What is the oldest unchanged Christian monastic order?

mibmob

Well are you talking eastern or western Christianity? If Western, it must be the Benedictines although they did undergo a few reforms in the 11th and 12th century. Mar 09 03, 5:43 PM

Fr. Love

While St. Benedict wrote his rule for Monatic Orders in the 6th century, the Benedictines - so named - as an order, has only existed since the 19th century. Mar 09 03, 5:50 PM

mibmob

Nonsense. If you are splitting hairs and calling them Cluniacs then so be it but http://www.osb.org/gen/bendctns.html will put you right about the 19th century. Mar 09 03, 5:56 PM

Fr. Love

I read your informative site, and it cleary talks of the Rule of St. Benedictine - then refers to the monks that followed it as Benedictines...However an Official Benedictine ORDER is not established untill the end of the 1800s. The question does use the word 'order'...The Order of Carthusians, established around 1100, by St. Bruno has remained unchanged. Mar 09 03, 6:15 PM

mibmob

The Cluniacs were known as benedictines even in the 12th century to differentiate them from all the other orders at the time eg Cistercians and Carthusians, a bit later premonstratensian canons etcetc. Mar 09 03, 6:34 PM

Fr. Love

The Cluniacs might have been called Benedictines, but they were not the Benedictine Order that we know today...What makes the Carthusians so special is the fact they have never changed. Mar 09 03, 9:00 PM