KRK

Danas je to oto~i} Ko{ljun, “otok u otoku, srce
otoka Krka”, malena zelena oaza, za{ti}eni vegetacijski
rezervat, biser prirode i duhovnosti. Ime Ko{ljun
izvodi se od Castellum, {to ozna~uje utvr|enu rimsku
ku}u. Prona|eni ostaci rimskih temelja i nadgrobni
spomenici plemi}kih obitelji antiknog Krka na
Ko{ljunu govore tome u prilog. U prvim vjekovima
kr{}anstva u napu{tenu rimsku gra|evinu dolaze
doma}i pustinjaci koji su svoj isposni~ki `ivot zavjetovali
Bogu. Oni pru`aju gostoprimstvo isto~nim
monasima sv. Bazilija, bjeguncima iz Bizanta. U 11.
stolje}u na Ko{ljunu su benediktinci koji nastoje
skladno `ivjeti prema devizi “MOLI I RADI” u uvjerenju
da i kr{}anski `ivot treba biti pro`et skladom
poput krasne skladbe rada, molitve, meditacije i kontemplacije.
Benediktinci su tra`ili predjele gdje se Bog
pojavljuje u lijepom, gdje je Bo`ja ruka rasula znakove
svoje prisutnosti. Obi~no su dolazili na mjesta gdje su
ve} Rimljani otkrili genius loci – dobri duh mjesta, a
oto~i} Ko{ljun je upravo takvo mjesto. I ve} u 12. stolje}u
na Ko{ljunu cvate benediktinska opatija Svete
Marije Ko{ljunske.
U 15. stolje}u, kada u cijeloj Europi opada va`nost
benediktinaca gasi se i njihova opatija na Ko{ljunu pa
vlasnici otoka, bra}a Martin i Ivan VII Frankopan,
knezovi Krka, Senja i Modru{a, mole papu Nikolu V
da se na Ko{ljun uvedu franjevci umjesto starog reda
benediktinaca. Papa je usli{ao njihovu molbu i bulom
Nikole V. 1447. godine “Na diku svete vjere” uga{ena
je opatija Svete Marije Ko{ljunske, a osnovan je franjeva~ki
samostan u koji dolaze franjevci opservanti iz
grada Krka. Od starog benediktinskog samostana
ostala je samo kula s romani~kom crkvom Uznesenja
Marijina – Sancta Maria Gloriosa iz 12. stolje}a koja
je poslije gotizirana i od 15. stolje}a nosi naslov Sv.
Bernardina Sijenskog.
Kad do|ete brodi}em ili barkom na Ko{ljun na rivi
}e vas do~ekati silueta sv. Franje s bratom vukom,
velikog ~ovjeka kontemplacije i apostolata, za~etnika
118
One day, the Heavens responded with tremendous
punishment. The sea erupted into the cove through the
passage at Buka and swallowed the sinner and all his
property. Only the round elevated ground was safe
from flooding. It was the present day island of Ko{ljun
and a blind man saved on it.
The science tells us that the cove of Punat began
filling with sea three thousand years ago. Above the
surface there remained only the top of the hill a few
meters high. Today it is the island of Ko{ljun, “an
island within an island, the heart of the island of
Krk,” a small oasis, the preserved botanical reservation,
a pearl of nature and spirituality. The name of
Ko{ljun is derived from castellum, denoting a fortified
Roman house. In favor thereof speak the remains of the
Roman foundations and tombstones of noble families
of ancient Krk found on Ko{ljun. In the first centuries
of Christianity, the abandoned Roman building was
settled by local hermits who had pledged their ascetic
lives to God. They offered hospitality to eastern monks
of St. Basil, the fugitives from the Byzantine Empire.
In the 11 th century Ko{ljun was inhabited by the Benedictines
who attempted to live in harmony in line with
the motto of “PRAY AND WORK,” in the conviction
that Christian life as well must be permeated with
harmony of the beautiful composition of work, prayer,
meditation and contemplation. The Benedictines
sought those localities where God appeared in beauty,
and where the hand of God had scattered the signs of
his presence. Usually they came to those places in
which the Romans had already discovered the genius
loci, the guardian of a place, and the islet of Ko{ljun
was indeed such a place. As early as the 12 th century,
on Ko{ljun flourished the Benedictine abbey of St.
Mary of Ko{ljun.
In the 15 th century, since all over Europe the significance
of the Benedictine order declined, their abbey on
Ko{ljun was closed as well. Thus the owners of the
island, brothers Martin and Ivan VII Frankopan, the
Dukes of Krk, Senj and Modru{, asked Pope Nicholas V
instead of the old Benedictine order to introduce on
Ko{ljun the Franciscans. The pope granted their
request, and in 1447 with the bull of Nicholas V, “in
honor of the holy faith” the abbey of St. Mary of
Ko{ljun was closed and in its stead the Franciscan
monastery founded to which came the Observants
from the town of Krk. Of the old Benedictine abbey
remained only the tower with the Romanesque church
of Mary’s Assumption, Sancta Maria Gloriosa, from
the 12 th century. It was subsequently Gothicized, and
in the 15 th century named after St. Bernard of Siena.
Should you arrive in Ko{ljun aboard a ship or a
boat, on the waterfront you will be welcomed by the
silhouette of St. Francis with his wolf brother, a great
man of contemplation and the apostolate, the creator
of a great spiritual movement within the Church of
Christ, a poet who believed in the mysterious mediating
power of every creature of God and praised it in
verse. In this quiet space which conquers with its composure
and hospitality, the Franciscans shall welcome
everybody who sets foot on the island: “Whoever and
whatever you may be, you are a brother of ours; thus