Letter from the Abbot Primate to the Benedictine Oblates

Dear Oblates,

Dear brothers and sisters in the Benedictine family,

Warm greetings from Rome!

For us monks, the last few decades have been outwardly quite stable. Among the Benedictine nuns, however, there have been significant developments, and we expect further steps toward consolidation in the near future. The oblate movement also has developed considerably. Impressive oblate communities have emerged in Asia and Africa, and five World Congresses since 2005 have fostered an international awareness of Benedictine Oblates.

Last September, at the Synod of Abbot Presidents, we addressed this topic. The synod adopted a recommendation that the abbot primate should establish a structure for planning and conducting these congresses. To this end, last November I appointed Abbot Emeritus Jean-Pierre Longeat of Saint Martin in Ligugé as the Abbot Primate's Delegate for the Oblates. Abbot Jean-Pierre is also the spiritual advisor to the Service of Benedictine Oblates, the association of Oblates of French-speaking Europe and Israel. As a second step, a few weeks ago we established an International Secretariat for the Benedictine Oblates. I appointed Dr. Roberto Lomolino as its first Secretary General. He is an oblate of Sant'Anselmo and was for many years the secretary of the Italian Oblate Association.

Dr. Roberto Lomolino, Abbot Primate Jeremias Schröder and Abbot Emeritus Jean-Pierre Longeat.

Preliminary plans call for a meeting of national oblate coordinators in 2027 and the next World Congress of Oblates in 2030. I hope that the secretary general also will succeed in organizing strong oblate participation in the Benedictine Jubilee in 2029.

A small symbolic step in recognizing the importance of the oblates within our Benedictine family is the inclusion, for the first time, of a dedicated section on the oblates in the new Catalogus Monasteriorum, the directory of all monasteries for men. In the foreseeable future, the OSB Atlas, a digital representation of all monasteries, also will offer more information about this important branch of our order.

I am writing these lines at the beginning of Lent and would like to warmly invite you all, together with the community to which you belong as an oblate, to approach Easter with the joy of which Saint Benedict speaks in his Rule. You will hear more from Abbot Jean-Pierre and Dr. Lomolino very soon.

With heartfelt affection,

Yours

Jeremias Schröder OSB

Abbot Primate

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