Jesus In Every Age

 

Session Three: Jesus, the Monk Who Ruled the World

Saint Benedict (480 – 547): The Rise of Monasticism

The rise of institutional Christianity (the Pantocrator) and Christian prosperity goes hand-in-hand with the desert fathers, and early monasticism.

Benedict began his formal ministry as a hermit. Followers gathered around him, and he established a Rule of Life for these communities, one of the most influential Christian documents of the western Church.

The Rule: The attempt to carve out a space for a deeper relationship with Christ, a Lord who demands total commitment. A life of attainable sacrifice ordered

towards a life of humility. Based on biblical teachings and example of

Jesus An all-encompassing pattern of life that

deals largely with daily practicalities- ora et labora, work and prayer.

Benedicts Monasticism was Hugely Influential in Shaping the History of Christianity in the West

Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153) and the Cistercians: Divine Love

• Cistercians as reform Benedictine order• Rapid growth during the life of Bernard,

who became abbot of Clairvaux at age 25• In the Cistercian cloister, mystical

theology of ascent blossomed, drawing on Platonist influence through Pseudo-Dionysius• Via purgativa, via illuminativa, via unitiva

• Song of Songs in the Medieval Cloister• Why was this reading so appealing in

monastic communities?

• Jesus as the Beloved Lover• Jesus as the model of Humility• Jesus as the object of Conversion and

Union with Him. How do we know God?• Mystical Union and ascent.• Know Thyself• Christ as the perfect Imago Dei- Image of

God

Francis of Assisi (1182-1226): The Friars

The Humanity of Christ Holy Poverty The Humility of Christ The wounds of Christ The Body and Blood of

Christ Imitatio Christi (the

Imitation of Christ) being at the heart of Christian life. Doing penance is living the life of Christ’s simplicity in order to receive Christ and his blessings.

Friars: Living in, but not of the world

A preaching order.

St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)A Dominican friarUniversity of Paris, medieval

ScholasticismAristotelian Synthesis

Image of God resides largely in potential human intellectual capacity

Relation to Christ as model and Savior which enables growth in the virtues.

Eucharistic Theology and Piety: Corpus Christi- centers thinking even more intensely on sacrifice and the death of Christ (cult of the precious blood, flagellants, etc)

Christ as the Perfect Friend and the telos (goal) of human life.