BENEDICTINES in Saint Louis, Missouri, are preparing to greet Cardinal Basil Hume, when he visits them next month to join in their celebrations of the 1500th anniversary of the birth of St Benedict.
Cardinal Hume is a past Abbot of Ampleforth Abbey, York, the parent abbey of St Louis Priory. It was during his office that the American monastery became independent.
The monks, nuns and sisters of the area have invited the Cardinal' to take part in a special celebration Mass in honour of St Benedict, in St Louis Cathedral, on June I. It is also planned that the Cardinal will be addressing an. ecumenical group on his work for Christian Unity, and presenting graduation prizes to the boys of the Priory school.
A spokesman for the St Louis Priory said that the main theme of the celebration would be "centred upon a realisation and interpretation of the Rule of St Benedict for each monk, nun and sister in each community in the diverse cultures and circumstances of our day."
It is anticipated that there will be about 30,000 Benedictines across the world, celebrating the birth of their founder this summer.