Abbey Tours from Around the World

Saint Norbert Abbey, De Pere, WI

Abbey of Norbertines in Aberbode, Belgium

Roggenburg Abbey Rogenburg, Germany

Jasov Abbey Jasov, Slovakia

Abbot Pennings founds
St. Norbert Abbey in De Pere

In 1893, two Norbertine priests and one brother left Berne Abbey in Holland for a journey to northeastern Wisconsin. The Rev. Bernard Pennings, O. Praem., led the group to take up pastoral work to the immigrants from Belgium, Holland and France who had settled in Wisconsin’s peninsula.

One year later, in 1894, the little group was augmented by two additional Dutch Norbertines, allowing Pennings to accept a parish in De Pere, where St. Norbert College would be developed, and founding what would become St. Norbert Abbey.

The De Pere Norbertines continued to serve the church in northeastern Wisconsin in education, parishes, broadcasting (WBAY TV) and its Norbertine Center for Spirituality. In the mid-1960s, a group of De Pere Norbertines also began to serve the poor in Lima, Peru.

Now, the vision of St. Norbert continues through Norbertine communities across the world. The Norbertines dedicate themselves to prayer, sharing a common life and serving local needs.

History

Averbode Abbey has a rich history which already spans ten centuries. It was founded in 1134 on the initiative of Arnold II, Count of Loon. Its activities soon included agriculture to ensure its sustainability. Over the centuries however, the abbey faced many trials such as looting, fires and the plague. Indeed, in the late 18^th century it was even sold and demolished.

From the 19th century onwards the abbey began to flourish once more. Monastic life was resumed and it became the hub of many activities such as missionary work and a publishing house. In the 20th century, the Norbertine monks founded different schools. Today Averbode Abbey faces a bright future with a wide range of products and a brand new experience centre.

The Norbertines

The monks at Averbode Abbey belong to the order founded by Saint Norbert. Which is why they are called Norbertines. However, they are also known by several other names. The name Premonstratensians for example refers to Prémontré, the French town where the order was founded in 1121. Their white habit has also earned them the nickname witheren (white men).

Like Jesus, the Norbertines’ aim is to spread the gospel in a way that will allow people to draw courage and confidence from it. At the same time they also wish to live the gospel together, as brothers, in a community that offers prays and services. In their lives they strive for unity between community life, prayer and pastoral commitment. For more information go to the Abdij van Averbode website.

Founded around 1126

According to tradition, Count Bertold von Bibereck with his wife, his brothers Konrad (Bishop of Chur) and Siegfried (canon in Augsburg) founded Roggenburg Abbey around 1126.
The first Premonstratensians came from the nearby Ursberg monastery. They first settled in the lowlands near the pond, but soon moved to the castle hill and consecrated the first monastery church there.

Broadcast as far as Switzerland

As early as the middle of the 12th century, Roggenburg founded other monasteries: Adelberg near Göppingen and in Switzerland St. Luzi in Chur, Churwalden, Katzis and Bendern, which in turn built other monasteries in Switzerland (e.g. St. Jakob im Prätigau). Until secularisation, the Swiss monasteries, which thus all had Roggenburg as their parent monastery, were in close contact with the Imperial Monastery of Roggenburg.

Abbey elevation and Baroque

The flourishing monastery was elevated to an abbey in 1444 and received imperial immediacy in 1544. The monastery survived the devastation of the Peasants’ War, the turmoil of the Reformation and the hardship of the Swedish period. In the blessed 18th century, the triumvirate of the great abbots Dominikus Schwaninger, Kaspar Geisler and Georg Lienhardt created the baroque world that still stands before our eyes today.

Around 1732, the construction of the new monastery buildings with the west wing began. In July 1752, the foundation stones for the new church and the east wing were laid. The work on the spacious double-towered monastery church was completed with the consecration ceremonies in October 1758. The south wing of the monastery complex was completed in 1766. In the glamorous heyday of the 18th century, all parish and branch churches in the monastery area were newly built or expanded. Above all, Schieß, Oberwiesenbach, Breitenthal and Ingstetten are worth mentioning here. The following years, overshadowed by the misery of French emigrants, the turmoil of war, looting and enormous contributions, caused great damage to the monastery.

