Heart to Heart Fall/Winter 2001

1

Newsletter of the Benedictines of Saint Vincent Archabbey

http://benedictine.stvincent.edu/archabbey Volume 12, Issues 1-2, Fall-Winter 2001300 Fraser Purchase Road, Latrobe, Pennsylvania 15650 724-532-6600

is working on a sixth.His research and writings

focus on his special interest — nineteenth and early twentieth century church history in Great Britain, with topics ranging from a history of Westminster Cathedral to the revival of monasticism in the West to his latest book, Searching for Raymond, Anglicanism, Spiritualism, and Bereavement

between the Two World Wars, published last year by Lexington Books.

Questions evolve from curiosity. Curiosity often leads to a deeper contemplation on the topic at hand, which can lead to research on said topic. Fr. Rene M. Kollar, O.S.B., not only likes research, but he enjoys pulling together all the facets of his research on a subject into articles — his vitae of published articles and reviews, papers and presentations has surpassed the century mark. Sometimes a series of articles on a particular subject become part of a book — he has had five books published and

Fr. Rene Kollar’s Fifth Book Is Published

(Continued on Page 16)

James F. Will was inaugurated as the fifteenth President of Saint Vincent College during the Founders’ Day observance Nov. 28. (See page 8.)

Cardinal George to Speak at Saint Vincent in May

His Eminence Francis Cardi-nal George, O.M.I., Archbishop of Chicago, will receive an hon-

orary doc-torate from Saint Vin-cent Semi-nary at its 1 5 5 t h a n n u a l c o m -m e n c e -ment cer-emony at 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 11 at Saint V i n c e n t Archabbey Basilica.

Cardinal George is a member of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, the Congrega-tion for the Evangelization of Peoples, the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life

and for Societies of Apostolic Life, the Pontifical Commis-sion for the Cultural Heritage of the Church, and the Pon-tifical Council “Cor Unum.” He also serves as chancel-lor of The Catholic Church Extension Society, Chicago, and the University of St. Mary of the Lake, Mundelein, Illinois.

He was named a Cardinal by Pope John Paul II on Jan-uary 18, 1998, while serving as Archbishop of Chicago, where he was installed on May 7, 1997. He came to Chicago from the Archdio-cese of Portland, Oregon, where he was installed as Archbishop on May 27, 1996. Prior to that he had served as the fifth Bishop of Yakima, Washington, his ordination and installation as Bishop taking place on July 10, 1990.

(Continued on Page 11)Mrs. Winnie

Palmer

Arnold Palmer has announced the impending acquisition of a 25-acre tract of property along Route 30 near Latrobe that he and his family envision transform-ing into environment-supporting parkland to be known as the Winnie Palmer Nature Reserve.

The project will honor the memory and fulfill a vision of Mr. Palmer’s wife


Reserve to Honor Winnie Palmer

His Eminence Francis Cardinal

George

Br. Edward Mazich, O.S.B.,received ashes from Pope John Paul II at Santa Sabina Church in Rome on Ash Wednes-day. He served as Deacon for the Mass.

Ash Wednesday in Rome

Page 2 Volume 12, Numbers 1-2

Saint Vincent Archabbey Heart to Heart Fall-Winter 2000

Dear Friends,The past few months have been

filled with activity, starting with the visit to our campus of Vice Pres-ident Dick Cheney in October, and followed by the inauguration of James Will as the fifteenth Presi-dent of Saint Vincent College on November 28. In this issue of Heart to Heart, we look back at some of our history, as two par-ishes founded by our first Archab-bot, Boniface Wimmer, celebrated milestone anniversaries and our Archabbey Gristmill was featured in a regional magazine.

We also look toward the future, with the announcement of plans for the Winnie Palmer Nature Reserve on land adjacent to and including some property on the Saint Vincent campus. The late Mrs. Palmer served on our College Board of Directors and had a long-standing desire to preserve the land and its sweeping vista across the valley from the Arnold Palmer Regional Airport to our Basilica. We also recently marked the 100th anniversary of the birth of the late Art Rooney, Sr., another lifelong friend of the Benedictines, with a Mass in his

memory.May 2001 will be “Chicago month” at Saint Vincent. We look

forward to the forthcoming visit of Cardinal Francis George of Chicago for our Seminary commencement. The College com-mencement address will be given by Dr. Donald Miller, an alumnus of Saint Vincent College and author of City of the Cen-tury. Late in May, the Benedictine community will also welcome Auxiliary Bishop Gerald F. Kicanas for its annual retreat.

Our Seminary administration will experience a new leader as Father Kurt J. Belsole, O.S.B., becomes Rector. Father Thomas P. Acklin, O.S.B., is completing his sabbatical leave and will return to the Seminary faculty. His twelve years as Rector showed growth in enrollment when other seminaries were in decline. Father Tom is eager to be back in the classroom.

Members of our monastic community, including Fr. Rene Kollar, O.S.B., continue to publish books and articles, give retreats and programs, and be actively involved in the com-munity. In March I will travel to Rome for meetings with the International Benedictine Commission on China. While there, Br. Nicholas Koss, O.S.B., who recently became a full professor at Fu Jen Catholic University in Taipei, will join me in a meeting with The Honorable Raymond R.M. Tai, Ambassador of the Republic of China.

Know that you are remembered in the prayers of the Saint Vincent Community throughout the Easter season.

Sincerely in Christ,

Archabbot of Saint Vincent


Archabbot’s Message

News FromAround The Archabbey

Rev. Thomas More Sikora, O.S.B., Director of the Opportunity SVC/Act 101 Program at Saint Vincent College, talked about the history of the program at the 25th anniversary dinner held recently. Attending was Kathleen Ken-nedy, Act 101 State Coordinator for the Pennsylvania Department of Educa-tion, who offered her congratulations. Br. Norman W. Hipps, O.S.B., Col-lege Provost, was acknowledged by Fr. Thomas More as writer of the original grant that led to the establish-ment of the program in 1975. Associ-ate Academic Dean of the College, Alice J. Kaylor, who oversees the pro-gram, was honored as an “Outstand-ing Supporter of Act 101 and Devel-opmental Education.” Also attending was Adele Sternberg, Act 101 Director from the Commonwealth Technical Institute, who recalled the early days

of the program’s establishment. * * * * *

An article entitled “Why won’t they let us go home? An unknown martyr: Emperor Karl I of Austria” by Br. Nathan M. Cochran, O.S.B., was published as the lead article in Issue XIX: October 2000 of The European Royal History Journal.

The journal is sold in 73 countries and is widely distributed in the United States, Europe and Asia. The article is about the life and death of Emperor Karl, the last Habsburg ruler of the Austro-Hun-gary Empire, whose

cause is being promoted for canon-ization as a saint. Br. Nathan is the U.S./Canadian delegate of the Inter-national Presidium of the Kaiser Karl Gebetsliga, which promotes the cause of the Emperor’s canonization.

* * * * * Rev. Kurt J. Belsole, O.S.B., Rector

and Associate Professor at Saint Vincent Seminary, published four articles in the new Encyclopedia of Monasticism (Chicago: Fitzroy-Dearborn, 2000).

Fr. Kurt’s articles include: “Beauduin, L a m b e r t 1 8 7 3 - 1 9 6 0 , ” “ B e u r o n , G e r m a n y , ” “Guéranger, Pros-per 1805-1875,” and “Maria Laach, Germany.”

* * * * *Father Stephen R. Honeygosky,

O.S.B., has been appointed to the new Liturgical Commission for the Diocese of Greensburg. The new team will assist the Bishop and the Office for Worship and Word in the Diocese. Among their tasks will be studying and promoting the new official General Introduction to the Roman Missal and other forthcoming texts, dealing with liturgical architecture, environment and art. In addition, the Commission will counsel parishes undergoing renovation or construction of worship space, according to the Church’s current liturgical documents and in conjunction with the offices of Facilities Management, the bishop, and the vicar general. The Commission will also assist parishes with norms for music and liturgical ministries.


Volume 12, Numbers 1-2 Page 3

The Saint Vincent Archabbey Gristmill recently graced the cover of Westsylva-nia Magazine, a magazine dedicated to the heritage and lifestyle along the Path of Progress in Southwestern Pennsyl-vania. The cover photograph and photos accompanying the article, “Still Milling,” were by Saint Vincent College faculty member Richard Stoner. Ligonier writer Mildred Taylor notes that “an operating gristmill puts one in mind of hearth-baked bread, wooden floors, penny candy and hand-woven baskets; of the customs of our forbears quickly disappearing.”

Br. Joseph Adams, O.S.B., Miller, is pictured working with the hopper that feeds grain into the buhrstones. Rev.

from the Latin, “Cor ad Cor Loquitur,”

or “Heart Speaks to Heart,” is the motto of Archabbot

Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B. It refers to the Archabbot’s

prayer that giving and receiv-ing authentic love may always be the chief characteristic of the Saint Vincent monastic community. This was also the motto of Cardinal John

Newman.

This newsletter is published by the Benedictines of Saint Vincent

Archabbey.

Publisher Archabbot Douglas R. Nowicki,

O.S.B.

Development DirectorWilliam P. Malloy

Writer/EditorKimberley A. Metzgar

Contributors to this issue:

Director of Public RelationsDonald A. Orlando

Public Relations AssociateTheresa Schwab

Alumni DirectorRev. Gilbert J.Burke, O.S.B.

Rev. Omer U. Kline, O.S.B.

Saint Vincent Archabbey300 Fraser Purchase

Road, Latrobe, Pennsylvania 15650-2686

724-539-9761 Ext. [email protected]

http://benedictine. stvincent.edu/archabbey/

Heart to HeartSaint Vincent Gristmill Featured in

Westsylvania Magazine

Jubilarians .....................................12Youth Day 2000 in Rome...............13National Columnist Visits ............13Appointments ...........................14-15Mass for Art Rooney, Sr. ...............17Gristmill, Changes.........................18Ordinations ....................................18Upcoming Events ..........................18Catholic Arts Exhibit .....................19From the Archives .........................20A Life of Service ............................21Tribute Gifts...............................21-22Red Mass........................................22Obituaries.......................................23Parish Online .................................23Vice Presidential Visit ...................24

Inside This Issue . . .Winnie Palmer Reserve........1, 10-11Cardinal George ........................1, 11Fr. Rene’s Books...................1, 16-17Archabbot’s Message .....................2Archabbey News .....................2, 4-6Gristmill Featured............................3Parishes Mark Milestones ..............5Fire Department in Ads ...................6Seminary Campaign.................... 6-7Benedictine Sisters .........................7Inauguration Photos........................8Fr. Damian’s Baseball Family .........9Chestnut Ridge Parish....................9Summer Retreats Planned............11St. Benedict’s Day Homilist ..........11

Br. Joseph Adams, O.S.B., Miller at the Gristmill, as pictured in Westsylva-nia Magazine.

