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89-572: Vitalis was a canon of the Collegiate Church of St. Evroul in Mortain . He resigned his prebend to embrace an eremitical life under Robert of Arbrissel in the forest of Craon , located in Anjou . Leaving the latter, he retired to the forest of Savigny, where he built his own hermitage. The number of disciples who then gathered around him necessitated the construction of adequate buildings, in which

178-416: A dean , which is responsible for administering a cathedral or certain other churches that are styled collegiate churches . The dean and chapter are the formal body which has legal responsibility for the cathedral and for electing the bishop. The title of Canon is not a permanent title and, when no longer in a position entitling preferment, it is usually dropped from a cleric's title nomenclature. However, it

267-790: A canon of St David's, even as a layman (see also the Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion (1562) Article 37), though he or she may occupy the first prebendal stall , which is assigned for the monarch's use. A canon professor is a canon at an Anglican cathedral (either lay or in orders) who also holds a university professorship. There are four canon professorships in the University of Oxford in conjunction with Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford and two in Durham University in conjunction with Durham Cathedral , although academics titled "canon professor" may also be found at other universities where

356-401: A common dormitory. From the 4th to the middle of the 11th century, communities of canons were established exclusively by bishops. The oldest form of canonical life was known as "Ordo Antiquus". In Italy, among the first to successfully unite the clerical state with the common life was St Eusebius, Bishop of Vercelli and St Zeno, Bishop of Verona and St Ambrose of Milan did similarly. It

445-470: A common life with the clergy of their church. Rules taken from the sacred canons were even drawn up for their use, of which the most celebrated is that of St. Chrodegang , Bishop of Metz (766). In the tenth century, this institution declined; the canons, as the clergy attached to a church and living a common life were called, began to live separately; some of them, however, resisted this relaxation of discipline, and even added poverty to their common life. This

534-741: A day they met to hear a chapter from the rule of their founder, hence the meeting itself was soon called "chapter". This discipline was also recommended shortly after by the Councils of Aachen (Aix-la-Chapelle) (789) and Mainz (813). In 816 the Institutio canonicorum Aquisgranensis was drawn up at the Council of Aachen. This included a rule of 147 articles, known as the Rule of (Aix-la-Chapelle), to be applied to all canons. These statues were held as binding. The principal difference between Chrodegang's Rule and that of Aachen

623-455: A historical rule. One obvious place where such groups of priests are required is at a cathedral , where there were many Masses to celebrate and the Divine Office to be prayed together in community. Other groups were established at other churches which at some period in their history had been considered major churches, and (often thanks to particular benefactions) also in smaller centres. As

712-553: A life according to the example of Augustine as was known from his numerous writings. From that time the Order of Canons Regular of Saint Augustine, as it was already beginning to be called, increased rapidly. A great number of congregations of canons regular sprang into existence, each with its own distinctive constitutions, grounded on the Rule of St. Augustine and the statutes which Blessed Peter de Honestis gave to his canons at Ravenna about

801-484: A monk. The clerical state is essential to the Order of Canons Regular, whereas it is only accidental to the Monastic Order. Erasmus, himself a canon regular, declared that the canons regular are a "median point" between the monks and the secular clergy. The outer appearance and observances of the canons regular can seem very similar to those of the monks. This is because the various reforms borrowed certain practices from

890-579: A norm, canons regular live together in communities that take public vows. Their early communities took vows of common property and stability. As a later development, they now usually take the three public vows of chastity, poverty and obedience , although some orders or congregations of canons regular have retained the vow of stability. By 1125 hundreds of communities of canons had sprung up in Western Europe. Usually, they were quite independent of one another and varied in their ministries. Especially from

979-556: A partly similar terminology. As religious communities, they have laybrothers as part of the community. At times, their Orders have been very popular: in England in the 12th century, there were more houses of canons (often referred to as an abbey or canonry) than monasteries of monks. All canons regular are to be distinguished from secular canons who belong to a resident group of priests but who do not take public vows and are not governed in whatever elements of life they lead in common by

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1068-479: A role in the administration of the cathedral. Generally speaking, canons in Anglican churches are either canons residentiary (working at the cathedral, and few in number) or honorary canons (non-cathedral clergy given the title as a mark of honour—often many of them): either may wear a violet or violet-trimmed cassock . In some Church of England dioceses, the title Prebendary is used instead of Canon when

1157-484: A stratum of society, reminiscent of the usage of the equestrian order or senatorial order of Roman society, rather than to a religious order in the modern sense of a closely organized body. Furthermore, among the Augustinian Canons, some groups acquired a greater degree of distinctiveness in their style of life and organization, to the point of being in law or in effect autonomous religious orders. Examples include

