The Camadolese Order
Of all the monastic orders present in Poland today, few could claim, or wish, to match the Camadolese Order for asceticism. Founded in Italy in the second century AD by Saint Romuald (c.950-1027), the ultra-ascetic practices of the Camadolese, which include minimal contact between the monks, who live in their own separate hermitages, a vegetarian diet and little connection with the outside world, attracted Polish champions of the Counter-Reformation, who invited them to settle in Poland, notably at Bielany . This they did, starting in the early 1600s, and they still retain a presence in the country, with two communities continuing to function. Well-known in Polish Catholic circles for their grim motto, "Memento Mori" ("Remember that you must die"), the hermits don't actually sleep in wooden coffins, as popular rumour has it, though they do preserve the skulls of their long-deceased brethren, as proudly displayed in the crypt at Bielany. However, the order's appeal seems to be on the wane. Apart from the two houses in Poland, there are known to be only six other Camadolese hermitages left worldwide, four in Italy and two, somewhat improbably, in Colombia.
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