Free Online Course in Benedictine Spirituality to Help Bring in the New Evangelization

LISLE, Ill. - Oct. 4, 2013 - PRLog -- To carry out the Church’s call for a New Evangelization, a Benedictine Abbey in the Chicago area is offering a free, five-part online course in Benedictine spirituality.

“We feel that St. Benedict’s way of life, which includes living in community, common prayer, work, and private prayer, is just as important today as when St. Benedict was alive,” said Fr. James Flint, OSB, vocation director of St. Procopius Abbey in Lisle, just west of Chicago.

“Vocations to the consecrated life have seen a slight upswing in the United States,” he said, noting recent news reports of a 10% increase in Catholic graduate theology students this year compared to 2005. (http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2013-09-25/national/42376532_1_priests-apostolate-parishes) “We hope to be part of that trend in our role in educating others about the great depth of Benedictine spirituality.”

He added, “Although we are using the course as a tool for looking for young men who may be thinking of a religious vocation, the course is open to anyone who wants to deepen their prayer life, whether married or single.”

One can register on the St. Procopius Facebook signup page, at https://www.facebook.com/pages/St-Procopius-Abbey/1714825.... The course will consist of five emails, one sent each day, and will cover the life of St. Benedict and of Benedictine monks, and the vocation stories of three men who have joined St. Procopius. There will also be emails prompting students to reflect upon each class. Students can sign up for one of two sessions. The first will run Oct. 14 – 18, and the second, Oct. 28 – Nov. 1.

“I think that St. Benedict would give an approving nod at the idea of using the internet to promote the spirituality,” Fr. James said.

Benedictine spirituality is characterized by striving towards Christian perfection in community, liturgical prayer, and separation from worldly concerns. St. Benedict (480-550 AD) is the Father of Western Monasticism. He wrote The Rule, which governs the life of monks, and his best-known monastery is at Monte Cassino, Italy. Many other religious orders have patterned their rule after his.

At St. Procopius Abbey, which was founded in 1885 and has 26 monks today, the men work outside as well as inside the abbey. The priests and brothers there have taught, coached, worked as administrators, and carried out campus ministry in the two schools they founded – a high school, Benet Academy; and a university, Benedictine University. They continue to work in the schools to this day. Also, monks who are ordained priests help in nearby parishes, especially with Sunday Masses.

Sign up for the course on the St. Procopius Facebook signup page, at https://www.facebook.com/pages/St-Procopius-Abbey/171482589671071. For more information about the course, contact Fr. James Flint, OSB, at 630-969-6410, or vocations@procopius.org. Visit also their website, http://procopius.webs.com/.