Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Kevin J. Benoy
Monasticism
Individuals were
called hermits; they
lived in a place called
a hermitage..
However, not all
monks wanted to live
alone.
Origins
Many chose to
live with others
in religious
communities
called
monasteries..
St. Catherine, Early monastery in the
Sinai Peninsula
Origins
These early monks
turned away from
“normal life”:
They prayed often.
They became chaste.
They fasted.
They gave up their
worldly goods.
Origins
Benedict’s sister,
Scholastica, founded
convents for women
which gave women the
opportunity of a monastic
life.
Women who lived in
convents were called
nuns.
Spreading the Faith
Monks helped make
the medieval world
more orderly
Risking their lives,
they set out to convert
the barbarians to
Christianity.
Spreading the Faith
At meals, monks
ate silently, while
listening to
readings from the
Rule of St.
Benedict.
A Life of Work
Monks worked at a
wide range of
activities:
They cultivated herbs
for medicinal use.
They taught.
Young clergymen were
taught at their schools.
The first universities
were run by monks.
A Life of Work
Gloucester Cathedral
Monastic Wealth
The Cistercians
resented the Cluniac’s
show of wealth and
built grand, but
unadorned abbeys.
They dominated the
wool trade.
Cistercians at prayer
Other Monastic Orders
New monastic orders assumed
new roles. In Britain alone,
there were 11 groups operating.
Augustinians
Benedictines
Carmelites
Carthusians
Cistercians
Cluniacs
Dominicans
Franciscans
Gilbertines
Premonstratensians
Tironensians
All follow the Rule of St.
Benedict.
Conclusions
Monasticism was a vital
feature of medieval life.
Monks preserved and
extended knowledge.
They provided what little
social welfare was
available.
They created wealth and
helped make the height of
medieval civilization
possible.