The oldest monastery in Europe presentation. Shrines of Europe: the oldest monastery
Nowadays, looking at the monastery buildings with their attractiveness and enormity, you cannot believe that there was once an empty space on the site of the monastery. Medieval monasteries in Europe were built to last for centuries and even millennia. If we talk about the purpose of monasteries, they were centers for the development of philosophical thought, enlightenment and, consequently, the formation of a pan-European Christian culture.
History of the development of monasteries.
The appearance of monasteries in Europe is associated with the spread Christian faith in all European countries and principalities. Today it is known that the monastery was the center of the economic and cultural life of Europe. Life was in full swing in the monasteries direct meaning this word. Many people mistakenly believe that a monastery is simply a Christian temple for worship, inhabited by several monks or nuns. In fact, the monastery is a small town in which the necessary types of farming have been developed, such as agriculture, gardening, cattle breeding, which mainly provide food, as well as material for making clothes. The clothes, by the way, were made here - on the spot. In other words, the monastery was also a center for the development of craft activities, providing the population with clothing, dishes, weapons and tools.
To understand the place of monasteries in the medieval life of Europe, it should be said that the population then lived according to the Law of God. Moreover, it does not matter whether the person was actually a believer or not. Everyone believed without exception; those who did not believe and openly declared it were accused of heretical prejudices, persecuted by the church and could be executed. This moment occurred quite often in medieval Europe. Catholic Church had unlimited control over the entire territory inhabited by Christians. Even European monarchs did not dare to dare against the church, because this could be followed by excommunication with all the ensuing consequences. The monasteries represented a dense network of Catholic “supervision” over everything that happened.
The monastery was an impregnable fortress, which, in the event of an attack, could defend its borders for quite a long time, until the main forces arrived, which did not have to wait long. The monasteries were surrounded by thick walls precisely for this purpose.
All medieval monasteries in Europe were the richest buildings. It was said above that the entire population was a believer, and, therefore, had to pay a tax - a tithe of the harvest. This led to the exorbitant enrichment of monasteries, as well as the highest clergy - abbots, bishops, archbishops. The monasteries were drowning in luxury. It was not without reason that literary works appeared at that time, discrediting the life and actions of the Pope and his entourage. Of course, this literature was banned, burned, and the authors were punished. But, nevertheless, some disguised artistic works managed to go into circulation and survive to this day. One of the most significant works of this kind is “Gargantua and Pantagruel”, written by Francois Rabelais.
Education and upbringing.
Monasteries were centers of education and training for the youth of medieval Europe. After the spread of Christianity throughout Europe, the number of secular schools was reduced, and subsequently they were banned altogether because their activities carried heretical judgments. From that moment on, monastery schools became the only place of education and upbringing. Education was carried out in the context of 4 disciplines: astronomy, arithmetic, grammar and dialectics. All training in these disciplines boiled down to opposition to heretical views. For example, the study of arithmetic was not about teaching children basic operations with numbers, but about mastering religious interpretation number sequence. Calculating the dates of church holidays was done while studying astronomy. The teaching of grammar consisted of correct reading and semantic understanding of the Bible. Dialectics united all these “sciences” in order to teach students the correct way to conduct a conversation with heretics and the art of eloquent argument with them.
Everyone knows the fact that the training was carried out on Latin. The difficulty was that this language was not used in daily communication, so it was poorly understood not only by the pupils, but also by some of the highest confessors.
Training was carried out all year round - there were no holidays at that time, but this does not mean that the children did not rest. IN Christian religion there are huge amount holidays that were considered days off in medieval Europe. On such days, the monasteries held services, so the educational process stopped.
The discipline was strict. For every mistake, the students were punished, in most cases corporally. This process was considered useful because it was believed that during corporal punishment from physical body the "Devil Essence" was expelled human body. But there were still moments of fun when children were allowed to run around, play and have fun.
Thus, the monasteries of Europe were centers not only for the development of culture, but also for the worldview of the entire people inhabiting the European continent. The supremacy of the church in all matters was undeniable, and the conductors of the Pope’s ideas were monasteries scattered throughout the territory Christendom.
