‘A refuge of hospitality and stability’
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Belmont Abbey College recently announced the opening of Belmont House on Capitol Hill in the nation’s capital. The non-political initiative aims to restore civil society, cultivate religious freedom and reclaim the public square for the common good.
Belmont House will give Catholic professionals working on the Hill a place to engage in fellowship and discourse with Christians and others in the political sphere.
Participants will learn from the intersection of corporate, academic and civic engagement and will hone their own personal skills and faith to be leaders in restoring civil discourse.
“Just as the Benedictine presence in North Carolina helped Catholics throughout the state live out their vocation, we now extend, in our spirit of hospitality, our presence, prayer and work to Washington, D.C.,” said Benedictine Abbot Placid Solari, chancellor of Belmont Abbey College.
“At a time in our country’s history when religion and faith are being pushed out of public life, we desire to provide a refuge of hospitality and stability for those who are standing up for our religious freedoms and those who are proclaiming the Good News of the Gospel,” Abbot Placid added.
Belmont House’s work will be based on three pillars: convening, hospitality and fellowship.
Events will range from long dinners to rapid lunch sessions to multi-day retreats. Programs will be much more than workshops or events, though. Belmont House will develop content and policy solutions, as well as build relationships and influence.
The initiative will manifest hospitality – a hallmark of the Benedictine charism – by hosting a wide range of constituents from students to politicians to bishops to lay leaders, and offering well-designed, thoughtful and impactful programing.
The Capitol Hill facility includes small-group discussion areas, meeting and discussion rooms, dining rooms conducive to longer meals and programs, and three small “bed and breakfast”-style suites for guests.
Much of the fellowship is expected to develop through the first two pillars: convening and hospitality.
“There are many ills afflicting the world today. In order to bring the light of the Gospel to these problems facing us, we must come together and share our work and our prayer, our ‘Ora et Labora,’” Abbot Placid noted, quoting the phrase from the Rule of St. Benedict to “pray and work.”
“When we come together in the power of Jesus’ name, our conversations bear fruit, our fellowship strengthens our witness and our work and prayers are more surely inspired by the Gospel,” he said.
Abbot Placid affirmed that Belmont Abbey College is in Washington, D.C., to stand up for the rights of believers, to serve the needs of the faithful who work in the nation’s capital and to remind all that it is right and necessary to bring the insights of faith into public life.
“Belmont House is a place where real conversation, work and change can take place,” he said.
“People up in D.C. are excited about it,” said Belmont Abbey College’s President Dr. William Thierfelder in a recent update he shared online with the college community. Thierfelder traveled to Belmont House last month and also attended the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast Sept. 14.
“It’s one more way Belmont Abbey College is becoming known and having an impact on society,” Thierfelder said.
— SueAnn Howell, Senior reporter. Belmont Abbey College contributed.
Learn more
At www.belmonthousedc.org: Find out more about Belmont Abbey College’s latest initiative and watch Abbot Placid Solari’s message about Belmont House