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1. DefinitionIn the early modern period, order (from Latin  ordo, which denoted such central political and social categories as order [system], the estates of the realm, and rank [3. 935 f.], then in Christian Latin “clergy” and “monastic community”) was an ambiguous term, but always associated with high prestige. Generally speaking it denoted an exclusive community, whose members had joined together under the leadership of an aristocratic or charismatic personality and had bound themselves by oath to work together for c…

1. DefinitionThe terms  monasticism,  monk, and  monastic, all from Greek  mónachos (“living alone”), stand for a celibate way of life (Celibacy) characterized by withdrawal from the social environment and concentrated focus on the divine sphere; it is native to many religious traditions. In the western (Latin) Church, monasticism constitutes the oldest form of Christian order (Order [association]) – though not the only form, as in the Eastern Church. Monastic orders include above all the Benedictines and Cistercians, who emerged under the influence of the  Rule of Benedict o…