Today, there are three ancient shrines located on the territory of Western and Eastern Europe, despite the fact that each of them has its own unique history. And first of all, the Monastery of St. Athanasius, located near the small Bulgarian village of Green Meadow, claims to be the oldest monastery in Europe.
It is noteworthy that the oldest medieval monastery in Europe, the foundation of which dates back to 344, does not look at all like a majestic Gothic structure, but like a tiny, but no less charming white church paved with a red tiled roof, relevant for the southern and eastern regions of the Old World. The uniqueness of this monastery lies not only in its antiquity, but also in the healing waters of the well dug on its territory. In addition, in the rocks surrounding the shrine there is a miraculous niche - a monastery, in which the founder of the monastery, St. Athanasius, and his followers once prayed, and today any pilgrim can not only see this beautiful place with his own eyes, but even pray in it.
Unfortunately, over all the years of its existence, the ancient shrine was destroyed more than once, and after the passions subsided, it was rebuilt again. For example, during the development of communist ideas in the country, the monastery of St. Athanasius was completely turned into an inn, with all the ensuing consequences, and only after the eighties of the Twentieth century everything returned to normal and this building was completely restored and enlarged, as a result of which it happened to become one of the largest monasteries in Bulgaria. Today, any tourist can visit this ancient shrine absolutely free of charge, despite the fact that the doors of the monastery are open daily from seven in the morning to seven in the evening.
The second contender for the title of “The most ancient monastery in Europe” is the Scottish monastery of St. Mauritius, the date of its foundation, according to the chronicles, falls in the fourth century. The history of this shrine is also very interesting, because it was erected on the site of the execution of the great legionnaire Mauritius and his six thousand army, who died a heroic death for refusing to carry out the criminal order of the Roman Emperor Maximian to kill Christians. A little later, King Sigismund, inspired by the heroic feat of Mauritius, began the construction of a monastery of the same name, in which his relics now rest as one of the holy martyrs. It is noteworthy that for one and a half thousand years the monastery did not stop functioning, and in 1998 its portal underwent restoration, as a result of which hundreds of names of saints who died as martyrs in different parts of the globe were inscribed on it. There are names of Russian martyrs on the gates of the basilica, and although Orthodox pilgrims in Swiss St. Moritz there are not very many of them, they are always very cordially and warmly received within the walls of the monastery of St. Mauritius.
Another famous ancient shrine in the territory Western Europe is the monastery of Montserrat, located on a picturesque highland of bizarre limestone rocks (the height is 725 meters above Mediterranean Sea level) in the Spanish province of Catalonia. The first mention of this Benedictine monastery of wondrous beauty dates back to 880, but it is possible that it was founded much earlier. Today, this monastery is an unofficial center for all Catholic pilgrimages, however, it attracts people from all over the world not only with its holy places, but also with the most picturesque landscapes and rich flora of the natural complex adjacent to the shrine, thanks to which since 1987 this territory has officially been declared a provincial national park.
The infrastructure of this shrine is also very developed, because in addition to the cable car, a rack railway is also connected to the Montserrat monastery, which is very popular among tourists. Unfortunately, the building underwent numerous changes, because only Napoleon’s troops literally incinerated this cathedral, as a result of which only fragments of the Romanov portal remained. And only in 1844, the Catalans began to slowly restore Montserrat, subsequently using it as a reliable support and stronghold already during the harsh dictatorship of Franco, who prohibited the use of the native language and customs of the inhabitants of the province. Meanwhile, the best artists and sculptors of the 20th and 21st centuries worked to recreate this beautiful monastery, sparing no effort, time, or money (the most expensive materials were used for the interior decoration of the cathedral).
If we talk about the most ancient monastery in the world, then today it continues to be considered the famous Monastery of St. Catherine in Egypt (Sinai Peninsula), founded in the fourth century, which is included in the list World Heritage UNESCO.
Magnificent paintings, frescoes, records of historical chronicles - all this is a medieval monastery. Those who want to touch the past and learn about the events of bygone days should begin their journey with study, since they remember much more than the pages of chronicles.
