“The life of the Carthusian nuns is devoted to the praise of God and intercession for all.”
“The solitary life is a perfect place in which to devote oneself to the search for the One thing necessary”. Such is the ideal by which God seduced Saint Bruno, a man of a deep heart, and in 1084, together with six companions, he began a way of life which gave rise to the Carthusian Order.
In the Order there are both monasteries of monks and nuns all sharing the same vocation: a life of prayer and solitude in the heart of the Church.
In the solitude of the hermitage, “the love for God dilates the heart of the Carthusian nuns so as to embrace the whole universe and the mystery of Redemption.”
The main trait of their vocation can be summed up in these words: “An encounter with the Lord in silence and solitude”. Their aim is depicted by these three points:
Solitude: implying an effective separation from the world. It is symbolized and realized by the strict enclosure.
Combining solitary and community life: Carthusian nuns are not completely hermits. Although the solitude prevails, they have times for fraternal meetings which give to all their life a characteristic balance.
The Carthusian liturgy: is centred on the Eucharist and the night Office, and performed with sobriety and simplicity in harmony with the life-style.
“To retire to the hermitage is a decision that can only be taken when in the heart burns the intimate certainty that the concealed solitude hides an incomparable love that cannot be equalled by any other.”
We, Carthusian nuns, “want to be the adoring heart of the Church and the loving heart of humanity. For that reason, day and night from our solitude, raises up to heaven the praise of God and prayer for the countless necessities of all humankind.”
There are several ways to consecrate one`s life to God in the solitude of the Charterhouse:
The Nuns of the cloister: live in the hermitages of the monastery during the greater part of the day engaged in prayer, study and work.
The converse Nuns: they lead a life of authentic solitude and, besides prayer and study, they spend part of their days in works for the monastery outside their hermitages.
If you feel called to the Charterhouse, God will come to meet you and will make your life in solitude a privileged place of COMMUNION.