The history of monasticism from its origins in late antiquity through its apex in the High Middle Ages and into the present. Presentation of various religious orders and what makes them unique, as well as short biographies of famous abbots, abbesses and monastic scholars.

The men and women that followed the sixth-century customs of Benedict of Nursia (c.480-c.547) formed the most enduring, influential, numerous and widespread religious order of the Latin middle ages. Their liturgical practice, and their acquired taste for learning, served as a model for the medieval church as a whole: while new orders arose, they took some of their customs, and their observant and spiritual outlook, from the Regula Benedicti. The Benedictines may also be counted among the founders of medieval Europe. In many regions of the continent they created, or consolidated, the first Christian communities; they also directed the development of their social organisation, economy, and environment, and exerted a powerful influence on their emerging cultural and intellectual trends. This book, the first comparative study of its kind, follows the Benedictine Order over eleven centuries, from their early diaspora to the challenge of continental reformation.

The Cistercians (White Monks) were the most successful monastic experiment to emerge from the tumultuous intellectual and religious fervour of the eleventh and twelfth centuries. By around 1150 they had established houses the length and breadth of Western Christendom and were internationally renowned. They sought to return to a simple form of monastic life, as set down in the Rule of St Benedict, and preferred rural locations `far from the haunts of men'. But, as recent research has shown, they were be no means isolated from society but influenced, and were nfluenced by, the world around them; they moved with the times. This book seeks to explore the phenomenon that was the Cistercian Order, drawing on recent research from various disciplines to consider what it was that made the Cistercians distinctive and how they responded to developments. The book addresses current debates regarding the origins and evolution of the Order; discusses the key primary sources for knowledge; and covers architecture, administration, daily life, spirituality, the economy and the monks' ties with the world.

MONASTERIES AND MONASTIC ORDERS
2000 Years of Christian Art and Culture

Product Description

This ambitious work traces the history of monasticism from its origins in late antiquity through its apex in the High Middle Ages and into the present. The book explores various religious orders and what makes them unique, and includes short biographies of famous abbots, abbesses, and monastic scholars. It contains a rich combination of history, culture, art and religion that will appeal to a broad spectrum of readers

Features:

* More than 700 gorgeous color illustrations bring the architecture, sculpture, and paintings to life.

* Color graphics, maps, and floor plans break down the overwhelming size of a monastery into something easy to handle.

* Special chapters devoted to everyday life in a cloister, medieval book illumination, monastic gardens, and more.

In 1274 the Council of Lyons decreed the end of various 'new orders' of Mendicants which had emerged during the great push for evangelism and poverty in the thirteenth-century Latin Church. The Franciscans and Dominicans were explicitly excluded, while the Carmelites and Austin friars were allowed a stay of execution. These last two were eventually able to acquire approval, but other smaller groups, in particular the Friars of the Sack and Pied Friars, were forced to disband. This book outlines the history of those who were threatened by 1274, tracing the development of the two larger orders down to the Council of Trent, and following the fragmentary sources for the brief histories of the discontinued friaries. For the first time these orders are treated comparatively: the volume offers a total history, from their origins, spirituality and pastoral impact, to their music, buildings and runaways.FRANCES ANDREWS teaches at the University of St Andrews and is the author of The Early Humiliati (CUP 1999).

The Community of Buddhist Nuns is one of the oldest women's organizations in human history. In this book Dr. Wijayaratna explains how this community was started by the Buddha in the 5th century BCE, and how it developed gradually. To show the motivation and the way of life of these ordained women, the author uses the oldest texts of the Pali canon. Several chapters of this book discuss the position of Buddhist nuns in the field of the three famous monastic themes: poverty, chastity and obedience. This book describes in detail the structure of the organization of their Community, their day-to-day practices, and the virtues and mental discipline through which they strove to attain the sublime goal, Nibbana.

The Monastic Order in England by Dom David Knowles was originally published in 1940 and was quickly recognised as a scholarly classic and masterpiece of historical literature. It covers the period from about 940, when St Dunstan inaugurated the monastic reform by becoming abbot of Glastonbury, to the early thirteenth century. Its core is a marvellous narrative and detailed analysis of monasticism in twelfth-century England, brilliantly set in the continental background of all the monastic movements of the day - with a vivid evocation of Anselm, Ailred, Henry of Blois and a host of other central figures. Dom David himself brought this second edition up to date in 1963.

St Francis of Assisi is one of the most admired figures of the Middle Ages - and one of the most important in the Christian church, modelling his life on the literal observance of the Gospel and recovering an emphasis on the poverty experienced by Jesus Christ. From 1217 Francis sent communities of friars throughout Christendom and launched missions to several countries, including India and China. The movement soon became established in most cities and several large towns, and, enjoying close relations with the popes, its followers were ideal instruments for the propagation of the reforms of the Fourth Lateran Council of 1215. They quickly became part of the landscape of medieval life and made their influence felt throughout society. This book explores the first 250 years of the order's history and charts its rapid growth, development, pastoral ministry, educational organisation, missionary endeavour, internal tensions and divisions. Intended for both the general and more specialist reader, it offers a complete survey of the Franciscan Order.