Rev. Jerome Theisen; Leader of Benedictine Monks, Nuns

The Rev. Jerome Theisen, 64, leader of the world’s 30,000 Benedictine monks and nuns. He was only the second American to serve as abbot primate of the 1,500-year-old order. Theisen, a native of Loyal, Wis., was elected to an eight-year term in 1992, heading the 250 Benedictine monasteries around the world. He had particularly campaigned to strengthen the role of women monastics. Theisen entered St. John’s Abbey in Collegeville, Minn., in 1952 and was ordained in 1957. He earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from St. John’s University and a doctorate in theology from Collegio San Anselm. At the time of his elevation to abbot primate, Theisen was abbot of St. John’s Abbey and chancellor of St. John’s University, which shares grounds with the monastery. Last Sunday in Rome of a heart attack.