Week 2: Late Antiquity and Christian Culture / Monks and Monarchs: Religious and Political Life in the Early Middle Ages - Tutorial Discussion Post
Hi everyone!
Okay, here we go........our first online tutorial discussion!
Remember that the readings for this week can be found on pages 44-62 of the course reader. If you haven't yet been able to purchase a copy of the reader then do have a look at the unit guide on Blackboard and follow the links therein to an online copy of the Rule of St Benedict. Information on the book, Medieval Worlds: An Introduction to European History, 300-1492, from which another reading for this week is taken, and where to locate it in the library can be found by following the link to the right of this post under 'Weekly Readings'.
I encourage everyone to look over the tutorial discussion questions for this week (on page 43 of the reader) as they will help you reflect on the readings. You may also like to reflect on the information and questions I've included below. Remember though - your comment post does not need to specifically address either the tutorial discussion questions, or my reflections below. They are just here to help you get started.
........
So the readings for this week seem to be all about the Church in the early Middle Ages! I thought that two major themes seem to be represented in the readings:
1) The first theme focuses on the structure, development and influence of the Church in the early Middle Ages.
2) The second theme focuses on the importance of the Rule of St Benedict in the development of monasticism.
A couple of questions that came to my mind when I was doing the readings were:
1) How did the organization of the Church, and the ideals of Christianity, influence early medieval society?
2) Why was the Rule of St Benedict so successful? How did it simultaneously allow a monk to live both 'alone in the wilderness' and in a community?
What did you find interesting (or not!) about the readings? Please post your comments, questions and thoughts!
.......
Just for fun!
Here are a few photos to help spark our imaginations!
The first is a photo of Monte Cassino (the monastery founded by St Benedict) as it appears today. It's amazing to think that this monastic house has been going since the the sixth century!
Not all monasteries of course continue to function to this day, however. Below is a photo of the remains of Glastonbury Abbey in the UK, once a very powerful monastery, but now only a quiet ruin.
The two images below are shots of cloisters. Cloisters were (and are!) a very important part of monasteries. They were islands of calm and quiet right in the centre of the bustle and activity of a monastery. Their purpose was to provide a place for spiritual reflection and quiet study for the monks. It's interesting to reflect on how cloisters, as havens of calm amidst a busy place, also reflect the desire of every monk - to be alone with God and spiritually content in amongst a community of fellow brothers (or sisters!). Cloisters generally consist of a square covered walkway surrounding a garden or green space.
Hi everyone!
Okay, here we go........our first online tutorial discussion!
Remember that the readings for this week can be found on pages 44-62 of the course reader. If you haven't yet been able to purchase a copy of the reader then do have a look at the unit guide on Blackboard and follow the links therein to an online copy of the Rule of St Benedict. Information on the book, Medieval Worlds: An Introduction to European History, 300-1492, from which another reading for this week is taken, and where to locate it in the library can be found by following the link to the right of this post under 'Weekly Readings'.
I encourage everyone to look over the tutorial discussion questions for this week (on page 43 of the reader) as they will help you reflect on the readings. You may also like to reflect on the information and questions I've included below. Remember though - your comment post does not need to specifically address either the tutorial discussion questions, or my reflections below. They are just here to help you get started.
........
So the readings for this week seem to be all about the Church in the early Middle Ages! I thought that two major themes seem to be represented in the readings:
1) The first theme focuses on the structure, development and influence of the Church in the early Middle Ages.
2) The second theme focuses on the importance of the Rule of St Benedict in the development of monasticism.
A couple of questions that came to my mind when I was doing the readings were:
1) How did the organization of the Church, and the ideals of Christianity, influence early medieval society?
2) Why was the Rule of St Benedict so successful? How did it simultaneously allow a monk to live both 'alone in the wilderness' and in a community?
What did you find interesting (or not!) about the readings? Please post your comments, questions and thoughts!
.......
Just for fun!
Here are a few photos to help spark our imaginations!
