Das Musical Just Mary (= die gerechte Maria) wurde im Pfarrheim Steinabrückl (Niederösterreich) am 20.12.2025 uraufgeführt. 
Just Mary schildert das Leben der Jungfrau Maria nach Inhalten der Visionen der sel. Anna Katharina Emmerick (1774–1824), die diese dem Schriftsteller Clemens Brentano in mystischer Schau diktiert hat.
Der Text von Doris Schranz wurde überarbeitet von Dr. Andreas Rager und Mag. Dieter Schranz. Lieder sind von Andreas Rager, Dieter Schranz und Agnes Pichler. Von den Liedern wird es bald ein Liederbuch geben. 

La storia monastica è la storia delle regole. Fin dagli inizi, donne e uomini consacrati a Dio si sono orientati a prescrizioni normative che strutturano sia la vita comunitaria che quella eremitica. La più influente tra esse è la Regula Benedicti, che – scritta nel VI secolo – ancora oggi offre a numerose comunità monastiche un quadro spirituale e organizzativo. La ricezione riuscita di questo testo è garantita da commenti, glosse e consuetudines – strumenti che colmano le lacune delle norme e ne permettono l’adattamenti alle diverse realtà. Questi testi testimoniano un costante bisogno di interpretazione e hanno generato molteplici forme di vita benedettina. Un segno della capacità di adattamento della Regola fu la sua precoce applicazione alle comunità femminili, esempio di interpretazione creativa. I commenti, oltre a rispondere alle esigenze concrete, mirano anche a comprendere l’essenza duratura dello spirito di san Benedetto. Mentre le consuetudines sono già state più volte oggetto di studio, i commenti alla Regola hanno ricevuto finora una minore attenzione. La conferenza intende analizzare comparativamente e sistematicamente le forme letterarie, i criteri storici e il contributo spiritualeteolo­ gico dei commenti alla Regula Benedicti dal VI al XXI secolo.

Martin Schröters Werk zum Cistercienserkloster Reinfeld (Das Kloster Reinfeld: eine geistliche Institution im Umfeld der Hansestadt Lübeck 1186/90 - 1582) war unter anderem deswegen so faszinierend, weil der Forscher anhand von Archivalien ein verschollenes Kloster hat wieder erstehen lassen. Lange hatte es geheißen, dass nichts mehr bekannt sei von dem Kloster, und dass es ungenügende Archivbestände gebe.
Nun geht die "Auferstehung" von Reinfeld weiter. Eine Art Jugendbauhütte, der "Geschichtserlebnisraum Roter Hahn" in Lübeck-Kücknitz, ist ein 1:1 Modell vom Urbau Reinfeld, das Kloster in seiner Holz-Fachwerk-Version. Die Anlage wurde liebevoll von Zimmerleuten, Geschichtsinteressierten und Fachleuten rekonstruiert.

The picture of St. Bernard shown above is from the title page of the Chronicon Cisterciensis Ordinis (Cologne, 1614). The unusual thing about it is Bernard carrying a pillar. He is often presented with other instruments (nails, sponge, spear) used to torture Christ during the Passion, but rarely is there a pillar. It is, however, established as one of the passion instruments and is venerated as such, as the image below clearly demonstrates. 

It used to be very difficult to help guests find their way through a monastic breviary. Often, monks use two or even three different books during choir, and if the liturgy is in Latin, it can be very daunting for guests, almost impossible, to find their way. Now, some abbeys have solved that problem by providing a single QR code. Smartphones do have their advantages.  

Pater Anselm Demattio (Kremsmünster) has published his licentiate thesis on Sebastian Krabler, the pastor of Steinerkirchen and head of the Lambach Deanery in Upper Austria from 1573 to 1590. The publication concerns ms. CC 107 of Kremsmünster, dated 1580. See this excellent review.
The thesis gives fascinating insight into the pastoral care of an abbey-incorporated parish in the 16th century, a time of great ecclesiastical confusion. The codex reveals details about liturgy and theology in Krabler's daily life, beyond (far beyond) the standardized diocesan books. Krabler used German for many liturgical services. He had relations with more than one woman and fathered several children. He may have been typical of parish priests at that time and place.
People of the 16th c. were not sure of the boundaries between Catholicism and Protestantism. "Priests who remained Catholic often used their own private collections along with Protestant agendas and the rituals of Passau and Salzburg," writes Demattio (26). 
Most of Kremsmünster's "old," i.e., pre-Josephine parishes, were staffed by secular priests paid by the monastery. That changed in the course of the 17th c., as part of Catholic Reform, when monks were sent to care for the abbey's parishes. But before the 17th c., only a few parishes, especially those in the immediate vicinity of the monastery, were staffed by monks.

... the more they stay the same ...

Above is a hoodie, a common sight on many a street in 2025. Below is a monk wearing a cloak-cowl from the 5th century. It is one example (of many) showing how much monks' clothing influenced modern fashion. Another example is the graduation gown worn at Anglo-American graduation ceremonies: it is derived from the full cowl worn by the monk-professors at medieval universities. 

It is that time of year. Between All Souls' Day and the First Sunday of Advent, the liturgical year focusses on mortality and the Last Things. Classic elements of memento mori paintings seek to remind us of our mortality and the transience of life, encouraging reflection on death and the afterlife. These ideas were particularly popular in Port-Royal, the Cistercian abbey that has often been described as a center of Jansenism. 
This drawing is based on an artwork by Philippe de Champaigne (1602–1674), who fulfilled many commissions for the famous Parisian abbey ... and Cardinal Richelieu. Note the skull, emphasizing human mortality, the clock as a symbol of time and life's brevity, and the wilting flowers, which signify decay and the fleeting nature of beauty and life.