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Silver Jubilee and Solemn Profession
1 Nov 2020
ALL SAINTS 2020 SOLEMN PROFESSION DOM LOUIS OSEI, OSB In the Book of Tobit we hear:Tobit continued immovable in the fear of God, giving thanks to God all the days of his life. … and look[s] for that life which God will give to those that never change their faith from him. (Tobit 2:14, 18 Vulgate). At the 2nd Vatican Council, Gaudium et Spes declared:
The dignity of the human person rests above all on the fact that humanity is called to communion with God. The invitation to converse with God is addressed to humans as soon as we come into being. For if we exist it is because God has created us through love, and through love continues to hold us in existence. We cannot live fully according to truth unless we freely acknowledge that love and entrust ourselves to our creator. (PASTORAL CONSTITUTION ON THE CHURCH IN THE MODERN WORLD, Gaudium et Spes, n. 19).
Today, Brother Louis, entrusts himself to his creator. Through professing the three monastic vows of stability, conversion of life and obedience, he is true to his humanity as a person called to communion with God. Like Tobit, he wishes to express his desire to be immovable in his seeking God, giving thanks to God all the days of his life, so as to receive the gift of God stated by St. Benedict as: to God, loving fear… Let them prefer nothing whatever to Christ, and may Christ bring us all together to everlasting life (RB 72:9, 11-12).
Those that never change their faith from God, Tobit says. Pope Francis states that faith is leaving space for God, leaving space for love. Through his vows, Brother Louis, out of love of God, embraces Christ who has already embraced him. In the early English, Anglo-Saxon poem, The Dream of the Rood, the cross shudders when Jesus ascends, embraces the cross. In his life as a monk there will be times when Brother Louis will need to embrace the cross. He shall through patience share in the sufferings of Christ that he may deserve also to share in his kingdom (RB Prol 50). In his exhortation On the Call to Holiness in Today’s World, Gaudete et Exsultate, Pope Francis says, “God is eternal newness. He impels us constantly to set out anew, to pass beyond what is familiar, to the fringes and beyond... God is not afraid! He is fearless! He is always greater than our plans and schemes” (n. 135). This is what Brother Louis affirms by taking religious vows.
As we move forward to the actual profession of vows - “your profession leads you to salvation” (Romans 10:10) - may the love of Christ impel each of us to pray that the Holy Spirit comes down, overshadows Brother Louis so that he shall run on the path of God’s commandments, his heart overflowing with the inexpressible delight of love (RB Prol 49). Like Tobit and his family, may Brother Louis bless God, utter God’s praise before all… never tire of giving God thanks,… and make known the wonderful works of God (Tobit 12:6, 22, cf. Vulgate).
Today we celebrate the Solemnity of All Saints. In the first reading, John has a vision: I saw a huge number, impossible to count, of people from every nation, race, tribe and language (Revelation 7:9). Saint Benedict in his Rule instructs that profession should be made before all… before God and his saints (coram omnibus… coram Deo et Sanctis eius, RB 58:17, 18). Religious Profession is not a private act but a public liturgical act before your monastic community, before those present here, before the church, before all humanity, before all creation, before all. More specifically, Brother Louis you are making your Profession in the presence of our Brother Gabriel Peh who is celebrating the Silver Jubilee of his monastic profession. Brother Gabriel embodies what Pope Francis expressed in his recent Encyclical Fratelli Tutti saying: monks [must] realize … a readiness to move beyond themselves in openness to others … that excludes no one and a fraternity that is open to all. (nn. 90, 94). As we rejoice in the first monk of Kristo Buase Monastery to attain silver jubilee, it encourages Brother Louis to persevere in his purpose, his profession as a monk, with holy prayer, relying upon its power, praying to the Lord continuously in the presence of the Lord, beseeching God with all his heart (Judith 4:12, 14, 16 Vulgate) immovable in his seeking God, giving thanks to God all the days of his life, so that he may glorify God with the multitude of Saints and Angels with one voice of praise (Preface).
Recent Events
1 Feb 2019
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L-r Br Basilio, Br Louis, Prior Bede, Bishop Gyamfi, Br Louis, Br Martin, Fr Samuel
Monday, 17th December, 2018. Blessing of the new primary school of the Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth, Chiraa |
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Choir at Mass New Year's 2019
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 Br Louis with Fr Jude of Ewu Monastery outside Paschal Monastery, Nigeria (28 January 2019) |
Day to Day Activities
30 Nov 2018
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Br Louis cleaning corn from our farm |
Br Cyprian cleaning yam to cook for lunch |
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Br Martin cleaning sacristy |
Br Cyprian watching Br Louis stirring the banku for lunch |
Fr. Giles @ Kristo Buase
1 Sep 2018
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Br. Louis |
Br. Louis working in the garden |
Cemetery cross |
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Br. Basilio |
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Washing up |
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Br. Cyprian ringing the bell for Office |
Br. Patrick |
Br. Martin |
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Br. Gabriel |
Getting a haircut
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close shave |
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Cocoa pod |
Nursing cashew seedlings |
Destroyed cashews |
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Hermitage cloister |
Hermitage chapel |
trimming the kitchen pestle |
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Blessing a house |
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Recording a YouTube Preacher |
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St Ambrose High School
29 Aug 2018
Father Prior speaking to pupils of St. Ambrose High School, Coatbridge, U.K. The other priest in the photo is Abbot Martin McLaughlin of Prinknash Abbey. We were at the school as part of the celebrations for Abbot Martin's election as the 6th Abbot of Prinknash. He had attended the school.
