Freedom in the Light. A Benedictine oblate blog

I visited St. Leo Abbey, Florida, USA, recently to pray with the monks at vespers.

I arrived early so I could sit in the church. The church was filled with beautiful light — from the new lighting installed as part of an interior painting/improvement project, but also from the stained-glass windows that filtered the bright sunlight. The effect gave the light inside the church a rich texture that I enjoyed as I sat quietly. The right light, like the right silence, can speak to a heart.

The Church of the Holy Cross (St. Leo Abbey’s church) has statues of saints along the walls. One statue is of St. Leo the Great (who in 453 convinced Attila the Hun not to attack Rome — way to go Pope!). This great Pope also is honored in the name of St. Leo Abbey.

As I was leaving the church after vespers, the statue of St. Leo, encircled by green light, caught my eye. I took the picture shown above.

Green is the color for hope, bountifulness, and freedom from bondage.

On this visit to pray with the monks, St. Leo the Great and the St. Leo Abbey used light for their lessons in history, Lent, and Easter.