The first is a photo of Monte Cassino (the monastery founded by St Benedict) as it appears today. It's amazing to think that this monastic house has been going since the the sixth century!
 |
| Monte Cassino |
 |
| Glastonbury Abbey, UK |
The two images below are shots of cloisters. Cloisters were (and are!) a very important part of monasteries. They were islands of calm and quiet right in the centre of the bustle and activity of a monastery. Their purpose was to provide a place for spiritual reflection and quiet study for the monks. It's interesting to reflect on how cloisters, as havens of calm amidst a busy place, also reflect the desire of every monk - to be alone with God and spiritually content in amongst a community of fellow brothers (or sisters!). Cloisters generally consist of a square covered walkway surrounding a garden or green space.
 |
| Cloisters attached to Salisbury Cathedral in the UK |
 |
| The cloisters at Monte Cassino |
The church being a ‘spiritual hierarchy’ made it possible to efficiently micro manage the vast and expanding Christian empire through its utilisation of the hierarchical structure of church leaders. By having this spiritual hierarchy, it made connection with the supernatural more accessible for the average punters in the medieval communities through their local church instead of it being exclusive and only available to those born into wealth.
ReplyDeleteAs for the Rule of St. Benedict, this was more successful than previous attempts at establishing a way of doing things for monasteries as it provided a reasonable and attainable balance between what was possible for a fallible human being to achieve and living a life of fundamental devotion to Christ.
I also found interesting that the Rule helped to establish a set of guidelines for how monks should conduct their everyday lives, and that they were not to perform random ‘acts of devotion’ such as self mutilation. This is interesting in today’s current religious climate with more independent churches, predominantly in the United States, conducting bizarre rituals as ‘faith testers’ such as live snake handling which occurs as there is no doctrine being adhered to preventing such behaviour.
-J. Lawry
Hi Guys,
ReplyDeleteI thought I would try to answer the two questions that came to your mind, Diana, with my understanding of the reading. Here we go...
1) How did the organization of the Church, and the ideals of Christianity, influence early medieval society?
I think the reading makes it quiet obvious that both the Church and Christianity had a huge influence on early medieval society. I think this was greatly due to the unity and structure the Church provided for local communities, and especially poorer members of society.
Among the numerous examples in the reading, I think this is especially evident in the changes that emerged in marriage and education. As the Church "slowly became the recognised authority"(pg.61/137) I believe it gave people a sense of belonging which may not have existed before, as different pagan settlements served different gods and hence never really united.
This is shown even more when analysing the growing importance of The Local Saint, and how it "offered spiritual and material protection"(pg.62/138) to the local community.
2) Why was the Rule of St Benedict so successful? How did it simultaneously allow a monk to live both 'alone in the wilderness' and in a community?
The Rule of St. Benedict was so successful because:
- Its teachings where spread through help of the Irish and the Anglo-Saxon monasteries.
- It found balance between the "spiritual idea of living in the wilderness with the practical solution of living in a community."(pg.55/125)
- Its precise and strict, but somewhat still humanely lenient daily structure as well as the "extremely practical and effective type of authoritarian leader, the abbot."(pg.56/126).
Overall, I thought this was a very interesting reading. Firstly it opened my eyes to some of the practices and duties of monks, bishops and nuns, but more importantly, it showed me a good side to the church which, as a non-believer, sometimes seemed hard to find. It was impressive to see the great effects of unity and belonging that the expansion of the Church, and the Christianisation of Western Europe, brought to its people.
Found both the readings for this week quite interesting. I must admit, the first reading on the Rule of St. Benedict wasn't the easiest thing I have ever read. I much preferred the second reading which was the extract from Medieval Worlds. I feel that this went in to a really good level of detail; it covered everything well but without bombarding the reader with facts and names and dates.
ReplyDeleteIn case I am meant to go into greater detail on the specifics of the readings I will briefly note that I really enjoyed reading the "Pope" section of the "Medieval Worlds" reading. Oviously I knew that Rome was the home of the pope, as it has been for a while, but I had never really questioned why this was the case. So exploring the spiritual and practical reasons as to why Rome was (and still is) the head of the Christian church in Europe was a highlight of mine. Also from the same article I enjoyed reading how religion served to unite whole communities and in many ways run how a given community functioned on a daily basis. Seems almost unimaginable given how we live our lives today.
Like I said, the first reading ("The Rule") didn't do a huge amount for me. I did find the concept of the publication intriguing but much preferred the shorter section on the Benedictine Rule contained within the second reading. I did appreciate the vast level of detail that the first reading went into, but ultimately the content did not tweak my interest as successfully as the other reading did.
Hope I have done this right - let me know if my blogging needs some work.
Hey, this is Jessica Kopp (in case it doesn't show up and I get crucified, pun intended, for not blogging).
