Mount St. Benedict Abbey: A Spiritual Haven

"Listen carefully, my child, to the master's instructions... " (Rule of Benedict, Prologue 1)

The Abbey of Our Lady of Exile

The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is a twin island state, just 7 miles off the coast of Eastern Venezuela. These two islands are the most southerly of the Caribbean Archipelago and feel the constant lapping of the waters of both the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea.

The Abbey of Our Lady of Exile is snugly nestled in the hills of the lush flora and fauna of Trinidad’s northern range six hundred and sixty feet above sea level. After the conquest of the Spaniards by Christopher Columbus in 1498 and the decimation of a large portion of the Indigenous peoples, the re-population of the islands drew from a wide spectrum: African slaves, East Indian indentured labourers, French land-owners, English aristocrats, Spanish conquistadors, Chinese labourers, Portuguese, Syrians, Jews, etc. With this potpourri, came an attendant array of customs, rhythms and belief systems, all intermingling with each other and drawing as well from the vestiges of the Indigenes. Although the British assumed political control in 1797, French was spoken in several quarters and Roman Catholicism held its own. Today English is the lingua franca. Hinduism, Islam, Protestantism, Pentecostalism, the Orisha Faith, the Spiritual Baptists and Roman Catholicism all co-exist, at times with a bit of syncretism, side by side with each other.

Into this microcosm came the monks from the ancient abbey of São Bento in Bahia, Brazil, in the year 1912. They were fleeing religious persecution. On their arrival at Tunapuna, they dedicated the land to the Blessed Virgin Mary under the title of “Our Lady of Exile”, as the account from the Gospel of Matthew reminded them of their own flight. Under the astute leadership of Dom Mayeul de Caigny and Dom Hugh van der Sanden, the monastery of Mount St Benedict flourished and soon became part of the spiritual landscape of Trinidad and the wider Caribbean. Inspired by the open spirituality of the Rule of St Benedict, the monks opened the ears of their hearts and their monastery to the diverse peoples inhabiting these lands.

Today a small band of ten monks continues faithfully the work begun by their forefathers over one hundred years ago. Observing the daily round of prayer and monastic community living as prescribed by St Benedict, their main task is the Liturgical Ministry to the pilgrims, hundreds of whom visit the monastery on a daily basis seeking prayer and guidance. A “parlour” ministry meets the needs of those who seek a more direct contact with the monks and where often the Sacrament of Reconciliation is sought. There is a retreat ministry which caters for both individuals and groups. Wood work, poultry farming and kitchen gardening are also activities at the abbey. “PAX” Yogurt, a product of the abbey, is sold at the “Pax Abbey Shop” on the grounds of the abbey and in all the major supermarkets on both islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The “Pax Abbey Shop” also offers religious books and items for both devotional and doctrinal use.

The Abbey of Our Lady of Exile, Mount St Benedict, Trinidad, is the home of the Benedictine monks who live and work in Trinidad and Tobago. It is a place where people of all faiths and of no faith are welcome. It is a place apart where the Way of St Benedict is lived and offered to all those who visit.

Oldest picture of a human and dog in the street

About Us

WHO ARE WE?

Mount St. Benedict is the home of the Benedictine monks who live and work in Trinidad and Tobago. They follow a way of life that traces its roots to St. Benedict of Norcia who was born in Italy in the year 480. Educated in Rome, Benedict was exposed to the onslaught of hedonism that was rampant at the time, as people became disoriented from their principal purpose in life. Benedict sought out the solitude of a cave at Subiaco, some thirty miles east of Rome, to recapture what he perceived to be the primary purpose of life: the search for God. Within a few years many young people sought out Benedict, one of his early disciples being his sister, Scholastica.

His first project was to instruct them in the way of prayer and love, and for this, he set up small communities using the Gospel as his guide. In the year 529, Benedict established a monastery at Monte Cassino, where he lived with his community until his death in 547. It was while he was Abbot of Monte Cassino that he wrote a Rule for monks, which has come down to us today, and which together with the Bible is the primary source of spirituality for Benedictine monks.

Today, there are approximately 9,000 men and 18,000 women who follow this way of life, scattered throughout the entire world. In the Caribbean, they can be found in Martinique, St Lucia, Haiti, Puerto Rico and Trinidad. Mount St. Benedict is the oldest monastery in the region, having been founded in 1912. Benedictines are those who have been called to live in community and strive to conform their lives to the teaching of the Bible and the Rule of St. Benedict and also to the guidance of an Abbot or Abbess, the spiritual leader of the community.

In his chapter on the procedure for receiving new members, the only qualification that Benedict stipulates in his Rule is that the person is a seeker, genuinely searching for God. It is this radical one-pointedness, this centeredness on Christ which is the starting point. Whatever is done must flow from this. Benedictines have no specific apostolate. They were not “founded” nor do they exist for the sake of education, or the pursuit of learning, or to promote agriculture, etc. The specific Benedictine idea is community life according to the Gospel as lived by the early Christian community (Acts 2:42-47; 4:32-35), and to be open to the needs of the place or diocese in which they are located.

The Abbey of Our Lady of Exile
Mount St. Benedict

St John's Road
Tunapuna, Trinidad & Tobago

Tel: (868) 662-2259, (868) 662-5286;

Email: mountstbenedict@gmail.com; jaebp@live.com

Website: www.mountstbenedictabbey.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mountstbenedicttrinidad

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@mountst.benedictabbey4651

MONKS

Rt Rev John Pereira, Abbot

Most Rev Francis Alleyne

Bro Rupert Alexis

Bro Richard Diaz

Bro Lancelot Herbert

Bro Paschal Jordan

Bro Yamnick Kabi

Bro Samuel Muhindo

Fr. Benoît Standaert (long-term guest from Belgium)