Abbey of Saint-Louis du Temple at Vauhallan

Posted in Benedictines, Diocese of Evry, Ecclesiastical province of Paris

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The History of our Monastery

In 1802, during her years of travelling due to the French Revolution, our founding mother, Mother Marie-Joseph de la Miséricorde (Louise-Adélaïde de Bourbon-Condé) was able to fulfill her greatest wish in Warsaw, at the Institute of the Most Sacred Heart, namely to consecrate her life to God in the Benedictine way of life. On her return to Paris, King Louis the XVIII granted her the Temple domain where she would be able to build a monastery. She had a great devotion to the King St Louis the IX, hence the name of the Abbey: St Louis du Temple. Evicted in 1848, the nuns settled in the rue Monsieur, a place that was to become most influential. They had to leave in 1938 and after a few years in Meudon, they were able at last to settle in Limon in a monastery that they helped build

The Monastery Today

We are some thirty nuns living in the Abbey of Saint-Louis du Temple at Vauhallan following the rule of St Benedict. Every day we celebrate the Liturgy of the Hours and Mass (10 o’clock on Sunday, 12 noon on weekdays), sung in Gregorian Chant and in French. Our work consists of book-binding, handicrafts, a monastery shop, domestic services… we have a guesthouse were we welcome groups, people wishing to make a retreat and able bodied senior citizens.

We have a rich heritage that we are pleased to share, a historical museum (souvenirs of the French Revolution, of the Royal Family, of our founding mother) and an art museum with works by Mother Genviève Gallois (1888 – 1962), she wrote “Petit PLacide” , she also drew, painted and carved; she produced the stained glass windows of our Abbey Church.

Special Features of our Monastery

The Saclay plateau is undergoing great changes at the moment: farmers, students, scientific research workers in the French schools of higher education and laboratories, associations promoting community spirit, all these people live and work together… Our community is in a rural area and by our location and our vocation, we try to be active partners in this adventure by sharing with those who come to visit us our search of God in our community life of work, the welcoming of guests, a sober and silent way of life which we wish to be meaningful in the world of today. This is what made us open our old farm into a “Jardin de Cocagne” operation, a back-to-work project based on vegetable and fruit farming.