Chevetogne Abbey

Chevetogne, Belgium

Chevetogne Abbey, also known as the Monastery of the Holy Cross, is a Roman Catholic Benedictine monastery dedicated to Christian unity located in the Belgian village of Chevetogne. Currently, the monastery has 27 monks.

In 1924 Pope Pius XI addressed the apostolic letter Equidem verba to the Benedictine Order encouraging them to work for the reunion of the Catholic and Eastern Churches, with particular emphasis on the Russian Orthodox Church. The following year, a community was established by Dom Lambert Beauduin (1873–1960) at Amay, on the river Meuse. Because of Beauduin's close friendship with Cardinal Mercier and Pope John XXIII, as well as his relations with Eastern Christians, he became a pioneer of the Catholic Ecumenical movement. His initial focus was on unity with Orthodox and Anglicans, but was eventually extended to all those who bear the name of Christ.

In 1939, the community of Amay Priory moved to its current location at Chevetogne, occupying a former Jesuit novitiate. Since then, an Eastern church was built in 1957 and painted with frescos by Rhallis Kopsidis and Georges Chochlidakis, and a Western church was completed with a library in its basement. The library has approximately 100,000 volumes and subscribes to about 500 specialized journals and periodicals. Chevetogne Priory was raised to the status of an abbey on 11 December 1990.

In order to live a life of Christian unity, the monastery has both Western (Latin Rite) and Eastern (Byzantine rite) churches which hold services every day. While the canonical hours of the daily monastic office are served separately, the monks share their meals together and are united under one abbot. Along with prayer, the monks engage in publishing a journal, Irénikon, since 1926, making recordings of church music, and producing incense, all of which can be bought in the monastery shop.

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Address

Rue Monastere, Chevetogne, Belgium
See all sites in Chevetogne

Details

Founded: 1939
Category: Religious sites in Belgium

More Information

en.wikipedia.org

Rating

4.7/5 (based on Google user reviews)

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User Reviews

Robbie Coumans (2 years ago)
We zijn hier regelmatig naar de vieringen gekomen op zaterdagavond. Voor ons 125 km. op en weer 125 km. terug naar huis. Dat hebben we er altijd graag voor over. Nooit één keer spijt van gehad. Je maakt hier werkelijk de meest ultieme Godsverering mee. Ongelooflijk mooi gezongen gebeden door de monniken, alles uitsluitend ter Ere Gods! Hebben hier een keer de Nachtmis in de Kerstnacht meegemaakt. Dat was een fenomenale ervaring. Fantastisch! Aanrader om de Monastère de Chevetogne te bezoeken. Vergeet dan niet even binnen te wippen in de Mariakapel beneden! Dankjewel voor de likes!
Diederik Prakke (3 years ago)
Space and singing to touch in with the heart
Austin John (3 years ago)
Very good, homely atmosphere
Łukasz Liniewicz (5 years ago)
A fantastic, serene, hospitable place. Great singing.
Nick Stone (6 years ago)
Everything
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