The Monks took such an active part in the persecution of the Jews, that it may be well to give some account of the "Religious Orders," as they are called; all of which hated the Hebrew race, and would gladly have seen it extirpated.
Very soon after the establishment of the Christian religion, there were men who wished to devote their hearts and lives to the service of God, and thought they could better do this by giving up all the pleasures and business of ordinary life. It became the practice for such to leave their families and live together in houses, thence called Religious Houses, under the direction and authority of some priest. Here they spent their time in devotion, and in doing good to their fellow creatures: the services in the churches were performed by them; they undertook the education of the young; books were prepared by them, for in those days there were no books except such as were written by hand; and to them the sick and poor applied for relief, which was never denied.
Those who became inmates of such houses, were not bound to remain in them; but as long as they did so, they were bound to obey the orders of the ruling priest.
But before long, a change took place: these religious houses took the name of Monastery, Abbey, Priory, or Convent. Those who entered these houses, took a solemn oath to remain in them until their death, and to be in all things obedient to the priests, who, under the appellation of Abbots or Priors, ruled over these establishments, whilst they themselves were completely subject to the Pope. As the gifts of money and lands bestowed upon these religious houses, gave them power and influence, those who ruled over them became ambitious, and desired to have a share in the government of kingdoms: in this they gradually succeeded by persuading kings and princes, that by following their advice in all things, they would please the Lord God, and ensure his favour.
As time went on, the heads of the abbeys, monasteries, priories, and convents, became more and more powerful, in the various kingdoms where they were established. The inmates of these various houses belonged to different classes or "orders"; the chief of which, were the Benedictines, Dominicans, and Franciscans.
St. Benedict, the founder of the first religious order in Europe, was born at Spoleto, in Italy, a.d. 480. At the age of fourteen, he retired to a cavern, where the fame of his pious austerities brought him numerous followers. He afterwards founded the monastery of Monte Casino, near Naples, and thus established the Order of St. Benedict, or the Benedictines. The oath taken by all who entered this order, bound them never to marry, nor to quit their convent; to practise the strictest self-denial in every matter; to speak but little to the other members of the community; to give up all intercourse with the world; and to place their minds and bodies at the absolute disposal of their superior; so as not only to do at once whatever he bid them do, but to hold no opinions contrary to his. The Pope or Bishop of Rome, naturally looked with especial favour upon this order of monks; because being pledged to implicit obedience, they formed a sort of army, ready to do anything to increase the power of the priesthood and the Pope. The Benedictine Order was introduced into England by Dunstan, when he became superior of Glastonbury Abbey, in the tenth century.
The founder of the Dominican Order, was a man named Dominic, born at Calahorra, in Old Castile, a.d. 1170. He was employed by Pope Innocent the Third to convert the Albigenses; but failing in his endeavours, he joined in the horrible persecution carried on against them; and for his zeal in the cause, he was, after his death, a.d. 1221, canonized, (that is, ordered to be called a saint) by the Pope.
The founder of the Franciscan Order was born at Assisi, in a part of Italy called Umbria, a.d. 1182; and was after his death canonized, and called St. Francis d'Assisi. He was the son of a merchant, and had in his youth led a wild and dissipated life: but on recovering from a dangerous illness, he became enthusiastically devout; retired into solitude; and underwent every species of penance and mortification; so that his family thought he had gone mad. He gave up all claim to his father's property, and took a vow of poverty. Being looked upon as a saint, many joined him, and he drew up rules for them to observe; and these rules being approved of by Pope Innocent the Third, the order of Franciscan Friars was established, and its members increased rapidly. St. Francis d'Assisi was, as well as St. Dominic, a zealous persecutor of the Albigenses and Waldenses. St. Francis made an unsuccessful attempt to convert the Sultan, or sovereign of Turkey, and then returned to Assisi, where he died, a.d. 1226: he was canonized four years later, by Gregory the Ninth.
It has been said, that the members of the Dominican and Franciscan Orders were called friars, instead of monks. The difference between the two classes was, that the friars rejected the possession of all worldly wealth, and depended entirely for their subsistence upon what they could collect from the pious, in their wanderings about the country. On this account, they were also called "Mendicants," that is, "beggars." There were four orders of these Mendicant Friars: the Dominicans, or Black Friars; the Franciscans, or Grey Friars, sometimes called "Frères Mineurs" (Lesser Friars), or Minorites; the Augustines, or Mendicants, properly so called; and the Carmelites, who claimed their origin from the prophet Elijah.
Before we leave this subject, we must mention that there were also religious houses, called nunneries and convents, for females: the inmates were called nuns, and there were various orders of them, distinguished from each other by some differences in their rules and discipline.