Br. Bede Nicol, O.S.B.

Background

Br. Bede was born in Southern California and moved to Oklahoma when he was eight. Br. Bede was raised a devout Catholic and from a very young age he felt called to the religious order. 

Br. Bede attended the University of Oklahoma where he studied to be a city planner. He received his master’s degree and became a short-range city planner in Beaumont, Texas. 

The call to religion was great and he decided to enter the monastic life. His first choice was a small Abbey of St. Pius X in Pevely, Missouri. Shortly after joining the abbey it closed. Br. Bede came to Saint Martin’s because on a map, there it was out in a far corner.  The natural, laid-back and quiet Pacific Northwest as well as the community of Saint Martin’s Abbey appealed to him. The abbey also had an unpretentious name so he decided to give it a try and has remained a member of the monastic community at Saint Martin’s Abbey.

Br. Bede takes care of the abbey’s book collection and does Sacristy work. He also has numerous jobs on campus to include working in the Information Center and the Office of Institutional Advancement.