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Andrew Kaul. They converted the dormant men's
Benedictine monastery into a local hospital. It was turned over to the Sisters from St. Joseph's in 1933. In November 1934 a fire destroyed everything but the stone walls. The sisters closed their girls school, St. Benedict's Academy and converted it to a temporary hospital until a new one could be completed in 1941. The sisters owned and operated the hospital until 1978 when it was turned over to a public-not-for -profit corporation.
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community. He, having been made abbot in 1855, questioned her authority as the
Superior of the convents she founded. The dispute over jurisdiction seems to have caused some turmoil in the St. Joseph's community. Nevertheless, her leadership during those years resulted in the establishment of three new foundations: Mount St. Benedict Monastery in
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From these beginnings, and as the community grew, so too did the mission of the
Sisters. They expanded into health care and operated the Andrew Kaul Memorial Hospital in the town. The hospital was created in the aftermath 1918 Influenza epidemic of 1918 by the three daughters of St. Marys businessman
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Two more sisters arrived from Eichstätt the following year. With a small addition added to the convent, the sisters were able to take in a few boarders and orphans. Their food consisted mostly of potatoes, rye bread, buckwheat cakes, and thin soup. There numbers increased, both from local applicants
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Mother
Benedicta returned to the United States in 1858, broken in spirit and failing in health. Due to Wimmer's influence, she was no longer welcome in the convents she had founded in the eastern U.S. At the invitation of Mother Willibalda Scherbauer in St. Cloud, she moved to the Minnesota city in
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would help her resolve the controversy surrounding the independence of the new convents in North
America. As the American congregation was expected to separate from the Motherhouse, she and her companion were no longer considered members of Eichstätt and were not welcomed. They were prevented from
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Soon after their arrival, a girls' school was entrusted to them; two years later they took charge of the boys' school. the sisters also taught in the public schools until 1895. At one time the monastery was largely self-sufficient, raising its own crops and livestock. In 1964, Sister
Augustine was
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in 1852 by three sisters from Saint
Walburge Abbey in Bavaria. There they established St. Joseph Monastery, the first convent of Benedictine Sisters in North America. They opened a school for girls, St. Benedict Academy, and in 1933 expanded their apostolate into healthcare, becoming the owner and
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At its peak between the 1930s and 1950s, the monastery had 125 sisters. In
January 2014, it was announced that the 17 nuns, ranging in age from 58 to 91, had voted to dissolve the community. "The closure was prompted by declining health and number of members, combined with outdated facilities,
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for the convent were redirected toward two mills, one at St. Mary and the second at the priory. As she understood St. Joseph
Monastery to be an autonomous Benedictine community under the jurisdiction of the local bishop, she resisted Wimmer's interference in the internal matters of the women's
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Over time the members of the congregation aged while fewer candidates entered the community; the monastery itself was in need of repair. In
January 2014, the 17 nuns remaining voted to dissolve the community. They then dispersed to either assisted living facilities or to some other Benedictine
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said. The nuns planned to disperse, some to assisted living facilities, and others to other Benedictine monasteries. In 2018, St. Mary’s Parish reached an agreement with the Benedictine Sisters of Elk County to transfer ownership of their St. Joseph Monastery lands to the parish.
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The Benedicta Riepp Inner-City Neighborhood Art House, a ministry of the Benedictine Sisters of Erie, is named for her. The Neighborhood Art House provides free education in arts, dance, music, and environmental science to low-income and at-risk children, at no
90:, Bavaria, and received the name Benedicta. She professed solemn vows on July 9, 1849, at the age of twenty-four. Sister Benedicta taught in the girls’ school of Eichstätt during the eight years she lived there. She also served as novice mistress.
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taught ceramics by Rita Jane (Cassady) Selle, an alumna of St. Benedict's Academy, and started St. Joseph Ceramics and became known for her nativity sets. She continued crafting pieces, which became collectibles, well into her nineties. Author
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223:. He determined a need in the small town heavily populated with Bavarian Roman Catholic immigrants for religious presence and support, as well as an opportunity for the nuns to teach the children of these immigrants.
