On 25 January 2025, the community of the Benedictine Abbey of Kremsmünster elected a new abbot. Abbot Bernhard Eckerstorfer succeeds Abbot Ambros Ebhart in this position, which he held for 18 years.
Letter from Abbot Primate Jeremias congratulating Father Bernhard, who has spent many years at Sant'Anselmo:
As abbot primate of the Benedictine Confederation and great chancellor of the Pontifical Athenaeum Sant’Anselmo in Rome, I warmly congratulate our rector, Fr. Dr. Bernhard Eckerstorfer OSB, on his election as abbot of the abbey of Kremsmünster in Austria.
Above all, I extend my congratulations to his monastic community. With Abbot Bernhard, a mature religious with monastic seriousness, theological competence, and spiritual depth takes over the leadership of this venerable abbey. During his years of study and through his service at the international Benedictine university Sant’Anselmo in Rome, he has gained global experience. He will guide Kremsmünster into the future with heart, foresight, and his not inconsiderable charm.
Obviously, our joy is mixed with regret. Here in Rome, Fr. Bernhard Eckerstorfer will be greatly missed as rector, professor, and confrere. His departure leaves a void that will not be easy to fill. As of today, the leadership of our university passes into the hands of the vice rector, Fr. Dr. Laurentius Eschlböck OSB, from the Scott’s Monastery in Vienna. Over the coming months, the competent authorities will search for and appoint a new rector for Sant’Anselmo.
Sant’Anselmo and our Benedictine Confederation remain grateful that former Abbot Ambros Ebhart OSB released Fr. Bernhard in 2019 for this responsibility for the Benedictine world and the universal church. We trust that the abbey of Kremsmünster will continue to support the tasks of our Benedictine family in Rome and elsewhere also in the future.
Sant’Anselmo, 25 January 2025
Jeremias Schröder OSB
Abbot Primate
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