Our Life, Starr County Benedictines

Our Roots

St. Benedict The Benedictines have been serving God and his Church for over 1500 years! The order was founded in Italy in the 6th century by a young man named Benedict, at a time in history when ungodliness and a lack of faith and morals permeated the culture.

In 1852 a group of Benedictine women from Bavaria, Germany (a region from which Pope Benedict XVI came) founded a monastery at St. Mary’s, Pennsylvania. Mother Benedicta Riepp is the foundress of the monastery of these early pioneers.

As the community of sisters grew, branch houses were founded in various parts of the United States. One was in St. Joseph, Minnesota. Later, branch houses began in Duluth, Minnesota and in 1919 a monastery was founded in Crookston, Minnesota.

Sisters from the Mount St. Benedict Monastery, Crookston, MN established the Benedictine Monastery of the Good Shepherd in El Sauz, near Rio Grande City, Texas, as a dependent monastery in 1992. The pioneers of the Texas monastery are: Sister Frances Solum, Sister Luella Walsh and Sister Nancy Boushey.

Hundreds have prayed with expectant faith that this monastery would come to reality. Hundreds have donated work. Hundreds have donated financially. The monastery is located in south Texas, close to the Mexican border. We strive to serve all cultures and languages, including the Filipino and Hispanic families within our community.

1986-1989 We lived our monastic life, worked and prayed in the central part of the Diocese of Brownsville, Texas, living in the city of Mercedes and doing our ministry in Weslaco. Sister Luella was a hospital chaplain at Knapp Hospital (she had been in the diocese since 1971). Sister Fran was coordinator of RCIA at St. Pius X Church and also worked in the colonias, or poor Hispanic neighborhoods. Sister Nancy was the Director of Religious Education and retreats, also at St. Pius X. Thanks to Msgr. Louis Brum for taking us on as parish workers!

1988 We discerned that the monastery of our dream was to be in Starr County, the western part of the diocese and an area more isolated. After praying for guidance from the Holy Spirit we moved to Starr County in 1989 to the little ranchito of El Sauz, TX. We knew no one in Starr County but Fr. Eddie Villa, who employed Sisters Luella and Nancy in his parish and missions. We had a number of ministries there over the years: ministry to the elderly, elementary education in Roma, JTPA (helping adults get their GED), youth ministry and retreats in Escobares/Rosita and El Sauz. In El Sauz we leased an old house which had been empty for four years.

1990 We purchased a building in Donna, TX, and moved it to El Sauz to remodel and use as a guesthouse, Casita Santa Maria (Little House of Mary).

1991 Our founding monastery voted that we be granted permission to establish a dependent monastery in the Diocese of Brownsville.

1992 Bishop Enrique San Pedro, SJ (RIP) granted us the status of becoming a dependent monastery of pontifical jurisdiction.

1993 We were gifted with 115 acres from Texaco Oil Co. Ten CEO’s from Louisiana flew in on their corporate jet to formally hand the title over to us at a celebration.

1996 We started working full-time at the monastery, surrendering our salaried positions and living on Divine Providence, retreat donations and income from our little gift shop of religious items.

Needing more space, we purchased a mobile home which we named Casita Tepeyac, after Tepeyac hill in Mexico where Our Lady of Guadalupe appeared to St. Juan Diego. The mobile home housed our first chapel, with the Blessed Sacrament, where we could pray the Liturgy of the Hours with greater devotion and reverence.

1997 The first group of Benedictine Oblates (lay associates) started formation classes.

2000 We were granted an easement to our “Promised Land.” On the feast of St. Joseph, we moved onto our property and the fence line was cleared. Dario Salinas and Balde Escobar began work on the making of a dugout for a pond.

2001 Fr. Jerry Felion, a retired Crookston, MN diocesan priest moved to El Sauz to become our chaplain. He had a little rented house in walking distance from our buildings. A one mile long and 3” water line was laid and many poles were erected for the electricity needed for our upcoming buildings on the “Promised Land.”

2002 Our first owned building, Casita Santa Maria, was moved from El Sauz to the “Promised Land” to serve as a multi-purpose building for activities on site.