1246-621: A wide influence. During the 15th and 16th centuries the Lateran Congregation added to the Order's luster by its spirituality and scholarship. In the 17th and 18th centuries the French Congregation of Saint Genevieve and later the Congregation of Our Savior founded by Saint Peter Fourier (1566–1640), responded to new needs by combining the religious life with pastoral work. Finally, in the 19th century Adrien Grea (1828–1917), founder of

1335-759: A wise moderation in all things. This spirit permeates the whole of the so-called Rule of St. Augustine and at least in substance can be attributed to Augustine personally. The invasion of Africa by the Vandals destroyed Augustine's foundation, which likely took refuge in Gaul. The prescriptions which St. Augustine had given to the clerics who lived with him soon spread and were adopted by other communities of canons regular not only in Africa, but in Italy, in France and elsewhere. Pope Gelasius , about

1424-406: A word, canons regular may be considered as the genus and Augustinian canons as the species. Otherwise put, all Augustinian Canons are canons regular, but not all canons regular are Augustinian Canons. In Latin, terms such as Canonici Regulares Ordinis S. Augustini ( Canons Regular of the Order of St. Augustine ) were used, whereby the term order (Latin ordo ) referred more to a form of life or

1513-409: Is a Christian title usually used to refer to a member of certain bodies in subject to an ecclesiastical rule . Originally, a canon was a cleric living with others in a clergy house or, later, in one of the houses within the precinct of or close to a cathedral or other major church and conducting his life according to the customary discipline or rules of the church. This way of life grew common (and

1602-517: Is a body of senior clergy overseeing either a cathedral (a cathedral chapter ) or a collegiate church . Depending on the title of the church, several languages use specific titles, e.g., in German Domherr or Domkapitular in a Dom (i.e., cathedral), Stiftsherr in a prelature that has the status of a Stift (notably under a prince of the Church ). One of the functions of the cathedral chapter in

1691-769: Is elected by all the congregations and serves for a six-year term, works to foster contact and mutual cooperation among the diverse communities of canons regular in the Catholic Church. On 11 October 2016, Jean-Michel Girard, Abbot of the Congregation of St. Nicholas and St. Bernard of Mont Joux (Great St. Bernard, Switzerland) was elected as the 10th abbot primate of the Confederation of the Canons Regular of St Augustine. The order has houses in Argentina, Austria, Brazil, Canada,

1780-463: Is first documented) in the 8th century AD. In the 11th century, some churches required clergy thus living together to adopt the rule first proposed by Saint Augustine that they renounce private wealth. Those who embraced this change were known as Augustinians or Canons Regular , whilst those who did not were known as secular canons. In the Latin Church , canons are the members of a chapter , that

1869-413: Is regarded by the canons as their founder, Vincent of Beauvais , Sigebert , and Peter of Cluny all state that the canonical order traces back its origin to the earliest ages of the Church. In the first centuries after Christ, priests lived with the bishop and carried out the liturgy and sacraments in the cathedral church. While each could own his own property, they lived together and shared common meals and

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1958-492: Is still given in many dioceses to senior parish priests (including some rural deans , those who have played a role in the wider life of the diocese, those who have served in the diocese for a long time, or similar) as a largely honorary title. It is usually awarded in recognition of long and dedicated service to the diocese. Honorary canons are members of the chapter in name but are non-residential and receive no emoluments . They are entitled to call themselves canon and may have

2047-564: Is the monastery of Black Canons which St. Columba founded), though this is clearly anachronistic. According to Smith and Ratcliff there was a homogeneity among the Augustinian houses in Scotland before 1215 which had much to do with King David I who gave them a common economic policy, and Robert , Bishop of St Andrews , himself a former Augustinian canon at the Priory of St. Oswalds, at Nostell and

2136-404: Is the origin of the canons regular. Pope Benedict XII by his constitution Ad decorem (15 May 1339) prescribed a general reform of the canons regular. The canons regular ex professo united Holy Orders with religious life, and being attached to a church, devoted themselves to promoting the dignity of divine worship . With monks , Holy Orders are incidental and secondary, and are superadded to

2225-405: Is titled an abbot . Smaller communities are headed by a prior or provost . The distinctive habit of canons regular is the rochet , worn over a cassock or tunic , which is indicative of their clerical origins. This has evolved in various ways among different congregations, from wearing the full rochet to the wearing of a white tunic and scapular . On 4 May 1959 Pope John XXIII founded

