Monks

            A monk is a man who has given his life to a disipline of a prayer. He is a member of a brotherhood. Monks were busy and organized. There was a certain order for their prayers, this was called a time table. The first prayer was early in the morning. The last prayer was at midnight. The time table started to be used all over Europe. They did all of their work in the monasteries They usually didnt get a good night sleep. They wore robes with a cord tied at their waist. A priest named Benedict made a monastery. He made rules called the Benedictine Rule. 1. Vow of property. 2. Vow of chastity. 3. Vow of obedience. All of the monks took these vows. The first vow means to give up all of your personal property. The second vow means to stay single. The last vow is to promise to obey the church and monastery. Monks could be recognized by their clothing. They wore plain clothing with a cross on a chain around their necks. Some even wore hair shirts! The hair shirts were worn as undershirts. They would scratch their skin and remind them of the deep pain and suffering that Jesus went though. They ate in a place called a refectory. There was complete silence while they ate, besides the priests reading parts of the Bible out loud. The tables were long and sometimes if the monstery was wealthy they could have fancy food.

Monasteries

                Monks lived away from village life. They served as hospitals for the ill. Guesthouses for travelers. They were also distribution centers for the needy and storage for food. It is part church and part hospital. They take care of people and pray. It can also be a school for children. They taught them how to read and write. The monks did all of their work in here. In the heart of the monastery they did work called Cloister. While studying and writing down prayers from the Bible they walked around a square. Their books were published by hand. They wrote and drew neatly. The the first letter of each paragraph was amazing. It was drawn with care. Gold writing was extremly fancy. When monasteries became wealthy, monks wanted to change orders. A new order was called Cistercian. It was respected. A cistercian is a member of a monastery away from town. Most people went to church like we go to school. People had to pay taxes to the church. Some parents promised their children to monasteries. They did this so their children would never be homeless. Monasteries were very important.