Abbot Paul Mark Schwan, OCSO
On January 10, 2009 Father Paul Mark Schwan, OCSO was installed as the fourth Abbot of New Clairvaux after having received confirmation from the Abbot General of the Cistercian order in Rome. Earlier in the day, Dom Elias Dietz, OCSO, Vina’s Father Immediate and Abbot of Our Lady of Gethsemani, presided over the election in which Father Paul Mark received the required majority vote of the 16 solemn professed brothers and was elected abbot for a six-year term. Sister Kathy Devico, OCSO, Abbess, and sister Veronique Gerooms of our lady of the redwoods monastery served as witnesses of both the election and installation.
Father Paul Mark has been a member of New Clairvaux’s monastic community for 28 years, faithfully serving the community in a number of capacities, including sub-prior, vocations director, and most recently as Novice Master. Entering the monastery in 1980, he made his first profession in 1983, took his solemn vows in 1987, and was ordained to the priesthood in 1988.
As Abbot, Father Paul Mark’s primary roles are to lead people into relationship with the Trinity and to serve the Kingdom according to the rule of St. Benedict. “The service of an abbot is to be a father to the community in the Christian theological sense of the word,” he said, noting that all of the monastery’s work - from the agricultural work to the ministry of welcoming guests to the rebuilding of the medieval chapter house – is part of the Cistercian charism of bringing people to God.
Born in 1956, Father Paul Mark was one of seven Schwan siblings who grew up on a farm in rural North Dakota. He described his youth as a time and a culture in which young people were more strongly encouraged to consider religious life and the priesthood. With the support of his parents, he attended Cardinal Muench high school and seminary (college) in Fargo and graduated in 1978.
As a high school sophomore he read Thomas Merton’s “The waters of Siloe,” a book focused on the Cistercian order and the monastic life. “I was totally fascinated, excited, and engaged,” he recalls. “Looking back, I know now that was when God called me.”
Drawn to Cistercian life, Father Paul Mark spent time at several monasteries in hopes of finding the right opportunity. He had heard of father Thomas, who had taught at Cardinal Muench previously, and corresponded with him before visiting Vina. “It did not happen right away,” he said. “But through discernment I eventually came to know I was meant to enter the community at New Clairvaux.”
With Father Paul Mark’s election, Father Thomas becomes Vina’s Abbot emeritus. Though retired, he remains a member of the monastic community. In late January 2009, Father Thomas began a sabbatical in the holy land at Bethlehem University, a Vatican sponsored university in Palestine administered by the De La Salle Christian Brothers.
Father Paul Mark has been a member of New Clairvaux’s monastic community for 28 years, faithfully serving the community in a number of capacities, including sub-prior, vocations director, and most recently as Novice Master. Entering the monastery in 1980, he made his first profession in 1983, took his solemn vows in 1987, and was ordained to the priesthood in 1988.
As Abbot, Father Paul Mark’s primary roles are to lead people into relationship with the Trinity and to serve the Kingdom according to the rule of St. Benedict. “The service of an abbot is to be a father to the community in the Christian theological sense of the word,” he said, noting that all of the monastery’s work - from the agricultural work to the ministry of welcoming guests to the rebuilding of the medieval chapter house – is part of the Cistercian charism of bringing people to God.
Born in 1956, Father Paul Mark was one of seven Schwan siblings who grew up on a farm in rural North Dakota. He described his youth as a time and a culture in which young people were more strongly encouraged to consider religious life and the priesthood. With the support of his parents, he attended Cardinal Muench high school and seminary (college) in Fargo and graduated in 1978.
As a high school sophomore he read Thomas Merton’s “The waters of Siloe,” a book focused on the Cistercian order and the monastic life. “I was totally fascinated, excited, and engaged,” he recalls. “Looking back, I know now that was when God called me.”
Drawn to Cistercian life, Father Paul Mark spent time at several monasteries in hopes of finding the right opportunity. He had heard of father Thomas, who had taught at Cardinal Muench previously, and corresponded with him before visiting Vina. “It did not happen right away,” he said. “But through discernment I eventually came to know I was meant to enter the community at New Clairvaux.”
With Father Paul Mark’s election, Father Thomas becomes Vina’s Abbot emeritus. Though retired, he remains a member of the monastic community. In late January 2009, Father Thomas began a sabbatical in the holy land at Bethlehem University, a Vatican sponsored university in Palestine administered by the De La Salle Christian Brothers.