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St. Joseph Monastery is considered the foundation of the Congregation of St. Scholastica, a federation of the monasteries which trace their heritage from St. Joseph Monastery, which received the approval of the
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The six years Mother Benedicta spent as Superior at Saint Joseph Monastery in St. Marys were filled with physical hardship and misunderstandings between herself and Prior Wimmer of St. Vincent's. Funds sent by
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The Benedicta Riepp Award is presented by the Sisters of the Order of St. Benedict of St. Benedict's Monastery in St. Cloud "to a woman who exemplifies Benedictine and Gospel values in her daily life."
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The Benedictines Sisters of Elk County are the foundational community of the Congregation of St. Scholastica, a federation of the monasteries which trace their heritage to St. Joseph Monastery,
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in 1922 (later renamed the Federation of St. Scholastica in 1974). Originally it consisted of ten houses in seven states; now, it encompasses 22 monasteries in 15 states, Mexico and Brazil.
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The only extant writings of Mother Benedicta are fourteen letters written between the years 1852 and 1861. These letters reveal her conviction that her Benedictine vocation was a privilege.
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the spring of 1858. In 1859, a decree from Rome placed the convents in Erie and Newark under the jurisdiction of their respective ordinaries. On March 15, 1862 Benedicta died of
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in Latrobe to take over the mission at St. Mary's. In 1851, Wimmer, who was originally from Bavaria, sent a request to St. Walburg Convent for sisters to teach the children of
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247:- 1856), Newark, New Jersey (St. Gertrude Monastery - 1857), and St. Cloud, Minnesota (Saint Benedict's Monastery) which became separate congregations in their own right.
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Three federations of Benedictine women in North America, totaling about two thousand members in the early 2000s, remain the legacy of Benedictine Sisters of Elk County.
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86:, on June 28, 1825, one of four daughters born to John and Catherine Riepp. Her father was a glassblower. In January 1844, she entered St. Walburg Convent in
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St. Joseph Monastery was the first Benedictine monastery for women to be founded in the United States. The monastery operated until 2014.
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and additional sisters from Eichstätt. In total, St. Walburga's monastery contributed thirteen sisters to the American foundation.
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144:, arriving on July 22. There they established St. Joseph Monastery, the first convent of Benedictine Sisters in North America.
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McCarthy OSB, Ann. "Benedicta Riepp, OSB: her life and legacy", Bavarian Tradition of Benedictine Women in North America
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The Benedicta Arts Center at the College of St. Benedict in St. Cloud, Minnesota is named for Mother Benedicta Riepp.
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Sister Benedicta was among those who volunteered, and was appointed superior. She and her two companions left from
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on July 8. A family by the name of Head extended hospitality, and after a week's rest, the sisters proceeded to
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The monastery was founded by Mother Benedicta Riepp, O.S.B., who was sent, along with two companions, from
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in St. Cloud, Minnesota (1857). Convents in Covington (1859) and Chicago (1861) branched off from Erie.
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In 1857, Mother Benedicta travelled to Europe. She hoped her superiors in Eichstätt and
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Cherry, Amy. "St. Mary’s Parish to take ownership of historic monastery property",
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531:"Oldest Benedictine convent in U.S. closing in Elk County", AP, January 15, 2014
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Salai SJ, Sean. "'Five Years in Heaven': Author Q&A with John Schlimm",
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Deppen, Colin. "Historic St. Marys convent closure elicits local reaction",
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Some photos of the buildings and surroundings that make up the monastery.
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19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United States
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This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the
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503:"Benedictine Sisters close St. Joseph Monastery in Elk County"
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Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
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The Benedicta-Riepp-Weg in Waal, Bavaria is named for her.
101:; but left the following year to settle elsewhere. Bishop
62:) which became separate congregations in their own right.
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Daughter houses were established in Erie, Pennsylvania (
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operator of Andrew Kaul Memorial Hospital in St. Marys.
