Pedro Vega, Raimundo Zunino, and Matias Echeverria

The monastery is in the midst of a ten-day visit from three members of the Manquehue Apostolic Movement (MAM) in Chile. The visit represents a unique opportunity and an effective moment for the Spiritual Life program of the School to kick off the lectio divina groups for this academic year. Prior Michael Brunner, a veteran of several extended trips to Chile, recently re-introduced the guests to the School as the new academic year began. The monastery and its extended community have been deeply grateful for the growing relationship with MAM, which has since 2009 been formally affiliated with the English Benedictine Congregation.

As ever, the presence now of our Manquehue brethren among us provides an opportunity to strengthen our friendship. The three young men visiting are already well known to us and to the extended community. Raimundo Zunino has visited twice already, joining and later leading one of our ongoing series of winter term programs. Matias Echeverria, also a three-time visitor, had spent a year as a student at St. Louis Priory School. The two also connected with the 2016 Portsmouth “Trabajos” (service work) visit to Santiago with students and faculty, later returning with the 2020 winter group here on campus. Pedro Vega also assisted with the 2020 men’s group of the winter term and happily joins the others for his second stay with us. Typically, groups have come only in the winter term, which is the Chilean summer vacation. We recently had the blessing of the nearly two-year stay of Cata Quiroga and Alvaro Gazmuri (whose daughter Clara was born here in Rhode Island during their stay). This year, having a group join us for the beginning of the school year opens a ready inspiration to motivate our lectio practice and build for the immediate future.

The three have expressed excitement at this new opportunity. While their principal concrete focus will be to engage with our lectio divina program, this Manquehue devotion is more fundamentally linked to community and to friendship. John the Evangelist, one of the principal patrons of MAM, highlights this theme in the teaching of Christ: “I call you friends” (John 15:15). The Portsmouth-MAM friendship is now well into its second decade, and its fruits have become more visible each year. The fall initiative thus encounters a lectio program already rooted, but still needing to be cultivated. Raimundo and Matias, in the rare company of three-time MAM visitors, have much experience to hit the ground running in joining our community. to the Abbey - we are grateful for and welcome their ongoing support.