MONCKS CORNER, S.C. — “A year and a half ago, I could do anything — run the chain saw, cut up trees, use a backhoe.” Brother Joseph Swedo was bent forward in his chair, his rugged hands folded ...

The monks of St. Joseph’s Abbey, who worked to get Spencer Brewery recognized by the International Trappist Association, announced Saturday that they’re going to let the brewery’s taps run dry. The ...

Monasteries are holy places of quiet and contemplation, but even they can’t escape the tyranny of I.P.A.s. This month, St. Joseph’s Abbey, located an hour west of Boston in the town of Spencer, ...

Sad, worrisome news to report today from a particularly difficult niche of the U.S. craft beer world, as the monks of Spencer, Massachusetts’ Spencer Brewery announced that the only Trappist brewery ...

In the late 1960s, a young NCR reporter named Colman McCarthy saw the emerging decline of American Trappist monasteries and offered a diagnosis: The monastic life is not active enough. Looking back ...

When COVID-19 led health officials to urge people to shelter in place, it even affected the already-cloistered monks at the Monastery of the Holy Spirit in Conyers. Public prayers and services with ...

In 2023, my wife Liz embarked on a self-guided spiritual retreat at the Abbey of Gethsemani, the Trappist monastery in Nelson County. She returned with an armful of books and souvenirs from the ...

Access: At the intersection with Route 295, take Route 114 south and drive 3 miles to the driveway to the monastery on the right. Parking: Available at several lots. Dogs: Allowed but must be leashed ...

SPENCER — Upon visiting St. Joseph’s Abbey, any stress this reporter took to the monastery grounds faded as I followed the winding road up off Route 31 to Spencer Brewery. Everything about the abbey ...

WESTMALLE, Belgium (Reuters) - A gold standard for beer connoisseurs, the Trappist ale in Westmalle Abbey streams through state-of-the-art equipment with not a monk in sight. It's thoroughly in accord ...