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In the Blue Ridge Mountains, Holy Cross Abbey Brings Prayer and Quietude
Only 60 miles from the chaos of Washington, D.C., lies the Holy Cross Abbey of Berryville, Virginia. Sheltered by the Blue Ridge Mountains in the Shenandoah Valley, Holy Cross is a place of quiet and serenity where 24 monks of the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance [OCSO] --Trappists -- live a sequestered life ordered by a schedule of prayer and work.
[Holy Cross Abbey, Berryville, Va.]The morning's work includes labor in the fields or on the various products that are sold to provide sustenance -- fruitcake, brandied honey, truffles, a pastry called "fraters" (fruit cake dipped in dark chocolate). It is followed by a simple meal.
Location is the Blue Ridge Mountains, where, in 1960, the monastery was built after a fire had destroyed the previous structure in Rhode Island. The centerpiece is actually a fieldstone house built in 1784 as a hunting lodge for the family of Ralph Wormeley, who had been a friend of George Washington. The beautiful site, which was originally surveyed by Washington himself, is on a hill north of a natural spring, bordering the Shenandoah River.
The abbey guest house is available by reservation to men and women who wish to spend several days in quietness and prayer. Guests are welcome at any of the liturgical services in the Benedictine tradition of hospitality, and are asked only to respect the monks' privacy. There are no conferences, no is there a rigid schedule to follow. A monk is available for spiritual direction or confession.
[Fraters are slices of the abbey's world famous fruitcake smothered in rich dark chocolate] Weekday retreats begin on Monday at 3 p.m. and end on Friday by 9:30 a.m. There is a large library of books as well as religious items. The monks do not take a vow of silence. They do observe the 6th century Rule of Saint Benedict, living the vows of obedience, stability and "conversion of life in the monastic School for the Lord's Service."
Reservations can be made by e-mail at information@hcava.org. Even the address is enticing -- 901 Cool Spring Lane, Berryville, Va., 22611, 540-955-4383.
Experience At-a-Glance
If you go...
Holy Cross Abbey -- located at 901 Cool Spring Lane, Berryville, Virginia. For Guest House reservations, email here or call 540 955 4383.
Hiking
Holy Cross Abbey -- located at 901 Cool Spring Lane, Berryville, Virginia. For Guest House reservations, email here or call 540 955 4383.
Hiking
- Appalachian Trail -- a few miles up the road from Berryville is the Snickers Gap marker.
- George Washington National Forest
- Shenandoah National Park/Skyline Drive
- Sky Meadow State Park
- State Arboretum of Virginia at Blandy Farm
- George Washington's Office Museum -- George Washington used a little log building in Winchester, Va., now the middle room of George Washington's Office Museum, as a military office from September 1755 to December of 1756 while Ft. Loudoun was being constructed at the north end of town.
- Stonewall Jackson Museum at Hupp's Hill - Hupps Hill commands breathtaking views of Strasburg, the Shenandoah Valley and Massanutten Mountain (with the Blue Ridge and the Appalachian Mountains in the far background.) The hill and the manor house to the south were used by contending forces throughout the Civil War.
Destinations: Virginia
Related Stories: bakeries, Cistercians, hiking, history, libraries, military history, museums, national parks, prayer, state parks, Trappists
The Author
James Harford
Engineer and Author
James Harford and his wife Millie have visited numerous contemplative monasteries over the years, out of which came the 1997 book, Merton and Friends, a Joint Biography of Thomas Merton, Robert Lax and Edward Rice. They live in Princeton, N.J.
