Monasticism And Intellectual L Essays -- essays research papers

Religious and intellectual institutions underwent significant changes throughout the middle ages. In about cases, advances were made, and in others, there was a major decline. Through all of these times, the people of the middle ages learned what didnt work, what did, and how to progress once they found what did work.     The true put to work of monasticism in the western Christian church was founded by Saint Benedict of Nursia. He wrote the famous "Benedicts Rule" between 520-530. The fundamentals of the rein in was that all(prenominal) day was divided into a series of activities with an emphasis on prayer and manual labor. The monks would all gather together seven times each day for prayer. These were all male institutions, however, Benedicts sister, Scholastica founded monasteries for women. Mevery of the texts we have today are with us because of monks. Beginning in the ninth century, the monks used scriptoria, or writing rooms, to copy different manuscripts. Between the sixth and tenth centuries, the monasteries experienced what one might call a moral decline. The purity and poverty which was the idol for monks was being abandoned. Simony, the buying of clerical positions, was common, as was the practice of priests being married. In 910, Duke William of Aquataine wanted to do something to correct this problem. He founded the abbey of Cluny, which was an independent monastery. Cluny was kept independent from any kind of secular control. It sought to brin...