The Benedictine Educators Network (BenET) is an international symposium dedicated to sharing knowledge and understanding between teachers from Benedictine schools. A meeting of the network recently took place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and was attended by Fr Denis Hooper who is a former headmaster of Glenstal Abbey School and a founding member of BenET.
Fr Denis has worked in the Abbey School as chaplain over the past number of years, in addition to giving support to the school’s sport and extra-curricular activities.
More than 150 representatives of Benedictine schools from all over the world attended the meeting held between 11th and 15th October at Collegio Sao Bento, a Benedictine school established in 1858 and one of the oldest and most important educational institutions in Brazil.
The theme of the gathering was “What we have received, we pass on to you: our past and future in the now of Benedictine Education” with opening remarks delivered by Abbot Primate Gregory Polan OSB. Over the following days, participants listened to a series of addresses by Benedictine educators and students, and participated in various workshops and sessions of Lectio Divina.
Workshops covered topics including youth leadership in light of the Rule of Saint Benedict; formation for governance; the Benedictine ethos in education; pastoral approaches using a Benedictine spirituality with students; the Benedictine understanding of stability and academic leadership in times of disruption and crisis; plus the various challenges to education around the globe.
Fr Denis displayed a video presentation about Glenstal Abbey School and talked about the involvement of the monastic community in the life of the school, particularly in the areas of chaplaincy, the choir, sports activities, charitable projects in Africa, and so on.
Regional breakout meetings took place, which allowed representatives from Benedictine schools in Europe to make connections with one another, share their experiences and exchange best practice. Glenstal Abbey School is well-recognised and respected by other Benedictine schools, and it is hoped the School can play a greater role in the network’s activities in the years ahead.
Fr Denis commented: “We should be conscious of our role as guardians of an educational traditional which stretches back nearly 1,500 years, where our schools are as much about all-round personal and spiritual formation as they are about simply academic education.
In our ‘School of the Lord’s Service’ the Benedictine charism touches not only our engagements in the classroom, but also on the games fields, in the refectories, and all around the school.
This charism of prayer, work, study and hospitality is a treasure which we want to safeguard and pass onto our students at Glenstal and at each Benedictine school around the world.
Not only were the conference sessions very informative, but the opportunities for interactions with other participants – particularly over copious amounts of coffee – raised some very interesting ideas and areas for future collaboration, particularly in the run-up to the next meeting of the network in Austria in 2027.”
