Asher Sisneros

            Unbeknownst to most people, the monks did more than pray and read scripture in seclusion. Beneath the world’s eyes, the monasteries secretly held the world together after Rome collapsed. Through the Classical Period and into the Middle Ages, the monks’ contributions permeated Europe. This essay is about those contributions.

            Monasticism developed when zealous Christians wanted to devote themselves fully to God’s service. Contrary to common misconception, they didn’t seclude themselves from the world because worldly pleasures were perverted. Certainly, the world is full of sin and perverted behavior, but that’s not the same as pleasure. Godly pleasures exist and much of sin is an ungodly perversion of something holy. One example is food. In and of itself, food is a gift from a benevolent God to satisfy our hunger and strengthen our bodies. The ungodly perversion of satisfying hunger is gluttony. Does gluttony mean food is evil? Of course, not! The pleasure of eating is fine and dandy—it’s even good—but it can be perverted into something sinful. The monks didn’t isolate themselves from pleasure because it was wicked. They gave it up because it was good. The monk lifestyle existed so monks could prove to God how much they’d sacrifice for Him.

            With that out of the way, there was also a division between monastics. Eremitic monasticism was living in total isolation from everyone, i.e., a hermit’s life. Cenobitic monasticism was living in isolation with other monks. Unlike the eremites who lived in the wilderness alone, the cenobites lived together in monasteries. The cenobitic monastics made a massive cultural impact in Europe, not the eremitic monastics. In the rest of this essay, when I refer to the monks, I’m addressing the cenobitic monastics.

            The monks were massive agriculturists. They planted where nobody else could. For example, the monks turned Germany’s wilderness into a flourishing farmland. After Rome collapsed, they fed Europe. When the world was in disarray, it was the monks who kept their cool and fed the nations.

            Everywhere the monasteries expanded, they taught the locals how to farm as well. Their agricultural knowledge wasn’t monopolized by them. The monks spread and taught for the well-being of the world. At its peak, there were over 37,000 Benedictine monasteries (monasteries following the Rule of Saint Benedict).

            Monk knowledge wasn’t limited to agriculture, however. The monks pioneered engineering knowledge and turned their monasteries into water-powered factories. Grain, lumber, clothing; food such as jams and cheese; wine, and beer, are just a few of the goods they made. The monasteries also stored wool, and some were simultaneously quarries. The economic benefit was tremendous. But why did the monks become so industrious? Answer: Out of necessity. Since the monks lived in isolation, they needed to make money for themselves. Much of their resources were made in the monastery, but it was impossible to produce all their necessities. So, what they didn’t need was sold, and the money was used to purchase goods and services. Classic economics and the beautiful division of labor at work.

            The monks were also scribes. Before the printing press was invented, books were laboriously copied by hand. A lot of the Latin literature around today was preserved by the monasteries.  

            Finally, some of the monks in Antioch—like St. Benedict, St. Boniface, and St. Augustine of Canterbury—were teachers.

            In conclusion, the monks were a blessing to Europe. Their agricultural, engineering and literate impacts shook the continent. Even through Rome’s collapse, what they perceived as a personal sacrifice was God’s means of preserving the nations. They were God’s divine instrument to preserve the human race.