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This is an article pulled from The Eagle’s June 2011 publication, a monthly journal published by the Basilica of St. John the Evangelist in Stamford, CT. You can view the original article here.
Gathered for the annual fundraiser held at Columbus ParkTrattoria in Stamford were Fr. Joseph Fessio, S.J., Fr. Cassian Folsom, O.S.B, and Fr. Benedict Nivakoff, O.S.B. (Photo by John Marciano)
Our Basilica had a taste of monastic life at the end of April when several Benedictine monks from Italy paid their annual visit. The monks, with their distinctive long beards, sandals, and brown habits, live in the Monastery of San Benedetto in Norcia, Italy. The Stamford connection? Fr. Benedict Nivakoff, O.S.B., was born here, and his father, Robert, is the Chief of Police.
Norcia, located in the central Umbria region of Italy, is the birthplace of St. Benedict (d. 547 A.D.), founder of the Benedictine Order and the Patron Saint of Europe. Benedictine monks remained in Norcia until 1810, when they were forced to flee under orders from Napoleon. They returned there in 2000, when Fr. Cassian Folsom, O.S.B., founded the new Monastery of San Benedetto.
So what’s the purpose of monks, and what do they do all day? Men who belong to the various orders of monastic life in the Catholic Church commit themselves to lead a life of poverty, chastity, and obedience. Through their prayer lives and their example, they are witnesses to the redemptive work of Christ.
Monks live in community, and their days are full of prayer, work, and fasting, following the Rule of St. Benedict (“Idleness is the enemy of the soul,” he declared). The day begins at 4 a.m. with Matins (early morning prayer), Mass, and the Holy Office (seven fixed prayers of the day said by all ordained religious in the Church). Then follows work, spiritual reading, recreation, and simple meals. The monk’s exhausting 16-hour day ends around 8 p.m.
The Monastery of San Benedetto, though young, is growing by leaps and bounds, and funds are always needed for maintenance and repairs. Each year, the Norcian monks visit Stamford for a fundraiser hosted by the Marchetti Family at their restaurant, Columbus Park Trattoria. This year’s highlight was a talk by Fr. Joseph Fessio, S.J., a Jesuit, former student of Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger (now Pope Benedict), and the founder of Ignatius Press, publisher of Catholic World Report and hundreds of Catholic books, including those by the Holy Father. Fr. Fessio spoke on “The State of Europe and the Role of the Monks.”
He reflected that Europe is the home to the fathers of the three great Orders in the Church: St. Benedict (Benedictines), St. Dominic, who founded the Dominican Order in 1215, and St. Ignatius of Loyola, who founded the Jesuits (1534). Benedict was the “poet/contemplative,” Dominic the “man of science and reason,” and Ignatius “a figure of practicality and prudence.” The legacy of these holy men shows that the Church does not lose by changing, Fr. Fessio noted, but, rather, accumulates her graces, with one Order complementing the next.
These three Saints built the Church in Europe, Fr. Fessio added, and said that, if one understands history, one will readily understand that Europe is a continent with Christian roots, however secular it is today.
No wonder Pope Benedict, who took the saint’s name, has praised the monastic orders in his efforts to re-evangelize Europe and spread the growth of Christianity. Not long ago, he declared, “What we need are more men like St. Benedict!”
Fr. Fessio said the work ethic of religious men and women is both admirable and daunting. He noted, only half-jokingly, that the 30 nuns who live in the same building in San Francisco, CA, as the headquarters of the Ignatius Press have probably done more good than all the work he’s done at the company.
Helping us to understand the powerful work done by these quiet religious women and men of history, he recalled Blessed John Henry Cardinal Newman, who said, “Lonely Benedict rose from his knees and found himself a City.”
So, what do monks, nuns, and other religious “do”? Simple: they help us get to Heaven!
– Michael S. Guarnieri