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The monastery in Olten is history. The Capuchin brothers are distributed – the inventory is sold, given away, disposed of.
They’ll be gone in the next few days. After almost four centuries, the last six monks are leaving the Capuchin monastery in Olten. The monastery brothers were officially farewelled with a big celebration on Tuesday evening. The Capuchin monks are called monks.
The last six brothers in Olten are older gentlemen. The youngest is 78 and the oldest is 90 years old. They have to change completely for their final years. Because the Capuchin Order assigns them a new home, not a shared one. Two move to the Wil monastery, two to Schwyz and one each to Lucerne and Delémont.
Legend:
One of the last group photos of the Olten Capuchins. In the future, the six brothers will live in four different monasteries.
SRF/Christoph Studer
Some of the monastery brothers have lived together for decades. Even though they don’t always have the hay on the same stage, it has become a community. The days began with a common morning prayer and we have lunch and dinner together. Now this community is being torn apart. The Capuchin Order announced this last year.
Legend:
Friar Julius walks through the dining room. The brothers ate lunch and dinner together here.
SRF/Christoph Studer
“We were in the middle of the city and immediately had contact with the population,” said Brother Werner about the move at the time. At the farewell this week, Brother Crispin was also happy that the time had finally come: “The farewell process took a while, now we’re leaving and starting over again.”
The monastery was evacuated
The closure of the Olten Monastery has been known for a long time. The Swiss Capuchin Order decided to take this step because fewer and older brothers are living in Olten. The monastery has been gradually being evacuated since the beginning of the year. The building belongs to the canton of Solothurn, everything movable in it belongs to the Capuchin order.
This includes everyday objects such as kitchen equipment, benches or tables. But also a library, statues and over 100 paintings. Everything had to go, some of it was taken to other monasteries, given to museums or the Solothurn State Archives, sold at the flea market or disposed of.
Legend:
There is a hollow in the monastery garden. The monastery brothers had to dispose of part of the inventory.
SRF/Christoph Studer
A lot has accumulated in the history of the monastery, including personal things. And this despite the fact that the Capuchins actually abstain from personal possessions. “We are also part of this world,” says Guardian Josef Bründler. “We haven’t changed monasteries in recent years, and as soon as you settle down, things accumulate that you no longer need over time.”
Legend:
One of many statues of Francis of Assisi stands in the Olten monastery garden. It will remain in the garden as a souvenir of the monastery. Other statues go back to the order or were given to the Olten Historical Museum.
SRF/Christoph Studer
In Switzerland, of the 800 Capuchin brothers 60 years ago, 80 still remain. After the closure of the Olten monastery, there are still nine Capuchin monasteries in German and French-speaking Switzerland.
The days of the Capuchin Order in Switzerland are numbered.
At Schwyz Monastery, nurses are there around the clock for the brothers in need of care. The future is uncertain for many locations.
“I think the days of the Capuchins in Switzerland are numbered,” says the head of the Swiss Capuchins, Provincial Josef Haselbach. “For me it has become almost normal for monasteries to be closed,” he said in an interview with Radio SRF in January. “We have to, we don’t have any more people.”
The last six Olten Capuchin brothers will not be the last to have to move. “It could be that I have to move to another monastery again,” says 90-year-old Brother Crispin at the official farewell in Olten. He laughs, but he knows that it can come to this.