Cultural and economic centers of the Middle Ages
During the Dark Times, monastic communes begin to gain strength. For the first time they appear on the territory. The progenitor of this movement can be considered Benedict of Nursia. The largest medieval period is the monastery in Montecassino. This is a world with its own rules, in which each member of the commune had to contribute to the development of the common cause.
At this time, the medieval monastery was a huge complex of buildings. It included cells, libraries, refectories, cathedrals and utility buildings. The latter included barns, warehouses, and animal pens.
Over time, monasteries turned into the main centers of concentration of culture and economy of the Middle Ages. Here they kept a chronology of events, held debates, and assessed the achievements of science. Such teachings as philosophy, mathematics, astronomy, and medicine developed and improved.
All physically difficult work was left to novices, peasants and ordinary monastic workers. Such settlements had great value in the field of information storage and accumulation. Libraries were replenished with new books, and old publications were constantly rewritten. The monks also kept historical chronicles themselves.
History of Russian Orthodox monasteries
Russian medieval monasteries appeared much later than European ones. Initially, hermit monks lived separately in deserted places. But Christianity spread among the masses quite quickly, so stationary churches became necessary. Starting from the 15th century until the reign of Peter I, there was widespread construction of churches. They were in almost every village, and large monasteries were built near cities or in holy places.
Peter I held a series church reforms, which were continued by his successors. The common people reacted negatively to the new fashion for Western tradition. Therefore, already under Catherine II, the construction of Orthodox monasteries was resumed.
Most of these places of worship did not become a place of pilgrimage for believers, but some Orthodox churches known all over the world.
Miracles of Myrrh Streaming
The banks of the Velikaya River and the Mirozhka River flowing into it. It was here that the Pskov Spaso-Preobrazhensky Mirozhsky Monastery appeared many centuries ago.
The location of the church made it vulnerable to frequent raids. She took all the blows first and foremost. Constant robberies and fires haunted the monastery for many centuries. And despite all this, fortress walls were never built around it. What remains surprising is that, despite all the troubles, he preserved the frescoes, which still delight with their beauty.
For many centuries, the Mirozhsky Monastery kept priceless miraculous icon Mother of God. In the 16th century, she became famous for the miracle of myrrh flow. Later miracles of healing were attributed to her.
A recording was found in a collection kept in the monastery library. It is dated 1595 according to the modern calendar. It contained the story of the miraculous. As the entry says: “Tears flowed from the eyes of the Most Pure One like streams.”
Spiritual heritage
Several years ago, the monastery of Djurdjevi Stupovi celebrated its birthday. And he was born neither more nor less, but eight centuries ago. This church became one of the first Orthodox churches on Montenegrin soil.
The monastery experienced many tragic days. Over its centuries-old history, it was destroyed by fire 5 times. Eventually the monks left the place.
For a long period, the medieval monastery was devastated. And only in late XIX century, a project began to recreate this historical object. Not only architectural structures were restored, but also monastic life.
There is a museum on the territory of the monastery. In it you can see fragments of surviving buildings and artifacts. Now the monastery of Djurdjevi Stupovi lives a real life. Constant charity events and collections are held for the development of this monument of spirituality.
The past is in the present
Today Orthodox monasteries continue their active work. Despite the fact that the history of some has exceeded a thousand years, they continue to live according to the old way of life and do not strive to change anything.
The main occupations are farming and serving the Lord. Monks try to understand the world in accordance with the Bible and teach this to others. From their experience they show that money and power are transitory things. Even without them you can live and be absolutely happy.
Unlike churches, monasteries do not have a parish, however, people willingly visit the monks. Having abandoned everything worldly, many of them receive a gift - the ability to cure illnesses or help with words.
IV Architecture of the monastery
Benedict of Nursia in his charter prescribed that the monastery should be built as a closed and isolated space, allowing maximum isolation from the world and its temptations:
“The monastery, if this is possible, should be arranged in such a way that everything necessary, that is, water, a mill, a fish tank, a vegetable garden and various crafts, would be inside the monastery, so that the monks would not need to go outside the walls, which is not at all serves the benefit of their souls."