Cuthbert Jack, O.S.B., who still bakes Saint Vincent Bread weekly for the monastery, and Rev. Paul R. Taylor, O.S.B., a former miller now on the Gristmill Committee, are also mentioned in the article. A review of the book, The Saint Vincent Archabbey Gristmill and Brewery, 1854-2000, by Rev. Omer U. Kline, O.S.B., is also included.



(Continued from Page 2)

News FromAround The Archabbey


* * * * *Rev. Mark Gruber, O.S.B., was

invited by James Cardinal Hickey to present a conference to the Eucharistic Congress for the Jubilee Year held in Washington D.C. from Oct. 5 to 8. The Congress drew over 20,000 attendants, and Fr. Mark spoke in two sessions about “The Relationship of the Paschal and Nuptial Mysteries in the Eucharistic Feast.”

* * * * *Father Stephen Honeygosky,

O.S.B., was the retreat director at Hesed, an Urban Benedictine commu-nity of Christian Meditation in Oakland, CA, as it commemorates its twentieth

year of monastic life. The commu-nity is a com-bination of reli-gious and lay men and women. The retreat was held from February 15-18, 2001, and the topic was “The Rule and Reality in an Unruly, Sur-

real World.” Given this puzzling posture for the postmodern person who is seri-ous about communal spirituality, the course of the retreat ponders, biblically and experientially, the essentials of Resting, Reassessing, Redemption, Re-imagining, and Renovating as ways of responding on the monastic’s epic quest.

Fr. Stephen was asked to serve on the Priests’ Advisory Council for the $25 million dollar capital campaign for the Diocese of Greensburg.

The council assists the Guidance in Giving Office advising the Bishop and it reviews individual parish case statements. The campaign equally benefits the Diocese and every parish in delivering the plans that both have envisioned but delayed for lack of resources.

* * * * *Father Anthony J. Burlas, O.S.B.,

was pictured in The Catholic Accent of December 7, 2000, after presiding over the wedding of his brother, Regis, to the former Mary Hensler. Regis and Mary had known each other in high school, but eventu-ally went their sep-arate ways. They reunited after the deaths of their spouses in the last few years, and were married by Fr. Anthony at the parish where he has served as pastor for over 20 years — St. Mary Church in Forbes Road.

* * * * *Br. Nicholas V.

Nicol, the arch-abbey tailor, once again portrayed St. Nicholas at the gift shop of Rizzo’s Mal-abar Inn, Crabtree.

* * * * *Father Mark

Gruber, O.S.B., talked about the effect of the media on children on Dec. 6 at the Verna Montes-sori School near Mount Pleasant. He

discussed “Character Counterfor-mation,” the process of a child becoming relatively passive intellectu-ally because of the modern electronic media.

“Television, the Internet and com-puter games com-prise an immer-sion experience that distances the child from active engagements , ” Father Mark said. “The electronic media can also dis-tance a child from the active elements of family life and parental interaction. They may also distract children from more intense fields of education offered in the classrooms.”

He discussed “plausible strategies to limit harmful effects of this process and to consider the best means of weaning the young from the forces that distance them from healthier influences around them.”

* * * * *Father Philip M. Kanfush, O.S.B.,

parochial vicar at Saint Vincent Basilica Parish, conducted a Day of Recollec-

Br. Edward Mazich, O.S.B., (second from left) is pictured on the front page of the Vatican newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano, on March 2, while he serves as deacon at a Mass on Ash Wednesday at Santa Sabina Church in Rome. He is also pictured in several other photos with Pope John Paul II in that same edition of the newspaper. Br. Edward is currently pursuing graduate studies in Rome at the Pontifical Biblical Institute. He is a Saint Vincent Seminary graduate and will be ordained to the priesthood this summer.



Recently, Prince Alois Konstantin zu Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg, visited Saint Vincent Archabbey. While at Saint Vincent, the Prince, right, met with Mr. Charles Fagan, former Chairman of the Board of Regents at Saint Vincent Seminary, left, and Archabbot Paul R. Maher, O.S.B.

tion for Seniors Sept. 6 at Saint Emma Retreat House.

* * * * *Br. Joseph M. Adams, O.S.B., was

awarded a Palumbo Student Research Endowment Grant which enabled him to travel to Milwau-kee in November to interview Arch-bishop Rembert Weakland, O.S.B., a former Arch-abbot of Saint Vincent and now Archbishop of the Archdiocese of

Milwaukee. The interview is part of the research Br. Joseph will use for his senior research thesis, “Architectural Development at Saint Vincent.”

* * * * *Rev. Paul R. Taylor, O.S.B., Dean

of Admission and Financial Aid at Saint Vincent College, recently announced establishment of the Josef Cardinal Tomko Scholarship and the Slovak Heritage Grant. The scholarship honors Cardinal Tomko for his contributions to the Church and to Slovak culture. His Eminence graced the campus of Saint Vincent College in September of 1998,


Archabbey Newsacknowledging the academic and cultural contributions that Saint Vincent College has made, especially to Slovak culture.

The scholarship will be awarded to all high school students who are winners of the First Catholic Slovak Ladies Associa-tion Scholarships and who are accepted to and will attend Saint Vincent College in the semester after their graduation from high school. The scholarship awards are for $500 each.

The college will also award the Slovak Heritage Grant to every student member of the First Catholic Slovak Ladies

Association who is accepted to and will attend Saint Vincent College in the semester after their graduation from high school. The grant award is for $500 each. Eligibility for each award begins for students graduating high school in the summer of 2001.

* * * * *Lenten programs were given by Br.

Elliott C. Maloney, O.S.B., and Br. Benedict Janecko, O.S.B., at St. Bruno Parish, Greensburg, on “The Psalms: Heartbeat of Life and Worship,”

Two parishes at which Saint Vincent Benedictines serve recently marked milestone anniversaries.

Saint Benedict Parish in Carrolltown was the first parish established by the Benedictine monks in the United States. Altoona-Johnstown Bishop Joseph V. Adamec celebrated a Mass of Thanksgiv-ing on November 5. Pastor of the parish is Father Vincent E. Zidek, O.S.B., while Father Jeremy J. Bolha, O.S.B., is parochial vicar.

An article which appeared in The Catholic Register, newspaper of the Altoona-Johnstown Diocese, by Father Timothy P. Stein, recounted the history of the Benedictines in Carrolltown, noting that Benedictine monks arrived in Car-rolltown in 1846 under the direction of founder Father Boniface Wimmer, O.S.B. Disappointed by the uncultivated land, and the rough and hilly roads surrounding

Carrolltown, Father Boniface accepted the offer of Pittsburgh’s Bishop Michael O’Connor to establish a permanent foundation at Saint Vincent Parish in Latrobe. But in 1848, the Benedictines returned, The Register noted.

Father Boniface purchased 298 acres of land and the Carrolltown church was dedicated on Christmas day 1850. Saint Benedict Parish has fostered 112 religious vocations, including 26 priests, 83 sisters, two religious brothers and a seminarian who died before ordination. Twenty of the 26 priests, the article noted, were Benedictines, as were 51 of the religious sisters, both brothers and the seminarian.

A little closer to Latrobe, Father Chad R. Ficorilli, O.S.B., pastor of Sacred Heart Parish, Youngstown, helped the parish mark its 125th anniversary on December 3, with a Mass celebrated by Greensburg

Bishop Anthony G. Bosco. Father Ralph Tajak, O.S.B., parochial vicar, also assisted with the anniversary celebration.

The parish and church, according to The Catholic Accent’s article on the anniversary, were the results of the efforts of early 1860s immigrant miners and factory workers from Slovakia, Italy, Ireland, Spain and England who settled in the Youngstown area near Latrobe. They traveled to Saint Vincent to attend Mass but in 1875 discussed their needs for a church and school with Archabbot Boniface Wimmer and Father Maurice Kaeder, pastor of Saint Vincent. A new church was built on land willed to Saint Vincent. It was dedicated on Dec. 26, 1875, by Boniface Wimmer. Sacred Heart School was built in 1917. The Felician Sisters from Coraopolis agreed to teach at the school in 1945, and a convent was built for them in 1947.

Two Parishes Boniface Wimmer Founded Mark Milestones




“Saint Paul Teaches Us to Pray,” “The Power of Songs (Psalms) to Transport and Transform People Today,” and “Jesus’ Prayer in the Gospel of Mark.”

* * * * *Father Stephen Honeygosky, O.S.B., offered five Lenten programs at

Saint Benedit Church, Marguerite, based on his introductory course, “The Bible as Literature,” currently offered in the English Department at the University of Pittsburgh, Oakland campus.

* * * * *The Saint Vincent Camerata will perform a Lenten Concert at 8 p.m. April 7

in the Saint Vincent Archabbey Basilica. Tickets are $15.The Voices of Saint Vincent will perform at 8 p.m. May 5 in the Archabbey

Basilica. Tickets are $15.To contact the box office call 724-537-4579 or send payment to Saint Vincent

Camerata, 300 Fraser Purchase Rd., Latrobe, PA., 15650-2690.

Br. Thomas Curry, O.S.B., was installed to the Ministry of Acolyte by Most Rev. Anthony G. Bosco, Bishop of Greensburg, on November 6. Concelebrating the Mass with Bishop Bosco were Archabbot Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B., and Rev. Kurt J. Belsole, Seminary Rector.


Archabbey News

The Saint Vincent Fire Department is being featured in a series of national ads as part of an advertising program taking place during March by Mine Safety Appliances (MSA), a manufacturer of mine and fire safety devices.The ads will appear in March in a variety of fire service publications. MSA sent a special effects crew to set up the advertising photo shoot. Featured in the ads are Br. Joseph Adams, O.S.B., Captain in the Fire Department; Br. Cajetan Homick, O.S.B., Second Assistant Fire Chief, and Br. Matthias Marbach, O.S.B., a VFD member, as well as Saint Vincent College students who are mem-bers of the department. Four pages of full color ads appeared in the March issue of Firehouse.

Br. Cajetan said the fire department is participating in a new pilot program for training in the state, and if the program

Fire Department Featured in Ads

is successful, it will be a model for other fire departments. The SVFD is using a CD-ROM for training, a first for the state. The program may then be used by the Pennsylvania Fire Academy and be adapted for statewide use.

The Saint Vincent Fire Department was formed in 1963 after a fire destroyed many of the buildings on campus. Br. Patrick Lacey, O.S.B., has served as fire chief for 37 years.

This photo is from the ad campaign of Mine Safety Appliances which features the Saint Vincent Fire Department. Pictured in this ad from the March issue of “Firehouse” Magazine were Br. Joseph Adams, O.S.B., carrying the child; Br. Cajetan Homick, O.S.B., and Br. Matthias Marbach, O.S.B., in the background.

