Find Your Perfect Christmas!
A Week of Celebration Including Silent Auction Saturday December 6 through Saturday December 13, 2025 Find your perfect Christmas by attending our week-long celebration. Christmas at the Monastery has been in existence for over 20 years. This annual series of events is our signature fundraiser, designed to feel like a warm visit with your family […]
Are You Ready
To Get Away from Your Phone Yet? I was more than ready to leave my phone behind for a day: Facebook screaming its messages of impending disaster, gridlocked political division, authoritarian government takeover, tariffs, trade war, stock market tanking, looming government shutdown, and endless text messages from my kids: Where is my uniform? Can you […]
2025 Oblate Reflections
On Sunday, June 8, 2025, five new candidates made their Final Oblation and three Oblates renewed their Oblation with St. Paul’s Monastery. While the Final Oblation celebrates ten months of intentional prayer and study with the Rule of St. Benedict and the Benedictine values, in many ways it is just the beginning of a life-long […]
ROOTED IN LOVE
My Sustained Lectio Divina “I pray . . . that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love.” Ephesians 3:17 I have prayed with the Scriptures using a simple form for years. It was Guigo II in the twelfth century that gave the most familiar model: […]
Spiritual Director Profile
Sister Virginia Matter, OSB My calling into the journey as a spiritual companion or Director is likely because of the many spiritual companions and friends I experienced in my life. As I reflect, I am aware of how blessed I have been because of those who have challenged and stretched my life within the joys […]
Aging Gracefully
On a crisp fall night in Dallas, TX in the late 1970’s, I gathered with my grandparents, parents, brothers, aunt and uncle for a special celebratory dinner. I don’t remember if I was excited because this was a nicer restaurant than we normally patronized, but I vividly recall that as we settled around the table in […]
AGING, DECISION MAKING, AND MERCY
One of the great surprises of aging and retirement for me has been the steady stream of decisions that present themselves. I had imagined it not as a time of rest per se, but at least one of settledness. Yet questions such as How should I spend my time? How do I balance self-care and […]
Desire, Perseverance, Making Our Way:
Reflections from the Monastic Community Retreat Reprinted from Benedictine Center E-Newsletter, August, 2018 On a Sunday evening in mid-June, the annual Community Retreat began at St. Paul’s Monastery. The Sisters assembled in their usual places in the glowing Chapel, lit by the summer sky in the clerestory windows, joined by several Oblates, Benedictine Associates, and […]
A Time to Remember: Healing Retreat for Mother Loss
Are you a woman navigating the silent ache of having lost your mother—whether recently or many years ago? At St. Paul’s Monastery, we warmly invite you to “A Time to Remember: A Retreat for Women Whose Mothers Have Died.” Sponsored by Loyola Spirituality Center, this thoughtfully-crafted overnight gathering offers a gentle space for reflection, healing, […]
Sister Linda Soler in Catholic Spirit
Last month, Sister Linda Soler of St. Paul’s Monastery was featured in the Archdiocese newspaper, Catholic Spirit. She was interviewed by staff reporter and photographer, Dave Hrbacek for the September 19, 2025 edition. Read on to learn about her work as Hill-Murray’s sports chaplain and how she brings her Benedictine training to the students in […]