If the architecture of the Romanesque and especially the Gothic temple, with its high windows and vaults directed towards heaven, was often likened to prayer in stone, then the layout of the monastery, with its premises intended only for monks, novices and converses, can be called discipline embodied in the walls and galleries. A monastery is a closed world where dozens, and sometimes hundreds of men or women must go together to salvation. This is a sacred space (the church was likened to the Heavenly Jerusalem, the cloister to the Garden of Eden, etc.) and at the same time a complex economic mechanism with barns, kitchens and workshops.
Of course, medieval abbeys were not built according to the same plan and were completely different from each other. The early medieval Irish monastery, where a dozen hermit brothers who practiced extreme asceticism lived in tiny stone cells, is difficult to compare with the huge Abbey of Cluny in its heyday. There were several cloister courtyards (for monks, novices and the sick), separate chambers for the abbot and a giant basilica - the so-called. the church of Cluny III (1088-1130), which before the construction of the current St. Peter's Basilica in Rome (1506-1626) was the most big temple Catholic world. The monasteries of the mendicant orders (primarily the Franciscans and Dominicans, who were usually built in the middle of the cities where the brothers went to preach) were not at all similar to the Benedictine monasteries. The latter were often erected in forests or on mountain cliffs, like Mont Saint-Michel on a rocky islet off the coast of Normandy or Sacra di San Michele in Piedmont (this abbey became the prototype of the Alpine monastery described in “The Name of the Rose” Umberto Eco).
The architecture of the monastery churches and the structure of the entire abbey, of course, depended on local traditions, available building materials, the size of the brethren and its financial opportunities. However, it was also important how open the monastery was to the world. For example, if a monastery - thanks to the relics stored there or miraculous images- attracted a lot of pilgrims (like the Abbey of Sainte-Foy in Conques, France), there was a need to equip the infrastructure to receive them: for example, expand and rebuild the temple so that the pili-grims could gain access to the desired shrines and would not overwhelm each other , build hospice houses.
The oldest and most famous of the medieval monastery plans was drawn up in the first half of the 9th century in the German abbey of Reichenau for Gosbert, abbot of St. Gallen (in modern Switzerland). On five sheets of parchment ( overall size 112 × 77.5 cm) depicts not a real, but an ideal monastery. This is a huge complex with dozens of buildings and 333 signatures that indicate the names and purposes of various buildings: churches, scriptorium, dormitory, refectory, kitchens, bakery, brewery, abbot's residence, hospital, house for guest monks, etc.
We will choose a simpler plan, which shows how a typical Cistercian monastery might have been structured in the 12th century, similar to the Abbey of Fonttenay, founded in Burgundy in 1118. Since the structure of Cistercian abbeys largely followed older models, this plan may reveal much about the life in the monasteries of other Benedictine "families."
1. Church
Further, at the intersection of the nave with the transept, there were choirs (E). There the monks gathered for hours and masses. In the choirs, opposite each other, there were two rows of benches or chairs in parallel English stalls, fr. stalls.. IN later Middle Ages they most often had reclining seats, so that during tiring services the monks could either sit or stand, leaning on small consoles - misericords Let's remember the French word misericorde(“compassion”, “mercy”) - such shelves were indeed a mercy for tired or weak brothers..
Benches were installed behind the choir (F), where during the service the sick brothers, temporarily separated from the healthy ones, were located, as well as novices. Next came the partition English rod screen, fr. jube., on which a large crucifix was installed (G). In parish churches, cathedrals and monasteries where pilgrims were admitted, it separated the choir and presbytery, where services were held and the clergy were located, from the nave, where the laity had access. The laity could not go beyond this border and in fact did not see the priest, who, in addition, stood with his back to them. In modern times, most of these partitions were demolished, so when we enter some medieval temple, we need to imagine that before its space was not at all united and accessible to everyone.
