Black Cloud Over Silver Mountain
One of Poland's most remarkable monasteries has been shamed this week following the arrest of a former monk. The longstanding abbot of the Camaldolese monastery outside Cracow was caught by police attempting to sell priceless objects belonging to the retreat. He had already been relieved of his duties following a Vatican survey last year.
The monastery at the heart of the scandal was founded four hundred years ago by Commander Mikolaj Wolski. The whereabouts became known as the Silver Mountain, owing to the treasures bestowed on the owner of the land, Sebastian Lubomirski, who was reluctant to sell the property. Over the centuries, the monastery itself accumulated great treasures, in spite of the turbulent nature of Poland's history.
The Camaldolese monks live as austere a lifestyle as any in today's world. The monks live in separate hermitages, drinking a mixture of ash and water on rising at dawn. Communication between the brothers is minimal, and they eat alone in their hermitages. Women are forbidden to enter the complex, save for on special feast days. Few Camaldolese monasteries remain in the world, owing to the harshness of the routine.