USA > Iowa > Dubuque County > History of the Trappist abbey of New Melleray in Dubuque County, Iowa > Part 5
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6
The lay brothers, among whom are often found men of dis- tinguished origin, who prefer from various reasons to occupy this inferior rank, are employed especially in the cultivation of the ground, and in fulfilling the various duties, more or less menial, which exist in the community. They spend the most of their time in manual labor upon days when work can be done outside of the monastery. Their dress is of brown stuff, and in place of the cowl they wear a long garment without sleeves, but with a hood. Their hair is cut close.
The use of linen is forbidden to all the religious, and they wear next the skin a shirt of coarse serge.
Besides the choir brothers and the lay brothers there are to be found in the monastery the novices. These are admitted provisionally to try their strength, and power of endurance of the severe austerities of the Order, as well as fitness of voca- tion. If, after two years' trial, they still desire it, they are admitted by vote to the number of religious professed. They then pronounce their vows for three or five years.1 This ceremony is followed by the final vows which seclude them forever from the world. These novices may be either of the choir or lay brothers. Their dress differs from that of the fully professed-i. c., the novices of the choir wear a white
1 Benoist, Felix. Notice sur l'Abbaye de .V .- D. de La Trappe de Melleray, p. S7. Pope Pius IX. decrced that all Trappists, wherever they might be found, should pass two years before taking the simple vows, and after this three years more before taking the final and irrevocable ones. Feria IV. February 5, 1868.
50
THE TRAPPIST ABBEY OF NEW MELLERAY.
robe, but not the cowl, their scapular and its hood is white and not black, and their girdle is of wool and not of leather.
The total number in the community is fifty-four. Of these fifteen are choir brothers, and thirty-nine are lay brothers. Six of the fifteen choir brothers are novices, and six of the lay brothers are novices. Thirteen members of the commu- nity are priests. Eleven members of the community are American born, the others are foreign by birth. It is difficult to find the exact number who in different decades have inhab- ited New Melleray, but in 1862 there were forty-eight pro- fessed members, and in 1892 there are forty-two. As will be easily seen this is the sum total of fifty-four minus the twelve novices. Of fully professed choir brothers there are, therefore, but nine, the balance of the fifty-four members of the community being made up of lay brothers and of novices.
The government of the Abbey is vested in the Abbot or Superior as the case may be. This officer is immediately responsible to the Vicar General of the congregation, viz., the Abbot of La Grande Trappe, then to the President Gen- eral of the Cistercians who resides at Rome, and finally and ultimately to the Pope. The Abbot wears no insignia of his dignity save a cross of wood supported by a cord of violet silk, and a simple ring. But when he ministers at the altar at high ceremonials he is obliged to wear his pontifical robes and mitre. 1
The Abbot enjoys no better food, no richer dress and no softer bed than the other brothers. He presides from the Abbot's seat in the chapter, he receives professions, he dis- tributes employments and imposes penances. The well-being of the Abbey from both a spiritual and temporal point of view depends essentially upon the Abbot. In piety he is the model of the monks, and upon his business capacity depends to a great extent the prosperity of the community. His power, with the exceptions noted above, is nearly absolute, his word is law and his commands must be carried out. As the monks
1 These differ slightly from those of a Bishop.
51
THE TRAPPIST ABBEY OF NEW MELLERAY.
themselves elect him, they can also propose his deposition to the proper authorities, but this exigency is almost unknown.
Next to the Abbot in dignity is the Prior, who in case of necessity takes the Abbot's place, and whose business it is to look after those matters which the Abbot is debarred from attending to on account of the multiplicity and insistence of his monastic duties. An officer called the Sub-Prior assists the Prior in his duties The cellarer has direct charge of the temporal affairs of the Abbey, and directs the work as it is laid out by the Abbot. In larger houses there are one or more under-cellarers. Besides these officers there are also others whose duties are indicated by their titles, viz., the Mas- ter of Novices, the Secretary, the Master of Lay Brethren, the Guest-Father, the Physician, the Druggist, the Master of the Infirmary, and the Librarian. The Abbey, as will be easily seen, is a well organized and methodically managed institution, with a fixed and substantial basis and equipage of government.
DAILY LIFE AND DISCIPLINE OF NEW MELLERAY.
In order to understand the terms which must be used in speaking of the exercises of the Trappists the following ex- planation of the canonical divisions of the twenty-four hours will be found essential. The twenty-four hours of the day were divided by the church into seven parts, to each of which services were assigned.
