The Priory Priory fountain St. John's Priory medallion

St. John's Priory is one of the Chapter and Retreat Houses for The Community of Christ the Sower and is located in the San Francisco/Monterey Bay area of California. Our oratory, St. John's Priory Chapel, is the heart of our liturgical worship and prayer life. We are grateful to The Very Rev. Canon Michael Penfield, CCS/NA who kindly serves as our chaplain and spiritual advisor.

Besides a life of contemplative prayer and study, which is essential for any Benedictine community, CCS members attached to the Priory serve in chaplaincy programs in hospitals, schools and long term care facilities. We also serve as intercessors for the needs of our home parishes and clergy as well as with a number of organizations such as the Salvation Army, and Church Army International to name just a few.

St. John's Priory also offers a peaceful environment for those who wish to withdraw from the demands of their daily lives in order to find much needed rest. The enclosed Priory gardens provide an atmosphere of quiet and prayerful recollection for those who visit during the regularly scheduled Quiet Days.

"...what matters most about a monastery is precisely that it is radically different from the world....

In a world of noise, confusion and conflict, it is necessary that there be places of silence and peace."

Thomas Merton