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[Cat Man Do]

Can someone talk about the development of monasticism in the early Christian Church? I imagine monks were very popular back then, but It doesn't seem they are popular now.

[jimwalton]

Monasticism grew from two roots: One was the perception that one could be more holy by distancing oneself from the distractions of the world, and the other was because the Church to some extent went underground as a response to the Islamic invasion of Europe.

The legalization of Christianity as the official religion of the Roman Empire was detrimental to the Church, and Christians became lax, compromised, worldly, and causally committed. As people sought to deepen their relationship with God, they saw a possible advantage in separating themselves out from the culture (2 Cor. 6.14-17; 1 Jn. 2.15-17) and dedicating themselves to a life of monasticism, or single-focus. It had its pros and cons. The advantages were that people devoted their lives to know the Bible and to have a relationship with God. The disadvantages were that it spawned many odd practices (such as self-flagellation, pole sitting, and such nonsense), it disconnected Christianity from the world (we are supposed to engage the world with the Gospel), and it made religion look like it had nothing to do with real life. In my opinion this aspect of monasticism was regrettable.

As far as driving the Church underground, between the invasion of the Huns and Goths from northern Europe and the invasion of the Islamic armies from the Middle East, Christianity was in danger of being snuffed out and Western culture was in danger of being lost. The creation of monasteries preserved not only Christianity but also Western civilization. The Church survived in the enclaves. And the only reason we have copies of the texts from Tacitus, Suetonius, Josephus, the church fathers, Aristotle, Plato, Homer, etc. is because of the monasteries. In my opinion this aspect of monasticism was priceless.