The Right Reverend Mark A. Cooper, O.S.B., Abbot of Saint Anselm Abbey, has announced the following personnel changes at Saint Anselm Abbey:
Father Anselm Smedile, O.S.B. has been appointed to serve as Prior of Saint Anselm Abbey. The Prior, the 2nd ranked official in the monastery, assists the Abbot in the day-to-day administration of the Abbey. He also serves as the Superior in the Abbot’s absence. Additionally, Father Anselm has been appointed to serve as Vocation Director and Master of Junior Monks. Father Anselm is a native of Salem, Massachusetts. He took vows as a monk of Saint Anselm in 1998 and was ordained in 2003. He has served Saint Anselm College previously as a Campus Minister. Since 2017, he has served as the Director of Alumni Engagement for Saint Anselm College.
Abbot Matthew Leavy, O.S.B., 4th Abbot of Saint Anselm Abbey, has been appointed to serve at Woodside Priory for the 2018 – 2019 academic year. While at Woodside Priory, he will assist the monastic community and the Woodside Priory school. Abbot Matthew is a native of Bronx, New York. He took vows as a member of Woodside Priory in 1970 while it was a dependent house of Pannonhalma Archabbey in Hungary. When Saint Anselm assumed control of Woodside Priory in 1976, Abbot Matthew became a member of Saint Anselm Abbey. He was elected as the 4th Abbot of Saint Anselm Abbey in 1986 and served in that capacity until 2012. Most recently, he has served as a Campus Minister at Saint Anselm College and Vocation Director for Saint Anselm Abbey.
Father Jonathan DeFelice, O.S.B. has been appointed to serve as Judicial Vicar for the Archdiocese of Boston. Father Jonathan has been serving as Vice Chancellor and Assistant Moderator of the Curia for the Diocese of Providence since 2015. Father Jonathan is a native of Bristol, RI. He took vows as a monk of Saint Anselm in 1969 and was ordained to the priesthood in 1974. He previously served Saint Anselm College as its 9th president from 1989 to 2013.
Father Mathias Durette, O.S.B. has been appointed to serve as a Campus Minister at Saint Anselm College. Father Mathias is a native of Manchester, NH. He took vows as a monk of Saint Anselm in 1988 and was ordained to the priesthood in 1993. He has served Saint Anselm College in the Business Office and as an Assistant Dean of Students. Since 2013, he has served as Prior and Master of Junior Monks at Saint Anselm Abbey.