Seminary Launches $6.1

Million CampaignAt the Saint Vincent Seminary Alumni

and Planned Giving Associates Banquet on October 3, Board of Regents Chair-man John C. Marous, Jr. announced the launching of a $6.1 million capital campaign to meet several needs result-ing from years of enrollment growth and program enhancement. The campaign can be divided into four components: construction, program development, student financial assistance and the library.

The first goal of the campaign is to prepare the Seminary infrastructure to meet the needs of a decade of increasing enrollment and to allow for technological advancements in its classroom buildings.




Archabbot Douglas recently observed the 70th anniversary of the arrival of the Benedictine sisters at Saint Vincent with a Mass at Saint Emma Monastery in Greensburg. On February 25, 1931, ten Benedictine sisters, led by Mother Leonarda Fritz, O.S.B., arrived at Saint Vincent Archabbey from Saint Walburga Abbey in Eichstaett, Bavaria. Archabbot Alfred Koch, O.S.B., had invited the sisters to live and work on the grounds of Saint Vincent. They took charge of the College’s kitchen and by 1934, their numbers were large enough for the sisters to take on the responsibility of the monastery kitchen. Their daily schedule included rising at 4 a.m., gathering for Mass and for three sessions of common prayer in German, and working almost 14 hours before retiring at 9 p.m.

In 1943 the sisters purchased the John Robertshaw estate, consisting of a house and ten acres of land north of Greensburg. The next year they acquired an adjoining 93-acre farm. This served as a summer house and a place to which they could retire from their work at Saint Vincent. Under Mother Leonarda’s wise leadership the development of Saint Emma responded to people’s need for a retreat center.

As the sisters at Saint Vincent grew older, they had to adapt to many changing conditions. On February 1, 1969, a commercial food service was hired to manage the ordering and planning of menus. Early in 1979 new dining facilities were opened for the collegians, the food service took charge of the kitchen and lay people did all the cooking. Until that time, the sisters cooked and served about 3,000 meals a day for the Saint Vincent Community. In December, 1986, Mother Franziska Kloos, O.S.B., the Abbess of Saint Walburga, visited her sisters at Saint Vincent and Saint Emma, and recommended that these remaining 13 sisters join the 20 sisters then at Saint Emma. The date for their move was set for May 22, 1987. The day before the move a grand farewell was celebrated at Saint Vincent. Archabbot Paul Maher, O.S.B., and 84 other priests concelebrated a Mass at the Archabbey Basilica in honor of the sisters, and a festive meal and a reception followed. These events expressed the desires of both communities to continue to nurture the close bonds that had developed between them. Under the capable leadership of Mother Mary Anne Noll, the sisters of St. Emma’s have begun a major renovation project.

Benedictine Sisters Mark 70th Anniversary in United States

Thus, a $3,650,000 construction goal will include $1,970,000 for renovation of one dormitory hall and the construction costs of a new housing wing.

In order to meet the additional housing needs caused by continued growth, the recently-approved Saint Vincent Master Plan 2000 calls for the renovation of Leander Hall, where most of the diocesan seminarians reside, and the construction of a new housing wing. When completed, the facilities will provide an additional 25 dormitory rooms — enough to accom-modate the projected enrollment levels.

Included in the construction component

is $960,000 for structural improvements and implementation of technological enhancements to the seminary classroom building, including a new Center for Homiletics.

Mr. Marous noted that Seminary classes are taught in Aquinas Hall, which was constructed in 1953. “The building will undergo structural renovation to accommodate state of the art technol-ogy in all classrooms, and to establish a center for specialized instruction in homiletics.”

The campaign’s second goal, $1,000,000 for program development, will focus on the Seminary’s Hispanic Ministries program.

In the third focus of the campaign, the seminary will seek to raise $1,000,000 for scholarship assistance, to cover the costs of seminary education for students from dioceses and religious communities without the capacity to pay.

The fourth component of the new campaign will seek to raise $500,000 for the library, including $200,000 for preservation of the historical collection of theological books and writings, $200,000 for the purchase of theological works important to the education of seminar-ians, and $100,000 for the implementa-tion of Internet access to resources at the best scriptural and theological research centers throughout the world.


Seminary Launches $6.1 Million Capital Campaign

The Benedictine Sisters shortly after they moved to Saint Emma: front, from left, Sr. Wiltrud, Sr. Gaudentia, Sr. Walburga, Sr. Pudentiana, Mother M. Agnes, Sr. Brigitta, Sr. Aurelia, Sr. Friedhilde; middle, from left, Sr. Mary Bernard, Sr. Margareta, Sr. Gabriele, Sr. Corona, Mother M. Franziska, Mother Mary Anne, Sr. Maria, Sr. Scholastica, Sr. Pancratia, Sr. Mary Therese; back, from left, Sr. Boniface, Sr. Aleydis, Sr. Bonfilia, Sr. Hedwig, Sr. Seraphine, Sr. Ancilla and Sr. Mary Benedict.

In the kitchen at Saint Vincent, late 1960s, front, from left, Sr. Josephine, Sr. Barbara, Sr. Bridget, Sr. Leodegaria, Mother Leonarda Fritz, Sr. Liberata, Sr. Theresa, Sr. Willibalda; back, Sr. Walburga, Sr. Christiana, Sr. Aleydis, Sr. Justina, Sr. Armella, Sr. Agnes, Sr. Hermilinda, Sr. Rhinilda.



The Inauguration of President Will Taking part in the Founders’ Day Presidential Inauguration of James F. Will at Saint Vincent College were (1) from left,

Archabbot Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B.; Most Rev. Donald W. Wuerl, Bishop of Pittsburgh, who received the Presidential Medal of Honor; Mr. Will; Most Rev. Anthony G. Bosco, Bishop of Greensburg; and Most Rev. Judson M. Procyk, Metropolitan Archbishop of Pittsburgh, Byzantine. In photos (2), Archabbot Douglas and Mr. J. Christopher Donahue, Chairman of the Saint Vincent College Corporation Board of Directors, congratulate Mr. Will upon his inauguration; (3) Bishop Wuerl and Mr. Will; (4) Mr. Will, his wife Mary Ellen, and daughters Mary Beth and Kerry; (5) the procession into the Archabbey Basilica for the inauguration.

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“Our Lady of Fatima has a special place in the hearts of the people and pastor of St. Boniface Parish at Chestnut Ridge,” a story in The Catholic Accent noted. “The people had already built a statue of the apparitions and the peasant children to whom Mary appeared when Benedictine Father Simon J. Toth was assigned to the parish. That was a personal joy for him, as his reading about Our Lady of Fatima ‘gave rise to my vocation to the priesthood,’ he said.”

The statues have a new place of honor on the church grounds, enclosed in a stone shrine designed by parishioner Rose

1897 season.“However, even before he appeared

in his first Major League game with the Phillies, he had already made his debut as a professional athlete — a football player,” Baldassaro writes, effectively becoming the first two-sport professional athlete. “In 1895, Latrobe fielded what is generally acknowledged as the first professional football team in the country. Ed Abbatic-chio was its star fullback and kicker. According to coaching legend Fielding Yost, Abbaticchio also made an historic contribution to football — the creation of the spiral punt.”

Professional baseball and Benedictine monks are two topics that are not often brought up in the same conversation unless the conversation involves the Abbaticchio family of Latrobe. Father Damian A. Abbaticchio’s father, Ed, was recently featured in an article by Larry Baldassaro in NINE: A Journal of Baseball History and Social Policy Perspectives.

Baldassaro, who is in the process of writing a history of Italian Americans in major league baseball, wrote to Father Damian that “obviously Ed Abbaticchio will play a major role in that study.”

Ed Abbaticchio was an infielder who played for four Major League teams between 1897 and 1910, and, according to Baldassaro, was very likely the first Italian-American to play in the Major Leagues. Born in Latrobe in 1877, Ed’s father, Archangelo, had come to the United States in 1873 before the large wave of Italian immigration that began in the 1880s. After initially working as a barber, he became the proprietor of a hotel and tavern in Latrobe and acquired other property in the area. His wife and their four children immigrated in 1875. Ed was the first of four additional children to be born in America and, unlike most children of immigrant families, he and two of his brothers attended college. Ed was enrolled at Saint Vincent College, taking classical courses in three academic years, 1891-1892, 1892-1893, and 1895-1896. He received a Master of Accounts degree in 1895 from St. Mary’s College in North Carolina, according to Baldassaro. This college is and was Benedictine, and is now known as Belmont Abbey College.

After playing semi-pro ball in Greens-burg, Abbaticchio began his Major League career with a brief, three-game stint with the Philadelphia Phillies at the end of the

Fr. Damian Abbaticchio’s Family Tie to Baseball Pioneer

Chestnut Ridge Parish in the NewsKmetz, who has a deep devotion to the Blessed Mother at Fatima. The shrine is now a prayerful focal point at the church grounds.

There are six windows in the shrine, the first dedicated to the founding families of St. Boniface, the second to the Kmetz and Skovira families for their support of the artist, the third to the mothers of St. Boniface, the fourth to the Holy Spirit, the fifth to Father Simon and to all the priests who have served the parish as pastor, and the sixth to all the children of St. Boniface Parish.

He played in 25 games for the Phillies then returned to the Major Leagues in 1900 to play for Milwaukee and Connie Mack. It was back to the minor leagues until Boston purchased his contract in 1902, and from 1903 to 1905 he started at shortstop and second base for the Boston Nationals of the National League.

He retired in 1905 when his father offered to turn his hotel over to his son, but in 1907, he was lured out of retirement to play with the Pittsburgh Pirates, who traded three players to Boston for him and offered him the extraordinary salary of $5,000. That was $1,000 more than teammate Honus Wagner, who had been a Pirates star since 1900, according to Baldassaro. He wrote that “in 1908 he was the Pirates’ starting second baseman, forming the double play combination with Wagner, and drove in 82 runs, tying ‘The Flying Dutchman’ for second place in the National League. And, according to the Total Baseball clutch hitting index, he ranked first in that category in the National League.”

Abbaticchio was a role player in 1909, the year the Pirates won the World Series. He operated his hotel in Latrobe until 1932 when he retired to Florida. He died in Fort Lauderdale on Jan. 6, 1957.

Edward Abbaticchio is pictured with the 1902 Saint Vincent College Baseball Team, in the second row, third from left. He is seated next to Father Mark Kistner, O.S.B.



of 45 years, Winnie, who passed away in November 1999. It will be funded, established and operated through a non-profit corporation, organized under Pennsylvania law and approved for federal tax-exempt status [Section 501

Winnie Palmer Nature Reserve Planned Near Saint Vincent(c) (3)] by the Internal Revenue Service.

