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The Emergence of Monasticism: From the Desert Fathers to the Early Middle Ages
"The Emergence of Monasticism" offers a new approach to the subject, placing its development against the dynamic of both social and religious change.
First study in any language to cover the formative period of medieval monasticism.
Gives particular attention to the contribution of women to ascetic and monastic life.
First study in any language to cover the formative period of medieval monasticism.
Gives particular attention to the contribution of women to ascetic and monastic life.
292 pages, Paperback
First published December 28, 2000
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
February 14, 2015
Marilyn Dunn's book, The Emergence of Monasticism, has caught my eye in my favourite theological library for some time. My interest in monasticism isn't an interest in becoming one, but I do find the monastic witness one that is worthwhile to consider, especially because monastics are the experts (in so far as one can be) on prayer/meditation and its challenges. And, of course, I'm an inveterate history geek, so any book which gives me background on anything I'm interested is going to attract my eye.
Dunn presents the development of the monastic movement from its origins in the Egyptian and Syrian deserts through to the distinctive Celtic monasticism and developments in England which are, particularly, well attested. Her approach combines a strong grasp of the history with a detailed understanding of the main texts- rules, monastic histories, hagiographies, that kind of thing. If you need a good starting place for understanding the early development of monasticism, this is definitely the place to start. Dunn is a fine scholar with a lucid style which should attract professionals and amateurs alike.
She does take some departures from the main currents of her field (most decent scholars do). This is particularly clear in the re-dating of several later Rules. The most notable is the Rule of the Master, which Dunn re-dates close to a century later. This is an interesting change because most scholars have placed it a few decades before the Rule of St. Benedict, arguing that Benedict knew it and toned down its strictness in his own Rule. Dunn argues the relationship goes the other way. Benedict's Rule was the earlier one and the Rule of the Master adapted that Rule under the influential of the rather strict guide of St. Columbanus and the Celtic pentitentials. I can't evaluate that claim as I don't know the text of the Rule of the Master, but it is a substantial change.
This is a superb book and I strongly recommend it.
Dunn presents the development of the monastic movement from its origins in the Egyptian and Syrian deserts through to the distinctive Celtic monasticism and developments in England which are, particularly, well attested. Her approach combines a strong grasp of the history with a detailed understanding of the main texts- rules, monastic histories, hagiographies, that kind of thing. If you need a good starting place for understanding the early development of monasticism, this is definitely the place to start. Dunn is a fine scholar with a lucid style which should attract professionals and amateurs alike.
She does take some departures from the main currents of her field (most decent scholars do). This is particularly clear in the re-dating of several later Rules. The most notable is the Rule of the Master, which Dunn re-dates close to a century later. This is an interesting change because most scholars have placed it a few decades before the Rule of St. Benedict, arguing that Benedict knew it and toned down its strictness in his own Rule. Dunn argues the relationship goes the other way. Benedict's Rule was the earlier one and the Rule of the Master adapted that Rule under the influential of the rather strict guide of St. Columbanus and the Celtic pentitentials. I can't evaluate that claim as I don't know the text of the Rule of the Master, but it is a substantial change.
This is a superb book and I strongly recommend it.
February 6, 2013
A good and fairly comprehensive overview of early monasticism and its development. The first third of the book is dedicated to eastern, ascetic monasticism - Antony, Pachomius, Basil, the concept of stripping away the individual will in order to attain closeness with God. The second third deals with this monasticism's gradual transmission to the West, especially through the writings of Cassian, Martin of Tours, the monastery of Lerins, and the variety of quasi-rules in play. Finally, the last third looks at the development of western monasticism, particularly through the Rule of Benedict and the work of Columbanus.
It's a pretty readable account, though if you're unfamiliar with Christianity the doctrinal distinctions may seem a bit tiresome. I really liked that Dunn allotted a decent amount of room (more than a whole chapter!) to women's monasticism, both in the east and in the west. It's a subject that's frequently relegated to sidebars or academic articles, so it's nice to see it get such a central place in a more general work. Her discussion of the early question of whether an ascetic's goal, whether male or female, was to transcend gender all together is really fascinating and implicitly raises the question that monasticism could have easily been much more subversive than it was (or, perhaps not - I'm not sure that such a view could have been accepted by the wider Christian community in the 4th century).
In any case, if you're interested in monks, this is a pretty good place to start (The Body and Society: Men, Women, and Sexual Renunciation in Early Christianity is fun too if you're looking for a more thematic study).
It's a pretty readable account, though if you're unfamiliar with Christianity the doctrinal distinctions may seem a bit tiresome. I really liked that Dunn allotted a decent amount of room (more than a whole chapter!) to women's monasticism, both in the east and in the west. It's a subject that's frequently relegated to sidebars or academic articles, so it's nice to see it get such a central place in a more general work. Her discussion of the early question of whether an ascetic's goal, whether male or female, was to transcend gender all together is really fascinating and implicitly raises the question that monasticism could have easily been much more subversive than it was (or, perhaps not - I'm not sure that such a view could have been accepted by the wider Christian community in the 4th century).
In any case, if you're interested in monks, this is a pretty good place to start (The Body and Society: Men, Women, and Sexual Renunciation in Early Christianity is fun too if you're looking for a more thematic study).
July 3, 2012
This book was very repetitive and very hard to get through. The writing style and vocabulary was very advanced and I think that Dunn used this as her dissertation because it was unnecessarily long. The author was very knowledgeable on the subject matter and had a great amount of citations and sources. The sources and citations really strengthened her creditability. My favorite chapter was "Woman in Monasticism". I really got bogged down in the middle on the areas about all the rules placed on the monks in the monasteries. I would recommend this book to someone who is trying to expand their knowledge on monasticism and ascetics. I think that if Dunn condensed this book into a smaller book it would be a better read. Overall I did learn a lot from the book and hopefully did good on the paper that I wrote for it!
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews