Welcome (back)!

Today at Saint Meinrad Archabbey, we have three monks to either welcome or welcome back:

X Anushka Fonseka, who this evening before Vespers will be invested as a novice in our community. Anushka, originally from Sri Lanka, came to Saint Meinrad as a candidate a couple months ago. Prior to that, he lived in Mobile, Alabama, where he was an engineer. Read more here.

As I type this, he is receiving his corona, or tonsure, courtesy of Br. Martin "Scissorhands" Erspamer. May God bless Novice Anushka's discernment with peace. We are glad to have him here.

X Br. Luke, who has been in Switzerland at our mother abbey of Einsiedeln most of this past summer, as I was last year. It has been an eventful year for him, as he also lost his father this summer (last summer, he lost his mother). It is good to have Br. Luke back in the fold, and we look forward to hearing of his adventures in Europe.

I haven't had much chance to speak with him yet, but he visited several places I didn't get around to last summer-- such as Chartres, Paris, and Leuven.

I trust that he returned with some Swiss chocolate ... if not, we may have to send him back!

X Br. Thomas Fässler, of our motherhouse of Einsiedeln, who arrived here with Br. Luke. As did Br. Mauritius last year, Br. Thomas will be studying in the Seminary and School of Theology here this next school year and living with us in the monastery. (Br. Mauritius, incidentally, is soon heading for the Holy Land to improve his Hebrew language skills in preparation for Scripture studies.)

I had the privilege of getting to know him a little last summer in Switzerland, while we were both still junior monks. Br. Thomas made his solemn profession last month. It is a joy to have him here!