Brother Antony Buafal in Trinidad
8 Jul 2018
Our Brother Antony Buafal is 3rd from left in the back row.
He is with the Benedictine community of Mount St Benedict Abbey, Trinidad, where he is staying while pursuing the 3 year BA degree course in religious studies at University of West Indies.
Br Cyprian in Oxford, UK
21 Jun 2018
Br Cyprian and Abbot Martin outside the Sheldonian, University of Oxford
Blessing of Abbot Martin
27 Apr 2018
Back row left to right: Fr Stephen, Fr Mark, Br Simon, Br Hugh, Br Bernard, Br Matthew, Br Giles
Front row left to right: Prior Bede, Bishop Hugh, Abbot Martin, Abbot Francis, Abbot Francis
Cutting the grass
and repainting the monastery signEaster Greetings from Kristo Buase
28 Mar 2018
The candle was painted by Brother Louis
Easter Sunday Mass
An American friend of ours, Herbert Schultz, provided funds for us to obtain for our monastic library seven works of St John Chrysostom, and two works of St Cyril of Alexandria.
In our area, this is the season of the Yam festivals. Our guest from Prinknash Abbey, Mary Jones, attended the Tuobodom Yam festival on 24th October. These two low resolution photos she took on her phone. 
There have been a few changes in officials at the monastery:
- Brother Basilio is now Novice Master,
- Brother Antony is Oblate Master.
Please pray for these brothers who showed a great spirit of obedience in accepting these tasks.
A number of priests have been here on retreat in the past two weeks. First there were two Divine Word Missionaries, working in Accra, then Father Daniel of the Goaso diocese, and finally Father Gabriel of the Archdiocese of Accra.
At present, we have a monastic guest from the Abbey of Koubri in Burkina Faso - Brother Anthelm. He is a very cheerful presence in the community, ever willing to help. He has no English and our oblate, Monica Cowell, is giving him classes in English twice daily.
2nd November, All Souls, is a day in where traditionally the whole monastic community gathers in the cemetery for prayers for deceased community members. At Kristo Buase, we gather in the cemetery for Midday Prayers, sometimes called Sext. We also bless the graves. Our cemetery is in a quiet grove and at its entrance there is a beautiful cross.
We continue to pray for you all, and ask that you do the same for us, especially in the lead up to the Presidential Election here in Ghana in December.
THE ELEVATION OF KRISTO BUASE MONASTERY TO THE STATUS OF A PRIORY SUI JURIS AND THE ELECTION OF A PRIOR (September 2016)
THE GOOD NEWS
On the eve of the 27th anniversary of the Kristo Buase monastery the news came that the Abbot President was about to sign the document which was going to confirm and declare the long awaited autonomy of the community, from the three founding houses in England and Scotland, becoming a Priory sui juris on 6th August, 2016. On the 15th August, the community went through the process of electing their first prior (this was conducted under the supervision of the Abbot Francis of Prinknash abbey). The chapter fathers had elected the first prior of the priory and he was in the person of Dom Bede Kierney of Pluscaden Abbey. There has to be a ceremony to install him. This was the responsibility of the Abbot Francis but due to travelling arrangements, he delegated his powers to the the Bishop of the diocese of Techiman, the resident diocese of the monastery. This ceremony was to be followed by a thanksgiving mass, which the whole community in accord with the prior elect had decided to celebrate in a grand style and this required the organization of the event in less than two weeks. All was set for the ceremony of the installation on 9th September; the Bishop Dominic of Techiman had been very prompt as usual hitherto he had promised 4:00pm therefore arriving in his full regalia at ten to four. The ritual began by the reading of the declaration to the hearing of the conventual house and was followed shortly with the oath of the prior elect. Afterwards the Bishop led Dom Bede to the chapel stool at the head of the other chapel stools purposely for the new prior of the new priory and installed him on the stool. The new prior then gave his speech; calling to mind that he was actually elected to serve and not to be served. The ceremony was ended with photographs in the cloister, while the Bishop thanked Dom Ambrose Flavell who had been very instrumental on the quest of the attainment of autonomy for the house.
