What does retreat mean in an age of constant acceleration? St.Gallen Collegium Fellow Prof. Dr. Annette Kehnel spends a day in the Wiborada cell at St. Mangen's Church. As a medieval historian who studies the relevance of monastic lifestyles today, she embarks on an unusual experiment involving silence, presence and encounter. The day becomes an open space for conversations, questions and reflections on history, the present and what moves people today.
In 2026, the 1100th anniversary of the death of Saint Wiborada of St. Gallen, an unusual and moving event will take place: people will spend a day in a replica of Wiborada's cell at St. Mangen's Church, where they will welcome visitors through an open window.
Wiborada was an early medieval mystic and the first woman to be canonised by the Church. In the 10th century, she lived as a so-called recluse, enclosed but with two windows to the outside world and to the church.
As part of the anniversary project Da-Sein (Being Present) every day in 2026, one person will be present in the cell, welcoming interested visitors and sharing personal insights, conversations and encounters. St. Gallen Collegium Fellow Prof. Dr. Annette Kehnel is participating in the ‘A Day in the Wiborada Cell’ campaign and will spend a day on 13 April 2026 in the reconstructed cell of St. Wiborada near St. Mangen Church. As a medieval historian who explores the question of whether, and if so, why we still need nuns and monks today, the format offers Annette Kehnel a special opportunity to contribute her academic perspective in an unusual, deliberately slow-paced format. The day invites visitors to pause, listen and engage in conversation.
Her participation reflects what the St. Gallen Collegium stands for: scholarship that seeks exchange and research that does not remain in the academic sphere, but enters into dialogue with the city and society.