In Cistercian churches there may have been a choir for converse in the nave (H)- worldly brothers. From their cloister they entered the temple through a special entrance (I). It was located near the western portal (J), through which the laity could enter the church.
2. Cloister
A quadrangular (less often polygonal or even round) gallery, which adjoined the church from the south and connected the main monastic buildings together. A garden was often laid out in the center. In the monastic tradition, the cloister was likened to a walled Eden, Noah's Ark, where the family of the righteous was saved from the waters sent to sinners as punishment, Solomon's Temple or Heavenly Jerusalem. The name of the galleries comes from the Latin claustrum- “closed, fenced space.” Therefore, in the Middle Ages, both the central courtyard and the entire monastery could be called this.
The cloister served as the center of monastic life: through its galleries the monks moved from the bedroom to the church, from the church to the refectory, and from the refectory, for example, to the scriptorium. There was a well and a place for washing - lavatorium .
Solemn processions were also held in the cloister: for example, in Cluny, every Sunday between the third hour and the main mass, the brothers, led by one of the priests, walked through the monastery, sprinkling all the rooms with holy water.
In many Benedictine monasteries, such as the Abbey of Santo Domingo de Silos (Spain) or Saint-Pierre de Moissac (France), on the capitals of the columns on which the galleries rested, many scenes from the Bible, lives of saints, and allegorical images were carved ( as a confrontation between vices and virtues), as well as frightening figures of demons and various monsters, animals intertwined with each other, etc. The Cistercians, who sought to get away from excessive luxury and any images that could distract the monks from prayer and contemplation, expelled such decor from their monasteries.
3. Washbasin
IN Maundy Thursday on Holy Week- in memory of how Christ washed the feet of his disciples before the Last Supper In. 13:5-11.— the monks, led by the abbot, humbly washed and kissed the feet of the poor people who were brought to the monastery.
In the gallery adjacent to the church, every day before Compline the brethren gathered to listen to the reading of some pious text - collatio This name arose because Saint Benedict recommended for this “Conversation” (“Collationes”) John Cassian (about 360 - about 435), an ascetic who was one of the first to transfer the principles of monastic life from Egypt to the West. Then in a word collatio began to be called a snack or a glass of wine, which in fast days issued to boorish monks this evening hour(hence the French word collation- “snack”, “light dinner”)..
4. Sacristy
A room in which liturgical vessels, liturgical vestments and books were kept under lock and key (if the monastery did not have a special treasury, then relics), as well as important documents: historical chronicles and collections of charters, which listed purchases, donations and other acts on which the material well-being of the monastery depended.
5. Library
Next to the sacristy there was a library. In small communities it looked more like a closet with books; in huge abbeys it looked like a majestic repository in which the characters in “The Name of the Rose” by Umberto Eco are looking for the forbidden volume of Aristotle.
We can imagine what monks read at different times and in different parts of Europe thanks to the inventories of medieval monastic libraries. These are lists of the Bible or individual biblical books, commentaries on them, liturgical manuscripts, writings of the Church Fathers and authoritative theologians Ambrose of Milan, Augustine of Hippo, Jerome of Stridon, Gregory the Great, Isidore of Seville and others., lives of saints, collections of miracles, historical chronicles, treatises on canon law, geography, astronomy, medicine, botany, Latin grammars, works of ancient Greek and Roman authors... It is well known that many ancient texts have reached our days only because, despite their suspicious attitude towards pagan wisdom, they were preserved by medieval monks In Carolingian times, the richest monasteries - such as St. Gallen and Lorsch in the German states or Bobbio in Italy - possessed 400-600 volumes. The catalog of the library of the monastery of Saint-Riquier in the north of France, compiled in 831, consisted of 243 volumes. The chronicle, written in the 12th century in the monastery of Saint-Pierre-le-Vif in Sens, provides a list of manuscripts that Abbot Arnauld ordered to be copied or restored. In addition to biblical and liturgical books, it included commentaries and theological works of Origen, Augustine of Hippo, Gregory the Great, the passion of the martyr Tiburtius, a description of the transfer of the relics of St. Benedict to the Fleury monastery, “History of the Lombards” by Paul the Deacon, etc..
