About Belmont Abbey · Belmont, North Carolina
The Abbey Basilica of Mary Help of Christians is the heart of Belmont Abbey, a Benedictine monastery founded in 1876 in Belmont, North Carolina, just west of Charlotte. Home to a community of monks of the American-Cassinese Benedictine Congregation and the founding church of Belmont Abbey College, the cruciform Gothic Revival basilica was completed in 1894 and raised to the rank of minor basilica by Pope John Paul II on July 27, 1998. The abbey grounds form a National Register Historic District (1973/1993) and the basilica continues to serve students, monastic community and visitors with daily Mass, the Liturgy of the Hours and the sacraments.
- Established
- 1876
- Patron
- Mary Help of Christians
- Diocese
- Diocese of Charlotte
Why belong here
Belmont Abbey is not a typical parish — it is a working Benedictine monastery whose public liturgies, confession schedules and pastoral availability flow from the monks' own 'ora et labora' rhythm. Anyone can drop into the basilica for the daily 11:00 a.m. Conventual Mass or the Sunday night Student Mass, join the chant of Vespers at 5:30 p.m., sit in the historic baptismal font that memorializes those once sold into slavery, walk the Lourdes Grotto, or attend confession in one of the campus's posted windows. Because the basilica sits at the center of a Catholic liberal-arts college on 650 acres of grounds, visitors regularly encounter a worshipping monastery, a living community of faith-formation, and the visible heritage of the only abbatia nullius ever created in the United States.
Mass times at Belmont Abbey
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Monday & Thursday: 4:30–5:20 PM
- Tuesday, Wednesday & Friday: 9:00–10:30 AM
- Saturday & Sunday: 10:00–10:50 AM
- By appointment through [email protected]
Adoration times
- Wednesday evenings: Solemn Benediction in St. Joseph Adoration Chapel, immediately following the 8:30 PM Chapel Mass (school year)
History of Belmont Abbey
The abbey was founded in April 1876 when Fr. Herman Wolfe, O.S.B. and two students arrived on the 500-acre former Caldwell farm in Gaston County, donated for a Catholic school by Fr. Jeremiah O'Connell, O.S.B. and entrusted to the Benedictines of Saint Vincent Archabbey by Abbot Boniface Wimmer. Raised to abbey status by Pope Leo XIII on December 19, 1884, it became an abbatia nullius in 1910 — the only territorial abbey ever established in the United States — and has continued without interruption as a Benedictine monastery for 150 years.
The Basilica of Mary Help of Christians
The Abbey Church of Mary Help of Christians was begun on May 21, 1892, completed in 1894 and formally dedicated on April 11, 1894. Built from handmade brick fired on site, it is a large cruciform Gothic Revival church designed by Detroit architect Peter Dederichs, with a slate roof and two unequal towers (150 ft and 100 ft) on the west façade. The taller tower holds three bells that still ring over the campus, and the tower clock was added in 1909. The interior was redesigned in 1964 by Charlotte architect Friedrich Schmitt, who introduced a cedar ceiling resembling the hull of a sailing vessel, oak pews and choir stalls finished in olive stain, polished flagstone floors and Georgia marble altars. A wheelchair ramp was added in 1981.
- Stained-glass windows created by the Royal Bavarian Institute (Francis Meyer & Company, Munich) — exhibited at the 1892 World's Fair in Chicago, where they won four gold medals
- Narthex and entrance added in 1964 as part of the interior renovation
- Baptismal font carved from a stone once used in North Carolina slave auctions, with a 1965 memorial plaque
- Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973; minor basilica since 1998
Monastic Life and Benedictine Charism
Belmont Abbey is home to a community of Benedictine monks of the American-Cassinese Congregation, dedicated to 'ora et labora' — the work of God and of hand and mind. Each day is built around the Liturgy of the Hours and the daily Conventual Mass, and every monk shares in the practical work of the monastery: serving in the refectory, sacristy, housekeeping, the college (as professors, administrators and campus ministers), diocesan pastoral ministry and welcoming guests. The community is led by the abbot as father and shepherd of the family.