Aware of Winnie Palmer’s long-stand-ing desire to preserve the land and its sweeping vista across the valley to the Basilica and campus of Saint Vincent College, the Nakles and Boyle families, co-owners of the tract, offered to sell the

property to Mr. Palmer. He and a group of his friends seized upon this opportunity to provide a recreational and educational facility that would serve the community and honor Mrs. Palmer.

This property, which lies just west of the Route 981 intersection, abuts land belonging to St. Vincent, which has indicated it will make available for lease or acquisition approximately 25 adjacent acres for use in the creation of the Reserve. Mrs. Palmer was a member of the Saint Vincent College Board of Directors.

“Winnie would be very pleased about this and with what we intend to create on this land,” said Mr. Palmer, who provided a major initial contribution to the Nature Reserve. He and David M. Roderick of Ligonier, retired chairman of USX, have begun a fund-raising effort with a goal of $6 million to fund the land acquisition and development of the Reserve in perpetuity.

With the valuable assistance of the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, a grant application has been filed with the State Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and additional funding is being sought on the federal level.

To quote its statement of purpose:“The Winnie Palmer Nature Reserve will

engage in educational activities intended to increase awareness and understanding of ecological concerns and challenges facing our natural environment.

“The Reserve will carry out this purpose by providing and improving land and facilities that will be open to the general public for hiking and recreation. With the assistance of Saint Vincent College, the Reserve’s land also will be used for the conduct of conservation and environmental education activities.”

In addition to its frontage on Route 30 and abutment to Saint Vincent land, the property is adjacent to the small community of Saint Vincent Shaft. Neither site planning nor clearing and improve-ment of the land is underway. But, it is anticipated that the Reserve will have entrances off Route 981 and the rerouted Fraser Purchase Road (Saint Vincent Drive) that now runs through the college campus in front of the Basilica, and will utilize an existing structure as a headquarters building.

Besides Mr. Palmer and Mr. Roderick, the Board of Trustees of the Nature

Archabbot Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B., (left) is pictured with Mrs. Winnie Palmer and Arnold Palmer in 1996, when Mr. Palmer was honored with an honorary degree during the annual commencement of Saint Vincent College. Next to Archabbot Douglas in the photo is Rev. Theodore Hesburgh of Notre Dame, who also received an honorary degree. At right is Rev. Martin Bartel, O.S.B., President of the College in that year. Archabbot Douglas is on the Board of Trustees of the Nature Reserve which will honor the late Mrs. Palmer.


Pictured above is the proposed site of the Nature Reserve from Route 30 looking toward the Saint Vincent Campus.



Reserve consists of Mr. and Mrs. Palmer’s daughters, Mrs. Peggy Wears and Mrs. Amy Saunders; Archabbot Douglas R. Nowicki; Attorney Richmond Ferguson, and Donald (Doc) Giffin, Mr. Palmer’s administrative assistant.

All inquiries about the Reserve and contributions to the organization are being directed to Mr. Giffin and/or Bob Demangone in Mr. Palmer’s local office – P. O. Box 52, Youngstown, PA 15696; 724 537-7751.

The map of the proposed reserve (right) shows its rela-tionship to the Saint Vincent campus, as well as to the airport, Route 30, and Route 981.

The dashed line is the proposed new Saint Vincent Drive, which will become the new entry road to the Saint Vincent campus.

Illustration Showing Proposed Reserve

He entered the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate on August 14, 1957 and was ordained a priest on December 21, 1963.

Cardinal George has authored, edited or contributed to nine books, including: Inculturation and Ecclesial Communion (1990); “Evangelizing American Culture,” a chapter in The New Catholic Evangeli-zation (1992); “The Church and Cultures,” a chapter in A Church for All Peoples (1993); response to “The Church and the Kingdom,” a chapter in A Church for All Peoples (1993); “Bishops and the Splendor of Truth,” a chapter in The Splendor of Truth and Health Care (1995); “Missionaries and Native Peoples of North America: Lessons for the Church Today,” Contemporary American Life (1995); “Justice,” Dictionnaire des Valeurs Oblates (1996); “Bishops and Theolo-gians,” a chapter in Theological Education in the Catholic Tradition: Contemporary Challenges (1997) and “Knowledge of God,” in Encyclopedia of Catholic Doctrine (1997). He has also written dozens of articles and reviews published in a variety of national and international publications.

Cardinal George has earned the S.T.D. degree in ecclesiology from the Pontifical University, Urbaniana, Rome (1988); the Ph.D. in American philosophy from Tulane University, New Orleans, Louisiana (1970); the M.A. in theology from the University of Ottawa, Canada (1971); the M.A. in philosophy from The Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C. (1965); and the B. Th. from the University of Ottawa, Canada (1964). Cardinal George recently gave the retreat at the Vatican on March 4.

Cardinal Georgeto Receive Degree


Six summer retreats are planned for 2001 at Saint Vincent Archabbey in May, June and July.

“Benedictine Spirituality” will initiate the retreat schedule on May 18 to 20, with retreat master Fr. Michael McKay, O.S.B.

Fr. Mark Gruber, O.S.B., will lead the women’s retreat scheduled for May 25-27, while Fr. Wulfstan F. Clough, O.S.B., will conduct the retreat for mar-ried couples from June 1-3. Fr. Andrew S. Campbell, O.S.B., and Fr. John-Mary Tompkins, O.S.B., will do the Charismatic Prayer retreat from June 8-10. A men’s three-day retreat will be conducted by Fr. Thomas M. Hart, O.S.B., from June 15-17, and a men’s four-day retreat will be held June 21-24 with Fr. Thomas P. Acklin, O.S.B., serving as retreat

Six Summer Retreats Planned

HomilistMost Rev. Judson M. Procyk, Met-

ropolitan Archbishop of Pittsburgh, Byzantine Rite, will be the homilist at the annual St. Benedict’s Day Mass, to be held at 4 p.m. Wednesday, March 21 in the Archabbey Basilica. Most Rev. Anthony G. Bosco, Bishop of Greensburg, will be the principal celebrant.

master. To register for a retreat, contact Br.

Hugh D. Lester, O.S.B., Retreat Director, 300 Fraser Purchase Rd., Latrobe, PA 15650-2690; 724-532-6600, Ext. 2139.

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Red lines designate overallproject area of 50 acres.

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Saint Vincent CampusBasilica

Rev. Kieran J.Rodgers, O.S.B.

60 YearsProfession

Rev. Roland L.Heid, O.S.B.

60 YearsOrdination

Rev. Clair F.Gannon, O.S.B.

60 YearsOrdination

Rev. Joel R.Lieb, O.S.B.

60 YearsProfession

Rev. James F.Podlesny, O.S.B.

25 YearsProfession

Br. Hilary D. Hanrahan, O.S.B., 25 Years Profession, photo not available.

Rev. David R. Griffin, O.S.B.

25 YearsOrdination

Rev. Bede J.Hasso, O.S.B.

50 YearsProfession

Rev. Claude W.Pollak O.S.B.

50 YearsProfession

Rev. Christian G.LeFrois, O.S.B.

60 YearsProfession

Rev. Blane L.Resko, O.S.B.

50 YearsProfession

Rev. Conan E.Feigh, O.S.B.

50 YearsProfession

Rev. John F.Murtha, O.S.B.

50 YearsProfession

Rev. Thomas P.Acklin, O.S.B.

25 YearsProfession

Most Rev. RembertG. Weakland, O.S.B.

50 YearsOrdination

Rev. Paschal N. Kneip, O.S.B.

50 YearsOrdination





Youth Day 2000 in RomeSaint Vincent Benedictine Fr. Fred Byrne, O.S.B., Director of the Penn State Catholic Center, traveled to Rome for World

Youth Day with a group from the Emmanuel Community. The photos show the crowd of 2.1 million people and the Holy Father, Pope John Paul II, as his motorcade passed through the crowd.

By Father Eugene Hemrick

A father who was unhappy with his daughter’s lifestyle surprised me one day when he threatened her in Shakespearean fashion, “Get thee to a convent.”

In the minds of some people, convents and monasteries are like prisons where a person’s life is closed off from the world forever. If these people really understood monastic life, their impression of it would be much different.

In August, I made my regular summer trip back to Chicago from Washington, stopping at Saint Vincent Archabbey in Latrobe to catch up with old friends. This year I was fortunate to have a Benedictine monk from Saint Vincent as a riding companion.

We opted to take the quiet back roads rather than the turnpike. I was glad we did this because the quiet countryside has the effect of putting my worries and Washington behind me.

To some extent, the four-hour ride to Saint Vincent did this, but the real peace I was seeking came to me in a courtyard alongside its main chapel. Quietly sitting on a bench, I heard the monks singing night prayer.

National Columnist Visits Saint Vincentmost inspiring about them is the humility that is required to be a true community member.

When they walk to their choir stalls to begin the Divine Office, they surrender their individuality and become one body. Although many of them are noted scholars in their own right, their main purpose in life is not to stand alone and assert their individuality, but to be one with each other as Christ is one with us and as the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are one with each other.

This symbol of unity, which is the hallmark of Benedictine life, is the very principle which gives life to families and nations.

After my visit to Saint Vincent, I pro-ceeded on to Chicago, thinking to myself, “How I wish one of my superiors would say to me, ‘Gene, get thee off to the monastery!’ ”

Father Hemrick is coordinator of research at Washington Theological Union, Washington, D.C., and a member of the Life Cycle Research Institute for The Catholic University of America, also in Washington. He is a national columnist whose reflections are carried in hundreds of Catholic newspapers each week.

“What is in this music,” I asked myself, “that is creating the serenity I am feel-ing?”

The more I listened, the more I wanted to learn the secret.

Benedictine music exudes peaceful-ness, giving one the feeling of freely float-ing on gently undulating water. Although its simple melodic lines are music at its purest, its verses praising God make it divine.

When we look deeper into this divine spirit, we find that much of monastic music implores us to lift up our spirit by uniting it with God.

How I wished, as I listened carefully to the monks singing, that those seeking peace could be at my side. Not only would they experience soothing sounds, but if they listened carefully they would find within the verses precious lessons of life just waiting to be absorbed and enjoyed.

As I continued to listen, I wondered: “What is it that is especially inspiring in seeing a group of men chanting prayers?”

I concluded that unlike most men’s choirs, monks are a community who work, pray and live together for the singular purpose of praising God. But what is



Archabbot Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B., has announced a number of appointments involving the Benedictine community at Vincent College, Saint Vincent Seminary and the Archabbey’s mission in Taiwan.

• Rev. Chrysostom V. Schlimm, O.S.B., has been appointed Special Collections librarian at the Saint Vincent Libraries.

