Early Christian monasticism and views of work
• 08/15/2016
This Bible History Daily feature was originally published in January 2016.—Ed.
Who were the first Christian monks, and what did they believe? Who did the Christian monks think really deserved alms—the “holy poor” or the “real poor”?
Mani, a third-century C.E. prophet who viewed himself as the reformer of Christianity and the Paul of his age, was the founder of Manichaeism.
In the eastern Roman Empire during the third century C.E., two distinct forms of early Christian monasticism began to develop. One came out of Mesopotamia and Syria and was based on older models of previous radical groups. The other came from Egypt and was a new idea.
In “Monastic Views of Work” in the January/February 2016 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review, Peter Brown, Rollins Professor of History Emeritus at Princeton University, examines these two forms of early Christian monasticism. While both were derived from theBiblical writings of Paul, they differed about what it meant to be poor and who should benefit from tithes.
In Mesopotamia and Syria, Manichaean monks and wanderers would travel to wealthy cities throughout the region and offer songs, prayers and wisdom in exchange for monetary support and nourishment. Manichaeism, a religion often equated with Gnosticism and dualism, was founded by Mani, a man who viewed himself as a prophet, the apostle Paul of his time and the reformer of Christianity.
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