There was never a dull moment growing up with seven siblings. Little did I know that this experience would prepare me well for Benedictine life, a life of stability in community lived in the enclosure of the monastery.
God led me to my vocation through many people and events. Would I have become a monk if my grandmother had not prayed that one of her grandsons would become a priest; if my dad had not told me, “It doesn’t hurt to give God the first option”; if my severely disabled sister had not been born, teaching us that we can find joy in being vulnerable and dependent?
Nothing is more beautiful than encountering Christ. We can find him — or, better, allow him to find us — if we stand firm in our commitment to God’s family, which is the Church.
I didn’t lose my family when I entered the monastery; I joined a family much larger than 10. I belong to God’s family — this is the realization we can each come to if we open wide the door of our heart to Christ.
Father Caesarius Marple
Westminster Abbey
Mission, British Columbia