• Br. David A. Kelly, O.S.B., has been appointed to succeed Fr. Chrysostom as Director of the Saint Vincent Libraries.

• Rev. Thomas P. Acklin, O.S.B.,will resume full-time duties as Professor of Theology at Saint Vincent Seminary.

• Rev. Kurt J. Belsole, O.S.B., has been named Rector of Saint Vincent Seminary.

• Br. Nicholas A. Koss, O.S.B., has been promoted to a full Professor at Fu Jen Catholic University in Taipei, Taiwan.

* * * * *Fr. Chrysostom is a native of Saint

Marys, Pa. He received a bachelor of arts degree in philosophy from Saint Vincent College in 1957, and a master of arts degree in classical languages from the Catholic University of America in 1964. He earned a master’s degree in library science from the University of Pittsburgh in 1973. He attended Saint Vincent Seminary from 1955 to 1961.

He made simple profession of monastic vows on July 2, 1955, and solemn profes-sion of vows on July 11, 1958. He was ordained a priest on June 3, 1961, by the late Bishop William J. Connare of Greensburg at the Archabbey Basilica.

Fr. Chrysostom has served on the library staff since 1970. Prior to that he was an assistant pastor at Saint Bruno Parish, South Greensburg; instructor of Latin at Saint Vincent Seminary and Saint Vincent Preparatory School; instructor of Classical Languages and Literature at Saint Vincent College; business manager of the Saint Vincent Oblate Staff and an assistant in the Saint Vincent Maintenance Office and the Saint Vincent Food Service Office. He will serve as Special Collections Librarian.

* * * * *Br. David has served as associate

library director since 1998. A Pittsburgh native, he received a bachelor of science degree in English from St. Joseph Col-lege, Philadelphia, in 1969, a master of arts degree in religious studies from

Appointments — Library, Seminary, Faculty

Br. David A. Kelly, O.S.B.Rev. Chrysostom V. Schlimm, O.S.B.

Providence College in 1970, and a master of arts degree in political science from Georgetown University in 1984. In addi-tion, he earned a baccalaureate degree and a licentiate in canon law at St. Paul University, Ottawa, in 1993 and 1994 respectively, and both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in canon law at the University of Ottawa, again in 1993 and 1994 respectively. In 2000 Br. David received a master of library and informa-tion science degree from the University of Pittsburgh.

Br. David made his simple profession of monastic vows on July 10, 1973, and solemn profession of vows on July 11, 1976.

At Saint Vincent College, Br. David has served as a lecturer in the Religious Studies Department and as director of Religious Education. He was an instructor in religious studies from 1974 to 1978, and an instructor in political science from 1984 to 1992, and assistant professor from 1994 to 1999. He is currently assistant professor of canon law at Saint Vincent Seminary. Past assignments also have included serving as assistant director of the Opportunity SVC/Act 101 Program at Saint Vincent College from 1984 to 1986 and as director of the program from 1988 to 1992.

Br. David served as president of the Faculty Council from 1990 to 1992, as a member of the Monastery Human Resources Council from 1989 to 1992, and has served as a member of the

Archabbey Council of Seniors. He served as subprior at Saint Vincent Archabbey from 1994 to 1998, and in 1998 was named administrative assistant to the Archabbot.

In 1978 Br. David was honored with the Student Government Association Faculty Award.

* * * * *Fr. Thomas served as Rector of Saint

Vincent Seminary since 1989. He received a bachelor of arts degree in philosophy from Duquesne University in 1971, a master of arts degree in philosophy from Duquesne in 1975 and a master of divinity degree from Saint Vincent Seminary in 1978. He earned a licentiate in Sacred Theology in 1980, a doctor of philosophy degree in 1982, and a doctor of Sacred Theology degree in 1983 from the Uni-versity of Louvain. He has also received professional psychoanalytic certification and training from Belgian School of Psychoanalysis (1980-1982); Pittsburgh Psychoanalytic Center (1982-1985); The American Boards for Accreditation and Certification of the National Association for the Advancement of Psychoanalysis (1985) and the Pittsburgh Psychoanalytic Institute (1985-1994).

He made simple profession of monastic vows on July 10, 1976, and solemn profession of vows on July 11, 1979. He was ordained to the priesthood on April 12, 1980 by Bishop Norbert Gaughan at Saint Vincent Archabbey Basilica. His professional experience includes serving



Appointments — Library, Seminary, Faculty

Rev. Kurt J. Belsole, O.S.B. Br. Nicholas Koss, O.S.B.Rev. Thomas P. Acklin, O.S.B.

as a teacher at Saint Mary of the Mount High School, Pittsburgh (1974-1975); lecturer in the Departments of Religious Studies and Philosophy at Saint Vincent College (1976-1978); assistant professor (1982-1987), associate profes-sor (1987-1993) and professor (1993-pres-ent) in the Departments of Theology and Psychology at Saint Vincent Seminary and College. He has been a faculty member of the Pittsburgh Psychoanalytic Founda-tion since 1994 and of the Pittsburgh Psychoanalytic Institute since 1995. He has also served as a psychotherapist at the Counseling Center, Saint Vincent College (1982-1991); psychotherapist for Pittsburgh Psychoanalytic Center (1983-1985); psychotherapist for Latrobe Psychotherapy Associates, Inc. (1990- present) and in private practice as a psychotherapist (1982-present). He has written two books during his current sab-batical leave and will return to the Saint Vincent Seminary faculty and continue with his psychotherapy practice.

* * * * *Fr. Kurt is a Saint Marys native. He

was named Assistant Rector in January of 2000, Interim Rector from May of 2000 through March of 2001 and Rector in March of 2001. He earned a bachelor of arts degree in philosophy from Saint Vincent College in 1974, a master of divin-ity degree from Saint Vincent Seminary in 1978, a diploma in Latin Letters in 1980 from the Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome; a License in Patristic Theology

and Sciences in 1983 from the Patristic Institute at the Augustinianum, Rome; studied at the Pontifical Liturgical Institute, Rome (1981-1983); and earned a doctor-ate in Sacred Theology in 1994 from Pontifical Athenaeum of Saint Anselm, Rome.

He made simple profession of monastic vows on July 10, 1972 and solemn profes-sion of vows on January 15, 1977. He was ordained a priest on May 27, 1978 by the late Bishop William G. Connare at the Archabbey Basilica.

At Saint Vincent Seminary he has served as Academic Dean from 1986 to 1989 and was acting Director of Spiritual Life in the fall semester of 1998. From 1995 to 1999, during the spring semes-ters, he taught at the Pontifical Athenaeum of Saint Anselm, Rome. At the Archab-bey he has served as secretary to the Archabbot (1992-1993); and has been on the novitiate faculty of Saint Vincent Archabbey teaching monastic history since 1984. He has published one book, “Joy in Lent: Gaudium in Chapter 49 of the Regula Benedicti. The Monastic and Liturgical Contexts,” published in 1993 in Rome. He has also published numerous articles and reviews.

* * * * *Br. Nicholas, Prior of Wimmer Priory in

Taipei, Taiwan, was recently promoted to full professor at Fu Jen Catholic University after receiving final approval from the Ministry of Education.

Br. Nicholas has been teaching in the

English Department of Fu Jen since 1981. He first arrived in Taiwan in 1966 as a young monk following his graduation from Saint Vincent College. After Chinese language studies at the Jesuit-run Cha-banel Institute of Chinese, he entered Indiana University in Bloomingtom to study Comparative Literature and received both an MA and Ph.D. He also teaches in the Graduate Institute of Comparative Literature and in the Graduate Institute of Chinese Literature. He previously taught in the Graduate Institute of Interpretation and Translation Studies, which he helped establish at Fu Jen in the late 1980s. He was Director of the Graduate Institute of English Literature from 1982 to 1988.

His promotion to Professor was based on his publication in 1999 of the book The Best and Fairest Land: Medieval Images of China. His next book will be on images of China in Sixteenth-century England. For many years he has been translating Chinese literature from Taiwan into Eng-lish, especially for the journal The Chinese Pen (Taipei). His translations have been frequently anthologized and one won an American award for translation in 1999.

Since 1994, Br. Nicholas has been involved with the Benedictine Commis-sion on China, for which he is Executive Secretary. He also serves on the Execu-tive Committee for the association of Benedictine superiors in East Asia. In recent years he has also assisted with the Benedictine parish in Linkou.



Five Books and Counting for Fr. Rene KollarChairman of the Saint Vincent College

History Department since 1991, Father Rene has taught in the College’s History Department since 1974 and has been teaching church history at Saint Vincent Seminary since 1982.

Curiosity led the way to his latest topic. While an honorary research fellow of King’s College, University of London, from 1987 to 1988, Fr. Rene came across an article in a Roman Catholic publica-tion, The Tablet, which noted the 1979 release of a forty-year-old report by a committee of the Anglican church on Spiritualism. His curiosity led him to Lambeth Palace, which is a major repository for the Anglican Church, where he began reading the committee’s report and delving into whatever related docu-ments he could find, trying to discover why it took so long for the contents of these “secret” documents to be revealed.

The title of Fr. Rene’s book is taken from a book published in 1916 by Sir Oliver Lodge, whose son, Raymond, was killed on September 14, 1915, in the Ypres campaign of World War I.

“Prior to this tragedy,” Fr. Rene writes, “Sir Oliver, a leading figure in the Society for Psychical Research, had already become well acquainted with several mediums, and after he received the sad news from the front, some of them began

to claim that they had already established contact with the dead son. Skeptical at first, both Lord and Lady Lodge eventually became believers after several sittings with a professional medium.”

The Lodge book had a tremendous impact, and large numbers of Britons began turning to Spiritualism for answers and consolation due to the tremendous loss of life in the war. British deaths alone are estimated at 772,000, Fr. Rene writes.

“The number of people killed in the war was phenomenal,” Fr. Rene said. “Entire neighborhoods got wiped out, colleges were decimated.” He explained that the Anglicans had a difficult time coping with all the deaths. The Anglican Church attempted to help its members deal with the deaths, but Spiritualism seemed to fill the void left by their loved ones. People felt comforted by the fact that they could “talk” to their deceased loved ones and receive “messages” from them through mediums or spiritualists.

A reader of his book will note the tre-mendous amount of meticulous research which Fr. Rene has done, using numer-ous manuscript collections, many news-paper clippings, and over a hundred printed works in his 187-page book.

“I spend a lot of time doing research,” he said. “I try to read all I can get my hands on about a subject; to comb through all the articles, news clippings

and stacks of papers I can. I think it’s important for the historian to ask ques-tions. I try to enjoy every facet of the whole project, although the writing is hard work. I write numerous drafts and have people look at them. It’s a challenge.”

