A bbot ’s
Ta bl e b y Fa t h e r M a u r i c e H a e f l i n g
Community and friendship were evident as more than 590 people gathered at the Westin Crown Center in Kansas City, Mo., on April 12, 2014, to pray, visit, and celebrate with the monks of St. Benedict’s Abbey. Last April more than 550 people came together to express their appreciation for Abbot Barnabas Senecal upon his retirement as Abbot as well as for his lifelong ministries in education and pastoral work . It was decided to make the Abbot’s Table gathering an annual event. The evening began at the Westin Crown Center with the blessing of palms followed by the Palm Sunday procession and Mass. More than 300 people arrived in time to join Abbot James Albers in celebrating this ancient liturgical rite in preparation for Holy Week , commemorating Jesus’ triumphal entr y into Jerusalem before his passion, death, and resurrection. Following Mass there was a short social hour as we greeted the many friends and family members who had come to celebrate the evening with us. Several video presentations ser ved as an introduction and as a reflection on both the daily routine and the numerous special events in the lives of the monks of the Abbey. Other videos pertaining to the event itself were interspersed throughout the evening and were much appreciated by those attending. The presentations were produced by the Abbey ’s Advancement Office under the capable guidance of J. D. Benning, Director of Communications. The first ever Lumen Vitae awards were presented to former Benedictine College President Dr. Thomas O. James and current Benedictine College President
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Kansas Monks
Stephen D. Minnis in recognition of their vast contributions to the Abbey ’s educational apostolate. These leaders have left an indelible mark on the college in addressing tough financial situations and in promoting the college’s growth in enrollment, in spiritual centeredness, and in the expansion and quality of its educational programs. The video presentations and the speakers emphasized the importance of the Benedictine monastic tradition in all of society yesterday, today, and in the future. This Benedictine heritage is a focal point of the Abbey ’s educational and pastoral ministries. As a more permanent reminder of this tradition, a new pictorial histor y of the Abbey has been authored by Fr. Denis Meade. Patrick (pictured at top right with Abbot James) and Kate Carr ser ved as the chair couple for the event and were instrumental in its preparation. Joan Charboneau, niece of our fifth Abbot, Brendan Downey and the late Fr. James Downey, aided in preparing for the event and expertly guided the proceedings as emcee. The evening also introduced The St. Joseph the Worker Fund, a fund established to assist the monks in their various ministries and apostolates. A friend and benefactor of the Abbey had issued a challenge grant in the amount of $100,000 that had to be matched by the end of the evening. The response of the participants was tremendous and $150,723 was raised to match and exceed the
