The hermitage
A small place for a different way of living
In the mountains of Slovakia, we want to create a small settlement of five simple hermitages — a place where a person can step away from the noise of modern life and rediscover silence, nature, work and prayer.
The hermitages will be simple by design: three traditional Orava-inspired wooden cottages and two small stone hermitages inspired by the simplicity of old Christian monastic architecture.
There will be no luxury, entertainment or unnecessary technology.
Just a bed, a table, a few books, a place for prayer, a wood-burning stove and the surrounding forest.
At the heart of the settlement
A small chapel will stand at the centre of the settlement.
It will be a place for personal prayer and worship, and, when possible, for Holy Mass, confession and other moments of Christian spiritual life.
The chapel will not be grand.
It will simply be there — in the middle of the forest, surrounded by the hermitages.
Ora et labora
The settlement will also have a small garden, fruit trees, herbs and a modest farm.
Not as a business, but as part of the life of the place.
Pray. Work. Grow. Share.
Working with one's hands, caring for the land and preparing simple food can become part of the same journey as silence and prayer.
Simplicity with a purpose
The hermitage will deliberately leave much of modern life behind.
No internet.
No television.
No entertainment programme.
No luxury.
Instead: wood and fire, simple food, natural surroundings, quiet paths and the freedom to slow down.
Because when we remove what is unnecessary, we create space for what is essential.
We are not simply building buildings.
We are creating a place where a different way of living becomes possible — even if only for a few days.
A place to stop.
A place to listen.
A place to discover what truly matters.
A stay in complete silence
Spending time in complete silence is a profound experience that brings inner peace, improved concentration, and a heightened sense of self-awareness.