Often, he doesn’t know at the outset what he will do with a topic, if a topic will evolve into an article or if there will be enough material to turn it into a book. He tries not to arrive at any conclusions during the research process, preferring to let the research lead to any conclusions drawn in his work.

After completing graduate studies at the University of Maryland, earning a doctorate in 1981, Fr. Rene began his prolific writing career, publishing reviews in Albion, The Catholic Historical Review, The American Benedictine Review, The American Historical Review, and numerous other publications. He was an associate editor for The American Benedictine Review (1990-1994). His articles have been published in The Irish Theological Quarterly, Journal of Ecumenical Studies and numerous other publications.

His first books were published in England: Westminster Cathedral: From Dream to Reality (1987) and The Return of the Benedictines to London, A History of Ealing Abbey from 1896 to Indepen-dence (1990).

“I was at Ealing Abbey, and I was

Fr. Rene Kollar’s four earlier published books are pictured above, from left, Abbot Aelred Carlyle, Caldey Island, and

the Anglo-Catholic Revival in England; The Return of the Benedictines to London, A History of Ealing Abbey from 1896 to Independence; A Universal Appeal, Aspects of the Revival of Monasticism in

the West in the 19th and Early 20th Centuries; and Westminster Cathedral: From Dream to Reality.




Archabbot Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B., recently marked the 100th anniversary of the birth of the late Art Rooney, Sr., by celebrating a Mass in his memory at the Saint Vincent Archabbey Basilica. Art Rooney, Sr. had been a lifelong friend of the Benedictines. The Rooneys have a long affiliation with Saint Vincent, and one of the dormitories on campus is named in honor of Art Rooney, Sr., who died in 1988. His birthday was on January 27. At right is a photo of the plaque in Rooney Hall. Its inscription reads: “for a lifetime of dedication to family, community, sports and church.”

literally looking for something to do, so I asked the current abbot if he would like me to do a history,” Fr. Rene said. “While doing research on that, I ran into the Westminster Story.” In 1995, Peter Lang Publishing, Inc., of New York, published a book based on Fr. Rene’s doctoral dissertation, Abbot Aelred Carlyle, Caldey Island, and the Anglo-Catholic Revival in England, which was followed a year later by A Univer-sal Appeal. Aspects of the Revival of Monasticism in the West in the 19th and Early 20th Centuries.

Although his subject matter is diverse, primarily based on what interests him, his work has been influenced by one place — the classroom. Fr. Rene is both inspired by his current and past students, in both the college and the seminary, and grateful for the many good teachers he has had in his past. That love of the classroom prompted him to dedicate his last book to “The students of Saint Vincent College.” “I always like to do that,” he said. “I like teaching. The students keep me young, and keep me on my feet. So I dedicated it to those whom I’ve taught, because I’ve learned a lot from them too.”

A native of Hastings, Pennsylvania, Fr. Rene is the son of Bernice (Kosic) Kollar and the late Matt Kollar. He received a bachelor of arts degree from Saint Vincent College and a master of divinity degree from Saint Vincent Seminary. His graduate studies were done in history at the University of Maryland, where he received a master of arts degree and a doctor of philosophy degree.

He entered the Benedictine Monastic

Community of Saint Vincent Archabbey in 1967, making simple profession of vows on July 11, 1968, and solemn profession of vows on July 11, 1971. He was ordained a priest in Saint Vincent Archabbey Basilica by the Most Rev. William Connare, Bishop of Greensburg, on May 18, 1974.

His professional experiences at Saint Vincent College include: lecturer in History (1976–81); instructor in History (1981–82); assistant professor in History (1982–85); member of the Liberal Arts Program (1981–86); campus minister (1982–86); director of the Liberal Arts Program (1983–84); associate professor in History (1985–91); chairperson of the History Department (1991–present); professor in History (1991–present); member of the Board of Incorporators (1990–1996, 1997-present); and Execu-tive Director of the International Issues and Insights Lecture Series (1991–93). At Saint Vincent Seminary he has been adjunct professor in Church History (1982-1996) and professor of Church History (1997-present). At the Archabbey he has been a member of the Council of Seniors (1991-1996); member of the Archabbey Human Resources Council (1992-1996); and chair of the Committee on Career Orientation and Professional Training (1992-1996).

Abroad in England, Father Rene has been honorary research fellow of King’s College, University of London (1987–88); guest lecturer in modern Church History for the Department of Christian Doctrine and History, King’s College, University of London (1988); and a visiting scholar at Heythrop Col-

lege, University of London (1996-1997). In 1986, he was made a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society.

His professional memberships include the American Historical Association, North American Conference on British Studies, Ecclesiastical History Society (Great Britain), Church History Society of America, Phi Alpha Theta, Alpha Mu Gamma, Church of England Record Society, and the American Catholic History Association.

Father Rene has received numerous awards, including the Saint Vincent Student Faculty Award (1982), the Saint Vincent College Faculty Development Grant (1984-1989, 1993, 1994, 1996), the Saint Vincent Student Government Association Award (1989) and the Saint Vincent College Faculty Award (1992). He was named to Men of Distinction in 1989 and to Men of Achievement in 1990 by the International Biographical Centre, Cambridge, England. He was Saint Vincent College’s nominee for CASE Professor of the Year in 1992 and was named to Who’s Who Among American Teachers in 1994 and 2000.

Although many of his topics are of an academic nature, Fr. Rene’s writing style is both scholarly and readable. He credits the readability of his writing style to having had good teachers and with keeping his audience in mind.

“I try to present the material so that any educated person can read it,” he noted. “That’s what you have to do.”

Judging by his growing list of publica-tions, he’s found the formula for success. His next book will study 19th century anti-convent literature in Victorian England.

Mass Marks 100th Anniversary of Art Rooney, Sr.’s Birthday



Priesthood Ordinations May 19, July 14Br. Lee R. Yoakam, O.S.B. (left) will be ordained to the

priesthood on Saturday, May 19, in Saint Vincent Archabbey Basilica by Most Rev. Anthony G. Bosco, Bishop of the Diocese of Greensburg. The ordination of Br. Edward M. Mazich, O.S.B., by Bishop Bosco will take place at 10 a.m. Saturday, July 14, in the Basilica.

Gristmill Renovation in ProgressChanges are taking place at the Saint Vincent Gristmill. In the top, left photo, a ramp has been added to allow access by

physically challenged persons under the Americans with Disabilities Act. The access is part of a plan to open a museum, environmental education center and a store on the first floor, allowing tourists to learn about the gristmill and its history. The store is scheduled to open on March 17. The top, right photo shows construction in progress on the store area. The bottom, left photo shows some of the displays in the environmental education center, including a photo of Br. Norman W. Hipps, O.S.B., and Fr. Earl J. Henry, O.S.B., at the dedication of the wetlands project. The bottom, right photo shows a new sign which has been erected adjacent to the Saint Vincent Gristmill, detailing the history of the Gristmill and the nearby wetlands. The photos and text feature the story of Saint Vincent Bread and the renovation of the Gristmill, which was established in 1854, shortly after the arrival of Saint Vincent founder Boniface Wimmer in 1846.

Upcoming EventsSaturday, April 7, Saint Vincent Camerata Lenten Concert,

8 p.m., Archabbey Basilica. Saturday, May 5, Voices of Saint Vincent Concert, 8 p.m.,

Archabbey Basilica.Thursday, June 14, 4 p.m., Jubilarian Day Mass, Archabbot

Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B., Principal Celebrant.Tuesday, July 10, first vows and renewal of temporary vows

at Evening Prayer, 5 p.m., Archabbey Basilica.Wednesday, July 11, Feast of Saint Benedict, Profession

of Solemn Vows within Conventual Mass, 10 a.m., Archabbey Basilica.

Tuesday, July 31, Priests Day Mass, Bishop Anthony G. Bosco, Principal Celebrant, 11 a.m.

Friday, August 3, to Sunday, August 5, Saint Vincent Alumni Reunion Weekend.



“Ancient Images/Modern Expressions,” the first biennial juried Catholic Arts Exhibi-tion to be hosted by The Saint Vincent Gal-lery, opened with a reception on Tuesday, March 6, and will be on view until Sunday, April 1.

Drawn from a first-time nationwide competition conducted by Saint Vincent College, the 51 works in the exhibit are of various media and have been done by 40 artists representing a dozen states.

Gallery director, Br. Nathan Cochran, O.S.B., said the exhibit features contem-porary sacred art for public and private devotion done in the western Christian tradition. “There is a canon of Christian art which is intended to impart the faith by using a common, visual language, which makes it readily accessible and understandable to the viewer. Its purpose is to inspire and instruct, and for many centuries has been most often found within the confines of the Catholic and Orthodox traditions. This competition, and the resulting exhibition, attempts to encourage artists to once again use this traditional visual language, and to make contemporary masterpieces which express the Christian faith accurately, with artistic excellence, while being comprehensible by Christians and inspir-ing them in their faith and their relation-ship with God, Jesus Christ and the saints.”

The juror of the exhibit was Dr. Frima Fox Hofrichter, a member of the Pratt Institute faculty in New York City. Dr. Hofrichter holds a doctorate in art his-tory from Rutgers University. She is a specialist in Dutch and Flemish Baroque art and iconography, and feminist art history. Her monograph, Judith Lester: A Woman Artist in Holland’s Golden Age, received a College Art Association Millard Meiss Award. She is also the recipient

of a Woodrow Wilson Award in Women’s Studies and an American Council of Learned Societies Grant-In-Aid. Dr. Hofrichter has curated and written the catalogues for Haarlem: The Seventeenth Century and Leonaert Bramer, Painter of the Night. At Pratt Institute Dr. Hofrichter teaches Northern and Southern Baroque Art, Northern Renaissance Art, and the History of Prints and Drawings. She has also served as a Smithsonian Institution Insight Lecturer on a number of Study Abroad Programs for the Smithsonian Associates.

In judging the works, Dr. Hofrichter said that she was “impressed by the array of media: oil, stained glass, photography, etching, with further selections on fabric and even goose egg. The combination of media, the joining of Eastern and Western traditions, and the references to older paintings -- whether Byzantine or old masters -- of the historic themes made this a rich experience and suggest an exhibition with depth and variety. The top choices were original -- several beautiful and some disturbing; but the ability to stir one’s emotions was para-mount.”

“I found myself thinking about these images long after I saw them,” she said. “I was surprised and stirred by these powerful images and trust that viewers of the exhibition will be too.”