I. Matins and Lands; from midnight until Prime, com- mencing about 3 A. M. (In the case of the Trappists at 2 A. M. )
II. Prime; at 6 A. M.
III. Tierce; at 9 A M.
IV. Sect; at 12 (or noon).
V. Nonc; at 2 or 3 P. M.
VI. Vespers; at 4 P. M.
VII. Compline; about 7 P. M.1
1 f. F. Bond, Book for Verifying Dates, P. 312.
52
THE TRAPPIST ABBEY OF NEW MELLERAY.
I. THE CHOIR BROTHERS.
They rise at 2 A. M., and then spend two hours in prayer. From 4 to 5:30 masses are going on. At 5:30 the canonical office of Prime is sung, and then the chapter exercises follow. These are over about 6 o'clock. Then the brothers go to the dormitory to arrange their beds, and after that they go to the refectory for collation. After collation the choir broth- ers have spiritual reading or private devotion until almost 8 o'clock. At that time the community assembles in choir for the office of Tierce and Community mass. After Community mass is said, they engage in labor until 11:30, and then as- semble again in choir for the office of Sect and the Angelus. At 12 o'clock work is resumed, but the priests study until 2 o'clock. At 2 the office of None is sung in choir, and immedi- ately after the Brethren go to the refectory for dinner. The time from the end of dinner till 4:15 is given by the choir brothers to pious reading, private devotion or study. At 4:15 they assemble again in choir for Vespers, which office together with meditation lasts until 5: 15. After Vespers the time is again given to the same exercises as before Vespers until 6 o'clock. From 6 o'clock until 7 the brethren are occupied with public spiritual reading and the office of Com- pline and night prayer, and at 7 retire to the dormitory.
II. THE LAY BROTHERS.
The Lay Brothers spend two hours every morning in prayer and private spiritual reading. At 4 o'clock they assist at mass and serve the masses. At 5:30 they take their collation in the refectory and spend the time until nearly 2 o'clock in the afternoon in manual labor. This they resume again after dinner, viz: at 3 o'clock, and leave work at a quarter before six. From 6 to 7 they join the choir brethren at the public spiritual reading and at the office of Compline and night prayers. These are the winter exercises; the sum- mer exercises differ principally in the addition of one or two additional hours of manual labor. The summer exercises
...
53
THE TRAPPIST ABBEY OF NEW MELLERAY.
begin at Easter and continue until the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, on the 14th of September.
THE DAILY FOOD AND THE DORMITORY.
Nothing is more simple than the daily food of the Trap- pists. In New Melleray two meals are taken during the day by all, viz: one early in the morning, the second at 2:30 P. M.1 The dinner consists of: Ist, a soup made of veget- ables simply cooked in salted water. In this can be mingled a little milk. 2d, of a plate of rice or of vegetables generally cooked in milk. To these two courses is added a dessert of fruit either raw or cooked. Milk is not prohibited during Advent, Lent, and on fast days of the church, except Good Friday .? All then accommodate themselves to the dresssing of the vegetables with salt and water only. This same pro- hibition during the same season extends to cheese or dessert. No fish or flesh are ever served in the refectory. Beer, wine and eggs are prohibited to those who are in good health, oil is not permitted to be used except for salad. Every day twelve ounces of excellent bread, baked in the monastery, is given to each religious, and he can always have potatoes in addition.
As a rule the Trappists drink only water. While the rule does not interdict cider, beer or wine, provided the latter is the "wine of the district," these are not often taken at New Melleray. The measure of the drink whether at breakfast or dinner is about a pint. Sometimes the water is flavored with the juice of fruits.
In the midst of the refectory is a raised chair from which during each repast one of the monks, appointed for that pur-
1 In the European monasteries the early meal is generally omitted and the first meal of the day is taken at about 11: 30. A collation is then served towards evening. The exigencies of the American climate, and the habits of American life have brought about the custom of taking an early meal.
2 In the French monasteries milk is prohibited during Advent, Lent and on fast days of the church.
54
THE TRAPPIST ABBEY OF NEW MELLERAY.
pose, reads some passage from the Holy Scriptures, from the lives of the Saints, or other pious books. Sometimes persons well known are admitted to the refectory to eat with the monks. In this case the Abbot, after the repast, washes the hands of the guests according to an old custom. But usually guests are entertained in the strangers' refectory.
All the religious sleep in the dormitory which is a long apartment containing a hundred beds or more. These beds are arranged along one aisle which traverses the dormitory. They are separated from each other by partitions six or seven feet high, and at the entrance of each from the aisle is hung a simple curtain. The mattress is of straw, the pillow is also of straw and their covering is as light as practicable. The Trappists retire to the dormitory at 7 o'clock in winter and at S o'clock in summer, and recline upon their beds without un- dressing. They sleep in their robes, the cowl only being removed, and the shoes.
