An elixir from the French Alps, frozen in time
11 minutes to read
By: Marion Renault
Only two monks know the full recipe for Chartreuse, and even in the pandemic they stuck to their Middle Ages motto: "The cross is steady while the world turns."
When the world went into lockdowns
this year, the monks of Chartreuse simply added another tick to their 900-year record of self-imposed isolation.
The Chartreux, also known as Carthusians, embrace a deeply ascetic existence in the western French Alps, observing customs that have barely changed since their order, one of Christianity's oldest, was founded. They pass the days alone, praying for humanity and listening for God in the silence that surrounds them.