About St. Mary's Monastery & St. Scholastica Priory · Petersham, Massachusetts
St. Mary's Monastery is a small Roman Catholic Benedictine monastery of contemplative monks in Petersham, Massachusetts, in the Diocese of Worcester. Founded in 1985 by Father Cyril Karam and formally established as a dependent house of Pluscarden Abbey in Scotland on November 21, 1987, the community lives a strict contemplative life centered on the chanting of the Mass and the seven hours of the Divine Office in Latin Gregorian Chant. The monks are a 'twin community' with the neighboring Benedictine nuns of St. Scholastica Priory, with whom they share their 200-acre forest property near the Quabbin Reservoir, the monastery church, library, and an 18-room guesthouse. The community belongs to the English Province of the Subiaco Cassinese Congregation of the Order of St. Benedict.
- Established
- 1985
- Patron
- Blessed Virgin Mary
- Rector
- Prior Gregory Phillips
- Diocese
- Diocese of Worcester, Massachusetts
Why belong here
St. Mary's welcomes anyone — of any faith — who wishes to attend the daily sung liturgy in Latin Gregorian Chant, share in the prayer of the Divine Office, or simply find peace on sacred ground surrounded by 10,000 acres of conservation forest near the Quabbin Reservoir. Men discerning a monastic vocation can stay as guests, attend a Monastic Experience Weekend, and walk through a structured path from observership to postulancy, novitiate, junior vows, and finally solemn vows. Laymen may also associate with the monastery as Oblates of St. Benedict, sharing in its spiritual life while living in the world.
Mass times at St. Mary's Monastery & St. Scholastica Priory
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Available by request to a member of the community or a priest during a guesthouse stay (per guesthouse page)
Adoration times
- Once a month, usually on First Fridays, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament from after Mass until Vespers, followed by Benediction (St. Scholastica Priory)
- Weekly Benediction (St. Scholastica Priory)
History of St. Mary's Monastery
St. Mary's Monastery was founded in 1985 by Father Cyril Karam and two companions, with the permission of the Bishop of Worcester, on a forested tract of land in Petersham, Massachusetts, in association with the nuns of St. Scholastica Priory. Father Cyril sought help from Pluscarden Abbey in Scotland, and on November 21, 1987 the community was officially established as a Benedictine monastery dependent on Pluscarden. After Father Cyril's death in 1990, Father Anselm Atkinson — a monk of Pluscarden — was appointed Superior; he was later elected Abbot of Pluscarden in 2011 and resigned on July 1, 2024 after 34 years as Superior and Abbot. Father Gregory Phillips, who entered St. Mary's in 1990 and was ordained in 2001, was appointed local Superior in September 2011 and in February 2026 was granted the title of Prior. The community belongs to the English Province of the Subiaco Cassinese Congregation.
- Foundation: 1985 (informal); formally established November 21, 1987 as dependent on Pluscarden Abbey
- Founder: Father Cyril Karam (d. 1990)
- Motherhouse: Pluscarden Abbey, Scotland
- Congregation: English Province, Subiaco Cassinese Congregation of the Order of St. Benedict
Twin Communities with St. Scholastica Priory
Following a tradition that goes back to the early Middle Ages, St. Mary's is a 'twin community' with the contemplative Benedictine nuns of St. Scholastica Priory, with whom it shares the 200-acre property. The two communities pray the liturgy in common, share some classes, and have common recreation once a week. Each community has its own Superior, buildings, governance, finances, and work, and they are united by bonds of charity rather than any juridical link. They jointly administer the guesthouse, library, and property, and on certain holidays and Solemnities share a festive meal together.
- Shared church for Mass and the Liturgy of the Hours
- Common conferences and weekly recreation
- Jointly administered guesthouse, library, and forest property
- St. Scholastica Priory established as independent of pontifical right on September 8, 1984; moved to Petersham in 1985; aggregated to Subiaco Congregation in 1995
Community & Leadership
St. Mary's is a small community of contemplative Benedictine monks currently numbering seven professed members in residence, circled by Abbot Emeritus Anselm Atkinson of Pluscarden. The Prior/Superior is Prior Gregory Phillips. Father Columba serves as Vocation Director, Father Dunstan is a member in good standing, and Brothers Isidore, Vincent, Bernard, and Pius round out the brotherhood. Brother Isidore additionally serves as guestmaster for men. After the November 2024 abbatial election at Pluscarden failed to produce a new Abbot, Father Simon Piątkowski was appointed Prior Administrator of Pluscarden by the Abbot President.