THANKSGIVING MASS, 10th SEPTEMBER
This event was witnessed by people of all walks of life, from the dioceses of Techiman, Sunyani, Donkorkrom, Kumasi, Ouagadougou and beyond. The event was graced by the presence of the Bishop Dominic Yeboah Nyarko of the Techiman diocese who was the main celebrant and the Bishops, Matthew Kwasi Gyamfi and Gabriel Kumordzie, from the diocese and Apostolic Vicariate of Sunyani and Donkorkrom respectively and the V. Rev. Fr. Dominic Apee, president of the Ghana major superiors Association were all in attendance to con-celebrate. Also in attendance were the priests, monks and religious from Techiman, Sunyani , Kubiri and beyond, medical personnel, Government officials, the Armed and Police forces, Chiefs and Queen mothers, etc. After the start of the mass with the long procession, the V. Rev. Fr. John Kofi Takyi (vicar-general of the Techiman diocese) gave the welcome address, beginning with a monastic quote “the challenge the society poses to the monastic life is not due to it’s alienation from social fixtures but it’s concern for the salvation of the society”, he continued to state that “the spiritual and material growth of a society is always due to the existence of the church represented by a monastery or a priory”. He appreciated therefore the effort of all who had helped the monastery to this far, urging more people to seek solitude within the confines of the of the monastery, for the renewal of the their spiritual lives.
HOMILY
Bishop Matthew Kwasi Gymfi during his homily appreciated the weather (over cast), thanking God for how far he had brought the community, describing how the environment was at the time the monastery was inaugurated and noted that “the monastery was of an impregnable spiritual repute”. He actually went into a detailed explanation of an autonomous monastery and what the new status was to expect in the near future, exhibiting the depths of knowledge he had as regards to the monastic setting. The Bishop congratulated the monastery and commended all those both dead and alive whose effort and instrumentality had contributed to the immensely to this new achievement and in silence remaindered us of Dom Martin Simons, Dom Leo, Dom Bartholomew Banzie and Bishop Kwadwo Owusu, the formers who were superiors and members of the community and the latter the late Bishop of Sunyani. He then went on to acknowledge the Nana Amisare Dwomor 2 chief of Tanoboase for his generosity and that of his predecessor, for the vast land of which the monastery is proud of. He could not finish without the acknowledgment of the gigantic support of the three founding houses; Prinknash, Pluscarden and Ramsgate now Chilworth all in U.K., for their hard work and toil to nurture for this young child of theirs to its independence. The main focus of his homily was on: independent, inter-dependent and dependent. He explained each of these and the interconnectivity they all had with each other, therefore relating it to the new autonomous priory of Kristo Buase. He stated that the independence of the community was not to be taking as the independence of the individuals in the community but the brethren were now to live most especially in inter-dependency thus each one depending on the other in the community and not each going on their diverse ways, the brethren were he said were to remain in unity in order to be strong and be bound to the love of God, as Christ himself tells us “remain in My love”. “Each member of the community”, he said, “was not to listen to the rhythm of his own drum alone but to the rhythm of the others, for he who listens to the rhythm of his own does not avail himself to new ideas, the diversities and the acknowledgment of others, which will go a long way to avoid mediocrity, vain glory and the wallowing in our ignorance due to self centeredness”. His Lordship in his conclusion made reference to the edifices of the monastic communities he had visited so far, especially those of the three founding houses of Kristo Buase and how these buildings themselves emitted and demonstrated dialogue in a special way. He made mention of the monks’ unlike the other religious congregations, resistance of the trends of the times as unhealthy and their preference for the opposing side. He ended with congratulatory messages to the first Prior of the new Priory, V. Rev. Dom Bede Kierney OSB. and the whole community and with one voice with Apostle Paul’s letter to the Ephesians1:1-3: Blessed be the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has bestowed in us every spiritual blessing in Christ.
THE PEAK
The Bishops during offertory informed Prior Bede that he needed to be installed in the presence of all gathered and most especially in the presence of the Chiefs and the elders so that they could come forward to greet him, since this was something very peculiar in the Ghanaian setting that a chief does not stand to greet someone unless the person is elevated before him. Before the second collection the three Bishops installed Prior Bede of a Chiefs stool, sitting him down three time in the name of the Holy Trinity, then all came to greet him including the chiefs with his Queen mother and elders while the wonderful Dagaaba choir sang.
CONCLUSION
Rev. Dom Ambrose Flavell gave the vote of thanks, after the mass came to a close and yes he gave an extraordinary exhortation and a wonderful advice to the Prior, since he had experienced Kristo Buase as the Superior for many years. The party afterward, as now we call the reception of every great ceremony, was on point since there were provisions made for the refreshment and nourishment of all who attended the event. All left in great satisfaction, for they had been blessed by this wonderful celebration and the grace of God was now abiding in them. In the evening after the community said good bye to the oblates who came from Accra, as they were the last to leave, sat at recreation to savour the lasting sweetness of the wonderful event God had made possible through the wonderful organization skills of Dom. Gabriel Peh with the support and the cooperation of the community. The Lord has indeed been good to the community of Kristo Buase and as the psalm of the day stated: “I will bless your name forever, O Lord”, we are indeed thankful.