2314-577: Is to combine the clerical and monastic forms of life, thus they are equally committed to pastoral ministry and to the communal celebration of the Liturgy of the Hours . Their distinctive religious habit is the rochet , which can be rendered in a range of forms. There are a variety of congregations of canons, some of which are part of the Confederation of Canons Regular of St. Augustine : Many bishops endeavoured to imitate St. Augustine and St. Eusebius, and to live

2403-624: The Premonstratensian or Norbertine Order , sometimes known in English as White Canons , from their white habits. Yet another such order is that of the Crosiers . Encouraged by the general policies of the Holy See , especially from the late nineteenth century, some of these separate orders and congregations of Augustinian Canons have subsequently combined in some form of federation or confederation. All

2492-621: The Michael Ramsey Professor of Anglican Studies , who must be Anglican but did not have to be ordained. Historically, the chair in Greek at the university was also a canon professorship. This canonry was transferred to the Lightfoot Professor of Divinity in 1940. The Lightfoot professorship was attached to the canonry until 1985, when the non-Anglican James Dunn was appointed. Minor canons are those clergy who are members of

2581-567: The Regius Professorship of Divinity , Lady Margaret Professorship of Divinity , recently held by the famous Anglican theologian, John Macquarrie , and Regius Professorship of Moral and Pastoral Theology , are annexed to canonries of Christ Church and were until recently held only by Anglican priests. At Durham, the canon professorships are the Van Mildert Professor of Divinity , the holder of which must be an Anglican priest, and

2670-474: The Rule of St. Augustine . The revival also counteracted the decline of religious discipline which had set in among Irish monasteries. St Malachy, archbishop of Armagh, was a prime mover in the reform movement in the Irish Church in the 12th century and by the time of his death in 1148, there were forty-one Augustinian houses. It is not improbable that at the outbreak of the dissolution by Henry VIII , some of

2759-581: The Sovereign Military Order of Malta and the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre are, in fact, titular or honorary canons of these respective Orders and have the right to the honorific title of "Canon" and "Monsignor" in addition to the choir dress of a canon, which includes the mozetta (black with purple piping for Malta and white with a red Jerusalem cross for Holy Sepulchre. Since

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2848-508: The vita apostolica into effect for the circumstances of his time and the community of his day. From the time of his elevation to be Bishop of Hippo in 395 AD, he transformed his episcopal residence into a monastery for clerics and established the essential characteristics-the common life with renunciation of private property, chastity, obedience, the liturgical life and the care of souls: to these can be added two other typically Augustinian characteristics —a close bond of brotherly affection and

2937-417: The 11th century, among the canons regular, various groupings called congregations were formed, which partly resembled religious orders in the general modern sense. This movement parallelled in some respects the kind of bonds established between houses of monks. Among these congregations of canons regular, most adopted the Rule of St. Augustine , hence taking their name from St. Augustine, the great Doctor of

3026-520: The 12th century, Buckfast Abbey was incorporated into the Benedictine Congregation of Savigny. The monasteries of Basingwerk (Flintshire) and Neath (Glamorgan) in Wales were founded as Savigniac houses, as was Combermere Abbey . St. Mary's Abbey, Dublin was founded as a Benedictine house in 862, and given to the Congregation of Savigny in 1139. From the number of its foundations Savigny became

3115-522: The British Isles in the course of the 12th century the canons regular, known there as the "Black Canons", were the most prolific. At the heart of their existence was the vita apostolica, but even more than other groups the canons regular became involved in active spiritual care of local populations. Perhaps as a result of this feature they also enjoyed sustained support from founders, patrons and benefactors, and new foundations continued to be made long after

3204-399: The Catholic Church, that of the Augustinian Canons (Canons Regular of St. Augustine, Canonici Regulares Sancti Augustini , CRSA) cannot be traced back to an individual founder or to a particular founding group. They are more the result of a process that lasted for centuries. Because of their manifold roots they have assumed various forms in medieval and modern Europe. Though they also follow

3293-476: The Chapter. Although at present Minor Canons are generally more junior clergy this is a recent development. Within living memory such offices were often freehold and were held by clergy of great distinction and seniority. Canons regular are the members of certain religious orders in the Catholic Church (not to be confused with clerics regular ), composed of priests who live in community with lay brothers . Their goal

3382-497: The Church, "for he realized in an ideal way the common life of the Clergy". They became known as Augustinian Canons , and sometimes in English as Austin Canons ( Austin being a form of Augustine ). Where it was the case, they have also been known as Black Canons , from their black habits. Nevertheless, there have always been canons regular who never adopted the Rule of St. Augustine. In