Silence is absolute among the Trappists. They speak only with the permission of the Superior. In their manual labor signs and gestures answer the lack of words, and are found to suffice. The Abbot and the Guest Father and a few officers of the community are the only members of the com- munity who are permitted to speak without permission. The Superior and a few of the brothers appointed to wait on seculars alone speak to outsiders. It has been said, and many suppose that when one brother passes or encounters another he says, " Frere il faut mourir." This however is only a myth: No such remark is made. Indeed without such a reminder the thought of death is familiar to them, and they content themselves on meeting with gestures of affection.
OTHER CUSTOMS AND CEREMONIES.
At the reception of strangers in all Trappist monasteries where the "regular places" exist-i. c., the lodge, the guest- house, the church, etc., the following ceremonies are observed: Two religious present themselves clothed in their long white
55
THE TRAPPIST ABBEY OF NEW MELLERAY.
robes, and when they have approached the visitor they pros- trate themselves, and remain for some seconds immovable at his feet, with their foreheads upon the floor. They then invite the guest by a gesture to follow them and he is con- ducted to the church. On returning to the guest-house one of them reads a chapter of the Imitation of Christ. Then their mission is fulfilled and they retire. After this scene, which is extremely touching, the Guest-Father appears and the visitors are conducted into the monastery.
This ceremony of reception is not used at New Melleray inasmuch as the lodge, the church and the strangers' house are not yet built.
In the rule there is contained one provision which some- times has been stigmatized as a degradation, viz: the procla- mation of faults in Chapter. When the Chapter assembles, each religious acknowledges, in the presence of all, the breaches of the Rule of which he has been guilty, and each one in turn is accused of any breach of it, which he has omit- ted to mention, by a brother who may have observed it. In making this confession he prostrates himself upon the floor of the Chapter room, and receives in silence the reprimand of the Abbot. This ceremony occurs daily, and would seem, if anything could, to inculcate a spirit of humility.
Everything in the monastery betokens a mortification of the senses and a close regard for the old austerities of Citeaux. Thus there is no gold or silver used about the altar, except for the holy vessels, and upon the altars are no decorations. This simplicity is Cistercian, and was first introduced at Mol- esme in contrast to the magnificence of the Abbey of Cluny. It is most fully practiced at New Melleray. Music with the exception of the solemn chants of the choir is completely interdicted.
There is another usage which is significant. This is the custom of feet-washing.1 This is practiced especially upon
1 It is unnecessary to mention the wide-spread prevalence of this custom. In the State of Iowa it exists in the Amana Society and among the Amish.
56
THE TRAPPIST ABBEY OF NEW MELLERAY.
the evening of Holy Thursday when the Abbot, the Prior occupying for the nonce the Abbot's chair, bathes and dries the feet of a dozen religious, while the feet of the rest of the community are washed by two other Fathers. This cere- mony of washing the feet is commemorative of our Lord's washing the feet of His disciples on Holy Thursday.
When the Trappist comes to his last hour, if his state per- mit, he is placed upon his straw couch and upon cinders, clothed in his full habit. Around him the brothers pray for him until he has drawn his last breath. He is buried without a coffin, his robes are his shroud, and his last resting place is the cemetery of the monastery. A simple wooden cross bearing his monastic name and the date of his death is placed above him.
It is not true, though oftentimes asserted to be true, that the Trappist digs his own grave. The story has arisen from the fact that immediately after the burial of one of them, they trace out the form of a new grave which is to be the resting place of the next who dies.
Such is a brief history of the origin of the Trappists or Reformed Cistercians who practice at New Melleray the austerities which originated at Citeaux in 109S. Many re- flections which in a strictly historical sketch would be out of. place suggest themselves to every thoughtful mind. Most strongly does the tenacity of the Rule which Saint Benedict proclaimed from Monte Cassino impress itself upon one who treads the cloisters of New Melleray. It is strange in the nineteenth century and on the banks of the Mississippi, in the midst of the new and vigorous west, to see the usages of thirteen centuries ago still active and fruitful-to behold the white robe of Citeaux and the brown scapular of Benedict, to know that within the walls of New Melleray the canonical offices of the Ancient Church are chanted, and that the com- munity preserves the customs of medieval times. The question cannot but present itself as to what will be the future of the Abbey. Will its members increase in number, will the Amer-
57
THE TRAPPIST ABBEY OF NEW MELLERAY.
ican monk replace the one of foreign birth, will the cross which now heralds a Cistercian house be thrown down, or will it multiply itself? These questions time alone can fully answer. But like all other religious communities which seclude themselves from the world and build barriers against its stress of progress, it is not unlikely that this may find its isolation fatal, and that it may prove to be the first and last Trappist Abbey west of the Mississippi.