Artists from Pennsylvania represented in the exhibit include: Margaret Jubara

and Vincent de Paul Crosby, O.S.B., Latrobe; Bernadette R. Farah, Greens-burg; Eleanor J. Krick, and Mary Kay Neff and Maureen Vissat, North Huntingdon; Elizabeth Myers Castonguay, Joseph G. Doemling, Joseph A. Hajnas, Christine Stehling Hoebler, George Kollar, Donna Lee Kurland, Suzann Miriello and David Miriello, Nicholas Parrendo and Robert Seeger, all of Pittsburgh; Sister Rita Keshock, O.S.B.M., Uniontown; Beverly Klucher, State College; Barbara Jamma Smith, McMurray; Leda Miller, Houston; John V. Pastorek, Natrona Heights; Benjamin A. Saggese II, Munson; Jared D. Welsh, Wexford; and Susan Julian Alexander, Philadelphia.

Artists from outside the state include: Fred del Guidice, Shreve, Ohio; James Langley, Steubenville, Ohio; Gina Swit-zer, Worthington, Ohio; Steve Zordich, Youngstown, Ohio; Rachel Gecan-Ron-dinelli, Germantown, Maryland; Kurt Kaiser, Grand Rapids, Michigan; Amy J. Lambert, Greenwich, Connecticut; Gary Lessord, Orlando, Florida; Robert Naujoks, Marion, Iowa; Anita Breitenberg Naylor, Springfield, Virginia; Nina Rizzo, Cooper City, Florida; Diane Savino, Hatfield, Massachusetts; Edie Schutte Martin, Eagle, Idaho; John Steczynski, Yarmouth Port, Massachusetts; Brent Wall, Elmhurst, Illinois; and Beverly Wirth, Marietta, New York.

Hours for the gallery, located on the third floor of Kennedy Hall, are Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from noon to 3 p.m. and 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., and Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from noon to 3 p.m. The gallery is closed on Mondays. There is no admission charge and the public is welcome to visit.

Catholic Arts Exhibition Opens at Saint Vincent Gallery

“Omnipresence,” by Beverly Klucher of State College, is one of the oil paintings on exhibit.

“Ora Et Labora,” is the title of this digital print by Mary Kay Neff and Maureen Vissat of North Huntingdon.



his desk to make the necessary entries. The fathers are on vacation. The brothers are humming and buzzing like bees in order to get to the Ridge. The engineers knock and hammer in order to install the pipes for the steam heating. The plasterers are not yet finished with the new building (the kitchen). The brothers and the workmen go out to harvest and reap and are driven home by the rain. Strangers visit, and nobody is here to show them around. The mail brings letters upon letters that have to be answered, and I am sitting here alone, hardly knowing where my head is. Today I was the only father at prime, with twenty novices whom I clothed on July 10.

“Wimmer to the Abbot of Metten, July 30, 1886: “My procurator, after he looks at my books, will scold me because we are just now badly in need of money because we are installing steam heating in the whole house (monastery, college, and church). The engineers are already at work because they must finish before winter. It will cost $17,000 and we are paying it off at the rate of $1,000 a week (as long as we have money in the treasury). I have had money put aside for this purpose for a couple of years.

... At the beginning I didn’t want to undertake the work, but most colleges in this country have steam heating, as do most enterprises in the cities. Even some better private homes have it. For that reason we had to take action. Otherwise we would be behind the times and the fashion. Another reason is that steam heating will save us a great deal of money on work, coal, and fire insurance. The danger of fire is diminished with steam heating. There is much less soot and dust in the house, and the temperature will be more uniform.

“Wimmer to the Abbot of Metten, October 4, 1886.: “The installation of the steam heating is still not completed. In fact, the men are still at work erecting the housing for the three boilers. Each boiler weighs about 10,000 pounds. The chimney will be seventy-five feet high and will be next to the one used for the old steam engine. All the iron pipes will be laid and the steam will begin flowing after All Saints’ Day.

“Wimmer to the Abbot of Metten, October 23, 1886: “We are installing steam heating, which has involved more work than I ever imagined. I am exhausted, and the work still won’t be finished before the rough winter weather arrives. We had to construct a building for three large

boilers and a chimney seventy-five feet high. This required no less than 50,000 heavy baked bricks. The foundation for the chimney required a hundred loads of rough material. The chimney in fact con-sists of two chimneys. That is, the chimney through which the smoke escapes is enclosed by another, more spacious chimney, as if in an envelope. There is a space of about two feet between the inner chimney and the outer chimney, and in this space there is cold air, which lowers the temperature of the smoke in the small chimney and prevents the flue from bursting. At a certain height the inner chimney flue comes to an end because the heat is not so intense there. Our church tower ... did not require so much work....

... Compiled by Dr. Jerome Oetgen, Madrid, Spain, August 29, 2000.

* * * * * Father Flavian

G. Yelinko, O.S.B., reminisced recently about the time he caught the poor-box thief armed with only a flashlight while he was serving at Four-teen Holy Martyrs Church. The article appeared in the Bal-timore Sun of March 22, 1936:

“Armed only with a flashlight, the Rev. Flavian Yelinko last night captured an alleged burglar in the Church of Fourteen Holy Martyrs, led him to the sidewalk and held him until police arrived to arrest him on charges of breaking into the church with intent to rob its poorbox.

“Shortly before 11 p.m., the police were told, an unidentified youth banged on the door of the rectory adjoining the church and told Father Yelinko, assistant pastor, that someone had just broken through a basement window of the church.

“Father Yelinko grabbed a flashlight and hurried to the vestibule of the church, where he quietly awaited the intruder’s arrival. A moment later a man came up the steps from the basement and through the door into the vestibule.

“The priest seized him, and there was a brief struggle, according to the police report. Cowed by Father Yelinko’s flashlight, the intruder soon surrendered, and allowed himself to be escorted outside to the pavement. . . .Father Yelinko told officers that (the man) admitted he broke into the church to try to rob its poor-box.”

Steam heating at Saint Vincent, 1886-1887

Letters of Archabbot Boniface Wimmer, O.S.B., provide descriptions of the instal-lation of steam heating at Saint Vincent. As Wimmer noted, it brought the archabbey, college and seminary into line with what most colleges in the country were doing as the twentieth century approached. These correspondences became particularly meaningful to the monks who live in the monastery building because of the major Summer 2000 project in this thirty-three-year-old building of replacing the electrical heating system with a hot water (converted from steam) “fan coil” system for heat, that will also circulate chilled water for air conditioning. This system is being installed by Sauer Inc., Pittsburgh. Also, all windows in the resident rooms have been replaced with updated insulated double hung windows by Traco.

Wimmer to the abbot of St. John’s, July 16, 1886: “My prior is giving retreats for the sisters. My procurator is either sick in bed or scarcely able to stand in front of

The above photograph was discovered in the Archabbey Archives. There is reason to believe that the student seated on the right is Boniface Wimmer at the time that he attended Ludwig Maximil-ian University in Munich and was a member of the fraternity called the “Corps Bavaria.”



Tribute, Memorial Gifts

Blessed by a steady flow of vocations during the severe priest shortage in America, Saint Vincent Monastery now houses about 200 men who devote their lives to serving the needs of people through a wide variety of pastoral, educational, and missionary work, both at Saint Vincent and throughout the world. While the older monks remain active well past retirement age, they face the same financial hardships that other retirees do — rising health care

costs and increasing living expenses. The monks have neither social security nor third-party health care benefits. A strong Monastery Healthcare Fund will afford the older priests and brothers the care they so richly deserve for their many years of service to the people of God.

Archabbot Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B., Saint Vincent Archabbey, 300 Fraser Purchase Road, Latrobe, Pennsylvania 15650-2690

Yes, I would like to help these men of God face the needs of their retirement years. Enclosed is my gift of: $50 $100 $500 $1000 Other My company may match my gift. Enclosed is the form.

Name

Address

City State

Zip Phone

Make checks payable to Saint Vincent Archabbey. Gifts are tax deductible.

A Life of Service

To give a tribute or memorial gift, please make a donation to Saint Vin-cent Archabbey in honor of or in memory of a friend, colleague or family member. Donations should be mailed to Mr. William Malloy in the Archabbey Development Office, 300 Fraser Pur-chase Road, Latrobe, Pa., 15650-2690, 724-532-6740. Donors from July 1, 2000 to December 31, 2000 include:

IN HONOR OF:REV. WILLIAM J. CHEETHAM

Mr. and Mrs. Joseph C. CirelliTHE SOLEMN PROFESSION OFMONASTIC VOWS FOR BROTHERTHOMAS P. CURRY, O.S.B.

Mary E. Boyle Gene and Alice Cunneely Mary Lou and Tom Curry Jens, Kathleen and Kaitlin Mangels Marie O’Hara Mrs. Alice G. Scherf Pat and John Small

REV. CHAD R. FICORILLI, O.S.B. Mr. and Mrs. Ronald Nissel

BROTHER PATRICK R. LACEY, O.S.B. Mr. William N. Hamilton, Jr.

PETER J. LUGER Mrs. Ann M. Peluso

REV. BRENDAN L. SMETANA, O.S.B. First Catholic Slovak Union, Branch 232, Holy Trinity Lodge

COL. BENJAMIN F. SMITH Mr. Joseph M. Smith

IN MEMORY OF: +MRS. BALZER

Mrs. Joseph Mastrorocco+REV. JULIAN F. BURT, O.S.B.

Mr. Vincent T. Mendicino+JOHN E. CAVANAUGH

Mr. Louis Novak+BROTHER ANTHONY T. COSTELLO, O.S.B.

