![]() ![]() Monastic rules differed between the different orders that evolved from the 11th century CE & even between individual monasteries.įrom the 5th century CE the idea of monasteries spread across the Byzantine Empire and then to Roman Europe where people adopted their own distinct practices based on the teachings of Saint Benedict of Nursia (c. Over time, within this early form of the monastery, a more communal attitude to daily life developed where members shared the labour needed to keep themselves self-sufficient and they shared accommodation and meals. Their leader, an abba (hence the later 'abbot') presided over these individualists – they were called monachos in Greek for that reason, which is derived from mono meaning 'one', and which is the origin of the word 'monk'. Initially, members of these communities still lived essentially solitary lives and only gathered together for religious services. ![]() As these individualists grew in number some of them began to live together in communities, continuing, though, to cut themselves off from the rest of society and devoting themselves entirely to prayer and the study of scriptures. In addition, whenever early Christians were persecuted they were sometimes forced by necessity to live in remote mountain areas where the essentials of life were lacking. They did this because they thought that without any material- or worldly distractions they would achieve a greater understanding of and closeness to God. Claudio Rinaldi (Public Domain) Development of Monasteriesįrom the 3rd century CE there developed a trend in Egypt and Syria which saw some Christians decide to live the life of a solitary hermit or ascetic. ![]()
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