While noting that Saint Benedict does not mention Advent, Prior Michael tells us that, "the whole spirit of the Rule is to be a guide for making one's whole life an Advent looking forward to union with Jesus Christ by living a radical Christ-like life." And in this year's season, muted and subdued in our time of pandemic, "the joy of anticipation has an edge to it." In his Advent message, the Prior invites us to enter into this forward-looking season of preparation.
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In 1914, Leonard Sargent created an "Association" dedicated to the support of and the prayer for a monastic community he had envisioned. We return here to an article by Michael Williams, writing in 1918, who describes the project and introduces us to our own modern-day oblates.
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The visible signs of the season of Advent are on their way, and we see it appearing before our eyes in the Advent wreath, Ade Bethune's Theotokos banner, the liturgies radiant with violet. Less visible to most visitors, within the enclosure as well, the monastic community welcomes the season with various modifications to prepare for the arrival of Christmas.
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Brother Sixtus Roslevich, Director of Oblates, offers a timely portrayal of what it means to be an oblate of Portsmouth Abbey. One of the “many different paths which lead to the monastery,” Sixtus was himself an oblate before entering full monastic life, a vocation he began to discern as a young child. As Advent leads us to reconsider our own lives of faith, he offers us an outline of oblation as an offering to God.
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