Father Matthieu Collin OSB

Dear friends,

our brother Matthieu, Jacques Collin

died of pulmonary embolism on the night of Good Friday, 2 April 2021, at Avallon Hospital.

Jacques Collin was born in Valence (26) on February 26, 1938. The family called upon to move often, due to the professional obligations of the father, inspector at the SNCF, nevertheless kept strong ties to Pouilly sur Serein (89). The last of four children, Jacques did all of his schooling and preparatory classes in Paris.

On 14 September 1958, he entered the monastery for the first time. But a year later, he had to leave it for health reasons. He then studied for two years at the Carmelite Seminary in Paris, then military service. On 1 May 1963, he returned to Pierre-qui-Vire and began a novitiate again, under the name of Brother Matthieu. He made his solemn profession on 14 May 1967 and was ordained a priest on 30 June 1968. For two years, he studied Sacred Scripture at the Catholic Institute in Paris and continued his training at the Ecole Biblique in Jerusalem between 1972-1974. On his return, he became responsible for studies. He taught the Bible, conducted training sessions and did some publications. He wanted to show the Jewish roots of the New Testament.

While keeping his biblical teaching, in 1989 he took over the management of the printing press. From 1992 to 1995, he was prior. At that time, he took over the management of Zodiaque Publishing until 2001. He then became a librarian, a job he held until recent days. Between 2010 and 2018, he was also responsible for our bookstore.

In fairly fragile health, our brother Matthieu had an active and devoted life in the service of the community. His words mattered, sometimes abrupt and disturbing. A man of faith, rooted in the Scriptures, he was attentive to the aspirations of the men of our time. With a restless and sensitive temperament, he found it difficult to look serenely at the difficult situations in the Church and in the world. In search of true relationships, his listening was fraternal and attentive.

We met with our brother to pray for him during the Eucharist Tuesday, 6 April at 11 a.m.

He was buried in the cemetery of the monastery following the celebration.

Father Luc Cornuau, Abbot
Abbaye de la Pierre-qui-Vire