Medieval Monasticism is a survey of the forms of religious
life in the medieval west, and the major contributions of medieval monasticism
to medieval and to modern culture. In this course we will study the major
texts which governed medieval monastic life, expressed its fundamental
values, and which inform us about patronage and the relationship of the
monasteries to the secular world.
Through this web site, originally developed for a course taught at Georgia College & State University, we will take a journey together
into the desert, and through the lives and sayings of the desert hermits
explore the origins of monasticism; from there, we shall travel together
through the cenobitic tradition, and explore the legacy of Benedictine,
Cluniac, and Cistercian monasticism, as well as the new orders of the
Central Middle Ages.
We shall see how European culture was formed
and developed out of the peregrinations of such monastics as St.
Boniface, St. Columba, and St. Columbanus. The great medievalist
Jean Leclerq once described monastic culture "as the love of
learning and the desire for God," and we shall explore the legacy
of learning which grew out of the monasteries, as well as the impact
of the Benedictine motto "Ora et Labora" on the economic, social, and
political life of Europe.
Finally, we shall trace the continuity of these medieval traditions through
to our own times, and explore some of the great modern houses and their
lived experience of the monastic tradition. It is my hope that through
the major Rules and texts that we will study, students will embark with
the great monastics of past and present on a journey of self-discovery.
It will be my great pleasure to take this journey with you; together we
shall come to a greater understanding of these sources in a way which I
fervently hope will enrich not only your historical understanding of the
medieval period, but also your life in general.