Dom Bernardo, Abbot of our monastery of Novo Mundo in Brazil, visited us this week. Formed at Spencer and a monk of our Abbey for 14 years, he spoke with joy of discovering his vocation in this place. Bernardo reflected with us that religious vocation always begins with a theophany, an experience
of God’s living presence in a specific place with a particular community. He believes that, as was his experience, the candidate comes to the
realization that God can be encountered in this place, with these men, and he grows
in the desire to find his place among them.
