St. Paul's Abbey, Oosterhout
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St. Paul's Abbey, Oosterhout, also Oosterhout Abbey (
.History
St. Paul's Abbey was founded by monks from
After 1918 the monks were able to return to France if they wished but not all did so, and a number of Dutch monks by that time had joined the community. In the end the restored community at Wisques from 1920 numbered about 30 monks and became a priory under the supervision of Oosterhout. In 1928 Oosterhout and Wisques became independent abbeys belonging to the Benedictine Solesmes Congregation. In 1922 the writer Frederik van Eeden was baptised in this abbey after his conversion.[4]
The monks of Oosterhout remained largely French, including the abbot, but Dutch monks entered in increasing numbers and by 1941 the community consisted of about 100.[5] The abbey businesses also flourished: a farm, poultry-raising, an orchid nursery, a pottery, icon painting and the restoration of artworks. They also specialised in historical and liturgical research.
On land which the abbey had bought in 1908 in
After the death of Dom de Puniet in 1941 a Dutch abbot was elected, Dom Mähler.
In 1930 the
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After
In 1969 a Dutch Congregation within the Benedictine Confederation was formed, which the two abbeys in Oosterhout joined, as did those in Egmond and Slangenburg. The abbey in Vaals remained part of the Solesmes Congregation. St Paul's Abbey was the archabbey of the new Congregation.
Decline
Shortly afterwards however the post-war movement away from the Church, particularly marked in the Netherlands, began to make itself felt in the significant reduction in the number of novices, which had the effect of making the community a smaller and rapidly aging one. More and more activities and the farming had to be passed into private hands. The abbey had eventually to be given up in 2006 and the 15 remaining monks, whose average age was 78, went to the monastic care home Zuiderhout in Teteringen, although the survivors attend an annual service in the former abbey church at Oosterhout. The Chemin Neuf Community took over the buildings. The abbey's many works of art were given in 2007 to the Museum Catharijneconvent in Utrecht.[4]
The abbey was registered as a Rijksmonument in 2001.[6]
Notable monks of Oosterhout
- Paul Bellot, architect
- Pieter van der Meer de Walcheren, writer
- Father Frans Huiting, prior
- Michel van Winkel, PPR politician
- Jacques van der Meij, artist
- Mattheus Notenboom, ceramicist
- In 1974 a 45-year-old monk of Oosterhout, Brother Mattheus, was arrested after confessing to having provided weapons to the imprisoned criminals Jan Brouwers and Daan Denie, who were thus enabled to escape from prison.[7]
Notes and references
- ^ "Abbaye Saint-Paul de Wisques". www.abbaye-saint-paul-wisques.com. Abbaye Saint-Paul de Wisques. Archived from the original on 3 February 2015. Retrieved 1 August 2015.
- Premonstratensian nuns here, Sint-Catharinadal Priory.
- ^ Charlotte Ellis and Martin Meade (27 April 2009). "Dom Bellot, moine-architecte". www.benedictines-ste-bathilde.fr. Bénédictines de Sainte-Bathilde. Archived from the original on 3 February 2015. Retrieved 1 August 2015.
- ^ a b c d "Geschiedenis van de St. Paulusabdij". chemin-neuf.nl (in Dutch). Chemin Neuf. Retrieved 1 August 2015.
- ISBN 9789004182967 (online version)
- ^ Monumentenregister
- ^ Limburgs Dagblad (1974): Monnik voorzag gevangenen van wapens. 56e jaargang, no 263, 7 November, p.1
External links
- Sint-Paulusabdij on CheminNeuf.nl website (in Dutch)
- Geschiedenis van de St. Paulusabdij (history of the abbey) (in Dutch)
- Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed: Monumentenregister (in Dutch)
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