Programs and Events
of the Mount Angel Institute

Piano Masterpieces

A Concert by Joseph Schneider
January 5 | 3:00 pm
Mount Angel Library

Join us for a variety of great classical piano repertoire featuring works by Chopin, Beethoven, Rachmaninoff, and others!

Program

1. J.S Bach
Prelude and Fugue in C-minor, book two

2. Francis Poulenc
Two variations: number 6 in b-flat major, and number 12 in a-minor

3. Frederic Chopin
Nocturne in C-sharp minor, posthumous

4. Ludwig van Beethoven
Sonata 8, “Pathetique”, opus 13

Intermission

5. Frederic Chopin
Nocturne in E-flat major, opus 9, number 2

6. Sergei Rachmanonoff
Prelude in C-sharp minor, opus 3, number 2

7. Ned Rorem
Two Barcarolles: nos. 1 and 2

8. Frederic Chopin
Scherzo number 2, opus 31

Fellowship: Ecumenical Encounters

Dr. Anna Petrin
January 18, 2025 | 9:15 am – 5 pm
Mount Angel Library

Join us for a day of ecumenical fellowship, dialogue, and communion focused on the unity of our baptismal identity in Christ, with presentations led by Dr. Anna Petrin reflecting on baptismal themes embraced in the early church and shared by Christians today.

Cost: $30, which can be paid at the door by cash or check.
For registration, please email mai.coordinator@mtangel.edu.

Learning to See:
Discovering the Beauty Around You

Helen Bouchard
January 25, 2025 | 3–4 pm
Mount Angel Library

Join us with our current artist-in-residence, Helen Bouchard, for a conversation on the value and benefit of art for everyone, why beauty matters, the role of the artist, and how learning to see can enrich your life by finding new connections with beauty that have been lost in our modern culture!

Learn more about artist and art teacher Helen Bouchard.

Christian in the World | Spring 2025 Series

Christianity and Early Iconography: The Artistic Language of the Church
Underground Symbols of Christianity

with Christine Schlesser, Director of the Classical Iconography institute
February 22, 2025 | 9:15 am
Mount Angel Library

Tickets available soon.

Join us for an exploration of how early Christian symbols developed during the age of persecution and the early Church. How did the Christians pray and worship when they were driven to hide in the catacombs? And how did those early Christian images develop into the symbols we understand today?

From underground symbols to sacred windows, early Christian catacomb art used icons to convey the word of God. This four-part series introduces the earliest Christian symbolic art that evolved to convey the theology of the church using the visual language of iconography. We’ll learn how to translate the iconographic language of color, symbolism, and gesture to understand the icon’s encoded message, discuss the performative effect of iconography on becoming an icon of God, and learn how the many beautiful iconographic depictions of Mary invite us to prayer.

Christian in the World | Spring 2025 Series

Christianity and Early Iconography: The Artistic Language of the Church
How Signs & Symbols Speak in Icons

with Christine Schlesser, Director of the Classical Iconography institute
March 22, 2025 | 9:15 am
Mount Angel Library

Tickets available soon.

What do the positions of figures, colors, gestures, and symbols mean when encountering icons and Christian art? Join us to learn how to read an icon and discover how artwork can be a revelation of the mystery of God.

From underground symbols to sacred windows, early Christian catacomb art used icons to convey the word of God. This four-part series introduces the earliest Christian symbolic art that evolved to convey the theology of the church using the visual language of iconography. We’ll learn how to translate the iconographic language of color, symbolism, and gesture to understand the icon’s encoded message, discuss the performative effect of iconography on becoming an icon of God, and learn how the many beautiful iconographic depictions of Mary invite us to prayer.

Concert
German Baroque: Kuhnau and Bieber Rosary Sonatas

March 22, 2025 | 3 pm
Abbey church

More information to come soon!

Concert
Mount Angel Chamber Choir

April 6, 2025 | 3:30 pm
Abbey church

More information to come soon!

Christian in the World | Spring 2025 Series

Christianity and Early Iconography: The Artistic Language of the Church
Becoming an Icon of God

with Christine Schlesser, Director of the Classical Iconography institute
April 12, 2025 | 9:15 am
Mount Angel Library

Tickets available soon.

Join us for a panel discussion with various individuals from different walks of life—iconographers, artists, and monks! Together, they will explore the idea of how one becomes an “Icon of God.”

From underground symbols to sacred windows, early Christian catacomb art used icons to convey the word of God. This four-part series introduces the earliest Christian symbolic art that evolved to convey the theology of the church using the visual language of iconography. We’ll learn how to translate the iconographic language of color, symbolism, and gesture to understand the icon’s encoded message, discuss the performative effect of iconography on becoming an icon of God, and learn how the many beautiful iconographic depictions of Mary invite us to prayer.

Cities of St. Paul

with Fr. Odo Recker, OSB
May 12–25, 2025

This pilgrimage to the cities of Turkey visited by St. Paul is led by Fr. Odo and includes an optional add-on extension of traveling to Greece, May 24 to 28. Space is limited!

Christian in the World | Spring 2025 Series

Christianity and Early Iconography: The Artistic Language of the Church
Iconographic Faces of Mary

with Christine Schlesser, Director of the Classical Iconography institute
May 17, 2025 | 9:15 am
Mount Angel Library

Tickets available soon.

Mary, the mother of God, plays a central role in Christian art, and is portrayed in various ways. What do her faces reveal to us believers? Join us to explore the figure of Mary in the artistic and iconographic tradition of the Church! Various art and icons of Mary will also be displayed in the library foyer during this time.

From underground symbols to sacred windows, early Christian catacomb art used icons to convey the word of God. This four-part series introduces the earliest Christian symbolic art that evolved to convey the theology of the church using the visual language of iconography. We’ll learn how to translate the iconographic language of color, symbolism, and gesture to understand the icon’s encoded message, discuss the performative effect of iconography on becoming an icon of God, and learn how the many beautiful iconographic depictions of Mary invite us to prayer.