Salzburg with the Students

It is so great having the students back!

On Saturday, after all testing negative for Covid, we traveled with them to Salzburg for the day!

Lots of sun and exploring the city with friends - made for a great day!!

A Big Farewell

On Pentecost Sunday, a very special chapter of life here at the Kartause came to an end, as we said good-bye to the founding directors of the Language & Catechetical Institute (LCI), Jenny Healy and Bobette Huzovic.

 

Nearly 30 years ago, Jenny and Bobette founded LCI:  

The Institute was founded in 1992, in the wake of the Soviet Union’s collapse. Undermining the family and destroying the Faith, the governments of the East built an atheist culture based on despair and mutual distrust. They shuttered churches and closed seminaries; imprisoned, tortured, and executed priests and religious; and made it all but impossible for the lay faithful to express and live their faith in the world. They also made it all but impossible for the Church to help, closing borders and blocking communication between Catholics in the West and Catholics in the East.

That began to change after the Berlin wall came tumbling down in 1989. Despite the Communist’s best efforts, pockets of the faithful remained. They were eager to begin the process of rebuilding. They just needed help.

Three years later, the Language and Catechetical Institute (LCI) was founded to provide that help, supplying Catholics from the East, who were eager to serve the Church in their native lands, with a foundational knowledge of both Church teaching and the English language, as well as spiritual formation.

In the years since, LCI has expanded its reach, welcoming students from countries currently living under atheist rule and from countries where the Faith has never been widely preached. These countries include China, Myanmar, Mongolia, and Cameroon.

Our family has been incredibly blessed to get to know many of the LCI students during our time in Gaming.  Many have gone on to spread the faith in their formally-Communist countries.  Below I copied a letter that a former LCI student wrote to Brian's parents thanking them for a donation they made to LCI in 2002, which describes just how much the LCI meant to him.  That former student is now the legal counsel to Cardinal Archbishop Erdo of Budapest.

We are SO blessed to call Jenny and Bobette friends, and are sad to see them leave Gaming.  Bobette was not only a friend, but she and her family were our next-door neighbor these past 3 years.  Despite our sadness in seeing them go, we are happy for them as we see the Lord has called them onto the next chapter in their lives!  Both are moving to the USA this summer and will continue to spread the faith in their new positions.  We look forward to living not so far away when we move back to the States!

To celebrate the "passing of the torch" from the last remaining members of the original Kartause community to those of us who are here now - we gathered in the upper room, aka the Map Room, for the farewell party.  It was a beautiful evening as Jenny, Bobette and her husband Maros thanked us, and as the community honored and thanked them.  After the honoring, we moved onto the entertainment :)

Jenny not only ran the LCI program but also taught the Art History class for FUS students here.  So to honor her, we re-enacted several classic art pieces!

Every year at Christmas time, the LCI students put on A Christmas Carol, and as Maros was always counting down until Christmas - we knew the perfect gift would be to act of a A Huzovic Carol for their family!  

It was a beautiful night, one we won't soon forget!

(2) SCHOOL OF ATHENS



















A Woman Reading a Letter by Vermeer









A Huzovic Carol: https://youtu.be/86PiYj_N0NY

Pilgrimage to Mariazell

One of our favorite traditions with the students here is to hike to Mariazell!

We enjoyed a day spent walking there with different groups of students. While Brian, Clare and I waited for the last group, we enjoyed a schnitzel lunch :)

Arriving at the basilica that houses the miraculous statue of Mary, we were blessed to offer up many intentions, including the “right to life” in all its forms!

https://thecatholictravelguide.com/destinations/austria/austria-mariazell/

Our Lady of Mariazell, pray for us!

Austria To Re-Open, FUS Students Return!

Life is getting back to "new normal" in Austria!

After 14 months of no FUS students at the Kartause, on May 14 a group of about 40 students arrived for a Summer Session!

The "new normal" is not quite "normal" as we knew it before the pandemic.  

When students, or any non-business travelers, arrive in Austria they must quarantine for 5 days.  On the fifth day, a person can get an official covid-test and if it is negative they are free from quarantine.  If they opt not to test they must stay in quarantine for 10 days.  The police do come and check to make sure you are in quarantine.  Tourists from the USA are currently not allowed into Austria.

There are three types of people re: covid in Austria: 1) those who have been fully vaccinated; 2) those who have documentation of an anti-body test for having had covid in the past 6 months; 3) others.  Others have to test somewhat regularly to do "normal things" like get their haircut, enter a restaurant (which will open on May 19!), and travel to certain places.  For awhile our region had a "high number" of cases, so you needed a negative covid test to leave our region.  I can't even count how many times I've been tested now.  I've learned the tricks of the trade - tilt your head way back, open your mouth wide & offer up those seconds of discomfort as it feels like they scrape your brain with a toothpick ;)

It was announced on April 25, that hotels (in addition to restaraunts) will re-open on May 19.  The Kartause dorms are treated like a hotel.  Hotel guests must test twice a week (if they're not fully vaccinated).  So our students, faculty & staff will be testing every Tuesday and Friday.  The idea is that no one here gets covid!  And if they do, then they can be quickly identified and isolated so as not to spread the virus.

We all must wear FFP2 masks indoors - but thankfully outdoors we can go mask-free!  Social distancing is still in place.  So every other row at church is "reserved for the Holy Spirit" and desks are all spaced 2 meters from one another.

Below I'll list and link to the current regulations if you want to see more details...

There are a lot of rules... BUT students are back!  God is still very much here!  We are just thrilled to be a part of the wonderful FUS and Kartause community here in Gaming!  We found it so providential that students arrived on May 14, have to quarantine until May 18, and May 19 will be their first day "free" (permitted to go outside the Kartause walls) - and it was just announced less than a month ago that May 19 is the day Austria is re-opening.  God is good; He is in ALL the details!

The following information is from the "The Official Travel Portal" website:

At the moment, a lockdown is in effect in Austria.  Tourism and leisure travel are not possible.

The following measures are currently in effect:

• Hotels are closed to leisure travellers/tourists.
• Restaurants and bars can only offer takeout/delivery services. Dining in is not permitted (except in the province of Vorarlberg). FFP2 masks are required when picking up food.
• A landing ban for flights from South Africa, India, and Brazil is in effect.
• Entry regulations are in effect. Additional local rules for certain regions with high COVID numbers may be in effect (please check locally; find a German-language list here).
• Shops, museums, libraries, and zoos are open. All shoppers and visitors must wear FFP2 masks.
• All other culture and leisure facilities such as theatres, cinemas, gyms, pools, and amusement parks are closed. Certain exemptions apply in the province of Vorarlberg.
• Events such as concerts, plays etc. are cancelled. Certain exemptions apply to the province of Vorarlberg.
• Hairdressers and similar service providers are open; negative COVID-19 tests are required for customers.

• A stay-at-home order is in effect from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m.
• You are required to keep a minimum distance of 2 m (6.5 ft) to people from other households.
• FFP2 masks are required on public transport and in other public spaces.

The following measures have been announced for 19 May:

• Hotels and restaurants will be allowed to reopen, with strict protective measures in place.
• Leisure and culture facilities will be allowed to reopen and events can take place, with strict protective measures in place.
• Entry regulations for EU travellers will change.