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monasticism

monasticism Deep within the trees little hooded men walk along a path to meditate and pray dressed in brown robes tied with nautical rope. They dwell in silence and live a life of celibacy. This is what most of think of when we hear the word monk. Throughout the years, monks have always been people of intrigue. They live a different lifestyle than most. They live a life of seclusion far from the mores of modern society, which often makes people ponder who these people really are and why they choose to participate in such a foreign religious movement. This paper will attempt to unravel the mysteries of this peculiar movement of by researching it's origin, the true meaning of a silent lives, and how key leaders have helped to develop it one of the most popular movements in the history of Christianity. A movement called Monasticism. "The word 'monk' comes from the greek 'Monakos' which means 'alone'. In the beginning it stood for ascetic who was not married and lived alone. Cenobites did not use this word. However it quickly acquired a deeper meaning: a person who is 'one' in his inmost being. It means a person united within himself, a person with a single gaze, a single desire." To understand whom these people are let us first explore the events that led up to the surfacing of this movement. History tells us that around 320 AD, Emperor Constantine. The popularity of the church begin to rise due to the efforts of Constantine who became a friend of Christianity. Constantine issued the Edict of Toleration in 313 AD, which stopped the persecution of Christians, gave Christianity a favored position with the State, and slowly restricted pagan rituals. As a result, the church grew in vast numbers and was populated by people from all walks of life- even those not so desirable. An increasing number of barbarians crowded into the church bringing along with them many semipagan practices. Their presence was followed by an increase of moral deterioration in the church that forced "puritanical souls to revolt. This deterioration is thought to have started in the upper classes of Roman society, which caused many to shift away into the early form of Monasticism. As in all great movements in history, personalities or leaders are birthed. One such personality's ideals are interwoven throughout the foundations of Monasticism. "Antony is considered to be the founder of Monasticism. He was reared in an affluent Christian home in Egypt. Soon after his parents' death when Antony was about eighteen years old, he felt that God directed him to give up his possessions and live a life of absolute devotion. After selling his parents' estate, he retired to a cave in the desert, and there he spent his time in prayer and meditation Antony became famous for holiness and power in prayer throughout the empire. People became so inspired by Antony's devotion, they began to organize themselves into monastic communities. "According to The Life of Antony, written by bishop Athanasius, many people from all walks of life visited Antony in the desert seeking his prayers. "Anthanasius speaks of one particular occasion when many people gathered at the entrance of Antony's cave seeking prayers. Antony finally emerged and through him God healed many people wisdom. Antony must have been a man of vision. When no one would make a bold stand, Antony did. For this reason, many people of his era, and even today acknowledge his achievements in Monasticism. Antony's influence on Monetarism goes beyond forming the structural bonds, his influence extends to of course, more leaders! The life of Antony inspired a young man by the name of Pachomius. "Pachomius is a discharged soldier inspired by the life of Antony to live for a time as a hermit. One day while sitting down in his cell, an angel appeared to him saying, 'Go and gather together unto thyself those wandering, and be thou dwelling with them, and lay down for them such laws as I shall tell unto thee'. Subsequently, Pachomius organized the first monastery about 320 AD at Tabennisi on the east bank of the Nile." He organized each member a work assignment, a schedule time of worship and clothing similar to his fellow monks. In addition to private devotional time, they had scheduled times of corporate worship. Because of Pachomius the monastics have organization. He able to bring some structure to this up-and-coming movement called Monasticism. Athanasius was known as The Father of Orthodoxy. He was the bishop of Alexandria in Egypt. " His life spanned both sides of the Council of Nicea. He is best known for his writings against Arianism. Arius taught that Christ was a created being who was different from and less than the Father. The teaching many followers in the fourth century." Anthanasius, on the other hand, insisted that Christ was equal, eternal, and substantial to God. For this teaching he was exile five times, but his teaching was finally accepted as the official doctrine of the Church. Another important figure in the history of monasticism is Basil of Caesaera. "He did much to popularize the communal type of monastic organization. Having an excellent education in Athens and Constantinople, at the age of twenty-seven gave up worldly advancement for the ascetic life.” He became bishop of a large area in Cappadocia in 370 AD and held that office until he died. He felt like monks should work, pray, read their Bible and perform good deeds. He discouraged extreme asceticism." Because of Basil more and more people were swept into the movement until there were nearly a hundred monasteries in Europe at the accession of Justinian to the throne of the Eastern Empire." Now that we've explored the people of this movement and their ideals, let us now dive into the age-old question, "why do they do what they do?" Monasticism as stated earlier started as a separation from the traditional church practices. The practices of monasticism can be divided into three main parts- ascetic practices, separation from the world, and mystical aspiration. "Several influences contributed to the rise of monasticism within the ancient church. The dualistic view of flesh and spirit, with its tendency to consider flesh evil and spirit good - so characteristic of the Orient- influenced Christianity through the Gnostic and Neplatonic movements. Retirement from the world would, it was thought, help the individual to crucify the flesh and develop the spiritual life by meditation and ascetics." Some of the ascetic practices that were performed were such as extreme fasting, a life of celibacy, prayer seven times a day and solitude. One person who explains extreme asceticism is Simon the Stylite. Simon lived buried in the ground up to his neck for several months. He also spent over thirty years on the top of a sixty-foot pillar near Antioch. Simon was an extreme, but others lived in fields and never undressed or bathed to have a reputation of sanctity. "Geography merits some consideration as a factor responsible for the rise of monasticism. It would have been much more difficult to carry on the monastic life in area where the climate was more severe than in Egypt, where the monastic life had its beginnings. The warm, dry climate and the multitude of caves in the hills along the banks of the Nile were conducive to separation of the individual from society. Small gardens, along with the resources of food provided by the Nile, made securing of food by the individual fairly easy. Nearness to desolate, forbidding scenery of the desert stimulated meditation." The mystical aspirations spoken of earlier can be defined as a communion in the mystery of Christ and so in his spirit who works in the soul through his gifts. The more intense communion with Christ, the more gifts play their part. Gregory of Nyssa will explain it by the idea of synergy. St Basil wrote this: "If ever a kind of light falling in your heat has suddenly given you awareness of God, flooding your soul in a way that makes you love God and despise the world and all material things, this obscure and fleeting image can help you understand the state of the just who rejoice in God with peaceful and unending happiness. This joy is sometimes bestowed by the Providence of God, but rarely, so that this little taste may lead you to the remembrance of the good things which you do not possess." As we have looked into the causes of monasticism, the development of monasticism and the history behind some of its practices. We can start to understand whom these hooded little men really are and what they stood for. We can see that this movement was truly needed. Monasticism aided in the rapid development of a hierarchical, centralized organization in the church because the monks were bound to obedience to superiors who in turn owed their allegiance to the pope. We do admire the fine contributions the monks made to medieval life. This was not only a movement in the history of Christianity, but it is still practiced today. One author defined monasticism as such: "Monasticism did not begin by being passed one to another but arose like spontaneous eruptions, or like a spring gushing forth in different places from a source underground." Bibliography:

Word Count: 1554

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