544:"After 160 years, historic St. Marys convent to close"
231:wrote about Sr. Augustine and her work in his book
27:Benedictine monastery in Marienstadt, Pennsylvania
395:The Catholic Church in the United States Catholic
177:traveling to Rome to present her case before the
575:"Benedicta Arts Center", College of St. Benedict
429:"Riepp, Mother Benedicta (Sybilla) (1825–1862)"
427:Hollermann, Sister Ephrem (Rita) (2015-09-30).
132:, on the evening of July 3, 1852. They reached
586:"Benedicta Riepp Award honors Jan Hoelscher",
342:Sisters of St. Benedict of Ferdinand, Indiana
34:were a religious congregation established in
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454:"History of the Benedictine Sisters of Erie"
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330:Benedictine Sisters of St. Walburg Monastery
777:Religious organizations established in 1852
642:"A Brief Timeline of Our Community History"
772:Benedictine nunneries in the United States
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747:Bavarian emigrants to the United States
590:, Diocese of St. Cloud, August 24, 2017
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128:, arriving in New York, on the steamer
767:2014 disestablishments in Pennsylvania
99:Marienstadt (St. Mary's, Pennsylvania)
520:"About us", Penn Highlands Healthcare
212:. They had come at the invitation of
54:(St. Gertrude Monastery - 1857), and
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670:This article incorporates text from
348:Benedictine Sisters of Elizabeth, NJ
42:Daughter houses were established in
757:1852 establishments in Pennsylvania
762:19th-century Christian monasteries
542:Deppen, Colin (January 15, 2014).
161:(1856), St. Gertrude Monastery in
32:Benedictines Sisters of Elk County
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601:Best Hikes on Benedicta-Riepp-Weg
563:The Daily Press' December 4, 2018
501:Smith, Peter (January 19, 2014).
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458:The Benedictine Sisters of Erie
435:. Minnesota Historical Society
354:Benedictine Sisters of Florida
336:Benedictine Sisters of Chicago
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617:Federation of St. Scholastica
397:, Editing Company, 1914, p. 8
251:Andrew Kaul Memorial Hospital
245:Mount St. Benedict Monastery
95:School Sisters of Notre Dame
48:Mount St. Benedict Monastery
507:The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
332:-Covington, Kentucky (1859)
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167:Saint Benedict's Monastery
111:Monastery of Saint Vincent
82:Sybilla Riepp was born in
60:Saint Benedict's Monastery
36:Marienstadt, Pennsylvania
782:St. Marys, Pennsylvania
718:41.428194°N 78.569556°W
142:St. Marys, Pennsylvania
613:"Federation Directory"
78:Benedicta Riepp O.S.B.
18:Mother Benedicta Riepp
742:American Benedictines
723:41.428194; -78.569556
646:Mount St. Scholastica
221:Latrobe, Pennsylvania
138:Latrobe, Pennsylvania
694:St. Joseph Monastery
265:retired Erie Bishop
233:Five Years in Heaven
193:St. Joseph Monastery
105:of Pittsburgh asked
56:St. Cloud, Minnesota
752:German Benedictines
714: /
134:Saint Vincent Abbey
475:, January 16, 2014
322:Catholicism portal
210:Kingdom of Bavaria
202:St. Walburga Abbey
163:Newark, New Jersey
159:Erie, Pennsylvania
52:Newark, New Jersey
44:Erie, Pennsylvania
115:German immigrants
93:Around 1848, the
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260:Dissolution
154:King Ludwig
126:Southampton
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678:under the
627:2019-08-03
439:2018-04-02
361:References
130:Washington
208:, in the
206:Eichstätt
88:Eichstätt
50:- 1856),
676:licensed
672:MNopedia
433:MNopedia
308:See also
302:Holy See
488:America
109:of the
73:History
356:(1889)
350:(1868)
344:(1867)
338:(1860)
274:Legacy
122:Bremen
295:cost.
214:Abbot
653:2015
179:Pope
174:Rome
30:The
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