Order of Saint Benedict

While there may be debate as to what the most important event was in the time periods all the way up to the 1600’s, I would argue that it was in introduction of the Christian religion to the western civilizations. Every aspect of civilization was impacted by this socially, economically and politically. Christianity was first introduced by Constantine in the Roman Empire in the late third century. Constantine issued the famous Edict of Milan, which made it official that the Romans would tolerate…

important days in the Christian calendar. Reading was such an important aspect of religious life that specific rules were created for the purpose of reading, especially by St. Benedict for the members of his order. The lectio divina or the task of divine reading was set out in the rulebook used by the monks of the Benedictine order. “The Rule set aside a period of time each day for sacred reading which consisted of a combination of meditative reading and prayer” (Grotans 30) thereby making…

In modern Church history, one of the most contentious and controversial issues that the Roman Catholic Church has had to deal with in its ecumenical dialogue with other Christian churches is the Dogma of Papal Infallibility. This dogma was officially promulgated by Pope Pius IX at the First Vatican Council (1869-1870) in the Dogmatic Constitution Pastor Aeternus. This magisterial document defined the role and ministry of the pope within the Church. In their attempt to define the Petrine office,…

Cornelius Agrippa von Nettesheim had strong opinions on dreaming and the interpretation of dreams. Cardano personally believed there was truth in the interpretation of dreams, but felt that only certain people should be able to interpret certain dreams in order to avoid false prophets. If this belief is true, how does one decide which dreams to look into, and how can every dream or vision conjoured by every peasant of the Middle Ages be reliable and valid? There is no real way to determine which…

The architecture during the middle ages was to believe in the supernatural that the spiritual is the path to God. Pope Benedict XVI quoted “the Gothic cathedrals intended to express in its architectural lines the soul’s longing for God” Gothic cathedrals and their stained glass windows should union of beauty, but with power, money and religion. For those who did not believe…

Then he calmly walked to those in the crowd and greeted them saying "Pax et Bonum." Suddenly there was a roar, and the crowd made way. A huge giant rushed forward and grabbed Francis by the scruff of the neck. It was his father. BERNARDONE: Come with me, now! FRANCIS: (Holding one of the columns of the temple) Where? I'm not going anywhere! BERNARDONE: (Roaring) Home! FRANCIS: My home is here – here in the square. And these men and…