Development of Western Monasticism

The beginning of monasticism was related to the idea of a solitary life, “asceticism and renunciation were common features” (Thompson, p. 27). Everyone who decides this style of life formed a communal life with other the same ideals. The bishop Hilary was one of the first that formed groups of ascetics (ibid). St Martin, Honoratus and Benedict were others who formed ascetics groups. The most influential of them was Benedict that created any rules in the managed of the groups. These groups received the support of Pope Gregory I, and that helped them to grow and many groups were created receiving the papacy cover. This style of life and papacy were the most important elements of the history of the church in those centuries (6^th -8^th). In this times we need to mention Hilda of Whitby, who founding abbess of the monastery at Whitby, R.J. Hernandez mentioned her as trainer of at least five future bishops, in her monastery. Thompson says: “It was only the changing political circumstances of the late eight and early ninth centuries which created conditions propitious for the Rule to be more widely adopted” (p. 31).

Monasteries required a changed when they need the support of a lay patron or financial support of external people. One of this changes, was the loose of the Rules of St. Benedict. “Duke William I of Aquitaine in 909 established a monastery at Cluny” (Thompson, p. 33) and removed from it the papacy cover and reinstall the Rule of Benedict, and recovered the ideals of early monasticism: poverty, chastity, obedience and worship and teaching practices. With this philosophy were created more monasteries, other monasteries were added until the point that was created the first association or federation of monasteries, and were under the cover of the monastery in Cluny; because before these changes, monasteries were independent to each other. Since then, lay were supported monasteries and gave the monks to elect their own abbot when the present died (Thompson, p. 35). These Cluny reforms were extended until the women monasteries created by Scholastica, Benedict’s twin sister, any centuries ago. Also other monasteries were created under the Cluny reforms as the Marcigny (Gonzalez, Historia del Cristianismo, T I, p. 353). Since this point, the monastery of Cluny tried to reform the church.

With all the changes political and inside the church, emerged other group “originated in an exodus of monks from an existing house” (Thompson, p. 112), and they were called Cistercians. Initially, Cistercians focused on the literal observance of the Rule of St. Benedict, and were known as white monks because they changed the color of their robes. In 1112, arrived to the Cistercians a young man named Bernard, who persuaded aristocrats and many people to live as monks and formed a group in Clairvaux in 1115, then were emerged more groups, growing the Cistercians monasteries. “Bernard was made abbot there, remaining until his death in 1153” (ibid).  After his death, many cannons (groups) separated themselves from the world and were not involved in pastoral activities. The cities and towns growth and that brought new problems to the church, this helped to the creation of the order of friars, “the two greatest of these orders, the Franciscans and the Dominicans” (Thompson, p. 119). Dominicans were involved in preaching and teaching (Thompson, p. 120) and Franciscans took asceticism as a form of piety (ibid) and had a missionary approach, trying to reach the Moors into Christianity (Thompson, p. 121).  “Women joined the Franciscan and Dominican friars early on. Dominic’s original foundation for women at Prouille in 1206” (Ward, P. 155). R.J. Hernandez mentioned the nun Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179), who formed a monastery. Also Ward mentions any convents and nunneries, as the Santa Maria de Monteluce at Perugia, where Pope Gregory IX limited the present of nuns at 57 “when the church was consecrated in 1253” (p. 160), and the diocese of Norwich (p. 166). 

Without doubts monasteries played an important role in the development of Christianity in the Middle Ages together with papacy. In these two forms the Christianity grew up and was developed in different ways and movements. Despite these times had many political repercussions and wars; monasteries were there to receive all the people who wanted to look for their salvation in the most puritan ways known in those times.