Our Common Mission

St. Benedict's Prep and Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, Pa., share a long history and common mission. College President Rev. Paul Taylor, O.S.B., Ph.D., sat for an interview about our Benedictine connection. 

 

You went to Saint Vincent College and entered the monastery in 1987 after graduation. What influenced your path to become a Benedictine monk and Catholic priest? 

I came to Saint Vincent College to be a mathematics major and to learn to teach mathematics. In the context of doing that at a Benedictine school, I got to know the monks, one of whom was my mathematics advisor, and another was my teacher who lived in the residence halls. In getting to know the monastic community I thought, ‘This might be something I would like to try.’ I applied to graduate schools and to the monastery. I was accepted to both and decided to enter the monastic community. It really was a getting-to-know experience and finding that fit. I’ve been trying the life now for 36 years and have had a wonderful experience in so many ways.

I did go to graduate school to pursue mathematics, eventually pursued higher education administration, and came back to Latrobe in 1996. Since then, I’ve worked in a variety of roles and had the great gift to get to know the College on so many levels which really prepared me for the work I do now. 

You became connected to St. Benedict’s Prep a few years into your tenure at Saint Vincent College. Can you tell us about that?

Fr. Edwin visited our monastery in 1999 and invited me to visit St. Benedict’s Prep. I said I would love to and was immediately welcomed by the monastic community and faculty. There were faculty members I met on that first visit who I’m still great friends with today. One of the strongest connections I made was with Dr. Ivan Lamourt. He took great care to make sure I felt welcome and introduced me to students. Our common mission for St. Benedict’s and Saint Vincent students is held closely by us, and I later invited Dr. Lamourt to be on our Board of Directors. I have to say the relationships with Fr. Edwin, Abbot Melvin, Abbot Augustine and all the monks and faculty has been tremendous. I always feel very much at home in Newark because of their Benedictine hospitality and our common sense of knowing what community is as Benedictines.

Our institutions share a founder, Fr. Boniface Wimmer, O.S.B. You wrote your dissertation on Boniface Wimmer and the beginnings of American Benedictine education. What did you learn about Fr. Boniface and the relationship between Saint Vincent Archabbey and College and St. Benedict’s and Newark Abbey? 

When Boniface Wimmer came to the U.S. in 1846, he came with a particular mission in mind: minister to the German and Catholic immigrants to keep their faith through pastoral work and education. He knew that education was the primary instrument by which immigrants would be able to enter mainstream American society. He also knew that Catholic immigrants were discriminated against so Wimmer set up a school and community that would welcome them. Once Wimmer was here, he realized that there were more people in need than German Catholics. There were Irish Catholics, Italian Catholics, Eastern European immigrants and even Native American communities that he served. After the Civil War, he established a monastery in Savannah, Ga., and opened a school for African Americans that evolved into the Benedictine Military School, an all-male Catholic high school operating in Savannah today.

We can see that Wimmer’s initial disposition to educate the German Catholic immigrant quickly expanded to meet the needs of those who were marginalized or discriminated against in some way. His mantra of “Forward, Always Forward,” is one many of us know but he also believed, “Man's Adversity is God's Opportunity.” Wimmer saw each difficulty we experience in our lives as an opportunity. Establishing a monastery and living the Benedictine vow of stability meant that when a baby was born or couple needed to be married, or someone died, all you had to do was knock on the monastery door. For Wimmer, it was about immersing himself into the broader community so that that faith could be communicated, ministered and extended. He was so motivated in Germany when he heard the plight of immigrants, and asked [to come to the U.S.] so often he got the name, träumer, dreamer in German. It was derogatory. His brother monks made fun of him but thank God Wimmer was a träumer because we’re all here living out these practices because of his dreams. It’s why we keep looking to Boniface Wimmer. The initial vision and mission have remained faithful, but also has grown, evolved and had so many wonderful twists and turns over the years. You can see it in the work we’re doing at Saint Vincent and in the work the monks are doing at St. Benedict’s.  

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"What I appreciate most about this connection and relationship, is the shared priority we have.Young people who come to us are looking to be successful and happy in their lives.” 

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Generations of Gray Bees have matriculated to Saint Vincent College. What do St. Benedict’s graduates bring to the Saint Vincent community? 

Benedict’s students bring a connection that existed before they step foot on campus. They know the system and are comfortable communicating often, directly and freely with me and the other monks. That’s very refreshing. They also bring great diversity because they become part of a growing community at Saint Vincent, where they and others from around the nation, bring their own unique experiences whether it's from Bolivia, Guyana or the African American community in Newark. Our community is richer because we all get to learn more about each other. 

You were named president of Saint Vincent in 2019, a few months before COVID-19. What Benedictine values or principles sustained faith and the community through such a challenging time?

Every one of them. The 10 Benedictine Hallmarks were leaned on heavily through the global pandemic. To name a few, priority of community, respect for the other, especially when dealing with the health of community members, and humility. We had to be able to listen to differing perspectives regarding science, medicine and proposed remedies, and make decisions, sometimes without full information. We worked with the priority of community, priority of one another and priority of humility realizing that we don't know everything and to look to others for wisdom.  

When we sent people home in March 2020, it was a very difficult decision but there were 39 students who had nowhere to go. We needed to have a residence hall for students who had made Saint Vincent their home. It was relatively easy because we had a community of monks who needed care and a whole community of students who needed care. We needed to isolate and do meals to go and all those kinds of things, but we looked out for each other.  

The Rule of Saint Benedict, the book of precepts Benedictine monks continue to live by, was written in the Sixth Century. Why does it remain so relevant today? 

Benedict had such great insight into the human psyche and always put the human person in the perspective of God. How do we as human people stand before God? It’s the perspective of creature and our relationship with the creator. That sets the whole tone for who we are, how we are to live our lives and be together as one. Benedict also understood that leaders need to make difficult decisions. He knew that sometimes brothers will fall. He talks about wayward brothers, how to correct faults and about the key values of humility, obedience and silence. When you hold fast to those values the human-to-human relationship is stronger, and the human-to-God relationship is stronger.

It’s all centered in the person of Jesus Christ and our perspective as Christian believers that the values Benedict had in the Sixth Century are what held western culture together. He’s the patriarch of western civilization because he had a priority for everything that was beautiful and not just religious. He saved books. He saved art. His community saved people when they were wandering in the in the wilderness and monasteries were refuges from thieves and killers. Benedict's priority for every human person being sacred, Benedicts priority for love of God and love of neighbor and the correction of faults, means there is a priority for each monk to work at. Sometimes the work is very hard in difficult circumstances, but that is why I think his wisdom is so important today.  

Is there anything we haven’t discussed regarding the relationship between Saint Vincent College and St. Benedict’s Prep?

What I appreciate the most about this connection and relationship, is the shared priority we have. Young people who come to us are looking for a way to be successful and happy in their lives. They choose a path that is unique and perhaps more difficult by going to St. Benedict’s or Saint Vincent. They choose a path that has values, but also realize that by choosing this path, they have an opportunity not just for a successful career but a meaningful and joyful life. It’s the communities of St. Benedict’s, Newark Abbey, and Saint Vincent Archabbey and College that challenge our students to go beyond just book learning. While that is critically important it is the human formation that extends from the classroom that will create a life of opportunities for our graduates. But it takes making a choice of community that might be more difficult. That’s St. Benedict’s and that's Saint Vincent.  

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Rev. Paul Taylor, O.S.B., Ph.D. is the 18th president of Saint Vincent College. Prior to the appointment in 2019, he held an array of leadership roles in Institutional Advancement, Admissions and Financial Aid.