Categorie: Reflective articles

At Monserrat, a beautiful mountain in the Northeast of Spain, we find the old Benedictine Abbey where St Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Jesuit order, first experienced the healing dynamics of personal spiritual (in this case Benedictine) exercises. In the square of the old monastery one can now find a modern-art-work of a human…

Monasticism and religious analphabetism In 2017, the Statistics Netherlands (Sociaal Cultureel Planbureau) announced their newest findings on religious adherence in the Netherlands. The title of their press release: ‘More than half of Dutch people not religious’. In 2017, according to the bureau, it was for the first time in recorded history that a minority (of…

In Meersel-Dreef, the Flemish Capuchins, under the inspiring leadership of brother Kenny Brack OFM-Cap, converted part of the old monastery into a Franciscan experience centre. Since the Reformation, the monastery has been a well-known spiritual centre for both the Flemish population from the region and for the Dutch residents of the border region. The large…

Identity-seeking within the Dutch Franciscan province in the last 30 years. This text is based on a viewing of policy papers of the Dutch Franciscans in the past 30 or so years. It shows a remarkable change in the policy and language used, going from a careful approach and orientation on the wishes and needs…

What do mission and evangelism mean at the beginning of this new millennium? The rapid globalization of recent decades has meant that there is almost no place in the world where people have never come into contact with the Christian faith. At the same time, many countries on the ‘old continent’ that were formerly Christian…

St. Elisabeth is a compact and modern, but also a characteristic care organization for the elderly in Roosendaal. We work on the basis of values inspired by Franciscan spirituality: love, simplicity, effectiveness and detachment. History The Congregation of the Franciscan Sisters of Mariadal in Roosendaal was founded in 1832. In a short time the Congregation…

Life in a religious community is not always easy. Where in the past rules and hierarchy used to create clarity – “this is how we do it” – in today’s communities we often see discussion and disagreement about everything. A major bottleneck often concerns the course to be followed in these times of decline. A…

While more and more monasteries have to close their doors because the communities of religious living there have become too old and too small, at the same time initiatives related to or inspired by the monastic tradition flourish in many places in the Netherlands. These include not only spiritual practices such as retreats and pilgrimages,…

Perspectives for Monastery Saint Agatha 1. Question In 2016 Klooster Sint Agatha published its ‘concept’ for the future plans under the motto ‘Monastery of past, present and future’. Religious combine the daily life of living and working with reflection within a religious tradition. What the monastic life of the past looked like can be found…