Earth work began for the monastic residence and renewal center. Five feet of clay had to be removed from under the building sites and replaced with tested caliche and compacted according to specifications.

2003 The monastic residence was started and the Monte Cassino foundation was poured.

2004 We moved the mobile home (Casita Tepeyac) from El Sauz to the “Promised Land.” The chaplain’s house was completed. We moved into our new monastic residence. Our Sisters in Crookston, Minnesota voted that we could have our own canonical novitiate for our new members. Fr. Jerry Felion moved to his chaplain’s residence.

2005 The Fountain of Life Adoration Chapel was completed, to be used especially for the laity of the area.

2006 In June, construction began of the Monte Cassino Renewal and Conference Center, a future site for use by lay and religious groups. The center takes its name from the original monastery founded by St. Benedict in Cassino, Italy.

Every so often someone asks how we spend our days. We thought we would share a little of that with you. As you will see our day holds many of the aspects of what you do during a day.

Our day is lived in the presence of the Living God, seeking to commune with Him and being sensitive to His guidance and constant expressions of love. All of our work is important, for it is done for love of God, for each other and for all of God’s People. We seek to have an atmosphere of quiet in order that we may better live out “Be still and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10

As a community we gather in the chapel throughout the day for the Liturgy of the Hours, which consists of hymns, psalms, Scripture readings, and silent reflection. Throughout the day, as you can see from our schedule, we stop to turn our full attention to God by praying the seven “hours.”

The Liturgy of the Hours is integral to our life as monastics. A monastic community is to “pray always,” in whatever occupation is being undertaken. We are using Benedictine Daily Prayer as our Liturgy of the Hours Book, which provides the seven “hours” of monastic prayer.

Our work consists of ordinary housework, correspondence, finances, hospitality, listening to and praying with people in need, coordinating groups that will be coming for renewal, monastic and development meetings, finances, preparing for oblate-vocations gatherings, errands and appointments in Rio Grande City or the McAllen area, to name some of our happenings. We support various outreach efforts such as a Mexico ministry, (assisting those who live in substandard conditions) and local centers that help pregnant women in crisis situations. We also hold Benedictine Life Weekends for women discerning a religious vocation.

The ultimate event of each day is to participate in holy Mass and offer praise, thanksgiving, and prayers for all. The Eucharist is our source of life and enthusiasm.

We enjoy our surroundings by taking walks on our monastery ground and also by having picnics down by Presa Placida, (our placid pond) in the cooler weather.

Our breakfast is in silence and on our own time schedule. As a community we eat our noon and evening meal together every day. We seek to have table reading as often as possible.

Most days bring surprises, such as phone calls with good or sad news, a rare rainbow, beautiful flowers blooming, a great variety of birds at the feeder and even an occasional wild creature may wander in to our grounds — once it was a 5-foot long stray pig!

Constant for each day is the Word of God that comforts, guides and enlightens us. We seek to live a life of balance allowing for a life that is joyful and refreshing. Our lives are full of opportunities to serve and love our Lord with our whole heart, mind, soul and strength so “That in all things God may be glorified.”

Following are some of the exceptional people who have been our “good shepherds.”

Al and Candace Vigen, of Vigen Construction, Grand Forks, North Dakota — significant financial contributions.

Joel Guerreo, Rio Grande City, TX — networked for building materials and potential in-kind donors.

Luis Figueroa, of the Rofa Architectural Firm in McAllen, TX — donated services as architect and project manager for the overall development of the 115 acres.

Dr. Omar David Gonzalez, of Nuevo Progreso, Mexico — for his 14 years of alternative health care.

Mario Serrano — Recipients of the 2006 Good Shepherd Award received the artpiece shown at the top of this page by Mario Serrano, the international award-winning artist from the Philippines.

Fr. Jerry Felion — has offered his priestly ministry with daily Mass and the Sacrament of Reconciliation for ourselves and for our guests. He is one of our first Benedictine Oblates.

Jim Moffitt, McAllen, TX— donated materials, such as sinks, faucets, toilets, fans, a jacuzzi, wrought iron outside fixtures and the labor of his company's electricians and plumbers.