ReplyDeleteI think the key to the spread and influence of Christianity was the Parish at the local level. Because they influenced every aspect of daily life, marriage, education and worship, they assisted in the solidification of communities. They allowed like-minded and spiritually influenced people to mingle on a local level and assisted with education, the cornerstone of a civilised and well-managed society. Of course, the spiritual hierarchy was extremely important in securing the position of the Church however, the increasing popularity of giving oblates somewhat defied this teaching. As the offspring of poorer families began to become more literate, surely the hierarchy was disrupted? As rising above one's station was discouraged. Perhaps, in time that will come to effect the church in some way (we haven't got there yet in our reading, I'm sure!).
Similarly, the Rule of St. Benedict appealed to the masses. It provided a communal, yet reflective way of living for previous anchorites, which was much more practical. It was also a way for the church to discourage extreme fasting and self-mutilation which were not supported by the church. It's strength was in its relative kindness. It preached forgiveness, tolerance and a spiritual way of life without asking more than a normal person could give. It's spread was destined or even certain because of the skilful way it had been written.
I must say that your pun, though terrible, it made me smile.. However I promise to best you next week with a much better one...
DeleteHi this is James Young,
ReplyDeleteI think the key to the spread and influence of Christianity was fear. The control the church managed to inpart on basically every citizen was vice like. Life for the lower class was very difficult in Medieval Europe and subject to the whims and demands of the higher class, for example Kings in this era were well renowned for their penchent of taxing their citizens severely to the point of enforced poverty. The church hereby provided a sense of hope, life may not be enjoyable on earth but believe and have faith, ultimately leading to heaven was obviously a desirable outcome. Due to this desired outcome, the church could thereby tax or even bully their citizens into acting in a desired manner under the guise of 'Do this or suffer the wrath of God' Which explains the largely unquestioned following and discipline towards christianity.
The rule of St. Benedict was successful for a few reasons, the first, in my opinion, being that there was a rather strict chain of command in the sense that the male of the household held all the power. This household structure tends to be relatively successful because each person understands where they fall in the whole set up. The Benedict rule is succeeded because of the strict or complete nature of ones daily schedule, it was relatively simple, time consuming but simple, it was easy to follow and as soon as the population built a routine it was always going to be easy to follow and upkeep.
I found it really interesting how much power the bishops had in the early middle ages. It seems to me in that kind of environment even the most pious bishop could be tempted towards corruuption. Is that something we will be looking at?
ReplyDeleteI think the church was so influenctial in Medieval society because it provided structure and rules and laws. After the fall of the Roman empire no one really knew how to govern things effectivly and I think that is partly why christanity was able to take over so wholy, it provided a way to help things run smoothly.
One more thing I found interesting was how much people with polictical agendas could so easily be influential in the church, and how much they wanted to be becuase of all the power it held.
-Tessa Patrao.
Well with regards to the influence of the Church being so strong I would also have to attribute fear as the main factor. At large for the reasoning that the suffering of the poor would be rewarded with an eternal enlightenment so to speak and with this the Church had become a beacon of hope for this poverty stricken and overly taxed class. As well for this class it would've been in solace that their was this one "benevolent and merciful" deity watching over them and who would answer heed their calls whenever they prayed. The influence of the Church can also be attributed by the fact that many wealthy and powerful families often sent sons of theirs into the Church for service; "..bishops almost always came from powerful families."(pg 53/120). So as a result with these sons rising to a certain prominence they were able to use the influence of their family to influence within the Church and also on its behalf.So in this respect in was used to better a certain families name and social position. This also contributed numbers to the Church both for monks and nuns, with daughters being sent to train as nuns to avoid paying a dowry to marry them and also avoid a life as a spinster.
ReplyDeleteThe main reasoning behind "The Rule of St. Benedict" would be the endorsement behind it. Which was the Irish influence in which was large among the Anglo-Saxon monasteries throughout Europe. As well as it being favoured by Pope Gregory who by mentioning in a number pf his writings was essentially going out and saying that this way is proffered by the Church. The life of the hermit and that of the community within the monastery were able to co-exist largely due the strict routine that the monks lived by. With much of their days occupying them in readings, manual labor or prayer they would've been in silence much of the day with communication with one another potentially only coming twice a day with their meals.
Sean McClure, reporting in.
