St. Benedict's Monastery, Arcadia
Arcadia Monastery The monastery has been built in three stages. Here we will give you an overview of its history and some details of the more interesting aspects. The first wing of the monastery was opened in1962. This contained the refectory and kitchen, temporary chapel, bedrooms and basement.
When the front wing, comprising chapter room, parlours, temporary library and additional bedrooms, was built in 1967, the chapel was also transferred here and the former chapel space became the community recreation area. The chapel and library were completed in 1980. Subsequently the second temporary chapel area became guest rooms and the former library an office and infirmary. This third wing drastically modified the original plan which was designed for a larger community and a pre-Vatican II liturgy. THE CHAPEL The chapel was opened and consecrated by His Eminence Sir James Cardinal Freeman on 11 July 1980. The architect, Stuart Whitelaw, of Arcadia, describes as follows the inspiration of this building which, with its two walls of glass, integrates nature and worship: The chapel is sited at the junction of tree and field, forest and mountain, intimacy
and infinity. The entrance axis towards the cross window splits these aspects, heightening
awareness of each as well as the cross window. Stained Glass Windows The stained glass windows were formerly in the chapel of the Benedictine Nuns at Rydalmere, NSW, subsequently taken over by the monks. When they too left and the buildings demolished, the windows were dismantled and stored in the packing shed at Arcadia. Unique among these are the "Dunbar Windows", situated in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel and amongst the oldest stained glass windows in the country. They were made by the firm of John Hardman of Birmingham, England in 1860 and originally erected in St Mary's Cathedral, Sydney by the Hon. Daniel Egan MLC in memory of his wife and two step children drowned in the wreck of the Dunbar on the South Head of Port Jackson in 1857. They survived the fire which destroyed St Mary's in 1865 and are now in their third home.
Stations of the Cross These were hand carved by one of the Benedictine nuns formerly at Yepoon, Queensland and represent a scriptural cycle of the Way of the Cross, culminating in the Resurrection. The Icon - Madonna Enthroned
The Pipe Organ
The Belfry The bell was brought to Australia by Bishop Davis and the steel tower, constructed and donated by the Transfield Organisation, replicates the design of the chapel. The Tasmanian Oak wood panelling and ceiling of the chapel were constructed by local builders S. Zandt and G. Rieger. THE LIBRARY The library contains some 14,000 volumes with strengths in Monasticism, Patristics,
Liturgy and Scripture. Apart from the monastic community it is used by local parishioners,
retreatants and occasionally university staff and students. It is a member of the
Australian and New Zealand Theological Library Association and contributes to the
Australasian Union List of Serials in Theological Collections and to the Australian Libraries Gateway database.
Organisation of the collection began in 1965 and, after two temporary locations, it is now
housed in the permanent library built in 1980. Classification is Dewey and Lynn-Peterson
and cataloguing is automated using ITS for Windows which supports the Z39.50 protocol. Contact: St Benedict's Monastery Library Phone: 02 9653 1159
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