Vanhalla
2008-04-05, 02:36
Monks
A monk is a person who lives a monastic life and conditions the mind and body in favor of the spirit by living alone or with any number of likeminded people, maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose. The term is of Christian origin but is used loosely to describe ascetics from other philosophical backgrounds. There are four types of monks as identified by Benedict of Nursia’s Rule for Monks: cenobites, hermits and anchorites, sarabaites, and gyrovagues.
The first subgroup of a monk is a cenobite. Those of the koinobitic monastic tradition emphasize community life. The community belongs to a religious order and the cenobitic monk is regulated by a religious rule. The organized versions of cenobitic monasticism is thought to have started in Egypt in the 4th century AD. Monks of previous centuries were usually hermits, however this form of solitary living did not suit everyone. These organized communities started to be created so that monks could have more support in their spiritual struggle.
The second subgroup of a monk is the hermit and anchorite. These people have thorough experience as cenobites in a monastery and are prepared to withdraw from secular society to lead an intensely prayer oriented life.
The third subgroup of a monk is the sarabait. They acknowledge no monastic superior and obeyed no definite rule. Benedict referred to them as the most detestable kind of monks because they are pretenders and have no cenobitic experience. Normally they lived in their own homes, or dwelt together in or near cities, continuing like the early ascetics.
The fourth subgroup of a monk is the gyrovague. Gyrovagues were wandering monks without fixed residence or leadership, they relied on the charity of others. They were denounced as wretched by Benedict of Nursia, who accused them of indulging in their passions and cravings. In the 8th century the cenobitic and eremitic forms of monasticism became the accepted form within the church, and the wandering monk phenomenon faded into obscurity.
A monk is a person who lives a monastic life and conditions the mind and body in favor of the spirit by living alone or with any number of likeminded people, maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose. The term is of Christian origin but is used loosely to describe ascetics from other philosophical backgrounds. There are four types of monks as identified by Benedict of Nursia’s Rule for Monks: cenobites, hermits and anchorites, sarabaites, and gyrovagues.
The first subgroup of a monk is a cenobite. Those of the koinobitic monastic tradition emphasize community life. The community belongs to a religious order and the cenobitic monk is regulated by a religious rule. The organized versions of cenobitic monasticism is thought to have started in Egypt in the 4th century AD. Monks of previous centuries were usually hermits, however this form of solitary living did not suit everyone. These organized communities started to be created so that monks could have more support in their spiritual struggle.
The second subgroup of a monk is the hermit and anchorite. These people have thorough experience as cenobites in a monastery and are prepared to withdraw from secular society to lead an intensely prayer oriented life.
The third subgroup of a monk is the sarabait. They acknowledge no monastic superior and obeyed no definite rule. Benedict referred to them as the most detestable kind of monks because they are pretenders and have no cenobitic experience. Normally they lived in their own homes, or dwelt together in or near cities, continuing like the early ascetics.
The fourth subgroup of a monk is the gyrovague. Gyrovagues were wandering monks without fixed residence or leadership, they relied on the charity of others. They were denounced as wretched by Benedict of Nursia, who accused them of indulging in their passions and cravings. In the 8th century the cenobitic and eremitic forms of monasticism became the accepted form within the church, and the wandering monk phenomenon faded into obscurity.