Curiosities of Christian History Prior to the Reformation

by James Paterson

The following is Mr. Travers Hill’s account, given in his “English Monasticism,” of the order of the day in the monastery at Glastonbury, and which went on much the same for ten centuries: At 2 a.m. the bell tolled for matins, when every monk arose, and, after performing his private devotions, hastened to the church and took his seat. When all were assembled, fifteen psalms were sung; then came the nocturn and more psalms. A short interval ensued, during which the chanter, choir, and those who needed it had permission to retire for a short time if they wished; then followed lauds, which were generally finished by 6 a.m., when the bell rang for prime. When this was finished, the monks continued reading till 7 a.m., when the bell was rung and they retired to put on their day-clothes. Afterwards the whole convent, having performed their ablutions and broken their fast, proceeded again to the church, and the bell was rung for tierce at 9 a.m. After tierce came the morning Mass, and as soon as that was over they marched in procession to the chapter-house for business and correction of faults. This ceremony over, the monks worked or read till sext (12 a.m.), which service being concluded, they dined. Then followed one hour’s sleep in their clothes in the dormitory, unless any of them preferred reading. Nones commenced at 3 p.m., first vespers at 4 p.m., then work or reading till second vespers at 7 p.m.; afterwards reading till collation; then came the service of complin, confession of sins, evening prayers, and retirement to rest about 9 p.m.

THE ROUTINE OF ENGLISH MONKS IN 1080.

The formalism of monkery was well displayed in the code drawn up by Lanfranc, who was made Archbishop of Canterbury by William the Conqueror. By this code the monks were to be called from their beds before daybreak, and go in their night-clothes to the church to sing. Thence to the cloister and hear the boys read till the bell tolls for them to put on their shoes. They were to pass to the dormitory for their day-dress and to the lavatory to wash. They were then to comb themselves, and when the great bell sounded they were to enter the church to receive the holy water. On the signal of another bell, they were to pray, and of another bell to sing, and afterwards to proceed to the altar to say or hear Mass. They were again to dress themselves and to return to the choir, to sit there till the bell summoned them to the chapter-house. On another signal, they were to resort to the refectory. After a certain hour no one was to speak till the children left the monastery; then when the bell sounded again, their shoes were to be taken off, their hands to be washed, and they were to enter the church to repeat the Litany and to hear High Mass. At another signal they were to go in procession. When the bell rang again, they were to pray, and afterwards to revisit the refectory. Some were then to sit in the choir, and those who liked might read. At a fresh signal the nones were to be sung; similar tasks were to succeed again in allotted order, till they were dismissed to their beds.

THE OFFICIALS AND ARRANGEMENTS OF AN ABBEY.

The officers in abbeys are, first, the abbot, who is supreme, and to whom all the others owe obedience. Next is the prior or president, then the subprior and lower officers. The gatehouse was the place where guests are admitted. The refectory was the hall where the monks dine. The locutorium or parlour where leave was given to them to converse, there being silence enforced in other parts. The oriel was a side-room where the indisposed monks were allowed to dine. In the abbey church the cloisters were the consecrated ground. The navis ecclesiæ was the nave or body of the church. The presbyterium was the raised choir on which the monks chanted. The vestiarium or vestry where the copes and clothes were deposited. The century or sanctuary was the place where debtors took refuge. The farm or grange was so called a grana gerendo—the overseer whereof was called the prior of the grange. The abbot was a baron in the English Parliament, and was summoned during and after the reign of Henry III.; and so were priors of quality. In 49 Henry III. no less than sixty-four abbots and thirty-six priors with the master of the Temple were all summoned. In Edward III. they were reduced to twenty-six. Gloucestershire was said to be fullest of monasteries, and Westmoreland the freest from them. Shaftesbury had the richest nunnery.

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MONKS AND FRIARS.

Fuller, in his “Church History,” says: “It is necessary to premise what was the distinction between monks and friars. For though some will say the matter is not much, if monks and friars were confounded together, yet the distinguishing of them conduceth much to the clearing of history. Some make monks the genus and friars but the species, so that all friars were monks, but e contra all monks were not friars; others, that monks were confined to their cloisters, whilst more liberty was allowed to friars to go about and preach in neighbouring parishes. I see it is very hard just to hit the joint, so as to cleave them asunder at an hair’s breadth, authors being so divided in their opinions. But the most essential difference whereon we must confide is this—monks had nothing in propriety (exclusive property), but all in common; friars had nothing in propriety nor in common, but, being mendicants, begged all their substance from the charity of others. True it is they had cells or houses to dwell or rather hide themselves in, so the foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests; but all this went for nothing, seeing they had no means belonging thereunto. Yea, it hath borne a tough debate betwixt them whether a friar may be said to be owner of the clothes he weareth; and it hath been for the most part overruled in the negative. Foresters laugh at the ignorance of that gentleman who made the difference between a stag and a hart that the one was a red, the other a fallow deer, being both of a kind, only different in age and some other circumstances. Monks and friars hate each other heartily.”

BRAWLS BETWEEN FRIARS AND SECULAR PRIESTS.

In the time of Edward IV. a contest raged between the Begging Friars and secular priests. Fuller, in his “Church History,” says that “it was beheld to be a most pestiferous doctrine that the friars so heightened the perfection of begging that, according to their principles, all the priesthood and prelacy in the land, yea by consequence the Pope himself, did fall short of the sanctity of their order. Yet hard it was for them to persuade his Holiness to quit Peter’s patrimony and betake himself to poverty, although a friar (Thomas Holden by name) did not blush to preach at Paul’s Cross that Christ Himself, as first founder of their society, was a beggar—a manifest untruth, and easily confuted out of Scripture. For vast the difference betwixt begging and taking what the bounty of others doth freely confer, as our Saviour did from such who ministered unto Him of their substance (Luke viii. 3). After zealous preachings and disputings, Pope Paul II. interposed, concluding that it was a damnable heresy to say that Christ publicly begged, whereon the mendicants let the controversy sink into silence never more to be revived.”

ENMITY BETWEEN ORDERS OF MONKS.