n Gospel logic, Benedict invites his monks to practice hospitality.
	ll guests who come will be received like Christ in person, for he will say : ‘I was a stranger and you received me.’ (Matthew 25, 35) Rule of Saint Benedict, chapter 53

				racticed with this eye of faith, the reception of guests is precious to the monk’s heart. The guest may be a visitor who is paying a short visit to the Abbey, or one who wants to share the monks’ prayer for the length of an Office. Or again the retreatant seeking a time of silence to come face to face with himself and with God. The guest-house is a meeting place for those who want to spend some time in the monastery.
		For all that, the reception must not trouble the prayer-life or the work of the monks : the zones of reception are delineated by the monastic enclosure which is an expression of the monks’ spirit of retreat. For which reason, the monks’ living-quarters and work-shops are not open to visitors.

			aint Scholastica’s Villa, close to the Abbey, answers the same needs for women. Should they wish to, they may meet a monk for spiritual conversation or for the sacrement of reconciliation.
		Saint Scholastica’s Villa

	y short stay among you is over. After this time of agreable leisureliness I cannont find the words to express my joy and my gratitude. Therefore, from the bottom of my heart, I thank you humbly for having allowed me to share the intimacy of your life in Jesus, your bread, your prayers and chants, your peace, silence and fraternal presence, your love of God. A guest on retreat   I have found here the milieu and environment I needed at this particular time of my life. Thank you for your hospitality and respect for God. A guest on retreat

n a civilisation more and more mobile, loud-sounding and speaking, zones of silence become a vital necessity. So monasteries more than ever are called to be haunts of peace and interiority. Never let internal or external pressures affect your traditions and your means of recollection. Rather do what you can to educate your guests and retreatants to observe the virtue of silence. Cherish your separation from the world so comparable to the biblical desert. Paradoxically, this desert is not emptiness; that is where the Lord speaks to your heart and associates you closely to his work of salvation. John-Paul II, 1980

Information :

Tel. : (819) 843-4080 from 8h 30 to 10h 30 and from 13h 30 to 16h 30

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