Since their discovery in 1945, the Nag Hammadi Codices have generated questions and scholarly debate as to their date and function. Paul Linjamaa contributes to the discussion by offering insights ...into previously uncharted aspects pertinent to the materiality of the manuscripts. He explores the practical implementation of the texts in their ancient setting through analyses of codicological aspects, paratextual elements, and scribal features. Linjamaa's research supports the hypothesis that the Nag Hammadi texts had their origins in Pachomian monasticism. He shows how Pachomian monks used the texts for textual edification, spiritual development and pedagogical practices. He also demonstrates that the texts were used for perfecting scribal and editorial practice, and that they were used as protective artefacts containing sacred symbols in the continuous monastic warfare against evil spirits. Linjamaa's application of new material methods provides clues to the origins and use of ancient texts, and challenges preconceptions about ancient orthodoxy. This title is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.
The impetus of religious reform between ca. 1380-1520, which expressed itself in a variety of Observant initiatives in many religious orders all over Europe, and also brought forth the Devotio ...moderna movement in the late medieval Low Countries, had considerable repercussions for the production of a wide range of religious texts, and the embrace of other forms of cultural production (scribal activities, liturgical innovations, art, music, religious architecture). At the same time, the very impetus of reform within late medieval religious orders and the wish to return to a more modest religious lifestyle in accordance with monastic and mendicant rules, and ultimately with the commands of Christ in the Gospel, made it difficult to wholeheartedly embrace the material consequences of learning, literary and artistic prowess, as the very pursuit of such pursuits ran against basic demands of evangelical poverty and humility. This volume explores how this tension was negotiated in various Observant and Devotio moderna contexts, and how communities connected with these movements instrumentalized various types of writing, learning, and other forms of cultural expression to further the cause of religious reform, defend it against order-internal and external criticism, to shape recognizable reform identities for themselves, and to transform religious life in society as a whole.
Egypt is revered as the home of the famous Desert Ascetics, who first embraced a monastic life and established homosocial communities on the borders of their urban centres in the Nile Valley. ...Regarded as angels and warriors, the wisdom of the Desert Ascetics formed part of the oral and literary tradition of wonder-working saints whose commitment to asceticism was legendary and inspirational. This book grounds the mythologized stories of Desert Ascetics in the materiality of the desert, demonstrating the closeness of the desert, the connections between non-monastic and monastic communities, and the exciting insights into lived monasticism through the archaeology of monasticism in Egypt.
Despite the many volumes written about monasticism, this is the first comprehensive dictionary on the subject--not a proselytizing work but instead with a focus on history, biography and description ...both ancient and modern. The scope is worldwide, covering not only Christianity but all faiths that have monastic traditions including, but not limited to, Buddhism, Jainism and Hinduism.
This study involves the analysis of the overall quantitative, structural and sociodemographic characteristics of the Roman Catholic monastic Orders in Eastern Galicia as a part of the Galician Crown ...land of Austria-Hungary in the early 20th century. In the second half of the 19th century, the Roman Catholic monastic communities renewed their activity after a period of decline in the epoch of Enlightenment. The analysis indicates two features that characterize the contemporary Galician monastic Orders – a significant predominance of female members and active social work among the population of the region. Quantitatively, the Roman Catholic monastic structures considerably exceeded those of the Greek Catholic Church
The history of monastic institutions in the Middle Ages may at first appear remarkably uniform and predictable. Medieval commentators and modern scholars have observed how monasteries of the tenth to ...early twelfth centuries experienced long periods of stasis alternating with bursts of rapid development known as reforms. Charismatic leaders by sheer force of will, and by assiduously recruiting the support of the ecclesiastical and lay elites, pushed monasticism forward toward reform, remediating the inevitable decline of discipline and government in these institutions. A lack of concrete information on what happened at individual monasteries is not regarded as a significant problem, as long as there is the possibility to reconstruct the reformers' ''program.'' While this general picture makes for a compelling narrative, it doesn't necessarily hold up when one looks closely at the history of specific institutions.
InMonastic Reform as Process, Steven Vanderputten puts the history of monastic reform to the test by examining the evidence from seven monasteries in Flanders, one of the wealthiest principalities of northwestern Europe, between 900 and 1100. He finds that the reform of a monastery should be studied not as an "exogenous shock" but as an intentional blending of reformist ideals with existing structures and traditions. He also shows that reformist government was cumulative in nature, and many of the individual achievements and initiatives of reformist abbots were only possible because they built upon previous achievements. Rather than looking at reforms as "flashpoint events," we need to view them as processes worthy of study in their own right. Deeply researched and carefully argued,Monastic Reform as Processwill be essential reading for scholars working on the history of monasteries more broadly as well as those studying the phenomenon of reform throughout history.
This study is the first to attempt a thorough investigation of the activities of the Columbanian congregation, which played a significant role in the development of Western monasticism. This was a ...new form of rural monasticism, which suited the needs and aspirations of a Christian elite eager to express its power and prestige in religious terms. Contrary to earlier studies, which viewed Columbanus and his disciples primarily as religious innovators, this book focuses on the political, economic, and familial implications of monastic patronage and on the benefits elite patrons stood to reap. While founding families were in a privileged position to court royal favour, monastic patronage also exposed them to violent reprisals from competing factions. Columbanian monasteries were not serene havens of contemplation, but rather active foci of power and wealth, and quickly became integral elements of early medieval statecraft.
Medievalists have long taught that highly emotional Christian
devotion, often called 'affective piety', appeared in Europe after
the twelfth century and was primarily practiced by communities of
...mendicants, lay people and women. Emotional monasticism
challenges this view. The first study of affective piety in an
eleventh-century monastic context, it traces the early history of
affective devotion through the life and works of the earliest known
writer of emotional prayers, John of Fécamp, abbot of the Norman
monastery of Fécamp from 1028-78. Exposing the early medieval
monastic roots of later medieval affective piety, the book casts a
new light on the devotional life of monks in Europe before the
twelfth century and redefines how medievalists should teach the
history of Christianity.
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