We welcome readers to the resumption of weekly publication of The Current, and the renewal of academic life here at Portsmouth Abbey for the school year 2021-22. There is indeed much new this year: a new head of school, a reframed mission statement, and a monastic community solidified by the transferal of stability of three monks from St. Louis. The presence of two novices and the anticipation of solemn vows for Br. Benedict Maria add to a sense of growth and possibility. We have also been able to resume Days of Recollection for our oblates, as you can read in this week’s issue. These new initiatives and opportunities seem to be reflective of the grace God infuses in the human spirit, that amidst the continued challenges of the pandemic we still find new openings.  

We also welcome Mr. Matthew Walter as acting head of school, replacing the long-serving Daniel McDonough at the helm of the School. Matt hails from the state of Texas and is well acquainted with Benedictine life, through years of experience at Cistercian Preparatory School in Irving, Texas, as well as here at Portsmouth as our Director of Development. Matt’s wife, Paula Walter, who directs the School’s student life. Their combined 40 years of experience in Catholic schools is a real asset to their work here and their understanding of our mission. He indeed begins his directorship with a newly reformulated mission statement designed to express more vibrantly the Benedictine inspiration underlying the academic apostolate central to the monastery’s work. While not diverging substantially from the statement previously in place, the new formulation highlights a threefold sense of our work, as “nurturing reverence for God and the human person, love of learning, and commitment to community life.” 

We also call your attention to a new monthly series for The Current: “Artists of the Abbey.” While we have already in past issues looked at such leading artists and artisans as Ade Bethune, E. Charlton Fortune, Richard Lippold, and Dom Wilfred Bayne, the list continues and there is much to consider – enough to envision an entire series, which itself will not address the complete list. Our first artist, featured in this issue, is Adam Paul Heller, Stone Carver. Brother Basil Piette had the chance to talk with him while he was working on the stone for Dom Julian Stead, and offers us an article tracing some of Adam’s personal journey and contact with the Abbey. The series on our artists fits into a new configured plan for our Monthly Columns. While we will continue to explore the “Archives” each month, highlighting aspects of the monastery’s history, we will now include the themes of “Community,” “Liturgy,” an “Love of Learning.” The series on our artists inaugurates the “Community” theme. “Liturgy” will explore elements in our life of worship and prayer. “Love of Learning” will present aspects of the intellectual life of the monastery, starting with a look at the monastic curriculum currently being offered in the novitiate. These topics will hopefully enable us to express more audibly the distinctive voice and the life particular to our monastery.