Sélignac: An Invitation to Encounter the Absolute Love of God!
These words of Christ still resonate within the walls of the Chartreuse de Sélignac:
“But when you pray, go into your most private room, shut your door, and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you.” (Mt 6:6).
Life at the Chartreuse de Sélignac closely follows the spirit of a Carthusian monastery. It is structured around the Church’s prayer times (Liturgy of the Hours), personal prayer, and Sunday Eucharist.
Each retreatant who enters the Chartreuse is given a cell (a small house) connected to the cloister. This hermitage consists of two rooms (an Ave Maria and a cubiculum), a small workshop and woodshed, and a garden. The retreatant is free to devote time to God, read, meditate, engage in tasks around the house, or take a walk in the peaceful natural surroundings. The house offers a calm and serene rhythm, an ideal place to pause and reflect.
This thought from Carthusian monk Dom Guillerand opens a 32-minute film about the Chartreuse de Sélignac.
Founded in 1202, near Bourg-en-Bresse on the first foothills of the Jura Mountains, the Chartreuse de Sélignac was the 39th foundation of the Carthusian Order. In 2001, after nearly 800 years of presence, the monks left the monastery.
For the first time in its history, the Carthusian Order decided to open this place to those wishing to experience silence and solitude within the Carthusian spirituality. Retreatants are invited to stay in the very cells where generations of monks once lived.
A lay couple is responsible for managing the site, welcoming guests, and providing guidance. They also lead the liturgical services. A priest celebrates Mass on Sundays and Mondays. Here, one lives the Carthusian experience at its core, walking in the footsteps of the fathers, whose contemplative presence can still be felt.
Retreatants come for different reasons—some seek their vocation or path within the Church, others need to reset their lives, while some simply come to breathe, rest, rediscover themselves, and regain confidence. Many leave with the joy of having found themselves—and sometimes, of having found God.
The Chartreuse de Sélignac is a magnificent, simple, and powerful place that, as Dom Guillerand wrote, helps us “transform each minute into eternal life.” The film concludes with one final thought from the Carthusian monk:
“Our joy is in believing that we are loved by the One who is infinite Love: ‘I have chosen you with an eternal love, and I have drawn you to Myself.’”
A film by Marc JEANSON
Duration: 32 minutes
Cinematography: Thierry Rodon
Production: DCX / Carthusian Order, 2024