In many monasteries, scriptoria functioned at the library, where the brothers copied and decorated new books. Until the 13th century, when workshops where lay scribes worked began to multiply in cities, monasteries remained the main producers of books, and monks remained their main readers.
6. Chapter Hall
The administrative and disciplinary center of the monastery. It was there that every morning (after the first hour service in the summer; after the third hour and morning mass in the winter) the monks gathered to read one of the chapters ( capitulum) Benedictine Rite. Hence the name of the hall. In addition to the charter, a fragment from the martyrology (a list of saints whose memory was celebrated on each day) and an obituary (a list of deceased brothers, patrons of the monastery and members of its “family” for whom the monks should offer prayers on this day) were read out there.
In the same hall, the abbot instructed the brethren and sometimes conferred with selected monks. There, novices who had completed their probationary period again asked to be tonsured as monks. There the abbot received powerful of the world This is why he resolved conflicts between the monastery and church authorities or secular lords. The “accusatory chapter” was also held there - after reading the charter, the abbot said: “If someone has something to say, let him speak.” And then those monks who knew of some kind of violation by someone or themselves (for example, they were late for the service or left the found thing with them for at least one day), had to admit it in front of the rest of the brethren and suffer the punishment that will be appointed by the rector.
The frescoes that decorated the capitular halls of many Benedictine abbeys reflected their disciplinary vocation. For example, in the St. Emmeram Monastery in Regensburg, murals were made on the theme of the “angelic life” of monks struggling with temptation, modeled on St. Benedict, their father and legislator. In the monastery of Saint-Georges de Bocherville in Normandy, on the arches of the capitular hall, images of corporal punishment to which offending monks were sentenced were carved.
7. Conversation room
The Rule of Saint Benedict instructed the brothers most of time to remain silent. Silence was considered the mother of virtues, and closed lips were considered “a condition for the peace of the heart.” Collections of customs of different monasteries sharply limited those places and moments of the day when the brothers could communicate with each other, and the lives described the grave punishments that fell on the heads of the talkers. In some abbeys, a distinction was made between the “great silence” (when it was forbidden to speak at all) and the “little silence” (when it was possible to speak in a low voice). In certain rooms - the church, dormitory, refectory, etc. - idle conversations were completely prohibited. After Compline there was to be absolute silence throughout the entire monastery.
In case of emergency, it was possible to talk in special rooms ( auditorium). In Cistercian monasteries there could be two of them: one for the prior and monks (next to the chapter hall), the second primarily for the cellarer and converse (between their refectory and kitchen).
To facilitate communication, some abbeys developed special sign languages that made it possible to transmit the simplest messages without formally violating the charter. Such gestures did not mean sounds or syllables, but entire words: the names of various rooms, everyday objects, elements of worship, liturgical books, etc. Lists of such signs were preserved in many monasteries. For example, in Cluny there were 35 gestures for describing food, 22 for items of clothing, 20 for worship, etc. To “say” the word “bread”, you had to make two little fingers and two index fingers circle, since bread was usually baked round. In different abbeys the gestures were completely different, and the gesticulating monks of Cluny and Hirsau would not understand each other.
8. Bedroom, or dormitorium
Most often, this room was located on the second floor, above the chapter hall or next to it, and it could be accessed not only from the cloister, but also through a passage from the church. Chapter 22 of the Benedictine Rule prescribed that each monk should sleep on a separate bed, preferably in the same room:
«<…>...if their large number does not allow this to be arranged, let them sleep ten or twenty at a time with the elders, who are in charge of taking care of them. Let the lamp in the bedroom burn until the morning.
They must sleep in their clothes, girdled with belts or ropes. When they sleep, they should not have their knives with which they work, cut branches, etc., at their sides, so as not to injure themselves while sleeping. Monks must always be ready and, as soon as a sign is given, immediately get up and rush, one ahead of the other, to the work of God, decorously, but also modestly. The youngest brothers should not have beds next to each other, but let them be mixed with the elders. As we take up the cause of God, let us encourage each other brotherly, dispelling the excuses invented by the drowsy.”
