︎Peace in Solitude
Spring, 2019
What is the relationship between the institution and the individual in a community of solitary spiritual men? St. Benedictine monks follow a set of eleven values foundational to their beliefs and daily habits, among them are stewardship, prayer, and dignity of work. These values are rendered in this monastery through the stilted typology, site organization and by the way that these strategies reinforce the monk’s divine contemplation.
The mountain and the cave carry deep significance, one that that transends Christianity. The symbolism of a mountain is the peak where one is closest to heaven or other religious worlds. The cave represents a place of rebirth and transcendence. Here, both are incorporated into the monk’s daily rituals as they shuffle from church, to workshop to chapel in their daily practice; with the church at the base of the hill and chapel at its peak.
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The mountain and the cave carry deep significance, one that that transends Christianity. The symbolism of a mountain is the peak where one is closest to heaven or other religious worlds. The cave represents a place of rebirth and transcendence. Here, both are incorporated into the monk’s daily rituals as they shuffle from church, to workshop to chapel in their daily practice; with the church at the base of the hill and chapel at its peak.
