Holy Wisdom Monastery to Restore Lost Landscape

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  This November Holy Wisdom Monastery will begin restoring 30 acres of its land to oak savanna, considered by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources to be Wisconsin’s rarest plant community. Oak savanna is characterized by widely spaced oak trees (between 10-50% tree canopy) with primarily grasses covering the ground. Before European settlement it was one of the most common plant communities in Wisconsin but now only a fraction remains. “Before Europeans arrived, oak savanna was more common than forest or prairie in southern Wisconsin,” explained Holy Wisdom Monastery’s Director of Land Management and Environmental Education, Greg Armstrong. After European …

Benedictine Sisters win international Assisi Award for conservation efforts spanning more than 60 years

Holy Wisdom MonasteryCare for the Earth, Living in Community, Uncategorized 2 Comments

The Benedictine Sisters at Holy Wisdom Monastery received the inaugural Assisi Award for faith-based conservation at the 28th International Congress of Conservation Biology’s Opening Ceremony on July 23, 2017 in Cartagena, Colombia in front of nearly 1,500 attendees. The Assisi Award acknowledges organizations and individuals whose work demonstrates that faith-based conservation is contributing significantly to the common global effort of conserving life on Earth. Sisters Mary David Walgenbach and Joanne Kollasch accepted the award on behalf of their religious community located near Madison, Wisconsin. Their community is the first ecumenical Benedictine community in North America where Catholic and Protestant women …

A Contemplative Visit to the Deer Park Buddhist Center

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The Spiritual Deepening Council of Holy Wisdom Monastery is delighted to announce a special visit to the Deer Park Buddhist Center in Oregon, WI on Saturday, June 17, 2017. Our day will include a tour of the Center and its grounds; two 90-minute interactive presentations on core Tibetan Buddhist teachings and practices by the Center’s two resident Geshes or esteemed scholars; and a lunch. Our host for the day, Chöwng, describes the goal of such visits: We understand most visitors are coming from a non-Buddhist background. The goal of these visits is to provide a general introduction into Buddhist thoughts, …

A Lenten Retreat focusing on the Passion of Christ

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Sisters Rosy Kandathil and Lynne Smith will lead this retreat at The Upper House in downtown Madison as an outreach to students and others on the campus. The retreat is open to people beyond the campus and there is no cost. The retreat will provide a window into the Rule of Benedict in preparation for Easter, with a particular focus on personal preparation and the Passion of Christ. Register now or learn more.