The Carthusian Order
Serving the Church and the World
At the Charterhouse of the Transfiguration monastery on Mount Equinox,
Carthusian monks adore God and intercede for the world in silence.
In 1084, Saint Bruno led a small band of followers into the wilderness of the French Alps to fully embrace the call of Jesus Christ that “whoever does not renounce all that he has cannot be My disciple.” In a tradition unbroken for over nine hundred years, Carthusians live as sons and daughters of Saint Bruno, inspired by the Desert Fathers of early Christianity, who thronged to the desert to lead solitary lives in poverty of spirit.
In twenty-four communities today, Carthusians monks and nuns enter an austere silence and solitude stripped of the comforts and consolations found in the city. There God leads them on a journey of surrender that surpasses the illusory happiness of worldly success and possessions.
The Charterhouse of the Transfiguration, North America’s only charterhouse, sustains a broad international culture of monks from all over the world. In a world so often torn apart by ethnic rivalries and excessive nationalism, the monks, bonded together by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, affirm the supremacy of God and contribute via their intense prayer to a harmonious family of humanity in search of its loving Creator. Flags representing the national origins of the monks fly at the entrance to Skyline Drive.
The monk journeys through the desert of silence, and thus no visitors are allowed in the monastery.
The Monastery on the mountain
Charterhouse of the
Transfiguration.
Nestled on the western slopes of Mount Equinox, the Charterhouse of the Transfiguration is the only Carthusian monastery in the United States. Established in 1951 by monks of the nearly thousand-year-old Carthusian Order, the monastery was designed as a place of profound silence and contemplation. Its architecture reflects the simplicity and permanence of Carthusian life — stone walls, steep slate roofs, cloistered walkways, and individual hermitages carefully arranged across the mountainside to support solitude, prayer, and self-sufficiency.
The monastery itself was designed by Victor Christ-Janer, an American modernist architect known for his religious and institutional work and for his connection to the modern architectural movement in New Canaan, Connecticut. Educated at Yale, Christ-Janer brought a restrained, contemplative approach to the Charterhouse of the Transfiguration. Using rough-hewn Vermont granite, wood, and natural stone, he created buildings that feel rooted in the Mount Equinox landscape rather than imposed upon it, preserving the silence, seclusion, and spiritual atmosphere central to Carthusian life.
Although the Charterhouse remains closed to the public, its presence shapes the identity of Mount Equinox in unmistakable ways. Hidden beyond the forests and ridgelines, the monastery stands as both a spiritual sanctuary and an architectural landmark. The monks’ careful stewardship of the land has helped preserve the mountain’s natural beauty for generations, ensuring that the silence, forests, and sweeping summit views remain much as they have for centuries.
The History of the Carthusians
"Numquam reformata quia numquam deformata”
(Never reformed because never deformed)
Bruno is born in Cologne, Germany. As a young boy, he excels in his studies and is sent to the cathedral school at Rheims, France.
Bruno is named a canon of the cathedral of Rheims, and soon thereafter director of studies of the school.
Weary of the political aspects of his roles, Bruno leads six companions in search of solitude redolent of that of the early Desert Christians. They set off towards Grenoble, France, where Bishop St. Hugh leads them to an Alpine valley four thousand feet above sea level, the Chartreuse. There, they build small log cabins in a semi-circle, the first Charterhouse, later known as La Grande Chartreuse.
Bishop Hugh consecrates a small stone chapel under the title of the Holy Virgin and St. John the Baptist.
Bruno is ordered to Rome by Pope Urban II, a former student in need of his counsel. Some of his fellow monks accompany him; others disperse.
Bruno is permitted to leave the papal court with the stipulation that any new hermitage he establishes should be in Italy. Bruno founds the second Charterhouse at La Torre in Calabria.
Bruno dies on October 6, surrounded by his fellow monks. Within one hundred years, thirty three charterhouses are established.
The first Carthusian monastery for nuns is established in Provence.
Henry II founds the first English Charterhouse as penance for his role in the murder of Thomas a Becket.
Three priors are drawn and quartered for their refusal to sign an oath acknowledging Henry VIII as head of the English church. Over the next five years, fifteen more monks are martyred. Forty-four Charterhouses are suppressed in Europe during the Reformation.
Twenty-one new Charterhouses are established. By 1676, there are 173.
Charterhouses are suppressed in Venice, Austria and Tuscany.
All Portuguese Charterhouses are suppressed.
All Spanish and some Swiss Charterhouses are suppressed and the monks dispersed.
The first Charterhouse in England since the Tudor era is completed.
The Carthusians are exiled from France, not returning until 1928.
Twelve monks are martyred by Nazi SS troops for sheltering Italians and Jews in the Charterhouse of Farneta.
The first and only Carthusian foundation in North America is established in Vermont.
The Charterhouse of the Transfiguration is dedicated.
The fiftieth anniversary of the dedication of the Charterhouse of the Transfiguration.
PRESERVATION
Support Mount Equinox Skyline Drive.
The Skyline Drive is a privately operated, carefully maintained historic landmark that receives no state or federal funding.
Admission fees and direct contributions support the continued preservation of Mount Equinox, ongoing road maintenance,
and the protection of this remarkable mountain environment for future generations.
We thank you deeply for your support.