One feels this possible truth sadly, for the self-abnegation and the self-denial and the purity of the monks cannot but command respect even in the heart of one who cannot fully sympathize with them or their phase of religion. Their faces betoken a spiritual content. There are many of them men of education, their hearts are kind and full of love for their fel- low men. If such men can command respect when secluded from the world, what could they not have accomplished if they had been part and parcel of society ?
APPENDIX I.
The following brief of Pope Gregory XVI. established the status of La Grande Trappe, and the general government of the Order in the year IS34. This decree of the Pope was made necessary by the disorders resulting from the French Revolution, and the extreme asceticism introduced into Val- sainte by Dom Augustine after the year 1791.
" Kalendis Octobris, Anno 1834. Eminentissimi et Rever- endissimi, D. D. S. R. E. Cardinales, Carolus Odescalchi, Præfectus et Rector; Carolus Maria Pedicini, et Thomas Weld, a sanctissimo domino nostro Gregorio XVI. E. S. con- gregatione negotiis et consultationibus episcoporum, et regu- larium præposita spectatius deputati, quo aptius monasteria Trappensium in Gallia instituantur et virtutibus florescant; auditus episcopis singularum diæcesium in quibus eadem mon- asteria erecta sunt, et audito Pater Antonio ab eadem S. con- gregatione visitatore deputato, censuerunt ea que sequuntur decernere et statuere.
I. Monasteria omnia Trappensium in Gallia, unam con- gregationem constituant, quæ appellabitur congregatio mona- chorum Cistercensium Beata Maria de Trappa.
II. Huic moderator generalis ordinis Cistercencis præ- erit, et singulos abbates confirmabit.
III. In Gallia vicarius generalis habeatur omni potestate præditus ad congregationem recte administrandum.
IV. Id muneris perpetuo conjunctum erit cum abbatia antiqui monasterii Beata Maria de Trappa, ex quo Trappen- ses initium habuerunt; ita ut singuli illius monasterii abbates
59
THE TRAPPIST ABBEY OF NEW MELLERAY.
canonice electi potestatum simul et munis vicarii generalis consequantur.
V. Quotannis vicarius generalis tum capitulum cele- brabit, reliquis abbatibus vel prioribus conventualibus accitis, tum etiam singula monasteria per se vel per alium abbatem visitabit: monasterium vero Beata Maria de Trappa a quatuor abbatibus monasteriorum Melleariensis, Portus Salutis, Belle- fontis et Gardiensis visitabitur.
VI. Tota congregatio regulum Sancti Benedicti et con- stitutiones abbatis de Rance observabit, salvis præscriptionibus quæ hoc decreto continentur.
VII. Pareant decreto S. Ritum congregationis diei 20 Aprilis, 1822, super rituali, missali, brevario et martyrologio quibus uti debebant.
VIII. Labor manuum ordinarius æstivo tempore ultra sex horas, et ultra quatuor et dimidiam reliquo tempore non pro- ducatur. Quod vero ad jejunia, precationes, et cantum chori pertinet, aut S. Benedicti regulam, aut constitutiones abbatis de Rancé, ex recepto more cujusque monasterii sequantur.
IX. Qua articulo octavo constituta sunt, ea præsides monasteriorum, moderari possunt et mitigare pro eis monachis quos ob ætatem, aut valetudinem, aut aliam justam causam, aliqua indulgentia dignos existimaverint.
X. Quamvis monasteria Trappensium a jurisdictione episcoporum exempta sunt, ea tamen ob peculiares rationes et donec aliter statuatur, jurisdictioni eorundem episcoporum subsint qui procedant tanquam apostolica sedis delegati.
XI. Moniales Trappenses in Gallia ad hanc congrega- tionem pertineant, et earum monasteria a jurisdictione, episco- porum non erunt exempta. Cura tamen uniuscujusque mon- asterii monialum uni aut alteri-monacho proximioris monasterii committatur. Monachos autem quos idoneos ad illud munus judicaverint episcopi delegant atque approbent, et confessarios extraordinarios e clero etiam seculari, deputare poterunt.