- Guided by the Rule of St. Benedict for more than 1,500 years of tradition
- Stability, obedience and conversion of life as the monastic vows
- Monks serve as faculty, chaplains and administrators at Belmont Abbey College
- Open to men discerning a monastic or priestly vocation through the Vocations Office of the abbey
The Monks
The current monastic community numbers roughly a dozen professed monks. Featured on the abbey's own website are Abbot Placid Solari, O.S.B., Fathers Christopher, Elias, James and David Brown, O.S.B., and Brothers Paul, Edward, Tobiah, Chrysostom, Leo, Bede and Emmanuel, O.S.B. Each monk shares in the choir, teaching, manual work and pastoral care that keep the abbey running.
Abbot Placid Solari, O.S.B.
The Rt. Rev. Placid Solari, O.S.B., a native of Richmond, Virginia, was professed at Belmont Abbey in 1975 and ordained in 1980 by the Most Reverend Michael Begley, Bishop of Charlotte. He served at St. Michael Church in Gastonia from 1979 to 1982 and has held various pastoral and educational assignments in the Diocese of Charlotte. In November 1999 he was elected the 8th Abbot of Belmont Abbey, and he also serves as Chancellor of Belmont Abbey College. He earned his bachelor's degree at Bellarmine College in Louisville, Kentucky; the S.T.B. at Sant'Anselmo in Rome; and a doctorate in Patristic Sciences from the Pontifical Patristic Institute Augustinianum in Rome.
Campus and Belmont Abbey College
The abbey sits at the heart of the 650-acre campus of Belmont Abbey College, the Catholic liberal-arts college it founded (originally as St. Mary's College in 1876, renamed Belmont Abbey College in 1913). The coeducational college grants four-year degrees in the major liberal-arts and pre-professional disciplines and shares priests, professors and spiritual programming with the monastery. The abbey hosts a National Register Historic District (1973, expanded in 1993) that includes the Brothers' Building (1893–1904), the Music Building, the historic grounds and the Saint Benedict statue (1924) in front of the basilica. Parts of the campus are open to visitors, pilgrims and the families of graduating students each May for Commencement.
- Founded 1876 as St. Mary's College; renamed Belmont Abbey College in 1913
- Originally chartered in 1886 by the State of North Carolina to grant degrees
- Handmade-brick 'American Benedictine' architecture developed by Dom Michael McInerney, O.S.B.
- Belmont Abbey National Historic District added to the National Register on July 14, 1993
Pilgrimage and Visiting
Belmont Abbey is a frequent stop for pilgrims in the Piedmont region of the Carolinas. Visitors can attend the daily liturgy, walk the Lourdes Grotto, view the historic stained glass, kneel at the baptismal font and explore the monastic cemetery on the abbey grounds. Because the abbey is a working monastery rather than a tourist attraction, the monks ask that visitors respect the cloister and observe the hours of silence.
Visiting Information
The basilica and grotto are open to the public for prayer and public liturgies throughout the day. Confession is available at the times published above or by appointment. The abbey campus is located at 100 Belmont-Mount Holly Road, Belmont, NC 28012 (Gaston County). Visitor parking is available near the basilica; a wheelchair ramp was installed in 1981. Telephone: (704) 461-6675. Email (campus ministry): [email protected].
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Dom Herman Wolfe, O.S.B.1876–1884
Founding prior; first monk sent from Saint Vincent Archabbey to establish Belmont.
- Abbot Leo Haid, O.S.B.1884–1924
1st Abbot; first American abbot-bishop and first Vicar Apostolic of North Carolina; oversaw construction of the abbey church.
- Rt. Rev. Placid Solari, O.S.B.1999–present
8th Abbot; professed 1975 at Belmont, ordained 1980 by Bishop Michael Begley; also Chancellor of Belmont Abbey College.