ReplyDeleteProbably the thing I found most interesting in the readings was how Benedict, along with those who followed his rule, reinterpreted the Bible's meaning of isolation once it had been established that living in isolation didn't work. That the tales of isolation, for example, living in trees or on top of pillars with a single loaf of bread for forty days wasn't actually possible. I found it interesting that people were so dedicated to purifying themselves by living alone with God, that a rule was established so that the word of God could be fulfilled by those who wished to do so. Also the fact that there seemed to be a fairly high number of people that wanted to do this, shown by the fact that someone living alone would gain followers just from word of mouth communication acknowledging that someone was living in isolation, and also the fact that there were a lot of churches, and each church had monks. I wonder if this idea of living in isolation to get into heaven was so popular because of the fear that was obviously evident in the society at the time from going to hell, or if these people were just so dedicated to religion because it played such a large role in their society and it was normal to be quite passionate about religion.
I'd also be interested to learn how people were converted in the expansion of the church, from their previous religions to christianity in the medieval age. From my point of view, it seems conversion of faith would be an incredibly difficult feat, especially because of the indoctrination from birth into their native religions. Is it a simple matter of your King deciding that everyone shall stop believing in one god and start believing another? and how did the people react to this?
However, i found a lot of the information about the geographical expansion was lost on me because I know nothing about Medieval geography and the names of places in Medieval times.
Okay, my initial thoughts on this weeks readings were just how crazy it was that the Church in the Middle Ages were privy to such copious amounts of power and persuasion amongst the masses.
ReplyDeleteIn regards to good old Benedicts Rule, I simply could not believe just how regulated and regimented a monk's life and daily routine had to be! The longwinded rule basically states how a monk should conduct himself at any given point in time, when confronted with any situation. Even down to the nitty gritty- like how much clothes and food a monk was allowed!
I also found it interesting that within monks they were able to distinguish 'good' groups (cenobites and anchorites) and 'bad' groups (sarabites and gyratory). I did not even think it possible that there could be a 'bad' monk!
Benedicts rule was so successful (from what was outlined in the second reading) due to several causes; such as the influence behind the Irish's appreciation for St. Benedict's work. As a result of the Irish appreciation, Benedicts rule was 'spread through many European monastires where Irish influence was felt'.
As for the Church's influence upon medieval society- it simply cannot be denied. These people through feelings of fear and confusion at the world, all wanted (if not subconsciously) some form of guidance. People feel content when they are following some form of 'guidelines' as to how to live their lives (in this time period). And the church did comply- they had (still have today) opinions upon every sector of life; from marriage, education, to how one should conduct oneself to every second of every minute of the day.
As outlined in the second text the Church was an undeniable powerhouse in the Middle Ages- they had taps into the education and legal systems also!
Wouldn't it be scary if it was still like that today?
Maddi :)
After being slightly discouraged after reading the 1st document, I found the second document to be much more appealing and interesting, as it clearly broke down the roles of the Church.
ReplyDeleteI think that the spread of the Church became so important because it created a new structured community. It brought together individuals across Europe as it appealed to what people were concerned with most - their health, education, their fears (death being most important). I think by covering those main areas it provided a sense of stability and peace in amongst individuals that wasn't there previously. Sort of like, the church was giving answers and solutions to life's problems.
think this leads to why St Benedict was so successful. St Benedict appeared to realise the difference between living the ideal and the realistic. I think that he subtly highlighted the fact that one doesn't have to follow the church/God in an extreme way(living in isolation) - it can be a more personal thing. So this concept became more attractive to individuals. The fact that the church served as a bridge to bring together those who could and could not read was important too.
I was even more interested to read how the role of women actually improved during this period. By founding monasteries, having more say in their marriages. I would be interested to find out in future how the role of women changed in medieval society.
I wasn't previously aware of the role of the Bishops. I had no idea that they exerted so much power and had ownership of so much land!
One point in the second document- about Education - the fact that creative expression became very limited during this period, I find a little scary. I'd be interested to know, even if it is just a small amount of information, how art was used by the church to introduce its new ideals to Europe. there was a point somewhere about propaganda - i'd really love to find out what those portraits looked like, how those of different backgrounds reacted to it.
- Jo
The hierarchy within the Church allowed for such power and responsibility to be vested in one person, thus making the influence the Church had on society overwhelming. Bishops, who held positions of great power, usually came from wealthy families and had influence at the royal court. These men, branded ‘spiritual protectors’, were responsible for the salvation of souls. In all facets of everyday life, the Church’s presence could be felt. The Church was the second biggest landholder after the king, and as land was virtually the only source of wealth, the Bishop’s, who were the land lords, had ultimate authority and administrative power over parishes and thus a right to a portion of their incomes.
