During these years, monasteries were the center of what intellectual life
remained in Europe. As monasteries grew in size and importance, they became
more businesslike. They flourished as places where people could take refuge
in time of trouble. It was warm inside and safe. The high towers were great
watchtowers to look for the approach of an enemy.
Christianity spread slowly and sporadically, depending on many factors, of
which personal conviction was perhaps the least important. The decision to
convert was the ruler's, and it involved accepting not just the doctrines
of the church, but also other far-reaching reaching changes. The Franks
were largely Christian a generation after the end of the Roman Empire.
Entry into Christianity was symbolized by the sacrament of baptism.
Thereafter, the font stood near the entrance of every church. The term, the
church, usually conjures up images of a specifically clerical or monastic
community from the pope to the parish priest, from Cardinals and
inquisitors, to simple monks, friars, and nuns.
In the Middle Ages, the word church could also be used in a broader sense.
The simplest and most direct translation of the word society in medieval
Europe would be the church. Everybody, apart from the tiny Jewish and
Muslim minorities, would be baptized. Their marriage and burial would also
usually take place under the auspices of the clergy.
Christian was the label that all these people, from whatever region, could
apply to themselves. Of course, there were ethnic and class identities, but
over them all was this Christian population.
[CHANTING]
Monasteries were given their distinctive Western form by St. Benedict of
Nursia.
[CHANTING]
The life of a Benedictine monk or nun centered on the cycle of church
services. The prayers, chants, and psalms of the divine office and the
celebration of mass required hours each day from dawn to night. A basic
literacy was necessary for these activities.
And in the early Middle Ages, the production and preservation of books was
almost exclusively the work of the monasteries. Charlemagne's
administration advanced the literacy of the people by encouraging
education, especially in the monasteries.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
Follow Up Question 1:
In the early middle ages whose job was it to produce and preserve books?
Follow Up Question 2:
How do you enter into the church?
Follow Up Question 3:
What did Charlemagne encourage in the monasteries?
