New Skete Monasteries News

By Sister Cecelia In 2015 the monastics had many discussions about how we would celebrate our 50th New Skete anniversary. One idea that emerged was to have a commemorative icon painted that would symbolize who we are. The monks and nuns spent much prayer and reflection on what we would like to see in the icon, and we agreed on a plan. We articulated our ideas and sent them to several iconographers with a request for an agreement as to time needed to complete and how much the commission would cost. The question came back: Why not do it yourself? You have iconographers there. So I was asked, Will you do it? Can you do it in time for the anniversary? There was no way I could complete the icon in time for the beginning of the anniversary year, 2016, but we agreed it would be sufficient if I could have it completed by the day of the Pilgrimage. So began the process of preparing the board and the drawing. Many questions needed input: which Transfiguration model to use, what size the small t...

Brother Christopher Recently I watched a PBS episode of the American Experience telling the story of “the Boys in the Boat,” the Olympic 9-man rowing team from the University of Washington that won the gold medal in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. It was a gripping tale that described how the various members of the crew had struggled with adversity both in and beyond the sport to ultimately arrive victorious at the medal podium. Their courage and perseverance were deeply inspiring, and it was a thoroughly uplifting program. But the aspect of the story that struck me most unexpectedly was its description of what needed to take place among the crew members in order for them to succeed. The 9-man event demands that the crew work as one, harmoniously developing a rhythm with the oars that manifests a sleek elegance, gliding through the water with seemingly effortless precision. Only the crew members know the maximum amount of effort and concentration that go into winning the race at ...