Latest / Short History of the Christian Church / 051 - 20 Monasteries as Centres of Intellectual Life

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051 - 20 Monasteries as Centres of Intellectual Life · Short History of the Christian Church

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  Speaker 1: Part two, Chapter twenty of Short History of the Christian
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  Speaker 1: Church by John Fletcher Hurst. This LibriVox recording is in
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  Speaker 1: the public domain Chapter twenty. Monasteries as centers of intellectual life.
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  Speaker 1: European learning had a safe refuge during the Middle Ages
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  Speaker 1: in the monasteries of the Latin Church. Some of the
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  Speaker 1: orders paid special attention to one science and others to another,
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  Speaker 1: while still others occupied their whole time in ascetic discipline
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  Speaker 1: and works of charity. The monks of Monte Cassino in
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  Speaker 1: southern Italy were distinguished above all others in Europe for
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  Speaker 1: their scholarly taste. They possessed a very valuable library and
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  Speaker 1: utilized it in the production of works which commanded the
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  Speaker 1: respect of learned circles throughout Europe. But the popes never
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  Speaker 1: looked upon the monks of Monte Cassino with favor. The
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  Speaker 1: great monastery was a very hotbed of liberal things. From
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  Speaker 1: that place proceeded many an appeal in favor of greater intelligence,
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  Speaker 1: less superstition, purer morals, and papal reform. The appeals were
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  Speaker 1: fortified with a powerful array of thorough scholarship. The reputation
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  Speaker 1: of this famous monastery for liberal ideas was never lost.
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  Speaker 1: The monks continued from generation to generation in the same
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  Speaker 1: path of independent thought. It is believed that their attitude,
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  Speaker 1: even in these later times, has contributed largely towards the
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  Speaker 1: growth of those aspirations which have resulted in the abolition
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  Speaker 1: of the temporal power of the pope and the unity
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  Speaker 1: of Italy with Rome as the capital. The most frequent
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  Speaker 1: employment of the monks was the copying of the patristic literature.
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  Speaker 1: This class of works was very large, and the monks
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  Speaker 1: were so skilled in the use of the pen that
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  Speaker 1: their achievements in this department are still a Biblian geographical wonder.
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  Speaker 1: They wrote on parchment and were acquainted with all the
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  Speaker 1: arts necessary for permanent transcription. They knew how to make
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  Speaker 1: ink from vegetable materials, which remains firm to this day.
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  Speaker 1: They prepared the skins for writing, and knew all the
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  Speaker 1: details of enduring and artistic binding. They were capable of
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  Speaker 1: exquisite illuminating in the production of doctrinal works. They were
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  Speaker 1: at their best. Many of the illustrations in purple, silver
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  Speaker 1: and gold are still masterpieces of delicacy and finish. End
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  Speaker 1: of Chapter twenty