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In this latest podcast episode from "Echoes from the Bell
Tower," we learn about a tradition of the Saint Meinrad monks that
few people know about - and even fewer get to see.
Vow charts are handwritten, often beautifully decorated sheets
that each monk signs when he makes his monastic vows. A monk can
create his own vow chart or seek help from someone more
artistically inclined.
The monk signs a vow chart twice, each time at a ceremony held
in the Archabbey Church. The "first vows" ceremony is when a novice
professes vows for three years.
By the end of three years, he has decided whether monastic life
is right for him and can ask the monastic community to allow him to
make "final vows," which are for a lifetime.
At each vows ceremony, the monk reads and signs his vow chart.
The chart then goes into the archives until the time of his death,
when it is brought out and displayed on his casket - a symbol that
he has lived up to his vows.
Br. Simon Herrmann, OSB, and Br. Nathaniel Szidik, OSB, (photo
above) narrate this episode while the usual hosts, Br. Joel and Br.
Kolbe, are on summer hiatus.
The photos posted here depict the vow charts mentioned in the
podcast. Starting at the top, they are the charts of Archabbot Kurt
Stasiak, Br. Martin Erspamer, Br. Lorenzo Penalosa and Br. Joel
Blaize.
You can see photos of vow charts from other Saint Meinrad monks
at this link: https://saint-meinrad.smugmug.com/Art/Monastic-Vow-Charts.
Our quarterly newsletter, On the Hill, features a story
about vow charts in the summer issue. Find the PDF of that issue
here: https://www.saintmeinrad.org/media/1754/oth-news-summer-2018.pdf.
As always, you can listen to this episode at the top of this
page or go to iTunes, Stitcher or wherever you get your podcasts
and download "Echoes from the Bell Tower." Thanks for
listening!




