The new president of the English Benedictine Congregation (EBC), Dom Robert Igo OSB, has said that monasticism has much to offer the modern world. The EBC elected Dom Robert, Abbot of Ampleforth Abbey, as its new president during the 100th General Chapter, which concluded on Thursday, July 9, 2026, at Kylemore Abbey, Co. Galway. Dom Robert, who will also continue to serve as Abbot of Ampleforth Abbey, succeeds Abbot Christopher Jamison OSB of Worth Abbey.

In his address following his election, Dom Robert told the congregation at Kylemore Abbey: “Monastic life has much to offer a world hungry for meaning and purpose,” thanking the General Chapter for placing their trust in him.

The election marked the conclusion of the landmark 100th General Chapter, during which 40 delegates from the Congregation’s 16 monasteries gathered at Kylemore Abbey to reflect on the life and mission of the Benedictine family. Alongside leadership elections, discussions focused on the future of monastic life, engagement with younger generations and responding to the challenges presented by declining vocations.

It was the first time in the English Benedictine Congregation's more than 400-year history that the Chapter had been held in Ireland, and the first occasion on which it had taken place in a women's monastery, the Monastery of the Immaculate Conception at Kylemore Abbey.

Events were hosted in Kylemore Abbey's new monastery, education and retreat centre, which opened in 2024 and marked the establishment of the first new enclosed women's monastery in Ireland for almost 400 years.