Convent of St. Elisabeth, Grand Duchess (Buchendorf, Bavaria)

The Convent of St. Elisabeth, Grand Duchess is a women's monastery located near Munich, located in the small town of Buchendorf, Bavaria, Germany. Founded in October, 2005, it is the first and only Orthodox women's monastery to be located within Germany. The convent is under the jurisdiction of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia, and is under the spiritual direction of Archbishop Mark (Arndt) of Berlin.

Beginnings

The idea of founding a women's monastery in Bavaria was originally that of Mother Maria (Sidiropoulo), who is a nun who was living in an apartment in Bavaria with other nuns. In 2005, she approached Archbishop Mark about the creation of a convent in Bavaria. He approved of the idea, provided that the place be no further than 80km from the city of Munich. As it turns out, the nuns found the property in Buchendorf, which is the site of a former Roman Catholic monastery, and not only is it only 19km from the Cathedral of the Holy New-Martyrs and Confessors of Russia in Munich, but it is also only 17km from the Monastery of St. Job of Pochaev, which is where Archbishop Mark lives. This situation has made it possible for Archbishop Mark to make almost weekly visits.

The official opening of the convent was November 1, 2005. The property is currently under a 99-year lease, though the nuns hope to be able to purchase the property outright in the future.

Sources

• Official Website (German/Russian)
• With One Heart, In One Spirit interview (2012) with Mother Maria (Sidiropoulo), abbess of the convent (pt. 1)
• With One Heart, In One Spirit interview (2012) with Mother Maria (Sidiropoulo), abbess of the convent (pt. 2)
• Tenth anniversary celebrations at the Convent in Bavaria