Today the Benedictine monks who live in the mountains above the birthplace of Saints Benedict and Scholastica celebrated the mid-summer (July 11th) feast of their holy patriarch with solemn Terce, an outdoor procession and blessing of the valley with a first-class relic, and finally Solemn High Mass, with a Benedictine as the priest celebrant, a Dominican as the deacon, and a Jesuit as the subdeacon. (Afterwards, speaking with the three, we joked that it was an “ecumenical liturgy.”) The chapel was full, with many standing. What follows are photos taken by three people.
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| The start of the office of Terce. |
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| The Gothic reliquary, containing a tooth of St. Benedict. |
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| Monks and laymen took turns carrying the reliquary. |
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| The procession winds through the formerly Capuchin ruins. |
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| The procession stops at a platform overlooking the Norcia town and valley. |
When the procession reached this platform, the Prior, Fr. Benedict, sang the solemn blessing of the fields and the town, and made the sign of the cross with the relic. Here is a video:
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| At the start of Mass |
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| On patronal feasts vestments with the monastery’s crest are used. |
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| The Epistle |
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| The Gospel |
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| The homily (in Italian) |
Happy feast day of St. Benedict to all Benedictine monks, nuns, and oblates around the world!