- Prior Gregory Phillips — Superior since 2011; entered 1990, ordained 2001
- Father Columba — Vocation Director
- Father Dunstan
- Brother Isidore — Guestmaster (men)
- Brother Vincent
- Brother Bernard
- Brother Pius
- Abbot Emeritus Anselm — Prior Simon Piątkowski now governs Pluscarden as Prior Administrator
Liturgy & Gregorian Chant
The liturgy is the center of life at St. Mary's. The Mass and the seven hours of the Divine Office are sung in Latin Gregorian Chant together with the nuns of St. Scholastica Priory, following the directives of the Second Vatican Council. Mass is always celebrated according to the Novus Ordo; only on Thursdays is the entire Mass in Latin. On other days prayers are in English while the chants — entrance hymn, Kyrie, Gradual, Alleluia, Offertory, Sanctus, Agnus Dei, and Mystery of Faith — are in Latin, drawn from the chant books produced by the Abbey of Solesmes since Vatican II. On Sundays and Solemnities the Gloria and Credo are also sung. Gregorian Chant, traditionally associated with St. Gregory the Great (Pope from 590), was the principal music of the Latin Church from the early Middle Ages onward.
- Daily Mass in English with Latin Gregorian chants (Thursday entirely in Latin)
- Seven sung Hours of the Divine Office each day
- Chants largely drawn from 10th–15th century repertoire
- Use of Latin and Gregorian Chant specifically encouraged by Vatican II, Paul VI, Benedict XVI, and the Synod of Bishops (Sacramentum Caritatis n. 62)
Guesthouse & Benedictine Hospitality
Hospitality is a hallmark of Benedictine monasticism, going back to the desert solitaries. St. Mary's guesthouse, with 18 private rooms, is managed jointly with the nuns of St. Scholastica Priory and sits a short distance from the monasteries and the church. Informal meals are provided for breakfast and supper; male guests may eat lunch with the monks in their refectory while female guests eat at St. Scholastica Priory. It is not a retreat house — there are no guided retreats or ongoing spiritual direction — but guests may request to speak with a member of the community or a priest for the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Brother Isidore is the guestmaster for men; the sisters' guestmistress cares for women. No pets are allowed, and the guesthouse is not recommended for young children because most retreatants seek silence.
- 18 private rooms; breakfast and supper provided
- Male guests eat lunch in the monks' refectory
- Open to men and women of all faiths
- No guided retreats or spiritual direction; confession available on request
- Reservations: men — Brother Isidore, 978-724-3350; women — St. Scholastica Priory, 978-724-3217
Vocations & Monastic Formation
Men interested in monastic life are invited to contact Father Columba, the Vocation Director. The path proceeds from informal visits, to an observership (one month living inside the monastery), to a six-month postulancy, a two-year novitiate in which the new brother receives the habit, takes a new name, and studies doctrine, Scripture, liturgy, the Rule of St. Benedict, monastic vows, Gregorian chant, and Latin. After novitiate come junior vows (one-year vows for three to nine years), and finally solemn, permanent vows with full community membership. The monastery holds Monastic Experience Weekends once or twice a year (2026 dates: June 5–7 and October 9–11) when men can experience the life, participate in choir, learn lectio divina, and ask questions of the community.
- Vocation Director: Father Columba
- Novice Master: Father Anselm
- Candidates must be baptized, confirmed, practicing Roman Catholic men
- Typical age range 25–40; younger candidates must show maturity
- Discernment stages: visit → observership → postulancy (6+ months) → novitiate (2 years) → junior vows → solemn vows
- Monastic Experience Weekends 2026: June 5–7 and October 9–11
Monastic Life & Work
At St. Mary's, approximately six-and-a-half hours of every day are devoted to the liturgy, lectio divina, and private prayer. The rest of the day is filled with the work of running a household: cooking, cleaning, sewing the nuns' own habits, veils, and choir robes, wood-carving, weaving, gardening, greeting guests, secretarial duties, and keeping up with letters and prayer requests. Monasteries are self-supporting and receive no funds from the diocese; the community's main current support is an annual appeal to benefactors across the country. Cheesemaking is being explored as a 'viable means of support consonant with our lives,' in keeping with St. Benedict's injunction that 'monks should live by the labor of their hands.'
- Daily rhythm centered on the Opus Dei (Work of God)
- Self-supporting; no diocesan funding
- Annual appeal to benefactors
- Cheesemaking in development as a sustainable work
- Manual labor assigned equally to priest-monks and brothers
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Father Cyril Karam1985–1990
Founder; began the monastic life in Petersham with two companions; died 1990.
- Father (later Abbot) Anselm Atkinson1990–2011
Appointed Superior by Abbot Alfred Spencer of Pluscarden after Fr. Cyril's death; elected Abbot of Pluscarden in August 2011; resigned July 1, 2024.
- Father Gregory Phillips2011–present
Appointed local Superior on September 21, 2011 by Abbot Anselm; entered St. Mary's in 1990, ordained 2001; granted the title of Prior in February 2026.