Monastic day

4 h 30 - Lectio divina. This learned word, used in monastic circles, simply refers to the reading or study of a text to gain knowledge of the things of God. This 'lectio', always preceded by a prayer to the Holy Spirit, ranges from the reading of Sacred Scripture to works on spirituality, including the study of theology for those preparing for the priesthood.

5.30 am - The brothers make their beds and do their ablutions, sweep their cells, and wait for the signal for Lauds.

After Lauds, the Fathers celebrate their read Mass. Here they are, slipping silently into the half-light to go with their server to the little altar where they are going to renew for the glory of God and the salvation of the whole world, in an unbloody but infinitely real way, the bloody sacrifice of Calvary.

8 h 30. After working together on peeling vegetables, the brothers return to their cells.

Novices and scholastics now resume their studies: the postulants study Latin (rosa, the rose), the novices have a course in spirituality with their Father Master, and the scholastics study their theology or Sacred Scripture subject. The brothers (those who are professed but not priests) meet in the chauffoir, where their Father Master is waiting for them, and with whom they study an author, such as Saint François de Sales.On certain days, it is the Father Under-Master who talks to them about the Fathers of the Church or the prayers of the Mass.

9.15am - The first bell rings announcing conventual mass; if it's a major feast, mass is at 10am, and it's the big carillon that warns us. The uniformity of monastic observance is thus broken up by a multitude of details that vary from one season or sometimes from one day to the next, allowing the divine light, as it passes through the prism of the liturgical year, to touch souls with different nuances.

9.25am - The station: the bell peals out a few strokes with discreet tinkles. Everyone puts on their coule (or chape if they are not professed), the choir robe that transforms the monk into an immobile statue. This is a moment of recollection, without which he cannot attend this solemn meeting of the Church with her Lord.

This conventual mass brings all the monks together for one or two hours, depending on the solemnity of the rite. But each phase of the mass corresponds to a very distinct action: the community successively processes, listens, sings, offers, begs, adores and receives communion.

The most solemn rite is that of the pontifical mass, celebrated by the Abbot, dressed in the pontifical vestments, mitre, crosier and tunic, surrounded by the assistant priest, deacon, sub-deacon and other officiants: in all, nineteen people who move around the altar in the illuminated sanctuary.

The liturgy is truly the theatrum sacrum of which the ancients spoke: a choreography in which gesture, song and word all rise towards God.

This is what Saint Gregory teaches: "At the hour of the Sacrifice, heaven opens to the voice of the priest. The choirs of angels are present, what is above joins what is below, heaven and earth unite, the visible and the invisible become one."

12.15 - After spending the rest of the morning studying or doing manual work, the monks gather in the church to the sound of the bell. The office of Sext consists of only three psalms followed by the Angelus, but it is the opus Dei, the work of God, the work for which God is the inspiration, the raison d'être and the end.

As the religious entered the refectory, the Abbot proceeded to wash the hands of the guests. Two novices are assigned to assist him: one holding the ewer, the other the cloth to be used for drying the hands. This ancient custom is still in force in most monasteries. In this way, the Abbot can greet passing guests and say a word of welcome, like a good father receives his guests.

The meal always begins with a reading from Sacred Scripture. The voice of the lector is heard in the silence that is the rule, a friend of recollection.

Then we unfold our place settings to begin the meal. Our guests often ask us about our daily menu. It varies a lot: there are the feast days, when we still abstain, but always marked by a culinary favour, then the simple days based on eggs or fish with a vegetable dish (plus cheese and fruit). Finally, there are the fast days, marked in the evening by a little rigour (soup and an apple).

During this time, on feast days, the incense is burnt: one of the assistant deacons incenses the celebrant and the Abbot in turn, then the thurifer incenses the monks and the faithful. Every baptised person who is a member of Christ receives this honour, which reminds them of the greatness of their supernatural vocation: are we not all sons of God on our way to the heavenly homeland?This is the sublime lesson that emerges from our sacred rites.

6.00 pm: In ordinary times, the community devotes the next half-hour to prayer. Romain Banquet tells us: "Prayer springs from the bowels of the Divine Office. It should be nothing more than the tasting and digestion of the liturgy".

6.30 pm: Dinner brings the community together for a brief snack.

7.20 pm: Once the various tasks have been completed (washing up, tidying up the kitchen), the community gathers in the chapter house for a family reunion, during which the Abbot gives some news from the world, which will always be prayer intentions for the monks. It ends with a reading from a spiritual author.

8.30 pm: Lights out. One brother is responsible for closing the doors, another for switching off the lights. The hoteliers often have to work out a few details for the guests who will be leaving early the next morning. In the sacristy, some ornaments still need to be prepared.

Everything, from the end of Compline onwards, takes place in the great silence that reigns until Lauds the next morning. Now the day is over. A final prayer to the guardian angel, and the monks fall asleep with the rosary around their wrists, in a feeling of confidence that is typical of God's children.