Br. Irenaeus Petree, O.S.B.

I grew up on the outskirts of Jefferson City, MO. My brother and I had a sheltered childhood. We spent a lot of time outside. My family wasn’t rich, but we did not go without, either. I went to a Catholic elementary school and then to a public high school. During my high school years, my parents separated, and I struggled in school.

One of my hobbies as a teenager was reading Science Fiction and Fantasy novels. It was in these books that I was first exposed to monasticism. I felt an attraction to the monastic way of life, and as a teenager and young adult, I looked at several brochures for monasteries and other religious communities. At that time in my life, however, I was not ready to make a commitment to religious life.
 
I went to college, but I soon realized that it would not work out. I worked a few odd jobs before landing a job working for the state of Missouri. I did clerical work for the state in various capacities for about fifteen years.
 
I continued to feel an attraction to religious life and decided to search online for religious communities that might be a good fit for me. I then contacted and visited some religious communities, looking specifically for religious communities that wore habits and weren’t too far from home. I wanted to join a community in which there was a significant amount of flexibility in the kind of work that they do. I also was looking for communities that accepted men over the age of forty.
 
I enjoyed my first visit to Subiaco. I particularly liked the feeling of being away from the world--no TV’s or other distractions. I liked the feeling of warmth and openness that came from the community, and I enjoyed talking with the monks. Fr. Elijah, Br. Raban, and Br. Maurus especially helped me to make the decision to join the monastery.
 
Currently, I work in the development office and keep track of mass intentions. I enjoy making Job’s Tears rosaries and am looking forward to taking some college classes in the near future. What I really like about being a monk is that God is always available to me, day or night. As a monk, I always have access to resources to deepen my relationship with God. I especially enjoy the feeling of doing what God wants me to do.