Fears for monk, 93, who failed to return after walk

SPECIAL prayers were offered last night by the monks of Pluscarden Abbey as fears grew for the safety of the oldest resident of Britain’s only functioning medieval monastery.

Father Maurus, 93, a member of the Moray monastic community since it was re-established in 1948, disappeared after he set out from the monastery on Thursday in his distinctive white, hooded Benedictine robes for his regular walk in the countryside.

The elderly monk, who is deaf, has poor eyesight and is known to become confused, was last seen by a member of the public who knew him, walking along the Pluscarden to Forres road on Thursday afternoon.

The popular monk - one of the five founding members of the restored abbey - has been reported missing while out walking in the past but has never been missing overnight.

Concerns for his wellbeing were increasing by the hour yesterday as a mountain rescue team from RAF Kinloss, Grampian Police, specialist search dogs and their handlers, as well as a helicopter from RAF Lossiemouth, joined in the search of the area.

As the search was stepped up along the Pluscarden Valley between Elgin and Dallas, Grampian Police appealed to the monks to go around in pairs to avoid false sightings of their missing colleague.

Chief Inspector Doug Mackenzie of Grampian Police, who is co-ordinating the search, said: "Given the time that Father Maurus has been missing, there is concern for his wellbeing."

A fellow monk at the abbey, who did not wish to be named, told The Scotsman that Father Maurus has been a member of the community since 1948 when Pluscarden was re-established as a religious centre by a handful of Benedictine monks from Prinknash Abbey in Gloucestershire.

He said: "He is quite sprightly for his age, very fit indeed and very independent. He has been a little bit late returning from walks in the past but to be missing for this length of time is very unusual. He is a popular member of the community and everyone is concerned.

"Although there have been no public prayers said today for Father Maurus, there have certainly been private prayers for his safe return."

Chief Insp Mackenzie stressed that, despite his eyesight and hearing problems, Father Maurus could often be seen out walking in the area. "He is well known to the locals and is amenable and approachable," he said.

"He has in the past been picked up by the local members of the community and taken back to the abbey after they found him some distance from the abbey. He can walk up to eight miles a day."

Pluscarden Abbey was founded in 1230 by Alexander II and is the only medieval monastery in Britain still inhabited by monks and being used for its original purpose. It lay empty and neglected for more than three centuries before its re-establishment in 1948.