St. Norbert Abbey is a Roman Catholic monastery of Canons Regular of Premontre, located in De Pere, Wisconsin. The Abbey is named after Saint Norbert of Xanten (c. 1180–1134), the founder of the order, after whom, members are known as, "Norbertines". St. Norbert Abbey was established in 1898 by Norbertines from Berne Abbey in the Netherlands. St. Norbert's is the oldest religious community of its kind the United States, serving as the Mother Canonry to Norbertines across North America.
The Abbey is situated on of land east of the Fox River, south of Green Bay, Wisconsin, within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Green Bay.
The members of the community combine a monastic-style life with the active ministry of ordained priests. Priests and Brothers of the Abbey serve in parish churches, at parochial schools and at St. Norbert College, whose founder, Bernard Pennings, was the First Abbot the community.
History
Norbert of Xanten founded the Norbertines Christmas Day, 1121 in Prémontré, France. The son of a wealthy landholder, Norbert was given to life as a Canon (a minor cleric, as Norbert wasn't yet a Priest) of the Collegiate Church in Xanten, Germany, where he is said to have been unfocused and driven by things other than religious life.
Canons of the Church were required to spend time in choir each day, singing several hours according to the various liturgies prescribed by the Catholic Church. Rather than spending the hours in Church, Norbert would go on adventures and hunts, until his conversion experience in 1112, when he become totally committed to the Christian Faith.
Norbert became a Priest in 1115 and devoted his life to the reform of the Canons under a rule of life established by St. Augustine of Hippo, who is counted with Norbert as a Father of the Premonstratensian Order, which Norbert founded to support his ideal for reform of the Church. In Norbert's lifetime, his fledgling order spread from Ireland to the Holy Land. Wherever he went, people with a zeal for the Church supported his efforts.
In 1125, Norbert went to Antwerp, preaching in opposition to Tanchelm, whose teachings the Catholic Church opposed. The success of Norbert's mission in Antwerp and across the Low Countries, led to the foundation of Norbertine Abbeys in the Netherlands and Belgium. Among these religious communities was Berne Abbey, located in North Brabant, the Netherlands. Berne was established in 1134, the same year as Norbert's death.
Centuries later, Norbertine Priests led by Bernard Pennings, came from Berne and established an Abbey in Wisconsin. Pennings established a network of Norbertine schools and Parishes, establishing St. Norbert College as a seminary, then a college of business. In 1898, St. Joseph Parish, in West De Pere, Wisconsin became affiliated with the Norbetines and served as the Abbey Church for decades.
In the 1950s, a growing Premonstratensian community at the Abbey had outgrown the available space within the original buildings. Land was donated in 1954, for the purpose relocating the monastery, and building a new Abbey Church. June 9, 1956 marked the beginning of construction and by February 1, 1959, the community inhabited their new headquarters.
Liturgy & Architecture
The Norbertine Order is known for the solemnity of its liturgies, reflecting Norbert's devotion to the Eucharist. Members of the community wear the Order's traditional white habit in Church. The Community chants the daily office from its own liturgical books in English each day, with Marian hymns chanted in Latin.
The Abbey is well known for the chanting of the hours, its highly symbolic; yet modern stained glass, and its excellent pipe organ.
The Abbey's Design
St. Norbert's was completed in the years before the Second Vatican Council by the Second Abbot, Sylvester Michael Killeen, O. Praem. (1905-2000). It reflects the Liturgical Movement, preceding the council. The Abbey Church is built in the basilica style, with a well appointed nave and a long choir. Its use of travertine, and polished marble of deep green or white provide a sense of permanence and grandeur to the austere design.
