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In view of the fighting in the East of the Democratic Republic of Congo in recent days, we invite you to pray for our communities of Clarté-Dieu and Mokoto, but also for the Bernardines of Goma, and of course for all the communities and the entire population of this region. May peace, hoped for 30 years, finally reign there. ocso.org

The General Chapter of the Congregation of Sankt Ottilien, meeting at Waegwan Abbey (South Korea), has elected Father Javier Aparacio Suarez Abbot President of the Congregation. He replaces Dom Jeremias Schröder, elected Abbot Primate at the Abbots' Congress in September 2024. Until his election Fr. Javier Aparicio Suarez served as Mission Procurator of the Congregation. He received the abbatial blessing from Archbishop Hyginus Kim of Kwangju on 19 January. Father Javier is currently a member of the AIM Council.

On January 17, 2025, Sister María Rodríguez Méndez made solemn profession at the monastery of Esmeraldas (Ecuador). Sister María was born in 1975 in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (Spain). She was a perpetually professed religious of the Dolores Sopeña Catechetical Institute and began her transitus in our Order in 2021 in Esmeraldas. ocso.org

On Saturday, 15 February 2025, the monks of Saint Peter’s Archabbey (Austria)gathered to elect a new archabbot. New elections are normally held every twelve years, this time at the end of Archabbot Korbinian Birnbacher OSB’s term of office. It was held under the direction of Abbot President Johannes Perkmann OSB from Michaelbeuern Abbey. According to the statutes of the Benedictine Congregation, 22 monks were eligible to vote. The electoral chapter elected Fr. Jakob Auer OSB as the 89th abbot and 7th archabbot of St Peter’s. Fr. Jakob Auer OSB was born in Salzburg in 1991 and grew up in the municipality of Elsbethen. He joined the Archabbey of Saint Peter in 2013, took perpetual vows on 21 March 2018 and was ordained a priest on 29 June 2022. In the monastic community, he has held the office of church rector of the collegiate church since 2022 and has been prior, i.e. deputy to the archabbot, since 1 April 2024. osb.org Erzabtei St. Peter Right: Jakob Auer.

The community of Rougemont (Canada) is happy to announce the solemn profession of Brother Martin de Porrès , which took place on February 16, 2025. The liturgy, carefully prepared, was noble, rich and full of emotion. It transmitted to all, family and friends, the joy of the total gift to Christ and the fraternal and definitive welcome of Brother Martin in the community. Let us give thanks to God and pray for the newly professed! ocist.org https://abbayederougemont.org/

On Tuesday, 25 February 2025, the community of Seitenstetten Abbey (Austria), chaired by Abbot President Johannes Perkmann, re-elected Abbot Petrus Pilsinger for a second term of office by canonical vote. His new term of office extends until he reaches the age of 70. The new election took place at the end of his previous twelve-year term of office. We wish the re-elected abbot God’s blessing for his ministry. We ask all those who feel connected to our monastic community for their prayers. We ask for prayers for Abbot Petrus and the community. On behalf of the community, Prior Fr. Laurentius Resch OSB osb.org https://stift-seitenstetten.at/ Petrus Pilsinger. Community of Seitenstetten Abbey with the elected Abbot Petrus Pilsinger and the election commission Abbot President Johannes Perkmann (Michaelbeuern Abbey), Abbot Gerhard Hafner (Admont Abbey) and Prior Fr. Michael Hüttl (Altenburg Abbey) Photo credits Seitenstetten Abbey, Josef Penzendorfer.

On February 9, 2025, in Asmara (Eritrea), Br. Abraham Habtemariam made his solemn profession in the presence of the Abbot Negusse Woldai. The community asks the prayers of the Order for this brother. ocist.org

On Friday 7 February 2025, the Benedictine monks of En-Calcat (France) elected Father Maximilien Pietrzak abbot of the community. https://encalcat.com/

AIM-USA is the United States Secretariat of the InterMonastery Alliance. Twice a year it publishes a newsletter reporting on its activities with communities on different continents. https://aim-usa.org

“In order that everyone might be spiritually united in prayer on the feast of our Founders “for vocations and the renewal of our way of living Cistercian life”, it was proposed that, a text created by the RéCiF Region might be made available to all Communities.” (CC 2021)™ https://ocso.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Prayer.pdf ocso.org

Circular Letter from the Abbot General of the OCSO on the occasion of the Solemnity of Our Founders https://ocso.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Circular-Letter-26.01.2025-EN-PRAYER-AS-A-SCHOOL-OF-HOPE-1.pdf ocso.org

On 3 January 2025, Mother Lucia Tartara, Abbess of Naší Paní (diocese of Prague, Czech Republic), presented her resignation during the visit of the Abbot General. On the same day, the Abbot General, with the consent of his Council, accepted it with immediate effect. On 8 January, Dom Loris Tomassini, Abbot of Frattocchie and Father Immediate of Naší Paní, appointed Sister Chiara Pascucci as Superior ad nutum of the community. The appointment became effective immediately. Mother Chiara was born in Pesaro (Italy) in 1971, entered Vitorchiano in 1991, made solemn profession in 1997 and was a member of the founding group of Naší Paní in 2007. At the time of her appointment, she was in charge of the confectionery industry. ocso.org