“He should first  
show them in deeds  
rather than words  
all that is good and holy.” 
Rule of Saint Benedict

Father Elias Achatz, O.S.B. was born and raised in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. He entered the Benedictine Order at St. John’s Abbey in Collegeville, Minnesota. Much to his surprise, he was assigned to live at Saint Augustine’s Monastery in Nassau and teach at Saint Augustine’s College. He spent most of his life in The Bahamas.

In the summer of 1971, while in Jamaica with Father Russ Roide, S.J., one of my high school teachers, and my classmate, Dan Pasini, the three of us attended a celebration of the Feast of Saint Ignatius of Loyola at Campion College in Kingston. It was a gathering of the religious women and men who lived and worked in Jamaica. Dan and I met many people that evening. One person, who, to be honest, I don’t recall meeting, was Father Elias Achatz. I’m guessing he must have been visiting the island at the time.

Three years later, in the spring of 1974, Father Elias contacted Fr. Roide and asked if Dan and I might be available to teach at Saint Augustine’s College for one year to fill-in for a beloved teacher who would be off the island for a year completing a Master’s degree in England. Fr. Russ called me and I accepted the offer. I called Dan and he said, “I’m with you, brother.”

When Dan and I arrived at Nassau International Airport in late August 1974, Father Elias was there to meet us and drive us to the SAC campus. The monastery was located on a hill overlooking the school campus. Dan and I lived in two of the guest rooms adjacent to the monastery for the 1974-75 academic year.

Fr. Elias was 63 years old at that time. It didn’t take long to realize that he was deeply loved and highly respected in the Saint Augustine’s community. He was a good communicator, a strong leader, and a source of incredible wisdom. I experienced Elias as someone I would describe as kind, friendly, humble, calm, patient, gentle, and disciplined. In addition to the strict daily routine of all the monks living in the monastery, Elias also set aside time each day for personal exercise. He ran two miles around the SAC track every day at 4:00. You could set your clock by it.

When he learned that I played tennis, Elias invited me to play a couple of sets at the Emerald Beach Hotel on Cable Beach. The tennis courts there had lights, so night tennis was an option. Elias, however, suggested that we play at noon. As I mentioned, he was 63, and I was 20. I didn’t expect him to be much competition, which is precisely why he schedule the court for noon time. The hot Bahamian sun, combined with the intense humidity, took its toll on me in no time. I was drenched in perspiration, so much so that when I hit the ball, the racket would turn in my wet hand. Being soundly defeated by a 63-year-old was a humbling experience.

Father Elias continued living and working at Saint Augustine’s for many more years after Dan and I returned to California. He served as prior in the monastery, head of the Religion Department, and chaplain for the school. In his later years, he retired from his leadership position in the monastery and his teaching role in the school, but continued to serve as chaplain.

Elias died in December 1993. He is buried, along with a number of other monks and lay persons with whom I worked, in the small cemetery at the bottom of the hill on the north side of the monastery.