Abolished in 1802

After the Treaty of Lunéville, secularization could no longer be stopped. On 4 September 1802, the imperial monastery of Roggenburg was occupied by the Bavarian military, and on 29 November of the same year, the last abbot, Thaddäus Aigler, was relieved of his office and the convent with 36 canons was dissolved. All efforts by the abbot and the convent to continue their life together proved to be in vain.

After the dissolution of the monastery, numerous people and institutions used the building. For example, the convent walls housed a district court, a prison, a housekeeping school, a convent of the Franciscan nuns of Dillingen, displaced persons, …

New convent settles old monastery

180 years after secularization, the Premonstratensians have returned to their former monastery. The Windberg Abbey near Bogen in Lower Bavaria took over the parish of Roggenburg in October 1982 in agreement with the then diocesan bishop Dr. Josef Stimpfle, Augsburg.

The aim of this initiative was to rebuild the Premonstratensian monastery of Roggenburg. Since then, committed young religious have revived the old Premonstratensian tradition. In 1986, the Roggenburg Monastery was officially rebuilt, and on 8 November 1992 it was elevated to the rank of a dependent priory by Windberg Abbey.

Baroque gem in a modern setting

Since the resettlement of the monastery, the monastery community has been trying to renovate the building and to develop a usage concept for the monastery grounds. After extensive renovation work, the former western farm “Prälatengarten” was inaugurated in 2001 as a house for art and culture.
One year later, a new building for the Education Centre for Family, Environment and Culture, as well as the monastery inn and the monastery shop was put into operation. In 2013, the renovation of the monastery wing was completed and in 2015 the outdoor area design.

Premonstratensians in Slovakia

History of the Abbey in Jasov / The Beginnings of the Premonstratensians in Hungary

The beginning of the history of the bridges in Hungary can be roughly incorporated into the first half of the 12th century. According to the Order’s tradition, the first Premonstratensians came to Hungary around 1130 during the lifetime of the founder of the Order – St. Norbert. The first members settled in Veľký Varadín (today’s Oradea, Romania).

Jasov was founded as a daughter monastery from Veľký Varadín in the second half of the 12th century, before 1173. Unfortunately, it is not possible to determine the year of foundation more precisely, because there are no written documents. The Jasov Monastery was indirectly mentioned for the first time in 1173, when the Premonstratensian monastery in Garáb (Hungary), which was a daughter monastery of Jasov, is documented in writing. For the first time, the Premonstratensian monastery in Jasov was mentioned in 1243. In 1241, the Tatars penetrated through the Košice basin to Jasov, who are credited with the destruction of the local archive. In 1255, the provost Albert II took advantage of the stay of King Béla IV at the Turnian Castle and obtained a new founding charter from the king, where the old property rights were summarized with new donations. Despite the efforts of the provost Albert to consolidate the provostship, other provosts had to make a great effort to preserve the old rights and at the same time respect the new ones. It was not until the charter of King Andrew III from 1290 that the provost and the convent on the territory of the monastery property guaranteed free mining of ore (except silver).

After the defeat of Matúš Čák of Trenčín, King Charles I began to build a fortified castle on Jasovská Rock. Despite various disputes, the castle and the caves located under the castle rock have served many times for the Premonstratensian convent and local residents as a place of refuge during military operations. Even today, we can still see several stones from the castle wall. In the 14th century, the Hungarian rulers tried to develop mining, so Karol Róbert took part of the property from the priory and donated it to the towns of Smolník and Gelnica, with the provostship receiving replacement property. The provostry received compensation only under Louis the Great, who in 1358 donated to the provost the unlimited use of ore wealth, i.e. silver throughout the territory of the Jasov provostship. This laid the foundation for mining in the Jasov region. Interventions by the rulers were not limited to property matters, but the rulers as patrons interfered in the election of the provost, or appointed their supporters to the office of the Jasovský provost. This happened, for example, in 1411, when King Sigismund of Luxembourg appointed his court chaplain Nicholas as the provost of Jasov. The Jasov convent (monastery) was also involved in military operations in Hungary. By order of King Sigismund of Luxembourg, the Jasov Monastery was rebuilt into a military fortress with a moat in 1421. Despite the effort to keep the monastery in the hands of the king’s supporters, the fortified monastery fell into the hands of many conquerors.

