Pluscarden Abbey marks opening of new guest house after 12-year effort
A nearly 800-year-old monastery has celebrated a “wonderful” upgrade.
Pluscarden Abbey, home to a community of Catholic Benedictine monks, has marked the opening of Saint Joseph’s Guest House after the completion of improvements more than a decade in the making.
The guest house, which is used by women visiting the monastery, is also home to a life-size stones statue of St Joseph carved by artist Philip Chatfield.
An event last Wednesday saw the statue, which took around four-and-a-half months to complete, receive a blessing.
Speaking at the event, Brother Michael said: “It's wonderful actually because it has been a long time in the making.
“It's at least 12 years since we started things rolling, a long period of evolution.
“I think we could say that it's exactly what we wanted.
“It's been tuned and retuned and fine-tuned and I think everything about it puts a smile on people's faces.
“I think the quality of it, anyone who comes around the corner there and sees it for the first time, they say: ‘Oh look at that!’
“And it looks like it's been there forever but it's all fresh and new.”
Pluscarden Abbey is the only medieval British monastery still being used for its original purpose.
