The Religions Book

222

IN THE WORLD,

BUT NOT OF

THE WORLD

SERVING GOD ON BEHALF OF OTHERS

N

owadays, monasteries

are sometimes thought

of as relics from a bygone

age. However, when they began

to flourish in the early medieval

period, after the collapse of the

Roman Empire in the 5th century,

they were at the forefront of

society. In a Europe that, culturally

speaking, was entering what

we now know as the Dark Ages,

monasteries became beacons of

learning and innovation. These

powerful institutions embodied

a central idea in Christianity:

that some people can be set apart

from the demands of conventional

living in order to focus on leading

a spiritual life that will be of benefit

to others as well as themselves. An

important aspect of monasticism

has always been praying for people

in the wider world.

From caves to cloisters

Monasticism has its roots in the

lives of the “fathers and mothers”

who lived in the Egyptian desert,

from the 3rd century CE. These early

monks and nuns had retreated from

the world in order to live simple

lives of devotion and prayer. They

took Jesus’s words seriously—

“What good is it to gain the whole

IN CONTEXT

KEY MOVEMENT

Monasticism

WHEN AND WHERE

From 3rd century CE,

Mediterranean

BEFORE

2nd century BCE–1st

century CE Within Judaism,

ascetic Essenes gather in

monastery-type communities

in order to live lives of purity

and abstinence.

AFTER

529 CE St. Benedict establishes

a monastic community in Italy;

in 817 his Rule becomes the

authorized set of precepts for

all monks in Western Europe.

11th century St. Francis and

St Clare found the Franciscan

order of monks, and the Order

of St. Clare for nuns.

16th century Monasteries

that are seen as too wealthy

and corrupt are closed during

the Protestant Reformation

in Europe.

Christians have to live

in the world.

By retreating from the world,

monks and nuns can focus

on their spiritual life.

The world is full of

distractions from God.

Without distractions, they can

pray for and seek to better

the world around them.

Monasticism is about

being in the world,

but not of the world.