Book Reviews2 Cluny: in search of God’s lost empire

Nov 27, 2009

Edwin Mullins. New York : BlueBridge. 245 pages. Hardback. October 2006. ISBN 1-93346-00-0. $24.95

Cluny is the name of the great Benedictine monastery that was founded around 910 by Duke William of Aquitaine. The Duke wanted this monastery to be free from any noble, royal, or ecclesiastical control except that of the Pope. As was the custom in regards to the founding of monasteries during the Middle Ages, the Duke founded this monastery to pray for him and his family, as well as to serve as penance for a murder he had committed.

The single most unique aspect of Cluny was that the Pope was its protector. Bishops and royalty could not interfere with its administration. Because of these exemptions, over time Cluny grew in wealth, property and members. Other monasteries or their benefactors would place them under Cluny’s rule. The Abbot of Cluny eventually became head of an order which its members became known as the Cluniac. Though the Clunaics professed to follow the Rule of St Benedict, the formation of an order, composed of multiple monasteries, is contrary to the Rule.

Eventually, the acquisition of poverty, power, and wealth corrupted the Cluniacs. The Abbot of Cluny became very powerful in political circles as well as in the Church. The community at Cluny also became very business-minded and laicized. Though the monks had a continuous liturgy going on in their church, they were unable to take care of providing food for themselves, maintaining their buildings, and other day-to-day activities. Thus, they had to enlist the help of servants and lay brothers for the manual labor. Thus, the over-emphasis on liturgy detracted from the ‘ora et labor’ or ‘work and pray’ mandate of the Rule of St. Benedict. The Abbey Church at Cluny was very embellished due to the gifts and wealth the community had received, and in its time, it was the larger even than the Basilica of St. Peter in Rome. However, during the French Revolution, the Abbey was seized by the people and buildings were torn apart so that the materials could be sold for construction use in the town of Cluny.

Edwin Mullins gives a full account of the history of the abbey, but he also tells the story of the great things the Cluniacs did. The early abbots of Cluny were holy men and are saints of the Church. These include St. Berno, St. Odo, St. Odilo, St. Mayeul or Mailos, St. Hugh and Blessed Peter the Venerable. Mullins also points out that the many travelers and pilgrims stayed at various Cluniac monasteries. Cluny had monasteries along the pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela in Spain, the shrine and supposed burial site of St. James the Great. This was a great pilgrimage site in the Middle Ages and many traveled from distance places in Europe to it.

Mullins has done a superb job in writing and researching this book. He points out the good and the bad of Cluny. Cluny had a glorious history and made its mark on monasticism for good or bad.

This book is highly recommended to those interested in medieval history or the history of monasticism.

Edwin Mullins is an Oxford educated writer, journalist, and filmmaker. He is the author of The Pilgrimage to Santiago (2001), The Devil’s Work (1996), Alfred Wallis (1989), The Master Painter (1989), The Golden Bird (1988) among others.

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