Newest monk: Lord called Brother Dominic, he answered

Published: October 10, 2009

By Serenah McKay
Rogers correspondent

Brother Ephrem O'Bryan, OSB

Brother Dominic Faciane, OSB, practices the organ at the Abbey Church in November 2005. Brother Dominic is the newest monk at Subiaco Abbey and one of the regular organists for the monastic community. He was once an organist and music director in Slidell, La.

Brother Ephrem O'Bryan, OSB

At age 6, Brother Dominic Faciane, OSB, knew two things for certain -- he had a talent for music and a calling from God.

Now 33, he is fulfilling both. He made his solemn profession of monastic vows Sept. 8 at Subiaco Abbey and is pursuing a bachelor's degree in music education at Arkansas Tech University in Russellville.

Growing up in Slidell, La., he said, "I noticed that even as a child the Lord had planted a desire in me to serve God in a special way."

In high school, he took part in a discernment group in the Archdiocese of New Orleans. Group members met several times a year to talk about vocations as a priest.

He applied to seminary while attending community college, but his grades from high school weren't good enough. The vocations director encouraged him to finish college and reapply.

In the meantime, he was happy serving as an organist and choir director for St. Genevieve Church in Slidell, which he had done since he was 18. He put aside the idea of working as a diocesan priest.

"But around the age of 26, I felt God was asking still more of me," he said. "I started looking into Benedictine spirituality, which is about incorporating God where you are."

He first visited Subiaco Abbey on a monastic retreat and was moved by the words of Abbot Jerome Kodell, OSB, about following God's call.

"When I went home, my friends and family noticed that 'something was going on,'" Brother Dominic said.

His spiritual director encouraged him to go back and start the application process. He did, and entered the abbey as a candidate in 2004.

Brother Dominic said his family has fully supported him in his vocation. When he told his mother he was joining the monastery, "she was overjoyed."

"I think she had been praying about it all along," he said.

Currently he is one of the organists at the abbey and may eventually teach music at Subiaco Academy.

"The game plan is that I will end up as an instructor in the academy. But when I'm finished (with college), I will have my license to teach in the state of Arkansas."

Brother Dominic recalled that during his solemn profession, Abbot Kodell referred in his homily to the biblical story of Samuel sleeping in the temple and hearing a voice calling his name. Samuel thought it was his teacher, Eli, who was calling him, but in fact it was God.

"When you feel this tug at your heart and feel like God is trying to direct you, it's all through Scripture, when you follow the call, he leads you on the journey of a lifetime," Brother Dominic said. "It's all about answering the call and allowing him to lead us."