XII. Constitutiones, quas moniales servare in posterum debebunt, judicio Sancta Sedis subjiciantur.
JEmi
60 THE TRAPPIST ABBEY OF NEW MELLERAY.
Hoc decretum S. S. D. N. Gregorius XVI. P. P. in audentia habita a D. secretario S. congregationis negotiis et consulta- tionibus episcoporum et regularium præposita, hac die 3 Octobris, anno 1834, ratum in omnibus, habuit et confirmavit et servari mandavit.
CAROLUS CARD. ODESCALCHI, Præfect. JOANNES ARCHIEP. EPHESINUS, Scorct.
Translation.
The first day of October, 1834, their Eminences, the Most Reverend Cardinals, Odescalchi, prefect and reporter, Charles Mary Pedicini, and Thomas Weld, members of the Sacred Congregation of Bishops and Regulars, and specially deputed by our Holy Father, Gregory XVI., to devise for the Trap- pist monasteries in France, a form of government, by which regularity might be more duly observed, and virtue flourish; a government founded upon the reports of the Bishops, in whose dioceses the monasteries are situated, and upon the relation of Father Anthony, appointed Visitor-General by the said congregation, have decided upon, and decreed the fol- lowing regulations:
I. All the Trappist monasteries in France shall form one congregation, under the name of "The Congregation of Cistercian Monks of Our Lady of La Trappe."
II. The President-General shall preside and confirm the election of the Abbots.
III. There shall be in France a Vicar-General, vested with all necessary power for the proper government of the congregation.
IV. This office shall be perpetually attached to the ancient Abbey of our Lady of La Trappe, from which the Trappists derive their origin: so the Abbots of this monastery, canonically elected, shall have the authority and the office of Vicar-General.
V. Every year the Vicar-General shall hold a general chapter, at which all the Abbots and conventual priors shall
61
THE TRAPPIST ABBEY OF NEW MELLERAY.
assist. Moreover, he shall visit, either by himself or by some other Abbot, all the monasteries of the congregation. But the Abbey of our Lady of La Trappe shall be visited by the four Abbots of Melleray, Bellefontaine, Port du Salut, and Gard.
VI. The whole congregation shall follow the Rule of St. Benedict, and the Constitutions of Abbé Rance, save in certain regulations contained in the present decree.
VII. They shall obey the decree of the Congregation of Rites, dated the 20th of April, IS22, with respect to the Rit- ual, Missal, Breviary, and Martyrology, which they ought to adopt.
VIII. The ordinary manual labor shall not exceed six hours in summer, and four hours and a half the rest of the year. With regard to fasts, prayers, and chanting in the choir, they shall follow either the Rule of St. Benedict, or the Constitutions of Abbé Rance, according to the received usage of each monastery.
IX. Superiors have power to modify and mitigate the regulations contained in Art. VIII, in favor of those religious who, they believe, are deserving of some indulgence on ac- count of age, bad health, or some other lawful reason.
X. Although Trappist monasteries are exempt from the jurisdiction of Bishops; nevertheless, for particular rea- sons, and until further instruction, they shall be subject to those Bishops who are delegates of the Apostolic See.
XI. The nuns of La Trappe, in France, shall be united to this congregation, but shall not be exempt from the juris- diction of the Bishops. Yet the spiritual direction of each convent shall be confided to one or two religious from the neighboring monastery. The Bishops shall choose, and ap- prove of the religious whom they judge eligible for this employment. They have the liberty to depute, if they please, secular priests for confessors extraordinary.
XII. The Constitutions which nuns shall observe here- after shall be submitted to the judgment of the Holy See.
Our Holy Father, Gregory XVI., at an audience obtained
62
THE TRAPPIST ABBEY OF NEW MELLERAY.
by the secretary of the Sacred Congregation of Bishops and Regulars, on the 3d of October, IS34, ratified and confirmed in all things, the present decree, and commanded it to be observed.
CARDINAL CHARLES ODESCALCHI, Prefect. JOHN, ARCHBISHOP OF EPHESUS, Secretary.
APPENDIX II.
ACTUAL CONDITION OF THE ORDER OF CITEAUX.1
L'Ordre de Citeaux a un Président Général, qui réside à Rome. C'est à lui qu'il appartient de confirmer, au nom du Saint-Siege Apostolique, les Abbes des divers Monastères.
Cet Ordre est aujourd'hui partagé en trois Observances dis- tinctes: les Cisterciens de la Commune Observance, ceux de l'Observance de Sénanque, et les Cisterciens Réformes, vul- gairement dits Trappists.
La Commune Observance compte environ vingt-cinq Mon- astères de Religieux et quarante-sept de Religieuses, situés en divers pays ( Espagne, Italie, Autriche, Belgique, Polonge, etc. )
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.