The monastic community has had the great gift to host a visiting Abbess from Brazil, Madre Escolástica Ottoni de Mattos OSB. She has been with us for most of the month of January. Today, we said our goodbyes as she departs to attend the Conference of Benedictine Prioresses as a guest, and then return home to her abbey in Brazil.
Madre serves as Abbess of Mosteiro Benedictinos de Santa Maria in São Paulo. Sister Lynn Marie McKenzie, in her role as Moderator of the Communio Internationalis Benedictinarum, became acquainted with Madre Escolástica during an international meeting hosted by Madre’s community in São Paulo. Sister Lynn Marie invited her to Cullman to spend some time with our community.
While in Cullman, Madre Escolástica has participated fully in our monastic community life. Various sisters, oblates, and friends of the community have also introduced her to sites around north Alabama such as the Wheeler Wildlife Refuge, the Civil Rights Institute in Birmingham, the Vulcan, and more. She has also made candles while here, gifting them to our community. It has been an enriching and wonderful experience for the community to have Madre Escolástica among us.