Ep 4, Podcast Cover

‘Becoming Ecumenical: The New Spirit of Vatican II,’ The Holy Wisdom Podcast

Brooke MoriartyBuilding Community, Hospitality, Interfaith Relations, Living in Community, Looking Back, Monastic Life, Podcast, Rule of Benedict Leave a Comment

Want to be the first to hear every new episode? Click here to sign up for email notifications! In this continuation of Ep. 1, Becoming Ecumenical: Bringing Christians Together, we sit down once more with Sister Mary David Walgenbach and Sister Joanne Kollasch. Starting in 1966, the sisters take us along the hurdles and fundamental moments of growth into an ecumenical community throughout the 60’s, 70’s, and Vatican II. From welcoming retreat groups for many different Christian denominations to hosting the Dalai Lama, the sisters have embraced the hospitality of St. Benedict, calling it “the everyday path to God that …

Looking Back: “The Last Word,” Arthur Dent, and the Rule (2000)

Brooke MoriartyBenedictine Bridge, Community of Benedict, Looking Back, Monastic Life, Rule of Benedict 1 Comment

Sister Bridget got the last word in many issues of Benedictine Bridge. For some, her writings were a favorite as she mingled Benedictine insight with straightforward thinking. It may even be a surprise to find this writing from the Ordinary Times 2000 issue of our newsletter bringing together Douglas Addams’ character, Arthur Dent, and the founder of western monasticism, St. Benedict. Let me say this about that: 1,500 years is a long time. Put another way, one thousand five hundred years is a mindbogglingly long period of time. Remember Arthur Dent? He was the guy wearing a bathrobe who hitchhiked …

Looking Back: ‘Ecumenical Monastic Life Offers Journey into a New Culture’ (2003) by Erica Thiessen

Brooke MoriartyBenedictine Bridge, Community of Benedict, Interfaith Relations, Living in Community, Looking Back, Monastic Life, Rule of Benedict 2 Comments

In 2003, Erica Thiessen was a novice of Benedictine Women of Madison. In Issue 12 of Benedictine Bridge from Ordinary Time 2003, she wrote this article reflecting on the value of Benedictine life in relation to her own experiences as a Mennonite. I have been journeying into different lands from almost before I was born. My parents were both Russian Mennonite immigrants to Canada. As a family, we traveled to Ghana and Trinidad where my father taught school. In ways, I became a pilgrim, and for much of my adult life, I have lived and worked around the world. Always …

Looking Back: ‘New Monastic for a New Millennium’ (2000) by Lynne Smith

Brooke MoriartyBenedictine Bridge, Looking Back, Monastic Life, Rule of Benedict Leave a Comment

It’s difficult to think of Holy Wisdom Monastery without including the sisters. However, back in 2000, Sister Lynne Smith was just stepping into the life with the Sisters of St. Benedict of Madison. 20 years later, only two days after the anniversary when she committed herself officially to this life, we can return to her thoughts from the beginning. The following post is a direct transcription of the article, New Monastic for a New Millennium by Sister Lynne Smith, as written in our newsletter, Benedictine Bridge, Ordinary Times 2000 issue. I am one example of a new monastic for the …