Mepkin Abbey welcomes new novice, Brother Kyle, and new postulant, Brother Pablo:
Following First Vespers of the Feast of All Saints, the Mepkin monastic community gathered in the chapter room to pray with Brother Kyle as he received the novice habit.

Father Joe, the superior, recalled in his remarks how Brother Kyle, from Illinois near Chicago, had participated in our first Monastic Institute, had worked with a professional baseball team, was a seminarian for the Archdiocese of Chicago, but returned to us over seven years for several retreats and then applied to enter Mepkin.
The formula for reception of the habit entails the postulant answering the question: “What do you seek?” – and Kyle in a strong voice responded: “The mercy of God and of the brothers!” And we all reflected with him on our need for God’s merciful love and our need for the support of the brothers so that we might faithfully continue along the monastic path.

Mepkin also has a new postulant.  As they celebrated First Vespers of All Saints Day, they welcomed Brother Pablo to begin his monastic journey.
Born in Mexico, Pablo had been living in Florida for many years, where he worked as a painter for both commercial and residential buildings. Several churches in the Orlando area contracted with Pablo for his services.
Deeply involved with his local prayer group, Pablo came to Mepkin for a monastic guest experience and began a discernment process to determine if God was calling him to Cistercian life. Visits brought him to ask to come and live with at Mepkin for a lengthy observership. All this led him to apply to enter.

We know you will join us in praying for Kyle and Pablo as they respond to God’s call.

For those interested in exploring joining our way of life, we invite you to visit our page Becoming a Trappist