Temporary Profession of Br Saul
A homily by Abbot Brendan at a special Easter Mass for Pope Francis, attended by Catholics from across the Deanery.
Br Saùl who made his temporary profession of vows on 1st May. It was a lovely occasion, and the church full. A number of local priests and religious sisters also came. The church looked beautiful, particularly the flowers. Fr Alex and the community make the most beautiful decorated Pascal candles: this one burned brightly symbolizing Br Saul's passing from death to life in Christ, as his monastic commitment is a deeping of his baptismal promises.
All were invited for lunch afterwards in the courtyard, chicken and rice, corn and peas. The community has passed their evening recreation shelling peas. It was eaten with fresh membrillo juice. There was much joy in the gathering.
Br Saul is in our prayers as he continues his monastic journey. Abbot Brendan's homily follows:
We are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit.”
Dear Brother Saul, it is a great blessing that your monastic profession falls in these Easter days, when the Church celebrates the mystery of the Lord’s Resurrection.
In today’s reading, Peter and the Apostles stand before the high priest and bear witness: Jesus, though put to death, has been raised to life. And we, who have celebrated the Paschal mysteries at Easter, are also called to witness—to live lives that speak of this dying and rising. Some are called to witness in public ways: missionaries, preachers, parents in their daily sacrifices. You are called to witness through the monastic life: in silence, in prayer, in fraternity, and in love, and with all those you meet on your way. This is no less powerful. Our monastic life may sometimes be hidden from the world, but it resounds in heaven.
Saint Paul VI once said, “Modern man listens more willingly to witnesses than to teachers, and if he listens to teachers, it is because they are witnesses.” Today, Br Saul, you speak your vows not to impress, but to witness—to show forth with your life the love of the God who has first loved you.
Your vows shape that witness:
Stability teaches us to remain rooted. It is easy to love the world in theory; much harder to love those we live with every day. But stability teaches us to belong, and to let love grow in the soil of fidelity.
Conversatio morum calls us to daily conversion. It echoes Christ’s call to metanoia—to be transformed, little by little, more fully into the image of the Son.
Obedience reminds us that we cannot save ourselves. It breaks the illusion of self-sufficiency. In obedience, we learn to listen, to surrender, to be formed. Christ himself was obedient to the Father’s will: “I have come not to do my own will, but the will of the One who sent me.”
________
Today is the feast of Saint Joseph the Worker. He was foster father to Jesus—and he can be a spiritual father to you. Matthew’s Gospel names him a “just man”: faithful, steady, committed. But Joseph was also open to the unknown, the unexpected. His heart was docile, alert to the voice of God in dreams and silence. He models a quiet, courageous obedience.
I think you already share some of his fine qualities. You’re a worker, not afraid of hard tasks. But more than that, you are a man of prayer. You belong to Christ. Let him grow in your heart, day by day.
At this time we mourn the passing of our Holy Father Pope Francis. Twelve years ago, I was in St Peter’s Square on this feast day for the Inaugural Mass with which he began his papal ministry.
In his homily, he spoke of Joseph as a protector—not just of Jesus and Mary, but of creation, of the poor, of the Church. And he said something beautiful: “We must not be afraid of goodness, of tenderness.”
Pope Francis often speaks of a “revolution of tenderness”—a movement born from contemplating the humility of God in the Christ-child. He wrote: “True faith in the Incarnate Son of God is inseparable from self-giving, from belonging to a community, from service, from reconciliation… The Son of God, by becoming flesh, summoned us to the revolution of tenderness.”
Br Saul, may you live that revolution. May your vows never make you closed or rigid, but open—always ready to follow the Holy Spirit’s lead. May your heart remain tender: strong enough to love, and humble enough to serve.
Amen.
