Saint Louis Abbey
500 South Mason Road
St. Louis, MO 63141
TESTIMONIAL
“At St. Louis Abbey, the monks take prayer seriously. Most days still find vigils, lauds, sext, and vespers sung in the church, while monks do lectio divina and mental prayer on their own. Praying in the abbey church is a gift. Prayers are enhanced by the different levels of light coming through the many windows and also the pleasing acoustics of the dome, which looks like an updated version of Rome’s Pantheon. Vespers are usually sung in Latin Gregorian chant, and a special treat is the Saturday night vespers, which end with the monks making a procession towards the lovely medieval Marian shrine and singing hymns to Our Lady. Both in prayer life and elsewhere, beauty is an important way of expressing the faith in this monastery. The abbey church is the showpiece, but Brother Simeon’s Chartres windows are a treasure every bit as impressive. Make sure to visit the monastic library in the afternoon and watch the light shine through the stained glass! Elsewhere, almost every room contains art, from paintings to tapestries to banners.
St. Louis Abbey has a strong sense of hospitality. Vocation guests are often accommodated within the cloister in a cell of their own to get a sense for life. Whether staying in the cloister or the guest wing, male visitors are invited to dine with the monks in the refectory. Breakfasts are solemn and quiet. Lunches are the most boisterous meals, and it is at lunch that you can most easily meet all of the monks. Dinners are the most elaborate meal, often featuring table service and refectory reading. While some monasteries stream the reading, the St. Louis monks still do it themselves, which adds a human element.
The monks are a diverse bunch from blue-collar saints to Rhodes Scholars, from Irishmen to Angelenos. Conversations range from philosophy and literature to travel and sports, and there are several senses of humor to master, not all of them easily! To a man, they love God and serving the communities of the school, the parish, and the abbey itself. In speaking of the communities, it must be said that the abbey’s primary mission of administering St. Louis Priory School, a school for boys in grades 6-12, is a tremendous gift. The monks get to walk alongside their students for six full years, teaching them strong academics as well faith formation in topics like lectio divina. Monks teach classes ranging from science to medieval arts. St. Anselm Parish is another key apostolate. While other monasteries have given up their parishes, the Abbey’s parish is on-campus and will never be given up. The parish is strongly supported by its daily communicants and oblates. St. Louis Abbey is a home for all who care about beauty, the intellect, and Catholic tradition. Yet the most important thing about the Abbey is its foundation in Christ. To come here is to begin a journey towards closer fellowship with Jesus, joined by the monks and the communities they serve.”
--2023 vocation guest
Directions
TO THE ABBEY
From the airport, take I-70 West for 3 miles to I-270 South for 6 miles to I-64 (MO-40) West for 1 mile to the Mason Rd., Exit 24, the first exit after I-270. You can get to the guest wing by taking the first entrance off of Mason Road (coming from I-40), then taking the first left on our drive.
AROUND THE ABBEY
The monastery itself is sited on a north-south axis, with the church at one end and the guest wing at the other. Resident guests are invited to pass from the guest wing to the church by passing through the monastery on its east side. This takes you past the guest master’s office, a set of stairs leading to the monks’ private rooms (guests are asked to avoid the second floor altogether), the chapel, the abbot’s office, the prior’s and vocation director’s offices, various parlors, and the sacristy.
Guest Master
To arrange for a visit to the abbey, contact the abbey Guest Master:
Email: guestmaster@priory.org
Phone: (314)434-3690 ext. 392
The monastery is open to guests all year round except for a week in August when the monks are on retreat, and at the height of the Christmas and Easter holidays. Vocations guests are sometimes an exception.