6th October 2012 - Feast of St Bruno

Source

October 6th is the feast day of St Bruno who is the founder of the Carthusian Order. The Carthusians are made up of monks and nuns who live austere lives of solitude. "Apart from all, to all we are united, so that it is in the name of all that we stand before the living God" (Carthusian Statutes 34.2). To find out more about the order, have a look at this quick presentation from their international website.

Over at iBenedictines, Digital Nun has a lovely reflection about this "strange and beautiful" vocation to solitude and prayer within a community.

Some of our readers/listeners may have recently heard of the 2007 film "Into Great Silence" which was filmed at the motherhouse of the Carthusian order in France. Nestled deep in the postcard-perfect French Alps, the Grande Chartreuse is considered one of the world's most ascetic monasteries. In 1984, German filmmaker Philip Gröning wrote to the Carthusian order for permission to make a documentary about them. They said they would get back to him. Sixteen years later, they were ready. Gröning, sans crew or artificial lighting, lived in the monks' quarters for six months—filming their daily prayers, tasks, rituals and rare outdoor excursions. This transcendent, closely observed film seeks to embody a monastery, rather than simply depict one—it has no score, no voiceover and no archival footage. What remains is stunningly elemental: time, space and light. One of the most mesmerizing and poetic chronicles of spirituality ever created, the film dissolves the border between screen and audience with a total immersion into the hush of monastic life. More meditation than documentary, it's a rare, transformative theatrical experience for all recommended from the SS102fm team.