Le Projet Douai
Douai England ..... Douai France2005 - 2012 |
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On November 2, 2005 two monks, Fr Finbar Kealy & Fr Peter Bowe, seen on the right outside our former monastery, started a small urban monastery, the Maison St-Benoît, in Douai, 25 miles south of Lille.
In May 2008 Fr Finbar was called to become administrator of Quarr Abbey in the Isle of Wight.
- the parish priest & parishioners of Douai invited us to re-establish a monastery, 100 years after our expulsion in 1903.
- the archbishop of the local diocese of Cambrai gave his blessing
- the venture has the support of the mayor and townspeople.
On Sunday February 5, 2006 the monastery was officially opened by the Archbishop of Cambrai after a Mass in the collegiate church St-Pierre . Click to see photos and an account of the event.
Sadly this house had to close in 2012. Since Fr Finbar was sought by the Solesmes Congregation to be superior at Quarr Abbey in the Isle of Wight in 2008, it has become increasingly difficult to find monks, at Douai Abbey or elsewhere, who were sufficiently fluent in French and who could be spared from other work.
A letter was sent to monastic superiors in Europe, North America and elsewhere seeking a second monk. A number of monks from other monasteries have come for short periods, but, it has not been possible to find any monks to stay on a semi-permanent basis, and so with great sadness this monastic cell had to close in January 2012.A Mass of thanksgiving for the six years the monks haad been in Douai was celebrated in church of Notre Dame on Saturday January 14, 2012, by the Archbishop of Cambrai, Mgr Garnier and the clergy and peope of Douai. Click to see an account and photos of this Mass.
Nevertheless, the link with Douai, France, will be kept alive, thanks to the William Allen Association. Hopefully, Douai monks will continue to go to Douai, France, to give talks and conferences, and a group of Douaisiens is already booked to come to Douai, England, in May 2012 for a retreat, and similar ventures will continue to be arranged in future years.
The Maison St-Benoît was a house of prayer where all were welcome to share in the monastic Office,
- Morning Prayer at 07.30 (except Tuesdays)
- Evening Prayer at 18.30 (except Mondays & Tuesdays)
- Wednesdays - Mass after Morning Prayer followed by shared reflections on the scriptures
- Thursdays - (in school term) Exposition followed by shared lunch for students
- Thursdays - Exposition at 18.00 until after Vespers
- Fridays - Midday Prayer is celebrated in the nearby collegiate church of St-Pierre, (seen on the left) in the Lady Chapel at 12.15.
The monks
- offered spiritual & theological reflection
- introduction to prayer & spiritual guidance
- help with youth & other chaplaincies as needed
- and provide a place of retreat & hospitality
In this way
- Douai Abbey’s own horizon extended into mainland Europe, now so readily accessible
- a new form of urban monastic life was being explored
- a new pastoral outreach was being tried
- an old English Catholic and Benedictine connection had been restored
Our former chapel designed by Pugin The graves of monks who died in Douai
