Fire-damaged St. Joseph Abbey seeks help to improve technology ...

Just because they live rather cloistered lives at a century-old monastery well off the beaten path in a woodsy section of central St. Tammany Parish doesn?t mean that the seminarians and monks at St. Joseph Abbey have an aversion to technology. In fact, abbey officials say seminary students and faculty thirst for more online horsepower to improve teaching and study methods in an education world ever more reliant on cutting edge gismos.

A devastating, late September fire in the abbey?s computer server room struck at the heart of the campus?s underpowered technology center. But in the ashes of the blaze abbey leaders discovered opportunity, and are now involved in a fund drive to replace the burned out computer system with more modern hardware.

While insurance will replace much of what was lost, the abbey hopes to raise $40,000 through donations to upgrade its computer system, a move wholeheartedly supported by the abbey?s 105 seminarians. Vanessa Crouere, the abbey?s director of development, said the seminary students, who are mostly between 18 and 22, are as tech savvy as others in their age group and have used social media to plant the seeds of the fund drive. ?We don?t live in the dark ages in the monastery,? she said.

The Sept. 26 fire at the secluded Catholic Seminary near Covington caused $1.2 million in damages, ripping through a cinder block room that houses computer servers and adjoins the dormitory and business offices. No one was injured in the early morning blaze, and it did not affect the monks in permanent residence or the abbey?s church, with its world-renowned artwork. But it did disrupt the lives of the students, forcing them to move to another facility on the campus for about a week after the fire. The business offices were relocated to temporary quarters as repairs continue. Crouere said the offices should be ready for occupancy around Jan. 1.

An exact cause of the fire is unknown, Crouere said, but the suspicion on campus is that faulty wiring in the 1950s vintage building was the culprit. Brant Thompson, deputy chief for the state Fire Marshal?s Office, which is the lead investigator on fires that affect religious institutions in the state, said the blaze has been declared accidental but the exact source of ignition has not been determined due to the extreme damage.

Original damage estimates have risen significantly as workers uncovered more asbestos than anticipated, requiring additional remediation, Crouere said.

Thanks to lessons learned during Hurricane Katrina, the abbey was equipped with a backup computer system. But Crouere said even before the fire, the abbey?s overloaded internet connection was groaning under the weight of a rising student population.

Considering the limitless future of online teaching and leaning, abbey leaders feel improving technology is of extreme importance to the seminarians' futures. The abbey?s internet provider said it would cost about $40,000 to upgrade to fiber optics. The seminary?s remote location in St. Benedict north of Covington, where it was founded in 1890s, makes getting internet service more of a challenge than it is for other teaching institutions, abbey officials said.

?Our technology really has been struggling to support our student population,? Crouere said. The $40,000 investment ?will really enhance us and put us on par with the rest of the world of education.?

The abbey has established the Seminary Fire Fund, whose proceeds will be dedicated solely to upgrading technology. Crouere said seminarians have already raised about $15,000 toward the goal, mostly through social media efforts and word of mouth. The abbey?s website also features an appeal for donations. The goal is to raise another $25,000 by stepping up the fund-raising drive, possibly using direct mail and other traditional methods.

Although the public perception of monks, seminarians and other religious living simple lives in contemplative environments prevails, some writers and experts say the reality is that reaching and teaching younger believers may require stepping out of the box. The confluence of ancient Biblical teachings and the online revolution has made news over the past few years as the Vatican embraced social networking and other forms of technology to spread the word of the faithful. In 2011, the Vatican unveiled a Facebook page dedicated to the beatification of Pope John Paul II. And two months ago, a start up company backed by the Vatican launched a global portal for Catholic websites designed to beam out information on the Christian religion.

Br. Simon Stubbs, O.B.S., the abbey?s communications director, said updating technology is essential in keeping the local institution viable. He said there have been instances where students could not download material from the web, which prevented them for completing presentations.

?We are on the cusp of redefining the way we teach and learn,? he said. ?We really need better access to the worldwide web to amplify and round out our learning.?

The website?s Seminary Fire Fund entry asks for both spiritual and financial support. ?You can support us with your prayers, by donating, or even forwarding this appeal to your friends and family. Please help us bring our seminary into the modern world.?

Those wishing to contribute can do so on the abbey?s website, http://saintjosephabbey.com.

Source: http://www.nola.com/religion/index.ssf/2012/11/st_joseph_abbey_seeks_help_to.html

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