In the 15th century, in the years 1440-1447, the monastery was occupied by Ján Jiskra with his army, and after 1455 the monastery was occupied by Ján Talafuz at the head of the Brethren troops. After these military actions, the monastery was in a desolate state and except for the intervention of King Matthias Corvinus, who donated all royal income from the Novohrad County for the restoration of the monastery in 1465. After the restoration of the monastery, the monks returned and worked here until 1552. After 1552, the number of members dropped rapidly to two, who eventually left the monastery. Since the Jasov priory was royal, the king, as a patron, granted the Jasov priory as a benefit to various ecclesiastical and secular dignitaries. This period between 1552 and 1699 is called the period of commanders (administrators). In the years 1613-14, the Eger chapter from Košice with the bishop of Eger moved to Jasov. The most important of the Eger bishops who resided in Jasov was Benedikt Kišdy, who issued the founding charter of the University of Košice in Jasov on February 20, 1657. Even in this period, the Jasov monastery survived several military raids. In 1619, Jasov was attacked by the troops of Gabriel Betlen and in 1685 by the troops of Imrich Tököly. The last commander of Jasov, Juraj Feneši, the bishop of Eger, rebuilt and restored the Jasov monastery. Despite the efforts of the Premonstratensian monasteries in Austria, throughout the 17th century, to acquire Premonstratensian monasteries and property in Hungary, this was not achieved until 1697, when Jasov acquired the Premonstratensian monastery in Pernega in Austria. The Czech Premonstratensian Circus bought the Premonstratensian estates in Hungary in 1700. In 1703, the Premonstratensian monastery in Louka (in Moravia) bought all the Premonstratensian properties of the Jasov and Leles provosts.

Revival of the Order in Jasov in the 18th Century

The revival of religious life in Jasov did not occur until 1711, when the first community was sent here. In 1730, a new provost, administrator Andrej Sauberer, was sent to Jasov. He had exceptional business talents, which helped him consolidate the economy of the monastery in Jasov.

In 1768, he repaid the debt to the mother monastery in Louka and began to demand independence from the mother monastery. Andrej Sauberer summoned important Austrian artists and masters to Jasov, who built a new Baroque monastery complex on the site of the old Gothic monastery. The architect of the monastery was Franz Anton Pilgram, the frescoes and altar paintings were made by Ján Lukáš Kracker, the sculptures, stucco and marbling were created by Ján Hennevogel, and the executive builder was Anton Salzgeber. The construction was completed in 1766, when the altar with the church was consecrated (September 24, 1766). According to tradition, the construction lasted 20 years. Andrej Sauberer was also involved in the cultural development of the region. He won over some of the local nobility and officials to his side.

Maria Theresa made Jasov independent from the mother monastery in 1769, which was also confirmed by the proclamation of the Hungarian estates on November 19, 1770. In 1774, Maria Theresa appointed him her court advisor. During the reign of Joseph II, several orders were abolished in Hungary, including the Premonstratensians, on March 26, 1787, despite the fact that the Premonstratensians of Jasov took over the grammar school in Rožňava after the abolition of the Jesuits. Members of the order lived in the monastery for some time, but in 1792 the monastery was taken over, and during this period a fire broke out in the monastery and the prelature.

At the beginning of the 19th century, the imperial court reconsidered the steps of King Joseph II. In 1802, a commission began to work on the restoration of at least some of the Premonstratensian monasteries. Two were restored, in Jasov and Csorna. The monastery in Leles and in Veľký Varadín was attached to Jasov. One of the conditions for the resumption of the Order’s activities was the takeover of pedagogical activities at four grammar schools. On March 12, 1802, Francis I issued a decree by which he resumed the activities of the Premonstratensians in Hungary. Already in the autumn of 1802, those members who survived the abolition and restored religious life met in Jasov. In 1802, the grammar school in Rožňava was taken over, in 1807 the royal convent (student dormitory) in Veľký Varadín was taken over, then in 1808 the grammar school in Veľký Varadín was taken over. In 1811, the grammar school in Levoča and Košice was taken over, together with the royal convent. In 1803, the monasteries in Leles and Veľký Varadín were occupied. Gradually, after 1802, patronage parishes were taken over and occupied.

Please continue to read this article and learn more about Jasov Abbey at:Premonstratensians in Slovakia – Jasov Abbey

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