Female Hating Monks

Southland Times, Issue 21088, 21 May 1930, Page 12

Female Hating Monks

At Mount. Athos, in Greece, exists one of the wonders of the world—a 15-centuries-old monastery inhabited by female-hating monks.

One thousand years ago an official ban—lifted only the other day by the Greek Dictator, General Pangalos—was placed on the admission to the Monks’ Republic of any female of the species. So intense was the hatred that even females of birds and animals were destroyed on discovery. As for woman herself, she went inside the monastery at peril of her life..

Tempted by this threat, two English girls, Misses Betty and Pauline Rowe, disguised themselves as Greek youths, and attaching themselves to a party of American tourists whom they took into their confidence, penetrated to the innermost fastnesses of the monastery. They were not discovered, and came back with stories of thrilling escapes. Humorously enough- they had the ban explained to them by one of the chiefs of the monastery. “Woman is three times impure, would interfere with our meditations, he said. “The Holy Mountain of Athos is a great temple, from which thousands o prayers must rise to atone for the Original Sin?’ The girl learnt that the monks .rise from their hard beds one hour after midnight

each morning, and take part in a solemn service, lasting till 4.30 p.m. Since the war, the population of the monastery—then 15,000 —has dwindled to 2000, and people are wondering what will eventually happen to the famous "Holy Mountain,” with its enormous treasure, rare literature, and books and manuscripts. Already a scheme is on foot, to make of the place a health resort, with funicular railways for tourists.