A monastery rising on Schiermonnikoog

To rise from the dunes of Schiermonnikoog in 2018, the monastery of the Cistercian monks who arrived on the island last year has taken shape. On paper at least. The largely one-level building while have room for a maximum of fourteen monks, while the tower , centered over the chapel, reaches a height of almost fourteen meters. A large window at the top channels natural light down into the building.

While he would have preferred a building with a smaller profile, Abbot Alberic explains that that tower was an express wish of the island’s inhabitants. If anything, it shows the goodwill that the monks have created on Schiermonnikoog. This should help in winning the council and province’s permission to buy the ground for the monastery. Currently it is in the possession of nature protection agency Natuurmonumenten and used as a horse paddock. The monks hope to complete the paperwork over the course of this year, after which construction can begin in 2018.

The building will be constructed of natural materials wherever possible, and it will be fitted with solar panels, making it energy neutral. As per the Cisterican tradition, the monks will live a life of prayer and not involve themselves with life on the island. In order to be self-sufficient, the monks are exploring options to work with local farmers in the production of biological cheese. With most of the island being a natural park, there is no room for a garden in which to grow fruit and vegetables.

Abbot Alberic has the hope that the monastery will attract new monks, joking that, should the fourteen available cells on Schiermonnikoog not be enough, they could consider new establishment on adjacent islands. A spokesman for the monks explained one of the goals of the new island community: “The goal is to find a new modern form of spirituality and way of living which also appeals to new generations”. He adds that he is aware that the interest in living a monastic life according to the old, traditional rules is decreasing, which is why the monks on Schiermonnikoog are looking for new forms which do appeal to people. I have my doubts about that direction, although it is true that monasteries and convents, at least in the Netherlands, are not overburdened with a flood of applicants. But ‘new forms of modern spirituality’ have been tried and found wanting since the 1960s…

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