Cluniac Reform, name given to a movement for monastic reform which originated in the Burgundian Abbey of Cluny, founded in 910, and spread through western Europe largely through the foundation of affiliated monasteries. The principles of the reform were strict asceticism and unconditional obedience, hence an accentuation of the hierarchical structure of Christianity. Underlying it were on the one side a new emphasis on a life of self-denial as the means of overcoming death and achieving salvation, on the other an emphasis on the Church as the supreme authority at the expense of the temporal power of the state. The Cluniac Reform, which was most successfully furthered by the abbots Odo (927-42) and Odilo (994-1048), did not at first affect Germany, though a parallel movement which concentrated on the ascetic way of life, ignoring the political implications, began to spread in German territory in the 10th c. from Gorze Abbey in Lorraine by way of Trier.
A direct influence of Cluny made its impact in Germany in the abbeys of Hirsau in Württemberg and St Blasien in Baden. It spread rapidly through the Benedictine foundations in Germany, but whether it was the dominant factor underlying the literary remains of the period 1060-1170 is doubtful. Possibly under its impulse the use of German, rather than Latin, was revived in such a work as Memento mori, forming a means of communicating to the laity the fear of death, the hope of salvation, and the necessity of mortifying the flesh to attain it. The impulse of the Cluniac Reform spent itself in the second half of the 12th c.
Cluniac Reforms
| German Literature Companion: Cluniac Reform |
| Wikipedia: Cluniac Reforms |
The Cluniac Reforms (also called Clunian Reforms) were a series of changes within medieval monasticism focussed on restoring the traditional monastic life, encouraging art, and caring for the poor. The movement is named for the Abbey of Cluny in Burgundy, where it started within the Benedictine order. The reforms were largely carried out by Saint Odo (c. 878 – 942) and spread throughout France (Burgundy, Provence, Auvergne, Poitou), into England, and through much of Italy and Spain.[1]
Contents |
Corruption
The impetus for the reforms was corruption within the church, particularly simony and concubinage. These abuses were thought to be a result of secular interference in the monasteries and of the Church's tight integration with the feudal and manorial systems.[2] At the same time, the Papacy wished to reassert control of all clergy and to stop the investiture of bishops by secular rulers.[3] Since a Benedictine monastery required land, it needed the patronage of a local lord. However, the lord would often demand rights and assert prerogatives that interfered with the operation of the monastery.[4] The Cluny reform was an attempt to remedy these practices in the hope that a more independent abbot would better enforce the Rule of Saint Benedict.
Reform
William of Aquitaine formed the first Cluny monastery in 910 with the novel stipulation that the monastery would report directly to the pope rather than to a local lord. This meant the monastery would be essentially independent, since the pope's authority was largely theoretical at any significant distance. Further, the Abbot of Cluny retained authority over the daughter houses his order founded. By the twelfth century the Congregation of Cluny included more than a thousand monasteries.[5]
Among the most notable supporters of the Cluniac reforms were Pope Urban II,[6] Lambert of Hersfeld, and Richard of Verdun. The reforms encouraged the Church in the West to be more attentive to business and gave impetus to attempts to reassert control over the Eastern Church.[7]
Result
During its height (c. 950–c.1130), the Cluniac movement was one of the largest religious forces in Europe.[8] At least as significantly as their political consequences, the reforms demanded greater religious devotion. The Cluniacs supported the Peace of God, and promoted pilgrimages to the Holy Lands.[4] An increasingly rich liturgy stimulated demand for altar vessels of gold, fine tapestries and fabrics, stained glass, and polyphonic choral music to fill the Romanesque churches.[5]
In 1098 Robert of Molesme led a band of 21 Cluniac monks from their abbey at Molesme to establish a new monastery. The group hoped to cultivate a monastic community in which monks could live in stricter observance of the Rule of Saint Benedict. The monks acquired a plot of marsh land just south of Dijon called Cîteaux (Latin: "Cistercium"), and so founded the Cistercian order.[9]
References
- ^ Justus.Anglican.org
- ^ "900 - 1100". http://faculty.ucc.edu/egh-damerow/900_-_1100.htm. Retrieved 2008-11-25.
- ^ "Papal Monarchy". http://faculty.ucc.edu/egh-damerow/papal_monarchy.htm. Retrieved 2008-11-25.
- ^ a b Cluny and Ecc. Reform
- ^ a b Chambers, Mortimer (1974). The Western Experience. Knopf. pp. 269–283. ISBN 0394317335.
- ^ UWGB.edu
- ^ The Crusades
- ^ The Columbia Encyclopedia
- ^ Tobin, pp 29, 33, 36.
- R. W. Southern, Western Society and the Church in the Middle Ages, London: Penguin Books, 1970.
See also
External links
- "Medieval Sourcebook: Foundation Charter of Cluny, 910". http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/chart-cluny.html. Retrieved 2008-11-25.
- "Cluniac Order". http://www.aedificium.org/MonasticLife/CluniacOrder.html. Retrieved 2008-11-25.
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
 | Grüningen Priory |
| Berno of Cluny |
| Anselm III (Archbishop of Milan) |
 | In a Retrieved Reformation what does reformation mean? Read answer... |
| A german reformer? Read answer... |
| What is a reformed synagogue? Read answer... |
 | How was order brought by cluniac monastic reform? |
| What problem did the Cluniac reforms address? |
| What connects the Cluniac reforms with the Romanesque style of architecture? |
Copyrights:
 |
 | German Literature Companion. The Oxford Companion to German Literature. Copyright © 1976, 1986, 1997, 2005 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. Read more |
 |
| Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Cluniac Reforms". Read more |
- What are cluniac monks?
- Who is a reformer?
- What is a reformation?
- What was the Reformation?
- What is a reform?
- What is the reformation?
