Nuns to decide fate of monastery slated for closure

A Catholic monastery in Concord is closing, leaving its five remaining nuns with a decision to make.

The Concord Monitor reports the Diocese of Manchester announced last week that it will close the Carmelite Monastery, 74 years after it was founded as a branch of the Carmelites of Boston.

The number of sisters who live at the monastery has dwindled from 18 to five.

It will be up to the nuns to decide whether they want to join another Carmelite monastery. The Monitor reports they will also decide what to do with the monastery's property and the remains of several sisters buried onsite.

According to Sister Bernadette Therese, prioress of the Carmelites of Boston, 70 Carmelite monasteries have closed around the world in recent years.

According to tradition, the Catholic order was founded on Mount Carmel in Israel in the 12th century.