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In Kansas, An Inside Look At The Daily Life Of Benedictine Monks

Father Dennis Meade in the abbey cemetery. The Benedictine Monks of Atchison established the monastery in Atchison, Kansas right around the time the state was opening for settlement. (Laura Ziegler/KCUR)
Father Dennis Meade in the abbey cemetery. The Benedictine Monks of Atchison established the monastery in Atchison, Kansas right around the time the state was opening for settlement. (Laura Ziegler/KCUR)

Atchison, Kansas, a small town on the Missouri River about 50 miles north of Kansas City, is known for several things. It's a gateway to the West, the birthplace of Amelia Earhart and, to a lesser extent, the home of Benedictine College. Today, the campus and classic brick buildings provide a broad liberal arts curriculum. But on a hill at the top of campus, overlooking the river, there is an abbey. And in that abbey, Benedictine monks live much the same way they did centuries ago.

Laura Ziegler (@laurazig) of Here & Now contributor KCUR spent a night with the monks to learn something about how they live.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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