On Saint Procopius and foundation of the monastery Lore Books

Description

A discussion about the monk Procopius and how he founded the monastery.

Text

On Saint Procopius
and a monastery of his name

Abbot Procopius, a good Czech of outstanding learning, was first an earthly priest, who led an honourable life in full devotion to God. Later, when much blood had been spilt in the Kingdom of Bohemia, he went into reclusion, far away from people, to be disturbed by no man and far from all that is earthly and impure and to find isolation and peace so that he could pray to God. With great passion in his heart, he denied his wife and his home, his worldly property, his relatives and friends, and lo, even his own self did he deny, subjecting himself to God’s will alone.

Fleeing from the tempest of human society and full of love for Christ, he left for the wilderness and there he settled, under the arches of an abandoned cave, whither armed with but the armour of his faith and the swords of the heavens did he drive forth the demons that had ere lived at that place. For many years did he dwell in the cave, his virtues shielding him from all temptation and impropriety. Prayer, fasting, and keeping vigil bound him fast to the firm rock that is Christ.

Through the mercy of the heavens did tales of the most holy Procopius’s virtues spread so that people from all corners of the Earth began to seek him out. This clean, pure, and prudent man did listen to their pleas and confessions and thus their hearts were turned to faith and their thoughts corrected. From the many gifts that were brought to him, he then built a monastery over his cave and for the greater glory of the Virgin Mary and Saint John the Baptist he called forth a gathering of several most pious brothers in Christ. Alongside his brethren, he pursued a pious life of strict morals and, using the rule of the good Father Benedict as a model, for them he did establish monastic rules for worshiping God.

Later, when Procopius had died and his soul had entered into heaven a saint and his body in his cave did lie, the monastery received his name and thereafter it has borne the title the Benedictine Monastery of Saint Procopius.