Vocation Team Monks

Meet the vocation team monks who will host, assist, and support you during your vocation visit.

  • Br. Benedict Leuthner

    Brother Benedict made his monastic profession in 1987.  He serves as the vocation director, and previously he was the CFO/treasurer for Saint John’s Abbey. As a hobby, Brother Benedict enjoys planting and caring for trees on the Saint John’s campus and in the Saint John’s Abbey Arboretum.

  • A man with short dark hair, a beard, and a big smile wearing a black Benedictine religious habit.

    Fr. Nick Kleespie

    Father Nick was born and raised in west central Minnesota and entered the abbey in 2010. After graduating from Saint John’s University in 2006, he served with the Saint John’s Abbey Benedictine Volunteer Corps in Tanzania. In 2025, Father Nick earned a doctorate in ministry from Fordham University. Father Nick is the chaplain of Saint John’s University, lives as a faculty resident in a freshman residence hall, and serves as a firefighter/EMT on the Saint John’s Fire Department.

  • A smiling man with glasses, wearing a black Benedictine religious habit, standing indoors with a blurred background.

    Br. David Paul Lange

    Brother David Paul entered the monastery in 1986 after graduating from St. Olaf College.  After professing solemn vows, he went on to earn a master of fine arts degree. He became an associate professor in the art department at Saint John’s University, where he taught studio art and art history until 2019, when he entered the Saint John’s School of Theology to earn a master of arts in ministry.  In addition to serving as a member of the vocation team and a faculty resident for Saint John's University, he enjoys creating art, singing, hiking, canoeing, and reading fiction.

  • Close-up portrait of a smiling man with glasses, a beard, and short brown hair, wearing a black Benedictine religious habit.

    Br. Jacob Berns

    Brother Jacob professed his first vows in 2018. He hails from Perham, Minnesota, and came to Saint John’s University to study music and theology. After graduating, he went to Rome for a year of service in the Saint John’s Abbey Benedictine Volunteer Corps. He currently serves as an accountant in the abbey business office and as the assistant formation director for the abbey. He enjoys playing organ, baking, and going for a walk on campus.

  • Smiling older man wearing glasses and a black Benedictine religious habit, indoors with a blurred, colorful background.

    Br. Paul-Vincent Niebauer

    Brother Paul-Vincent joined the abbey in 1994 and currently serves as the communications and marketing director. Before joining Saint John’s, he worked for thirteen years as a ringmaster for several circuses traveling across North America. He possesses a bachelor’s degree in theatre and secondary education and a master’s degree in directing. Since 1995, he has taught theatre and directed more than fifty musicals and plays at Saint John’s Preparatory School as well as outside groups.

  • A smiling man with a beard and short hair wearing a black Benedictine religious habit, standing in a bright indoor setting.

    Fr. Michael Peterson

    Father Michael entered the novitiate in 1997 and currently serves as the director of oblates (lay men and women associated with the abbey) and as one of the organists for Liturgy of the Hours and Eucharist. He also plays the Native American-style flute and loves to swim in Lake Sagatagan.

  • A smiling man with short dark hair, wearing a black Benedictine religious habit, standing outdoors with blurred background.

    Father Lew Grobe

    Father Lew made his first monastic profession in 2010.  He serves the monastic community as director of abbey woodworking and abbey organ builders.  Father Lew enjoys getting out into the abbey arboretum.