December 14, 2020
Greetings to our friends of Saint Leo Abbey,
It was necessary to close again because we are under quarantine as one of the kitchen employees
tested positive for the coronavirus. Since we were exposed to her, the monks were all tested.
Thanks be to God, the monks have tested negative, but we will be tested again this week to
ensure we do not have the virus at the end of our quarantine. We will send an email telling you
if we are infected or not.
In one of his recent meditations given during Mass, Brother Lucius told us that we were acting
as the Desert Fathers, the monks of the early Church. These early monks lived in cells, many
times caves, and only came together for the Eucharist. During these days, we are doing that
under quarantine, praying in our monastic cells, eating alone, and only gathering for the Eucharist.
We are such a small community that we cannot risk putting each other at risk; if Godforbid,
we are ill.
I invite you to join us from your homes to meditate on the idea of praying. To pray is something
that Saint Paul says we should do without interruption. That, my friends, is the call of the
monks to pray without ceasing.
Many books try to teach us how to pray. However, Saint Benedict offers a simple path for the
Monks, and I am inviting you to follow it. Benedict says that we should pray using the psalms.
Then Benedict strongly recommends the Bible, the Holy Scriptures, which we call Lectio Divina.
If we do Lectio Divina every day, we will be able to read, pray, meditate, and finally contemplate
God every single moment of our lives.
If you want a one or two pages long explanation of how to do Lectio Divina, please let me
know, and I will send it to you.
Once again, I want to say that I am sorry for closing the Abbey to the public. I hope and pray
that we will have good news by the end of this week; please pray for us. I cannot wait to have
you with us for the Midnight Mass of Christmas.
May the Lord God bless you and keep you. May He smile upon you and give you peace.
Peace,
Abbot Isaac