The Abbey Church was filled with darkness. The monks, retreatants, and congregation had just heard seven readings and seven psalms. They all sat waiting for the joyful moment to occur. After a few moments, the Church was filled with light, altar servers placed flowers around the altar, and the organ began to play with the most power it had in a long time. Easter was here at the Vigil and joy filled the air.

This is just one of the many highlights of the annual Men’s Holy Week Retreat held by the monastic community and it is one of the most memorable traditions of Saint Anselm Abbey. This year, the monastic community hosted twenty men, including many students and alumni, to celebrate Holy Week while taking time to slow down and reflect before the Easter season.

The Holy Week Retreat is simple to describe. Most of what the retreatants do are connected to the normal rhythm of the monastic schedule. They attend morning, noon, evening, and night prayer, daily Mass, meals, and recreation with the community. They participate in daily Labora with the monks, doing chores inside and outside the monastery. They are provided with daily talks from monks related to Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday, and Easter Sunday. And at the end of their time, the retreatants walk away refreshed and excited to see their families for Easter Day. 

Some of the highlights each year usually revolve around liturgy and food. Holy Thursday involves a turkey dinner, a touch of wine for those over 21, and some time in prayer in front of the Eucharist in the beautifully decorated side-chapel in the Church. During the Good Friday service, those in attendance venerate the cross which contains a true relic of the cross of Christ. Holy Saturday is the highest point of the retreat, with a spaghetti dinner along with award-winning meatballs from the monastery’s head cook before the longest and most powerful Mass of the year, the Easter Vigil. After the Mass, the retreatants are invited to a small party with the monks and plenty of food, from pierogies to delectable desserts.

For students such as Chris Yapp, who attended the retreat for the first time this year, the week was powerful. Yapp stated: “The Holy Week retreat was incredibly transformative and beautiful. The monks and their stories, traditions, jokes, and faith provided a warmth and joy that is quite rare to encounter. A collection of small, yet sacred, moments, from games of Uno and telling stories in the Lower Church, to doing important tasks around the monastery and having impactful conversations, have quite frankly changed my life.”

This tradition is beloved by many who return each year to enjoy the men’s retreat. Brady Quinn, who graduated in 2023 and will graduate with his master’s degree in 2024, explained how the retreat is a great way to center oneself during Holy Week. 

“This is my third year doing the retreat and the reason I keep going back is because it is important to take the time during the Tritium to take a pause on the hectic world around us and truly focus on our faith surrounded by like minded peers and the mentorship of the monastic community,” he said.