Native of diocese called to monastic life
By Mary Ann Hughes, Message staff writer
Posted February 14, 2002

If you want to meet some one who is happy with his life, you need to meet Brother Anthony Vinson, a Benedictine monk at St. Meinrad Archabbey in Indiana.

There's a sense of peace about him, the sense that he's on the right path. The 26-year-old was raised in Badger, Iowa, which is north of Fort Dodge.

His mother is a "woman of faith," and his family is the "average Catholic family. My parents thought prayer was important. In our home, we prayed before meals and before going to bed. We always ate together."

He is the oldest child, with three younger sisters. He received 12 years of Catholic education, and first thought of life in the priesthood when he was in the third grade. He didn't tell his parents, but he did mention the idea to his classmates. They were pretty negative, and encouraged him to find a career that would give him a "comfortable, materialistic life-style."

There were several priests working at his home parish, and as he grew up, he kept a close eye on them. "I was curious," he said.

After graduating from high school, he left Iowa for Northwest Missouri State University where he majored in public relations.

He joined Delta Chi fraternity, and was elected its president. "I lived in a fraternity house, and sometimes I needed a place to get away," he remembers. The monk who staffed the Newman Center told him about Conception Abbey. It became a place for him to go "and walk the grounds."

By his senior year in college, he became more and more determine to pursue a religious vocation. During Thanksgiving break, he sat down and talked with his parents about his plans.

"They were surprised, but it was a good surprise. It was something they had never thought of," he said.

Telling his girlfriend was a little tougher. "She was upset. But when it was time to graduate I knew I had to make a decision and I wanted to be happy. She knew how much I loved the church."

To his surprise, his fraternity brothers were "very supportive" of his decision.

In January of 1999, during a major ice storm, two of his fraternity brothers drove him from Iowa to southern Indiana. "They kept asking, 'Are you sure you want to do this?'"

He initially came to St. Meinrad intending to study to become a diocesan priest, but as he observed life in the Archabbey, his plans changed. "I didn't think I could be a monk until I witnessed the life here." He notified his diocese in Iowa, explaining that he felt his "vocation is to the monastery" and not to life as a diocesan priest.

He took vows as a Benedictine brother, and he is currently studying for the priesthood at St. Meinrad. He expects to be ordained in 2004. He said he was attracted to the priesthood "because there is something about encouraging people and helping develop their spiritual lives." He noted that doctors help people with their physical ailments, dentists help people with their teeth, but "those things die. The soul is eternal."

As part of his training for the priesthood, he is expected to work in a school setting. Since September, he has been spending every Wednesday at Holy Family School in Jasper. He works with every age student, from pre-kindergarten all the way to eighth grade.

When he's in the pre-kindergarten classroom, he reads to the young students. His approach with the older students is a little more serious. He talks with them about violence in schools and vocations.

School violence is something every student knows about, he said. "Even the second graders know about Columbine."

He tells the students, "It goes back to treating people with kindness. If you see people who need extra attention, it is your job to make people feel safe." If they see something amiss, he tells them to "talk to a teacher, the principal, a parent. We no longer can ignore it if something is going on."

He encourages the students to get involved. "If you are scared, find someone and talk about it. It does no good to turn your head and walk away because it will still go on and it may happen to you."

He also talks with the students about vocations. "We are all members of the kingdom of God. I tell them some of you may be priests, principals plumbers, but we are all in this together and it's important we talk to each other and care for each other."

He wears his Benedictine habit when he visits the school. It reminds the students that he is a monk. He thinks it's important for them to see a monk up close, and he's hoping his contact with them may lead to religious vocations. "I'm shaking the trees," he said, noting, "If I didn't have priests in my parish, I would have a very different outlook."

When he is at Holy Family, he goes to lunch and recess with the students. "I take off my habit and play ball with them. I learn more at lunch and recess than I ever could in the classroom."

At the end of each class, he gives the students five minutes to ask him questions. "They have very good questions, like, 'Did you have a normal life?' I tell them yes, that I played sports, that I had a girlfriend."

At the end of the school day, as he drives back to St. Meinrad, he says, "I'm drained in one sense. In another sense, I'm restored."

As Brother Anthony settles into life at St. Meinrad, he seems content in his vocation. Now, so are his parents.

(Reprinted with permission of the Message, the Catholic newspaper for the Dioceses of Evansville, Indiana)