Prayer opens our minds to the influence of God. Through prayer we praise and thank God It also helps us to understand ourselves, so that we can be of service to others.

As St Benedict says in the Rule: God regards our purity of heart and tears of remorse, not our many words.

All monks take three vows:-

Obedience – to the Rule of St Benedict, to the Abbot and through them, to Christ.

Stability – we bind ourselves to a specific community.

‘Conversatio morum’ – by the conversion of our life according to the monastic tradition, which we strive to renew each day.

All monasteries are self-funding, so our work helps us to keep the monastery running. To us, working is about much more than gain of material things. The Rule always asks us to work with humility. Through our work we must make a constant effort to become a better person. Living in a community gives us the stability and efficiency to develop ideas and projects with a long-term view.

As Pope Benedict said: ‘a Monastery is a place of spiritual power’.