Fraternal visits and exchanges
Visits to Bose of monks and nuns of other communities have founded or renewed ties of friendship and fraternity in a community of following Christ and have permitted a fruitful exchange of experiences.
In addition to the numerous monks and nuns who came for the liturgical conference or that on Orthodox spirituality, we remember with joy the visits of the last few months: fr Michel van Parys, Benedictine monk of Chevetogne, br Gabriele Zighetti, Benedictine monk of Evian, br Matteo of Camaldoli, br Peter of the German Protestant community of Imshausen, br Michael David and br Serafino of the community of the Visitation in Rhêmes-Notre-Dame, br Bank, Benedictine monk of the Hungarian monastery in Pannonhalma, br. Pino, Benedictine of Dumenza, fr Luigi Gioia, Olivetan monk resident at Sant’Anselmo, Rome, sr Maria Teresa, Capuchin Poor Clare, former abbess of the Oristano convent, four brothers of the Cistercian abbey of Hauterive. We have also had the joy of welcoming in June br Wissam, br Yasir, and br Raed, monks of the Syrian Catholic Church, who shared our monastic life with us. Finally, at the beginning of June we were visited by fr Pachomius, monk of the El-Suryani monastery in Egypt and for many years now pastor of the Coptic community of Florence, together with fr Simon, the new pastor of the Coptic community of Turin.
Besides numerous occasions of brief fraternal visits to other monastic communities, some of us have stayed in other monasteries for a few days of retreat or exchange. We recall above all that br Vincenzo accompanied the young novices and postulants to the Trappist monastery of Tamié to acquaint them with that community, sr Elisa spent a period in the Trappist monastery of Blauvac, while br Giandomenico spent three weeks in the Benedictine monastic community of En Calcat in France. Sr Sylvie went to Versailles to participate in the liturgy of blessing of sr Mireille, the new sister responsible for the deaconesses of Reuilly. As in other years, a small group of brothers went on an eight-day pilgrimage to the Holy Mountain Athos in mid-September; Br. Emanuele, br Stefano, and br Edoardo, led by br Luigi, stayed in a few of the principal monasteries there, welcomed in a fraternal spirit and strengthening ties of long standing. This year a group of sister as well (sr Lara, sr Annachiara, and sr Michela), led by sr Raffaela, visited Greece. Their interesting artistic and monastic itinerary took them to Athens (with the nearby centers of Dafni and Kesariani), Thessalonica, Veria, Metzovo, Ioannina, Meteora, Karditsa (where they visited the sisters and the ierontissa mother Diodora of the St George Monastery), Thebes (where they met with the sisters and igumena mother Ieronimi of the Monastery of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross).