Pecos Benedictine Monastery

—'Let all guests be received as Christ.'

Rule of St. Benedict

Our Lady of Guadalupe Abbey is otherwise known as The Pecos Monastery.

 

In 1947, Trappist monks from an Abbey in Rhode Island bought the Valley Dude Ranch and formally established a monastery in on the property in 1948. The Trappists moved to Oregon in 1955 and sold the property to Benedictine monks from St. Benedict's Abbey in Wisconsin who ran the monastery until 1985. Today the Monastery is 1,200 acres that sits on the Pecos River and is now a Benedictine Olivetan Monastery.

I attended a Charismatic Catholic retreat at Pecos Monastery from September 18-21. 

The monastery currently has almost a dozen community members - several monks, a nun, a few oblates in residency, minou the cat, and sophia the dog. Father Aiden is the current elected Prior. They are very gracious to their guests that stay for retreats. They provide 3 meals a day and they have individual rooms for guests. The center is open as a retreat center The Monastery, though Catholic, is open to all faiths and disciplines for retreat purposes. They have multiple services every day, the schedule varies depending on the day of the week.  Most days, they have Lauds at 7am, Holy Mass at 7:30am, 12pm Midday Prayer, Rosary at 4:30pm, Vespers at 5pm. Some days there is Compline, Vigils, or Confession in the evening. Lauds, Vigils, Vespers, and Compline are different Catholic Prayer services. 

This Monastery is governed by the Rule of Benedict (RB) which constitutes the basic guide of monastic life. Written in the sixth century the Rule was followed by thousands in monasteries in Europe during the early Middle Ages. "It is written for ordinary Christians who wish to immerse themselves in a pattern of living in which the life of Christ can be lived out with understanding and zeal. Monastic communities accept it as their basic inspiration even as they mitigate it, supplement it, or adapt it to the living conditions of today." ~ The Order of Saint Benedictine. 

One of the Monks, Father Sam, is 90 years old and has been a monk since 1957. He has a True Cross artifact he blessed all of the items guests had. A True Cross Artifact that has a sliver of what is considered the be from the True Cross.    

Normally in Catholic Churches, communion is reserved only for baptized Catholics. The monastery states in their information publication that what they require to receive Holy Communion is:

1. Be a baptized Christian
2. Share the Catholic understanding of the Real presence of Christ in the Eucharist.
3. Be properly disposed in Heart and Mind. 

I really was not sure what #2 meant, so I just went up and received a blessing from the Prior. 

The first mass I attended Father Aiden's sermon spoke of the loyal women followers of Jesus and how important a role they played in the early years of Christianity. The second Mass, Father Aiden shared his personal testimony of conversion. How his recent medical condition brought him even closer to God and renewed his faith again.

Thank You Pecos Monastery for graciously accepting me into the Community for the Weekend Retreat!