28/02/2022
A memoir of Sister Catherine from The Community:
Dame Catherine Wybourne, 'Digitalnun' as many came to know her, was born in 1954, first named Driana after the North African scene of fierce fighting in which her father had participated in 1941.
She was educated by French religious sisters in Boscombe. From there she proceeded to Girton College Cambridge to read History, next undertaking research into the 12c Cistercian pe*******on of North-West Spain. This was a matter of gaining access to Spanish libraries and archives by diplomacy and other forms of persuasion.
There followed time spent as a London banker, but in 1981 she was clothed in the Benedictine habit at Stanbrook Abbey, in Worcestershire. Her solemn profession was made in 1987. Her heart was fixed.
Her religious name is that of the 14c Dominican doctor of the church Catherine of Siena, and of Catherine Gascoigne, one of the eight young English women who in the early 1620s established their Benedictine house in Northern France. It is from Cambrai that Stanbrook directly descends.
When in 2003 Stanbrook moved to North Yorkshire, some members of the community decided not to follow. In September 2004, Holy Trinity Monastery was founded by Bishop Crispian Hollis as an autonomous house of diocesan right, with D. Catherine as Prioress. Their first home was in Oxfordshire, in East Hendred. They remained there until 2012, when they transferred to Howton Grove, having bought a barn conversion on the edge of the Golden Valley.
The Benedictine Yearbook supplies a succinct account of life there : 'Traditional in inspiration and expression, with an emphasis on contemplative prayer, the priory is committed to using contemporary technology to take the monastery to others. Our internet presence is an important part of our hospitality…'
Hopes that the community would soon receive novices had to be revised, however, when in 2014, D. Catherine received a diagnosis of the cancer that remained with her for the following eight years, involving frequent appointments to attend clinics and receive treatment from specialist units in Oxford. She made strong bonds with all who cared for her. Of her self-effacing courage and unfailing prioritizing of the needs of others, she would, while alive in the body, have forbidden me to write. But it is nonetheless true. There were severe crises along the way, the last of which came in December 2021. In the few weeks preceding her death, her physical condition deteriorated sharply.
D. Catherine herself was adamant that there should be 'no eulogies', not just in association with her funeral mass which she said should be monastic but indicating also that there should be no posthumous public praise. Whilst honouring the spirit of her wishes, may I, even so, add not eulogy but first-hand observation.
Her voice, in writing and in speaking, was gentle and nuanced, one of clarity with charity ; she never preached from a superior pulpit ; her seriousness went hand in hand with a delightful sense of humour, one that never was unkind.
Her practical abilities were many and remarkable. She was thoroughly versed in the maintenance of buildings and their contents. There was her probity and wisdom in handling such funds as one has available, never sliding over significant detail, or losing sight of long-term aims. She had an expert grasp of cars, how they work and what to do when they don't ; of gardening, both overall design and the temperamental peculiarities of trees, vegetables, and flowers ; of the mysteries of IT ; of the art of writing hymns ; of producing wholesome food at minimum cost ; of the funny ways of our canine brothers and sisters. She was, still, so unassuming -- the translator of St Benedict's Rule, formed by its prescriptions, not least its seventh chapter, 'de humilitate'.
Much more could be written about her collaboration with the great Stanbrook printer D. Hildelith Cu***ng, developing a finely trained eye for layout, colour (shades of black, say), choice of font, paper… creatively attuned to circumstance, whatever the task, whether a beautifully bound and illustrated volume, or a simple form or handout. Unsurprisingly, therefore, she responded to the artistic work of her cousin, Nicholas Mynheer or Stanbrook's D. Werberg Welch.
The Community's hospitality has been widely known through its internet presence. Many thousands have tasted and seen, whether committed Christians or people previously averse to churches.
The source of D. Catherine's blogs, as indeed of all she did, was the daily renewed commitment to conversatio, of one who preferred nothing to the love of Christ. Benedictine spirituality is quiet and understated ; it doesn't force itself on others. Her countless readers have been nourished by the fruits of her monastic experience. The community's openness has at its source the cloister's hidden life.
D. Catherine loved St Bede who, St Cuthbert tells us, died with the Gloria Patri on his lips ; she died in her beloved Holy Trinity Monastery with –I believe it is not presumptuous to say-- those words of praise in her heart, a summation of her life.
