Saint Meinrad monks launch new podcast and it’s really good!

Did you hear the story about the practical joke that forced a young monk to have to ring the death bell at the monastery to wake up the monks?

What happens if the monks ring the bells at the wrong time?

These are just a couple of the stories featured in the first episode of a high-quality podcast from the St. Meinrad Archabbey called “Echoes from the Bell Tower. With that name, of course the podcast’s first season begins with an episode about the bells of the Archabbey Church.

Hosting the audio talk show are two young monks, Br. Joel Blaize, OSB, and Novice Tony Wolniakowski, OSB. Both are fairly new to the Benedictine monastery, having joined in 2015.

The idea behind the podcast is to bring stories from the monastery to the rest of the world, demystifying some of the notions of monastic life and sharing the wit and wisdom found among the monks who have lived in southern Indiana for more than 160 years.

“In this podcast, you’ll get to know us monks. You’ll get to hear our stories, and things you just may not hear any other way,” the hosts explain in the trailer that introduces the new podcast. “We’re hoping to give you a chance to learn what monks are like by hearing from us monks – and not from Hollywood.”

Find the podcast episodes, as well as extras from the podcast blog, at: www.saintmeinrad.edu/echoes. Listeners can subscribe at iTunes, Stitcher or wherever they find their podcasts.