Volume 23 | Summer 2017
GESTA MONASTICA N e w s f r o m t h e A b b e y o f O u r L a d y o f N e w C l a i r v a u x
Of Culture, Stone and Grapes FROM THE ABBOT’S DESK
Father Paul Mark Schwan, OCSO ABBOT
Welcome! MISSION STATEMENT
Seeking God at this place of New Clairvaux, we are a community of Cistercian monks living the Rule of Saint Benedict. We witness God’s love for the world according to the Gospel of Jesus Christ by a life of prayer, labor and sustainable stewardship of our resources in simplicity and openness to the signs of the times. Our monastery welcomes all people in a spirit of hospitality, and engages others in collaborative relationships.
D
ear friends,
I am not sure when I first heard the phrase culture shock, but it was before 1995. Thank heavens I was familiar with it, even if it was only a concept, because in October 1995, I received permission from our then abbot Father Thomas Davis, to attend a four-week Spanish language course in the lovely country of Guatemala. I remember the details of that month vividly. I arrived on a Saturday to help acclimate myself to begin school the following Monday. This was a total immersion course, no
English spoken for four whole weeks. Sink or swim, right? At the end of the first week, as I strolled the scenic streets of the city of Quezaltenango, it was as if I suddenly woke up. Yes, I woke up! I had been in culture shock for a week and realized it. Culture shock was no longer an idea, but a lived experience and I knew exactly what it was. Because of that insight, I benefited from the remaining three weeks of study and cultural experience. The monastic world I live in is a culture of its own with special vocabulary, rhythm, food, reasoning, and relationships among other things. You may (continued on Page 2)