The social dimension of the Krakow Camaldolese convent

Abstract

The charming location and the magnitude of the monastery were conducive to the large number of guests, who came for religious reasons as well as for entertainment, and generally to observe the monastic life, the form of which was quite mysterious. Had it not been for the decisions of the founder of the hermitage at the Silver Mountain, Grand Crown Marshal Mikołaj Wolski, the Camaldolese he brought from Italy back in 1604 would have had greater opportunities for realizing their monastic ideals. Mikołaj Wolski, a thoroughly educated man, an art expert and enthusiast, an apt diplomat and a Polish lobbyist for the House of Habsburg, trusted by Sigismund III Vasa, came to the conclusion that the magnificence of the temple he had built did not go against the hermits' asceticism, thereby breaking the Camaldolese rules. Not only have the monks from the Silver Mountain (to this day) contributed to shaping the spiritual heritage of the place in which they settled, but also they played a part in its social history. The story of the hermitage in Bielany seconds the view that only skilful reconciliation of monastic ideals with the requirements of the world outside, abandoned to achieve a fuller unity with God, supports the good condition of the order.

Keywords

• Camaldolese
• monastery in Bielany
• Kraków