2022 Annual Appeal

Advent 2021

Greetings,

On behalf of all of us at The Benedictine Way, I greet you with affection and hope for a holy Advent Season. Throughout my life, I have often seen God’s word come alive through loving hands. Those hands, healing others with kindness and peace, food and spiritual gifts are a living example of the Holy Spirit working through us. God is alive in our broken world; during this season we remember that we wait for the Lord and embrace His blessings.

At The Benedictine Way, we strive to provide hope to those in need. Many in our world are struggling to feed their families; many struggle to feed their souls. We consider it a privilege to reach out and offer comfort to others. And we hope you will continue to support our work through your generosity. When you donate to The Benedictine Way, you are working right next to us as we help feed our neighbors and nourish those who yearn to find God in their lives. Let me share a little about our work during the past year and how we are building community.

As the pandemic raged and many of our neighbors lost their jobs, we created St. Benedict’s Pantry. Every week, hundreds of folks from North Omaha line up to receive food and other supplies for their families. I’ve occasionally heard people say that we don’t need food banks—that no one is starving in America. But this callous and myopic view neglects to see the extensive food insecurity throughout our country. We have seen it firsthand. Imagine how difficult it would be to skip meals for a few days at the end of the month or to send your children to bed hungry.

In an effort to provide fresh produce in a low-income community, we planted two urban gardens, with a third slated for the next growing season. We filled grocery bags with the bright colors of the growing season—tomatoes, zucchini, cabbages, eggplants and more. Our neighbors smiled and thanked us enthusiastically.

Women have repeatedly asked us if we had diapers, baby formula and supplies and women’s personal items. So we expanded our Pantry to include these daily living necessities to better meet their needs.

We also feed people spiritually. We invite people to join us for prayer, Holy Eucharist, meals and retreats. The Benedictine Service Corps provides an opportunity for young adults to work on behalf of our neighbors, deepen their prayer lives and grow closer to God. We now have 12 Oblates committed to the work we do and The Rule we follow, with several more in discernment about joining our community. We visit parishes and Canterbury student organizations around the region. We provide online retreats and educational opportunities. Our centering prayer group meets weekly online, with members focusing on attaining a deeper connection with our Lord.

These are just some of the ways in which our community uses our hearts and hands to embrace others, demonstrating that Jesus is among us. The work of any Christian community should shine a path through the wilderness of hunger and despair. Will you join us?

To make your 2022 pledge, please click here. To donate at any time, click here or send a check, made payable to “The Benedictine Way,” to the address at the end of this letter.

As always, I thank you for your prayers and support. May God bless you and your loved ones and may you find joy and peace in this blessed season.

Peace in Christ,

Brother James Dowd, OSB

Incarnation Monastery
3020 Belvedere Blvd.
Omaha, NE 68111

P.S. Your gift will help The Benedictine Way continue its important work as we feed those in need both physically and spiritually. Thank you!