The Cistercians : Ideals and Reality (Louis J. Lekai)

Category :  History (Vintage)

English

Format :  Hardcover

524 pages

ISBN :  0-87338-201-3

Publisher :  The Kent State University Press 1977

Edition :  1st

Dimension :  235x160x40mm

Weight :  915g

Condition :  very good

Comments :  plastic covered

Dust Jacket Condition :  very good

Book Summary :

The Cistercian Order finds its historical origin in Cîteaux, a French monastery founded in 1098 by a group of monks under the leadership of St. Robert of Molesme. Having left behind the Abbey of Molesme to found a new monastery, the community set out intending to live a life faithful to the simplicity of the Rule of St. Benedict. Inspired by the age’s strong spirit of ecclesial and monastic reform, they wanted to set aside some of the developments in monastic life associated with the distinguished and influential Benedictine Abbey of Cluny. Concretely, St. Robert and his monks embraced a set of ideals popular among contemporary monastic reformers: among them were the desire for an effective balance between prayer and serious work, an emphasis on evangelical poverty and a detachment from worldly affairs, and a style of community life modeled on the apostles and first Christians (cf. Acts 2:42-47; 4:32-35). Most essentially, they desired to seek out new and authentic ways of living their lives as monks in response to the call of God, a program of discernment that included both a fidelity to a broader and more ancient monastic tradition and a sincere attention to the life and times in which they lived.