180 Cistercian order
membership in the community and was considered a rite
of integration. It was to take place on the eighth day after
the birth of a male child and was considered a physical
sign of covenant with God. It was an entry into the life of
the people who participated in the everlasting covenant
between God and Abraham. According to the infancy
gospel of Luke, Jesus was circumcised according to the
law on the eighth day after his birth and received his
name. Judaism has never countenanced female circumci-
sion. In Islam circumcision (in Arabic, khitan) was linked
to Abraham, or Ibrahim, and has been a widespread, but
not a universal, practice. It has been identified with the
growth of wisdom, self-discipline, and recognition of
God’s hegemony over the passions and as a sign of com-
mitment to Islam. Female circumcision has not been a
usual part of the Islamic tradition.
CHRISTIAN FEAST DAYRecognized from at least the sixth century, January 1, the
Christian feast of the Circumcision, was celebrated eight
days after Christmas and corresponded to the Roman
feast of the New Year. It was a way to begin the year well
and a day of rejoicing. In the Middle Ages it was a carni-
val feast when one was to give and eat lavishly, though
for some Christians in the early church it was to be
another day of penance in memory of pagan festivities.
Further reading: David Gollaher, Circumcision: A
History of the World’s Most Controversial Surgery(New
York: Basic Books, 2000).
Cistercian order The Cistercians were a monastic
order in western Europe named after the Abbey of
Cîteaux or Cistercium from 1098 and firmly established
by Stephen Harding about 1120. The order, originally
French, spread rapidly in western Europe, soon attaining
its strongest influence under BERNARD OFCLAIRVAUXin
the middle of the 12th century. Representing a revived
ascetic trend in MONASTICISM, the Cistercians founded
their monasteries in deserted places and stressed land
reclamation. Noted for their white mantles, they were
named the white monks.
The Cistercians succeeded in placing their monks in
episcopal chairs, and in 1145 Saint Bernard’s disciple,
Pope Eugenius III (r. 1145–53), became pope. The order
was governed by an annual assembly of the abbots of all
its houses, who formulated appropriate provisions for its
administration. They were presided over by the abbot of
the founding monastery of Cîteaux. The Cistercians
actively fostered the authority of the church, especially in
conflicts against HERESIES. The order was richly supported
by kings and feudal lords, especially in BURGUNDY.
Under the influence of Saint Bernard, new chivalric
orders affiliated with the Cistercians were established.
These included the TEMPLARS, and the Knights of CALA-
TRAVA,ALCÁNTARAand SANTIAGO, all of whom adopted
their rules from the Cistercian constitution and The
Charter of Love (1119) by Stephen Harding, and the
basic rule of the order. In the 13th century the Cister-
cians began to weaken their ascetic manners, and the
order, although still influential in the church and in
western European society, began to decline. Many abbeys
were destroyed in the Hundred Years’ War.
The art of the Cistercian order was a particular style
of GOTHIC architecture and simple ornamentation.
Opposed to the richness of Gothic and Cluniac structures
and ornaments, the order developed a style of abstract
decoration emphasizing light.
See also BENEDICTINE ORDER; CLUNY,CLUNIACS;
FONTENAY,ABBEY OF; ISAAC OFSTELLA.
Further reading:Pauline Matarasso, ed., The Cister-
cian World: Monastic Writings of the Twelfth Century(New
York: Penguin Books, 1993); Constance Brittain
Bouchard, Holy Entrepreneurs: Cistercians, Knights, and
Economic Exchange in Twelfth-Century Burgundy(Ithaca:
N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 1991); Louis J. Lekai, The
Cistercians: Ideals and Reality (Kent, Ohio: Kent State
University Press, 1977).Cîteaux, Abbey of SeeCISTERCIAN ORDER.The simple 12th-century interior of the church of the
Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay in Burgundy (Courtesy Edward
English)