The World Is Changing. This Trappist Abbey Isn’t. Can It Last?

Father Gerard-Jonas Palmares harvests mushrooms at Mepkin Abbey, a Trappist monastery near Moncks Corner, S.C., Feb. 19, 2018. In keeping with broader declines in the ranks of priests, nuns and brothers, Mepkin’s monastic community is dwindling. Only 13 monks remain, down from a peak of 55 in the mid-1950s, and the average age is 77. (Stephen Hiltner/The New York Times)