| Dominican Order |
Article Index for Dominican |
Website Links For Dominican |
Information AboutDominican Order |
|
saw the need for a new type of organization to address the needs of his time, one that would bring the dedication and systematic education of the older monastic orders to bear on the religious problems of the burgeoning population of cities, but with more organizational flexibility than either monastic orders or the secular clergy]] In England and some other countries the Dominicans are referred to as Blackfriars on account of the black ''cappa'' or cloak they wear over their white Habits (for the same reason, Carmelites are known as "Whitefriars" and Franciscan s as "Greyfriars"—although the habit of the Franciscan friar is in fact brown). In France , the Dominicans are also known as '''Jacobins''', because their first convent in Paris bore the name "Saint Jacques", and Jacques is ''Jacobus'' in Latin. They have also been referred to using a Latin pun, as "Domini canes", or "The Hounds of the Lord", a reference to the order's reputation as most obedient servants of the faith, with perhaps a negative connotation or reference to the order's involvement with the Holy Inquisition . Members of the order often carry the letters '''O.P.''' after their name. Saint Dominic established a religious community in Toulouse in 1214 , officially recognized as an order by Pope Honorius III in 1216. Founded under the Augustinian rule, the Dominican Order is one of the great Orders of Mendicant Friars that revolutionized religious life in Europe during the High Middle Ages . Founded to preach the gospel and to combat heresy, the Order is famed for its intellectual tradition, having produced many leading theologians and philosophers. The Dominican Order is headed by the Master Of The Order , who is currently Brother Carlos Azpiroz Costa . FOUNDATION OF THE ORDER Like his contemporary Francis Of Assisi , Dominic saw the need for a new type of organization to address the needs of his time, and the quick growth of the Dominicans and Franciscan s during their first century confirms that the orders of mendicant friars met a need. Dominic sought to establish a new kind of order, one that would bring the dedication and systematic education of the older monastic orders like the Benedictine s to bear on the religious problems of the burgeoning population of cities, but with more organizational flexibility than either monastic orders or the secular clergy. Dominic's new order was to be a Preaching order, trained to preach in the Vernacular languages but with a sound background in academic Theology . Rather than earning their living on vast farms as the monasteries had done, the new friars would survive by begging, "selling" themselves through persuasive preaching. They were initially scorned by more traditional orders, who thought these "urban monks" would never survive the temptations of the city. Dominic saw the need to establish a new kind of order when travelling through the south of France . He had been asked to accompany his Bishop from Osma on a diplomatic mission to Denmark , to arrange the marriage between the son of King Alfonso VIII Of Castile and a niece of King Valdemar II Of Denmark . At that time the south of France was the stronghold of Albigensian thought, centered around the town of Albi . This unorthodox expression of Christianity held that matter was evil and only spirit was good, a fundamental challenge to the notion of Incarnation , central to Roman Catholic theology. The Albigensians, more commonly known as the Cathar s (a Heretic al Gnostic sect), lived very simply and saw themselves as more fervent followers of the poor Christ . Dominic saw the need for a response that would take the good elements in the Albigensian movement to sway them back to mainstream Christian thought. The mendicant preacher emerged from this insight. Unfortunately, Dominic's ideal of winning the Albigensians over was not held by all office bearers and the population of Albi was decimated in the Albigensian Crusade . The Dominicans were also set up as the branch of the Catholic Church to deal with heresy. It was in this early period of the Albigensian crusade that St. Dominic ordered the burning of several heretical books. Indeed, many years after this initial crusade, the first Grand Inquistor of Spain would be drawn from the Dominican order, Tomás de Torquemada. The organization of the Order of Preachers was approved in December 1216 by Pope Honorius III (see also '' Religiosam Vitam ''; '' Nos Attendentes ''). HISTORY OF THE ORDER The history of the Order may be divided into three periods:
Middle Ages |
|
|