The Cistercian Order

Cistertium was the Latin name for Citeaux, located south of Burgundy's Dijon; it was here that a new order's mother monastery was founded in 1098. The monks settled here under the leadership of their abbot, Robert, in hopes of a more solitary and stricter life. The Cistercian order's basic rule was the Carta Caritatis, which was created between 1115 and 1118 and later approved by Pope Callistus II in 1119. They were called "white monks" because of their attire. White was the color of the Virgin Mary, to whom the Cistercians paid special reverence, and every one of their temples was dedicated to her.

Compared to the autocratic Cluniac organization, the structure of the Cistercian order was more democratic. The abbot of Citeaux was the head of the order, and it was his duty to visit and supervise the daughter monasteries, whose abbots, in turn, could supervise Citeaux. The abbeys could exercise supervision over the filiation monasteries they had founded. Every abbey represented itself at the annual general chapter held at Citeaux, where the crucial decisions regarding the order's affairs were made.

The founders' ascetic goals required that the monks live as far away as possible from the centers of wealth and power. The monasteries were built far from cities and settlements, and the monks and lay brothers cultivated the lands themselves. This was a return to the ideal of Saint Benedict, which the Cluniac order had moved away from. The liturgy was shortened and simplified, leaving more time for work in the fields and workshops. Thanks to their excellent organization and devoted labor, they soon became pioneers in agricultural development throughout Europe. Their territorial expansion was remarkable, and by the end of the 12th century, they had 530 monasteries; a century later, they had 742. This also included 900 convents.

The poverty and simplicity gradually became a thing of the past, as farming became highly profitable due to the cheap labor of the lay brothers. The order spread to distant countries (Norway, Portugal, Hungary), and the abbeys there were exempt from inspection visits and participation in the general chapter. The result was a significant loosening of discipline. As the wealth of the order grew, secular rulers more frequently donated incomes to bishops or lay nobles who did not live in the abbey and did not perform the abbot's duties. The period of decline arrived, and eventually, the Reformation brought an end to the order's operation in several countries. In France, where it had the most followers, the Cistercian order was reformed twice; as a consequence of these reforms, the Feuillant and Trappist orders emerged, while the original order continues to operate to this day.

G. Zarnecki "Kolostorok, szerzetesek, barátok", Corvina kiadó, 1986