The Fire Within the Flame –
June 6, 2026 – Well, after this month-and-half-long hiatus, our regular readers might have deduced that we’ve had our hands full – and happily, we have!
For starters, there have been some comings and goings. One of our sisters, for instance, was summonsed to our grandmother house in Ireland (!) to teach a course on St. Bernard of Clairvaux to the nuns and monks in initial formation in the Region of the Isles. It’s good to have her back, as well as to have freshly watered roots!
Two other sisters attended the 75th anniversary of the founding of The Abbey of the Genesee, our brothers’ house in New York. They report that it was a lovely celebration, a real witness to the faithfulness and flexibility that a long monastic life requires. Bless you, dear brothers!
And our Novice Director is currently away at a meeting of all the Cistercian Novice Directors of the USA. In the Rule, St. Benedict suggests that “[a] senior chosen for [her] skill in winning souls should be appointed to look after [the novices] with careful attention” (Rule of St. Benedict: Chapter 58). So we’re eager to see what new “skills” she brings home!
Meanwhile, most of us have been here at the Abbey, just as busy as the bees are out on our grounds and in our garden! But we’re not here for the thrill of rare trips, nor are we here for the rush of outdoor work in the spring. We’re here for and with the hidden Lord, in graceful response to his call, to be present to the prayer of his Heart.
This post’s photos are of a recent day’s dawning. Each morning, whether we’ll be soon coming or going or busy as bees, Jesus is the stillness who holds us, the silence who sees the shadows and lights, the Dawn who visits us again and again and yet always remains, the fire within the flame.
