The Medieval World: Hermits, Monks, & Friars
Hermits:
During the Middle Ages, hermits were a group of people that withdrew from society. When people think of hermits, they may think of someone who is quiet or strange and has limited social skills. This assumption cannot be based on Medieval hermits since they did not withdraw from society for these reasons; they withdrew from society for religious reasons (5). Their religious beliefs are what made them stand out from others. They devoted their lives to praying and many people sought them out for wisdom (5). They enjoyed living in solitude and relying on nature to support their lifestyle. Hermits originated as men devoting their life to solitude but eventually gathered followers. Many hermits found their solitude in caves, forests, or mountains and practiced meditating to deepen their relationship with God (6). Although this may seem like a simple life, that was not always the case. Hermits had only nature to provide for them, which often meant they did not get enough food, sleep, or water. They also practiced
physical mortification meant to achieve spiritual enlightenment (6). Hermits played a major role during the Medieval society--people went to them for many different reasons. Spiritual guidance, shelter, and prayer are only a few of the things hermits offered to others. Because of the role they had during the Medieval society, their legacy continues to live on in modern society.
Monks:
Hermits were not the only group of people devoting their lives to solitude in the Medieval world. Monks are not uncommon to hear about in the modern world which stems from their presence during the Middle Ages. Although monks and hermits have similarities, they are mostly different from one another. Monks also sought a life of solitude but did so with a roof over their head (3). They were devoted to becoming closer to God and would often preach the word to the young. Monks prayed constantly and even had set times for prayer as well as manual labor (4). These duties were to be carried out daily. Like hermits, monks valued their closeness to god and spirituality and lived simple lives. Monks normally lived in monasteries together, but some were forced to live in remote areas if they were persecuted (3). Monks consisted of both men and women, but women lived as nuns in abbeys and nunneries. Some of the most memorable contributions from monks were the manuscripts they produced explaining their way of life. Most monks were highly educated in not only the Bible but also classical studies and Latin (4). Because of their knowledge, monks were able to spread the word about their way of life and devotion to God.
Friars:
After hermits and monks came friars. Later additions to the medieval world, friars responded to the laxity perceived by the monks (1). Four orders took up the medieval friars: the Franciscans, Dominicans, Carmelites, and the Augustinians. The Franciscans were considered the "Grey Friars" and recruited from lower groups of society. The Dominicans were considered the "Black Friars" and became associated with education. The Carmelites began as hermits but eventually ended up doing what other friars were doing. The Augustinians were not related to the canons (1). Each order was guided to preach and were quite popular with society. The main component of their apostolic life was preaching and ministering to women (2). Friars consisted of only men as women were unsuitable to wander around the countryside. Friars were able to exercise their spiritual authority over women, but many found it admiring that women wanted to achieve contact with God. Unlike hermits and monks, friars did not live confined to their home--they traveled from place to place. They swore their spiritual allegiance to their order rather than to a particular place (1). Friars were motivated to inform others about God and spirituality. Their main mission was to preach the word and pass along their knowledge to others. However, they became caregivers of nuns which led to frustration and resentment (2). Friars aimed to live a simple life of preaching and caring for the body's spiritual needs. Like hermits and monks, friars were devoted to God and vowed to share this knowledge with others.
Works Cited
(1) Hickey, Julia. “Medieval Friars.” The History Jar, 16 June 2015, thehistoryjar.com/tag/medieval-friars/.
(2) Francisco Garcia-Serrano. The Friars and Their Influence in Medieval Spain. Amsterdam University Press, 2018. EBSCOhost, research.ebsco.com/linkprocessor/plink?id=a6d321c0-5331-3629-9e0b-c064f2573bb9.
(3) Cartwright, Mark. "The Daily Lives of Medieval Monks." World History Encyclopedia. World History Encyclopedia, 13 Dec 2018. Web. 31 Aug 2023.
(4) Chronicles, Medieval. “Medieval Monks.” Medieval Chronicles, 1 Dec. 2022, www.medievalchronicles.com/medieval-people/medieval-clergy/medieval-monks/.
(5) Chronicles, Medieval. “The Strange and Mysterious Lives of Medieval Hermit.” Medieval Chronicles, 1 Apr. 2023, www.medievalchronicles.com/medieval-people/the-strange-and-mysterious-lives-of-medieval-hermits/.
(6) Brittain, C. Dale. “Life in the Middle Ages: Hermits.” Blogger, 21 May 2016, cdalebrittain.blogspot.com/2016/05/hermits.html.
Pictures
Schmitt, Johann Baptist Theobald. "Eremit in Flotbeck." Hamburg, Germany. 1795.
GDK. "St. Benedict delivering his Rule to St. Maurus and other monks of his order." France. 1129.
Archive, Hulton. "A medieval friar preaches to his congregation in the open air from a moveable pulpit." 2 January 1754
Hi Abby! I enjoyed reading your blog post. I found the similarities and differences between the three to be very interesting. I wonder why they came in a certain order instead of all at once. My favorite to read about was the friars because of the four orders that took up the medieval friars: the franciscans, dominicans, carmelites, and the augustinians. It is also made clear that their purpose between all 3 of them is to serve god. It seems like Hermits had to live the harshest though.
ReplyDeleteHi Abby! Your blog was very interesting and insightful, you did a great job grabbing the reader's attention! Overall, I really liked the layout and aesthetic of your blog, it was very pleasing to the eye and definitely had the upper hand on looking like a legit blog. Based on the context, I feel like I learned a great amount about hermits, monks, and friars. I think the main connection between the three is there strong beliefs and attitudes, but it was interesting to see the differences too. Overall, you did a really great including a lot of detail and being very throrough.
ReplyDeleteHi Abby! You did a really good job describing all three! I had very little background knowledge of these different groups of people and now I feel like I have a better understanding of who they are and their role in society. You also did a really great job laying out your blog and it is visually appealing! I always thought hermits withdrew from society for personal reasons or something else but seeing that they actually did it for religious reasons makes me view them in a different light. It is interesting to see how different people live their lives in honor of their religion.
ReplyDeleteHey Abby. I chose to read your blog because I was familiar with monks, hermits, and friars but didn't know the difference between them. You did a great job of giving specific definitions of each and comparing and contrasting them. I had no idea that hermits were religious and did not know that there were so many different types of friars. After reading Hermits, I was curious how similar they were to my knowledge of monks, but I forgot how organized monks are as a collective with their religion and fellow monks. Overall, you did a really good job with the blog!
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