Fort Worth's Joseph Hoffschwelle takes his first vows as a Benedictine monk

Brother Rother Hoffschwelle, OSB, took his first vows as a Benedictine monk at St. Joseph Abbey in Saint Benedict, Louisiana, on Sept. 3, 2024. (courtesy photo/St. Joseph Abbey)

Newly professed Brother Rother Hoffschwelle, OSB, feels a kinship with the priest who inspired his new religious name: Blessed Stanley Rother, a martyr priest who preferred service to studies. “He went to Assumption Seminary where I was,” Br. Rother told the North Texas Catholic.

On September 3, Br. Rother took his first vows as a Benedictine monk at St. Joseph Abbey in Saint Benedict, Louisiana. His journey began in the Diocese of Fort Worth, and he has been supported by his parents, his home parish of St. Andrew in Fort Worth, the St. John Paul II Shepherd’s Guild, and Bishop Michael Olson.

As a high school senior, Br. Rother (then Joseph Hoffschwelle) attended a “come and see” event at St. Joseph Seminary in Saint Benedict, Louisiana — which is located on the same property as the St. Joseph Abbey. “I felt called to really come here and figure out what God was calling me to do,” he told the NTC.

Supported by the Diocese of Fort Worth’s St. John Paul II Shepherd’s Guild, Hoffschwelle entered St. Joseph Seminary. After graduating, he attended Assumption Seminary in San Antonio to study theology, pushing through the stressful academic work.

But he felt that his prayer life “wasn’t where it needed to be” during that time. Like Blessed Stanley Rother, who also struggled with academics, “I really wanted to work and pray,” Br. Rother recalled. “I would read certain passages in Scripture that would really stand out to me, like ‘Go and sell everything you have and follow Me.’”

Br. Rother spoke with Bishop Olson about the stress he was feeling. “He’s very supportive,” Br. Rother said. “He’s going to work with you, and he wants you to be happy; he wants you to do what God wants you to do.”

Bishop Olson encouraged Br. Rother to discern monastic life. So Br. Rother attended another “come and see” event at St. Joseph Abbey — this time to learn about Benedictine vocation.

In spring of 2023, Br. Rother entered the Abbey as a postulant. He felt called to monastic life, like monks of the early Church who went into the wilderness “to do solitary combat with the devil,” he explained.

Heide and John were “very happy” when their son told them he was discerning his vocation with the Benedictines, and “elated” with Bishop Olson’s support. The parishioners at St. Andrew Parish in Fort Worth maintain an active membership with the St. John Paul II Shepherd’s Guild.

They noticed their son “very quickly was more relaxed,” John told the NTC. “Physically, mentally, spiritually.”

On September 14, 2023, Br. Rother was received into the novitiate. Then, on September 3, 2024, he took his first vows and received the religious name Br. Rother.

During the years of these first vows, Br. Rother will follow the rule of the Swiss/American Benedictine Congregation, living the verses that inspired him to follow Jesus, working and praying like his namesake Blessed Stanley Rother. And, of course, doing combat with the devil.