day while resting on the comfy chaise I spied Br. Ricky heading toward one of my three water dishes. Alarmed, I jumped off the chaise and stalked after him.
When he started to drink, I gave him a swat and he ran away. Then I had a nice drink. Unfortunately, Amma was present and saw the whole event. Here’s what happened.
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Felines Unpack The Rule of St. Benedict |
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At Br. Ricky’s request Cloister Novices will choose and unpack a verse from the Rule in each Mewsletter issue. Novices will not only learn more about the Rule but will also be taught to research noted Benedictine scholars and writers. At the end of the article each Novice contributor will share what the verse means to her or him.
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Novice William - Contributor |
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"Listen carefully, my child, to my instructions, and attend to them with the ear of your heart. This is advice from one who loves you; welcome it, and faithfully put it into practice."
Rule of St. Benedict, Prologue 1
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Welcome to my favorite verse in the Rule – Prologue, Verse 1. I’m Novice William. It’s great to have you here to join my exploration of this key verse in The Rule of St. Benedict.
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Learning Benedictine Lingo |
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If you are new or relatively new to The Rule of St. Benedict this section may help you become familiar with some of the terms used in the Rule. There are quite a few. If you are an old hand with the Rule of Benedict, I invite you to scroll to another section of the Mewsletter or have some treats, or take a nap.
Internal jargon can be off-putting. Today organizations, companies, sports, and even different branches of religious practice have a lingo that can baffle an outsider. The Benedictine monastery and our Feline Cloister also have an in-house lingo.
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In this section of each Mewsletter you will be introduced to a term that is found in the Benedictine Glossary of Amma Jane’s website, St. Benedict’s Toolbox Annex.
Br. Ricky, Cloister Novice Master and Mewsletter editor, designed this section and wants you to have some fun with it as you learn.
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Smokey is curious
about Benedictine terms
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The Benedictine Term for Today - Cellarer
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Benedictine Term Quiz
Who is the cellarer? What does the cellarer do? Which of the following do you think might fit the Benedictine cellarer?
A. A monastic who lives in the basement of the monastery
B. The monastic who cleans the basement
C. The monastic who purchases, stores and organizes the monastery wines in the cellar
D. The monastic who does the laundry (many of us have laundry rooms in the basement)
E. The monastic who models good relationship skills for the community
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Sr. Suzanne about to pull the wash out of the dryer
Is she a cellarer?
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Br Augustine Fur gathering his supplies
to clean the cellar
Is he a cellarer?
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Which descriptions did you choose that fit your idea of cellarer? “C” and “E” above come the closest.
To learn about the cellarer, click here. Then scroll down and click on “Cellarer” for the definition.
After you have looked at the definition you may also enjoy reading an article written by Br. Randy, Cloister author. The article is all about the monastery cellarer as a model for being in relationship.
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Br. Jacob, a real live cellarer at Conception Abbey
in Conception, Missouri
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A Little Bit About Conception Abbey
But for the persistence of an Irish-American missionary named Father James Power, Conception Abbey may never have existed. The hard-working Father Power had long tried to lure a religious community to the region (Midwest) to serve the colony of Irish and German immigrants he'd founded before the Civil War.
After a number of years, the agreement to form a Benedictine religious community was taken on by Engelberg Abbey in Switzerland. (Amma Jane says, "Check out the fabulous organ on this link!") Father Frowin Conrad, a monk of Engelberg came to America to be the first prior of the newly founded Conception Abbey.
He was committed to establishing a classic Benedictine community, believing that life existed inside and not outside the cloister. This put him at odds with the needs of the surrounding communities in need of parish priest and missionaries.
Today, the spiritual descendants of Abbot Frowin provide pastoral care to local parishes, as well as hospitals, religious houses, and schools throughout the Midwest. They work to train priests in their seminary college and welcome guests.
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Novice Clarissa Anne
Hello. I found the Feline Cloister through my cousin, Novice Sebastian Thomas. I shared with him that I was looking for a place where I could be with like-minded felines who were also looking for God. The idea of becoming a novice resonated with me, and here I am!
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Novice Michael James, Esq-F
My path to the Feline Cloister has been a long and varied one. I grew up a stray on the streets of Newark, New Jersey. Known for attacking felines, squirrels and even humans I had a bad reputation.
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Felines - You Too Can Become a Novice!
Help You and Your Human Learn More
About the Benedictine Way of Life
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"I am so glad you stopped by. I hope you enjoyed what you read and learned things, too.
There's a lot more on the newly designed website for Benedictine living.
I'll meet you there!"
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