ReplyDeleteChristian teachings influenced the realms of law, politics, economics and even warfare, and consequently Christianization affected European culture during the middle ages. Marriage was recognized as a Christian state; an institution affecting many people’s everyday lives, with the Church’s regulation on marriage creating a better legal status for women. The Church’s influence in education was undeniable; with organized secular education diminishing, education now falling only to those destined for a career within the church, and literary production became dominantly Christian. For those who were uneducated, the only contact to be had with literary works was within the confines of the Church, therefore only exposing them to Christian teachings.
Based on the readings, the success of the Rule of St Benedict can be attributed to a number of factors; first being the appreciation the Irish had for St Benedict’s work, in conjunction with the Rule of St Columbanus, whose influence spread to many monasteries throughout Europe. Second being Pope Gregory’s esteem for the Rule and his influence among the Anglo-Saxon monasteries. These two forces then influenced the many wealthy families of Northern Europe who went on to build monasteries throughout the seventh century. The Carolingian kings, too, were patrons of the Benedictine Rule, and from the ninth century it became a guide for monasticism in Western Europe.
The Rule balanced spiritual and practical ideals; it outlined a structured routine for all aspects of everyday life, ensuring that spiritual duties held priority over all other duties. All aspects of Monks daily activities were regulated and regimented by the Church, down to what he wore, how he slept, and how much he ate. What struck me as interesting was section 45 of the Rule of St Benedict, concerning those who make mistakes in the oratory, “unless he humble himself there before all, giving satisfaction, he shall be subjected to greater punishment” … “But children, for such a fault, shall be whipped” . It just seemed a bit drastic for a simple mistake, but I suppose it was the middle ages..
- Lana
Kate Harbord (who has had some computer problems today and is sorry about her comment being a little late) here.
ReplyDeleteI think that the spread of the church and its increasing influence can be connected to the fact that with the dissolution of other branches of power, joining the Christian church was really the only way that those who weren't born into power (such as nobles) had a chance to become educated and rise to any kind of prominent position.
The church was one of the few ways a person could learn to read or join a really cohesive organisation that spanned any amount of distance, and all branches preached the same thing. As the church was one of the only sources of education, it meant that they had an opportunity to impose a single set of morals, and this is shown through the pervasiveness of the Christian opinion throughout- they had opinions on marriage, work, and almost everything that made up daily life. Without any other source to contradict them, they essentially had total control of the population in terms of beliefs and daily life.
The Rule of St. Benedict dovetails neatly into this idea, as the Irish looked to the Church for guidance, and their church believed in his works. It was also, in a word, convenient- the Rule controlled the entirety of a monk's life, from the food he ate to how often he prayed and what clothes he was to wear- that kind of schedule not only makes it easy to help regulate a large group of people, as an Abbot or Abbess would have to, but would also help soothe the sort of jealousy that can appear when large groups of people all live and work together. When everybody follows the same rules, there isn't as much cause for jealousy over what others have, and thus the Rule of St. Benedict wasn't just religious, but practical.
Wow, I am really late on this one... So so sorry! I'll be honest, I totally forgot about this blog but now that I have remembered here is my input.
ReplyDeleteTo start I would agree with a few of the others who have already commenting in saying that the first reading was quite difficult to get through the first time I tried. After I had finished the second reading, I read again the first and took in more of the content as the background and information of its influence in the Church which was outlined in the second (pp. 55-57) gave me a better understanding of its meaning.
The second reading, of course, was much easier to get through.
I found it interesting that the creation of ‘communities’ was to be the alternative to the practice living alone, being alone with God. From the reading it seemed the practice itself had many problems (p.55) and could not easily be regulated. I think the building of a spiritual community was the good alternative but I don’t like its heavy regulation. I don’t like the idea that someone’s spiritual journey needs rules and regulations. The ‘Rule’ does outline.... rules (for lack of a better word) that are quiet reasonable and, as stated in the reading, make spiritual and religious purpose a priority over the labour that was required to maintain the community. I still find that too many regulations would impact on ones ability to discover spirituality and be alone with God.
On another note I enjoyed the section on marriage. It seems that Christian practice and regulation on marriage helped the status of women (though I think the status of woman was not that great so anything was a step up).
I don’t like the idea that the bishop had so much power and I think someone else has touched on this but I would like to learn about how easily they could have been corrupted (as is described in so much fiction).
Again sorry this is ridiculously late, will not happen again!
- Samantha Dunne
hopefully this works
ReplyDelete