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John Cassian - ca 360-430 is renowned as the founder of Christian Communities in the Western part of the Roman Empire, at a time when life was difficult, the empire disintegrating, the outlook uncertain, and people worried. Many Christian Communities had sprung up, mainly in Egypt and Syria in both of which they were very spartan and austere.
Cassian, a Romanian monk, but brought up in Bethlehem, spent over 10 years studying these Communities recording the best of their experiences (including conversations with many experiences monks), and adapting their wisdom to gentler conditions in the West.
He founded two monasteries (one for men and one for women) near Marseilles in the South of France, and at the request of the local Bishop, wrote two major books giving a blueprint for running a successful Christian Community or family. These books covered both "How to run a good Community" and "How to develop the key virtues" (both in the "Institutes" - essentially a practical "How to do it guide"), and "Record of Conversations in Egypt" (in the "Conferences" - a lengthy and more abstract manual).
A key feature of his works was that they were taken up by St. Benedict to become the foundation of the Rule of Benedict, which not only spread throughout much of the known world (encouraged by Charlemagne), but became the basis for most Christian Communities in the Western World. The Rule, as it is often known, has successfully been promoted in business schools as a sound way to run a company, and by many as a guide to a Christian life. Benedict recommended that readers of his Rule who wanted to go further should study John Cassian.
This course provides both the background to John Cassian, and provides an introduction to reading his works. In particular, unless one is familiar either with the background to the period, or with the Rule of Benedict (Western Church), or the Ladder of Divine Ascent (Eastern Church), many people find the ideas unfamilar. This course provides the background to John Cassian in Sessions 1 and 2.
The sessions planned are as follows:
Session 1 The Early Church - Times, problems and authors.
Session 2 Early Communities - Egypt, Syria and the West.
Session 3 The Rule of Benedict - The distillation of Cassian.
Session 4 John Cassian I - The Institutes with practical readings
Session 5 John Cassian II - The Conferences with practical readings
Also provided:
Monastic Timeline
Reading list for Cassian and other early monastic authors (but not Benedict)
Suggested reading for Further Study and Lectio Divina.
Watch the presentation (handouts are on a separate page)
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