Mrs. Helen F. Adams Ms. Janice G. Barone Mrs. Annette C. Brownfield Rev. Joseph B. Codori, Jr. Melissa and Aunt Sheila Costello Mr. and Mrs. Donald R. Covell Mrs. Marion Cronauer Mr. and Mrs. Robert Fleming Mr. and Mrs. Robert P. Froelich Mr. John V. Graziano Ed and Mimi Gromek Mr. Vincent T. Mendicino Mr. and Mrs. William Meznarich, Sr. The Opron Family

Mr. and Mrs. Gilbert D. Pastor Mrs. Josephine Smart Mrs. Vilma C. Smith Mr. and Mrs. Louis Von Bruening

+HAROLD T. CRONAUER, SR. Mrs. Marion Cronauer and Family Maryann and Donald Tarter

+FLORENCE S. AND MARGARET C. DIPPOLD

Mr. James A. Dippold+DAVID DUVALL

Mr. James R. Monroe+UNCLE EUGENE

Mrs. Arlene M. LucchesiDECEASED FAMILY MEMBERS

Mrs. Magdalene Hacherl+FILIPPO FICORILLI

Mr. and Mrs. Leo J. Bridge, Jr. Mrs. Eleanor M. Ficorilli Mr. and Mrs. Cyril J. Henry Ms. Rose M. Hinish Ms. Teresa Krivacsy Mr. and Mrs. Edward C. Marchok

Mr. and Mrs. Richard F. Marsh Ms. Mary F. Maturi Schoolhouse Arts Center

+MR. FRANCIS R. GRIFFIN Mrs. Margaret R. Griffin

+REV. ALFRED L. GROTZINGER, O.S.B. Rev. William J. Homolak Thomas and Gloria Kaveney and Family Jane, John and Becky Schatz Mr. Robert F. Seiler Mrs. Catherine Smolenski

+DR. ALAN R. JACOB Mrs. Debra Jacob

+HELEN C. KORNIDES Mrs. Alma J. Demyan and Gerald

+JOHN LAEZZA Mrs. Clara Laezza

+FRED LATTANZIO Earl and Ann Adams

+LOUIS AND JENNIE MARTIN Mrs. Josephine Smart




+KATHRYN MAY Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Mastrorocco

+REV. ANSELM A. OBER, O.S.B. Gloria Persis Albritton Rosemary and Francis Andreoletti Mr. and Mrs. John Barchiesi Ms. Adele Blackburn Mr. Steven Bolar, Jr. Ms. Rita C. Brinker Ms. Magdalen Deglmann Mr. and Mrs. J. Thomas Geise, Sr. Ray and Alice Gut Mrs. Dorothy Herrle Mrs. Olga Jablonsky Knights of Columbus, St. Benedict Council 9056 Ms. Anna Louis Mr. and Mrs. Donald J. Luther, Sr. Mr. Edward L. McGough Mr. Vincent T. Mendicino Mr. and Mrs. Richard M. Nash Rev. Thomas M. Rodgers Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Salamon, Jr. Mr. and Mrs. Wayne Schoenecker Mrs. Mary Seigel September Club, Virginia Beach, VA Ms. Coletta Sporrer St. Ambrose Church Ms. Elsie Stargensky William and Mary Ellen Svoboda United States Psychotronics Association Helen and Richard Willman Mrs. Betty Yavorka

+MR. GEORGE ONDICH Ms. Pauline Zink

+REV. EMERIC J. PFIESTER, O.S.B. The Honorable and Mrs. Robert B. Aldemeyer

Mr. and Mrs. William E. Bearer James and Walter Diskin Mr. and Mrs. John F. Donlon Mr. and Mrs. Thomas J. Doran Mr. and Mrs. Donald Dumm Mr. John J. Flesch Mr. and Mrs. Thomas L. Franxman and Family Bobbie Gillespie Mr. and Mrs. Edward A. Hacker Mr. Mark W. Herzog Mr. Paul Herzog and Mrs. Irma Lother and Family Ms. Mary C. Hetterman Ms. Nancy Hindmarsh Mrs. Rita M. Holian Rev. William J. Homolak Ms. Mildred E. Koors Mr. and Mrs. Francis Krug Mr. and Mrs. James J. Krug Family Mr. and Mrs. George Krumenacker Ms. Clara Lee Kyle Mr. and Mrs. George Laible Mr. and Mrs. Herman J. Lieb Margaret Lipesky Mr. and Mrs. Daniel T. Meier Ms. Rita Mae Menke Mr. Vincent T. Mendicino Mrs. Ann Novak Mr. and Mrs. Bernard J. Nowicki and Family Oxford Park Towers Resident Club Mrs. Mary Louise Parrish and Family Joseph E. Pfiester, Sr. Family Sr. M. Martha Pfiester, R.S.M. Pauline Pietquin Mrs. Norma L. Reenan Mr. and Mrs. Ray R. Robisch Mr. and Mrs. Elmer W. Roetker Ms. Ann M. Schaefer

Tribute, Memorial GiftsSt. Mary’s Ladies Society, Covington, KY Ms. Norma J. Thompson Mr. and Mrs. William G. Todd Mr. and Mrs. Edward H. Voll Mr. and Mrs. Regis Warner Lt. Col. Louise A. Whalen, Rtd.

+WILLIAM M. RAFFERTY Mr. and Mrs. Ray Bell

+LOUIS P. ROBERTO Mr. and Mrs. Albert D. DeMichele Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Musula Mr. and Mrs. Anthony Scoccimerra Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Antenocci Donna Antenocci Violet Gallo Angie Loperfito Rose Albini Mary Hepler Helen Linkes

+REV. FINTAN R. SHONIKER, O.S.B. Brian and Linda Connell

+MRS. MARJORIE E. SIPPLE Mr. John D. Sipple

+JOHN AND MARY SKRJANC Mr. Frank A. Skrjanc

+JOSEPH H. SNYDER Mr. and Mrs. Joseph W. Snyder

+MRS. DOROTHY TAJAK Mr. and Mrs. Jack L. Hadley Ms. Teresa Krivacsy

+REV. REMIGIUS BERNARD VEROSTKO, O.S.B.

Mr. and Mrs. Donald S. Pawlak+REV. CHARLES A. WEBER, O.S.B.

Ms. Pauline Zink+REV. CANICE T. WELSH, O.S.B.

Ray and Alice Gut+ARTHUR C. ZITTERBART, JR.

Mr. and Mrs. Arthur C. Zitterbart

The Rev. David M. O’Connell, 14th President of The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., was the homilist at the Thirty-Third Annual Red Mass in honor of the Bench and Bar, hosted by the Diocese of Greensburg and Saint Vincent Archabbey, College and Seminary this past fall. Most Rev. Anthony G. Bosco, Bishop of Greensburg, was the principal celebrant, with Archabbot Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B., concelebrating.

The Red Mass is celebrated annually in over 25 cities across the United States to invoke God’s blessing on members of the bench and bar at the start of the legal year. The Red Mass takes its name from the fact that celebrants of the 13th century in Europe were vested in red, and the lord high justices of the day dressed in scarlet. Serving as President of Catholic University since 1998, Father O’Connell is a Vincentian priest and Catholic University alumnus.


Red Mass



Obituaries

Brother Anthony T. Costello, O.S.B.

Brother Anthony T. Costello, O.S.B., died Wednesday, October 18, 2000. He was 31 years old.

Brother Anthony was born on July 11, 1969, in Painesville, Ohio, the son of Robert and Theresa Costello, and was one of ten children. He attended Assump-tion Parochial School and Geneva High School, Geneva, Ohio, and graduated from Kent State University in 1993 with a bachelor of science degree in food service management.

He entered the Saint Vincent monas-tic community on July 1, 1999, and professed first vows on July 10, 2000. Since then he had worked as an assistant guestmaster and as an assistant in the summer retreat program. He was studying for a master of divinity degree at Saint Vincent Seminary.

Surviving are his parents and seven brothers, Robert, Jr., Kevin, Joseph, James, Donald, and John, all of Geneva, Ohio, and Patrick, of Chicago. He was preceded in death by a brother, Timothy, and a sister, Kathleen.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Benedictine Health and Welfare Fund at Saint Vincent Archabbey, 300 Fraser Purchase Road, Latrobe, PA., 15650-2690.

Father Emeric J. Pfiester, O.S.B.

Father Emeric J. Pfiester, O.S.B., a monk of Saint Vincent Archabbey, died Saturday, September 30, 2000. He was 78 years old.

Father Emeric was born on December 9, 1921, in Nicktown, Pa., the son of the late Nicholas and Emma (Lehmier) Pfiester, and was one of ten children. He attended Saint Nicholas Grade School in Nicktown, Spangler High School in Spangler, Pa., and Saint Vincent Prepara-tory School in Latrobe. He received a bachelor of arts degree in philosophy from Saint Vincent College and attended Saint Vincent Seminary from 1943 to 1948. He also studied at Seton Hill College, the former Carnegie Tech, and the Catholic University of America.

Father Emeric entered Saint Vincent Archabbey in 1942, making simple pro-fession of vows on July 2, 1943, and solemn profession of vows on July 11, 1946. He was ordained a priest on June 13, 1948.

He taught Latin and art at Saint Vincent College and Preparatory School early in his monastic career. He also helped to restore and catalogue the Archabbey’s art collection and built a collection of contemporary American paintings. In 1963 Father Emeric entered the pasto-

ral apostolate, serving in parishes in the dioceses of Greensburg, Altoona-Johnstown, and Covington, Ky. While stationed in Kentucky he received several honors, including a commission as a Kentucky Colonel and an appointment as Deputy Sheriff of Kenton County, Kentucky. After retiring in 1992, Father Emeric worked with the Archabbey stamp collection.

He was a member of the American Federation of Art and the Catholic Art Association.

Father Emeric is survived by one sister, Sister Mary Martha, R.S.M., of Dallas, Pa. He was preceded in death by his parents, three brothers, Carl, Nicholas, and Omer; and four sisters, Alice, Esther Bridge, Irene Abbot, and Kathleen Krug. His brother, Joseph, of

Berkley, Mi., died shortly after Father Emeric passed away.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Benedictine Health and Welfare Fund, 300 Fraser Purchase Road, Latrobe, PA, 15650-2690.

Father Emeric J. Pfiester, O.S.B. Brother Anthony T. Costello, O.S.B.

Saint Vincent Parish now has a website at http://benedictine.stvincent.edu/parish/ completing the Saint Vincent family of websites.

The Seminary is at http://benedictine.stvincent.edu/seminary/, While Saint Vincent Archabbey’s address is http://benedictine.stvincent.edu/archabbey/. All three sites, as well as the site for Saint Vincent College, can be accessed from a main menu page: http://benedictine.stvincent.edu/

The parish home page features the daily mass schedule for Sundays and weekdays, parish staff listings, upcoming parish events, and weekly reflections written by Fr. Philip M. Kanfush, O.S.B., Parochial Vicar at the parish.

The Seminary website has recently been updated, and now includes a vocations section, with information about becoming a priest and the vocations stories of some of the Saint Vincent seminarians.

Saint Vincent Parish Online; Seminary Site Updated



SAINT VINCENT ARCHABBEY300 Fraser Purchase Road

Latrobe, PA 15650-2690724-539-9761

http://benedictine.stvincent.edu/

Address Service Requested

The First Benedictine Monastery in the United States, Founded in 1846

NON-PROFITORGANIZATIONU.S. POSTAGE

PAID PERMIT NO. 110

Vice President Dick Cheney spoke to a full crowd in Kennedy Auditorium on October 18, as part of the Bush-Cheney campaign. The Casper, Wyoming, native served in the Nixon administration in a number of positions, in the Ford admin-istration as Deputy Assistant to the President, and later, White House Chief of Staff; and in the Bush administration, where he was Secretary of Defense during Operation Desert Storm in the Middle East and Operation Just Cause in Panama. He was also a five-term Congressman in the U.S. House of Representatives from Wyoming. Before being tapped to be the vice president, Cheney was chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Halliburton Company. In addition to being welcomed to the Saint Vincent Campus by Archab-bot Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B., and College President James F. Will, he was introduced by his daughter Liz.

Vice President Stops at Saint Vincent

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Heart to Heart Fall/Winter 2001

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