Father Marcus Voss, seen outside the Abbey Wednesday, has been elected the new abbot of St. Bernard Abbey.

Cullman native and longtime Benedictine monk Father Marcus Voss is stepping into the top leadership role of St. Bernard Abbey as the 10th abbot.

As abbot, Voss will carry the administrative and spiritual responsibility for all of St. Bernard’s programs and institutions, including the abbey, St. Bernard Preparatory School, the Ave Maria Grotto, St. Michaels Church in St. Florian and Sacred Heart in Cullman.

Abbot Marcus succeeds Abbot Cletus Meagher, who has resigned from office after reaching the mandatory retirement age and having served the abbey in the role of abbot for twenty-four years. Abbot Marcus also succeeds his uncle, Abbot Victor Clark, who served as the eighth abbot of St. Bernard from 1987 until 1995.

“I find taking this position is a tremendous honor and very humbling,” said Abbot Marcus after his appointment Wednesday. “I look forward to continuing the great tradition of St. Bernard in the community.”

In the 1870s, monks from St. Vincent Archabbey in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, arrived in Cullman to serve German Catholics. Those monks established St. Bernard in 1891.

Voss said St. Bernard remains as vital as when the monks first arrived in the community. The abbey hosts numerous retreats for Catholics from across the country, while St. Bernard Preparatory School is recognized widely for its academics and hosts students from Alabama and overseas.

“I’m hoping to work with the monks to create a five-year plan that addresses many areas of St. Bernard, including some capital plans,” Abbot Marcus said. “We’re already seeing major renovations at the Grotto and we hope to see an expansion in the retreats that are offered.”

Abbot Marcus also said the school is growing and he will work to make it more available to local families. The school serves students in the seventh through 12th grades.

As abbot, he will also chair the school board.

“St. Bernard has an exciting history of serving this community. We will continue to do so and look at how we can provide more outreach,” he said.

Born in Cullman to Joe and Catherine Voss, Abbot Marcus has a large family, including three siblings, Martha Thomas, Marcella Bailey, and Michael Voss, and many nieces and nephews. Baptized and raised at Sacred Heart Parish, he attended Sacred Heart Elementary School and Cullman High School. For his athletic accomplishments as a competitor and as a school administrator, he was inducted into the Cullman County Sports Hall of Fame in 2008, according to information provided by Father Joel Martin of St. Bernard.

After high school graduation, the future abbot enrolled at the University of Alabama, but during orientation week he withdrew from UA, applying as a seminarian at St. Bernard College, studying for the abbey. After undergraduate studies at St. Bernard, he completed his theological education for ordination at St. Bede Abbey, Peru, Illinois, and St. Louis University, St. Louis, Missouri, earning the degree of Master of Divinity. He also holds a second master’s degree in Christian Spirituality from Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska, and later participated in summer programs in monastic studies at Sant’Anselmo in Rome.

At the time of his election, Abbot Marcus was serving as the Director of Development and Alumni Affairs of St. Bernard Preparatory School. Additionally, his recent responsibilities have included co-chaplaincy to the Benedictine sisters of Sacred Heart Monastery, Cullman, Junior Master to monks in formation, and weekend pastoral assistance to the parishes of the Diocese of Birmingham. 

 

David Palmer may be contacted at 256-734-2131, ext. 116.