Benedict of Nursia instructed that a monk should sleep on a simple mat, covered with a blanket. However, his charter was intended for a monastery located in southern Italy. IN northern lands- say, in Germany or Scandinavia - compliance with this instruction required much greater (often almost impossible) dedication and contempt for the flesh. In different monasteries and orders, depending on their severity, different measures of comfort were allowed. For example, Franciscans were required to sleep on bare ground or on planks, and mats were only allowed for those who were physically weak.
9. Warm room, or calefactorium
Since almost all the rooms of the monastery were not heated, a special warm room was set up in the northern lands where the fire was maintained. There the monks could warm up a little, melt frozen ink or wax their shoes.
10. Refectory, or refectorium
IN large monasteries the refectory, which was supposed to accommodate all the brethren, was very impressive. For example, in the Parisian Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés the refectory was 40 meters long and 20 meters wide. Long tables with benches were placed in the shape of the letter “P”, and all the brethren were seated behind them in order of seniority - just like in the choir of a church.
In Benedictine monasteries, where, unlike the Cistercian ones, there were many cultic and didactic images, frescoes depicting the Last Supper were often painted in the refectory. The monks were to identify themselves with the apostles gathered around Christ.
11. Kitchen
The Cistercian diet was primarily vegetarian, with some fish included. There were no special cooks - the brothers worked in the kitchen for a week, and on Saturday evening the team on duty gave way to the next one.
For most of the year, the monks received only one meal a day, in the late afternoon. From mid-September to Lent (beginning around mid-February) they could eat for the first time after the ninth hour, and during Lent - after supper. Only after Easter did the monks receive the right to another meal around noon.
Most often, the monastic lunch consisted of beans (beans, lentils, etc.), designed to satisfy hunger, after which the main course was served, including fish or eggs and cheese. On Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, each person usually received a whole portion, and on fasting days, Monday, Wednesday and Friday, one portion for two.
In addition, to maintain the strength of the monks, every day they were given a portion of bread and a glass of wine or beer.
12. Refectory for Converse
In Cistercian monasteries, lay brothers were separated from full-fledged monks: they had their own dormitory, their own refectory, their own entrance to the church, etc.
13. Entrance to the monastery
The Cistercians sought to build their abbeys as far as possible from towns and villages in order to overcome the secularization in which, over the centuries since the time of St. Benedict, the “black monks,” especially the Clunians, had become mired. Nevertheless, the “white monks” also could not completely isolate themselves from the world. They were visited by laymen, members of the monastery “family”, related to brothers by ties of kinship or who decided to serve the monastery. The gatekeeper, who watched the entrance to the monastery, periodically welcomed the poor, who were given bread and leftover food that the brothers had not eaten.
14. Hospital
Large monasteries always had a hospital - with a chapel, a refectory, and sometimes with its own kitchen. Unlike their healthy counterparts, patients could count on enhanced nutrition and other benefits: for example, they were allowed to exchange a few words during meals and not attend all the long divine services.
All the brothers were periodically sent to the hospital, where they underwent bloodletting ( minutio) - a procedure that is even necessary to maintain the correct balance of humors (blood, mucus, black bile and yellow bile) in the body. After this procedure, the weakened monks received temporary indulgences for several days in order to restore their strength: exemption from all-night vigils, an evening ration and a glass of wine, and sometimes delicacies like roast chicken or goose.
15. Other buildings
In addition to the church, the cloister and the main buildings where the lives of monks, novices and converses took place, the monasteries had many other buildings: the abbot’s personal apartments; a hospice for poor travelers and a hotel for important guests; various outbuildings: barns, cellars, mills and bakeries; stables, dovecotes, etc. Medieval monks were engaged in many crafts (they made wine, brewed beer, tanned leather, processed metals, worked on glass, produced tiles and bricks) and actively developed natural resources: they uprooted and felled forests, quarried stone , coal, iron and peat, developed salt mines, built water mills on rivers, etc. As they would say today, monasteries were one of the main centers of technical innovation.
