Stevens, Clifford J., Fr.

Fr. Clifford Stevens is a priest of the Archdiocese of Omaha, Nebraska, and author of a number of books on religion, religious history and morality. In the 1950's, he spent some time in seminary at the Trappist monastery of New Melleray in Iowa, but was disillusioned by changes in the order. He continued as a diocesan priest at other seminaries. During the 1960's, he served as an Air Force chaplain, writing to Merton from assignments in San Francisco, California, and from Itazuke, Japan, until 1969. After some assignments in New York and New Mexico, he has spent most of his life in Nebraska. In the 1980's, Stevens pursued his dream of founding a monastery with a purer ideal than he had seen in contemporary orders. He founded Tintern Monastery, a contemplative house of prayer, on a farm near Oakdale, Nebraska. He began with a group of previously ordained priests. Although many inquired about his monastery, few stayed, and the experiment was ended. (Source: "Clifford Stevens." Contemporary Authors Online. 2001. Thomson Gale. Bellarmine University Library. 26 May 2006 ‹http://galenet.galegroup.com›.)