3471-487: The Confederation of the Canons Regular of St. Augustine with his apostolic letter "Caritatis Unitas" on the 900th anniversary of the First Lateran Synod. The Confederation is a "union of charity" which binds nine congregations of canons regular together for mutual aid and support. The initial four congregations were: Subsequently, other congregations of canons regular joined the confederation: The abbot primate, who

3560-534: The Congregation of the Immaculate Conception, in his writing put in its proper perspective the ecclesial dimension of the canonical life. In their independence and their local character, the canons regular had some resemblance to the Benedictine monks, as they did in their maintaining the vow of stability to a particular house. The individual houses often have differences in the form of the habit, even within

3649-646: The Czech Republic, the Dominican Republic, England, Italy, France, Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Peru, Porto Rico, Spain, Taiwan, Switzerland, the United States and Uruguay. Other orders sprang up which followed the Rule of St. Augustine and the canonical life. As canons regular became separated into different congregations they took their names from the locality in which they lived, or from

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3738-650: The Hospice of Saint Bernard of Mont Joux in Switzerland, and the Austrian Abbeys. The high point of the canons regular can be situated in the first half of the 12th century. During this time they contributed series of popes – Honorius II, Innocent II, Lucius II, as well as Hadrian IV shortly after mid-century and finally Gregory VIII in the second half of the century. In the Middle Ages, some cathedrals were given over to

3827-592: The Immaculate Conception at Epping , Harlow , Milton Keynes , Daventry and now Luton . Besides the occupations of the regular life at home and the public recitation of the Divine Office in choir, they are chiefly employed in parish ministry, preaching retreats, supplying for priests who ask their service, and hearing confessions, either as ordinary or extraordinary confessors to convents or other religious communities. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle dated to 565 A.D., relates that Columba, Masspreost (Mass-Priest), "came to

3916-575: The Irish canons regular retired to houses abroad. By 1646 the Irish canons regular on the Continent were sufficiently numerous to be formed by Innocent X into a separate "Congregation of St. Patrick", which the pope declared to inherit all the rights, privileges and possessions of the old Irish canons. In the year 1698 the Irish Congregation, by a Bull of Pope Innocent XII , was affiliated and aggregated to

4005-446: The Lateran Congregation. Like the Order of St. Benedict , it is not one legal body, but a union of various independent congregations. The Canons Regular of Saint Augustine ( C.R.S.A. or Can.Reg. ), also referred to as "Augustinian Canons" or "Austin Canons" ('Austin' being an anglicisation of 'Augustine'), is one of the oldest Latin Church orders. In contrast to many other orders of

4094-541: The Lateran Synod of 1059. Here for the first time the Apostolic See officially recognized and approved the manner of life of the religious clergy as founded by bishops and others. Gregory VII's reform resulted in a distinction being made between clerics who lived in separate houses and those who still preserved the old discipline. Toward the end of the 11th century, the more cathedral and other chapters of canons opted for

4183-523: The Latin Church was to elect a vicar capitular (now named a diocesan administrator) to serve during a sede vacante period of the diocese . Since the 1983 revision of the Code of Canon Law , this responsibility belongs to the college of consultors , unless the national bishops conference decides that the functions that canon law ascribes to the college of consultors, including this one, are to be entrusted to

4272-548: The Picts to convert them to Christ". St Columba (Columbanus, Colmcille) was the disciple of St. Finnian , who was a follower of St. Patrick . Both Columba and Finnian embraced the regular life which Patrick had established in Ireland. Tradition places the first landing of Columba on leaving Ireland at Oronsay, and Fordun (Bower) notices the island as "Hornsey, ubi est monasterium nigrorum Canonicorum, quod fundavit S. Columba" (where

4361-506: The Rule of St. Augustine, they differ from the friars in not committing themselves to corporate poverty , which is a defining element of the mendicant orders. Unlike the friars and like monks, the canons are generally organized as one large community to which they are attached for life with a vow of stability. Their houses are given the title of an abbey , from which the canons then tend to various surrounding towns and villages for spiritual services. The religious superior of their major houses

4450-530: The University of Paris finds part of its ancestry in the famous Abbey school of St. Victor. Later, congregations properly so called, governed by a superior general, were established within the order so as to maintain uniformity of particular observances. Among these congregations, which gave new life to the order, were the Windesheim Congregation, whose spirituality (known as the " Devotio Moderna ") had

4539-790: The administration of the sacraments, or by giving hospitality to pilgrims and travellers, and tending the sick. In fact, traditionally canons regular have not confined themselves exclusively to the functions of the canonical life. They have also given hospitality to pilgrims and travelers on the Great St. Bernard and on the Simplon , and in former times the hospitals of St. Bartholomew's Smithfield , in London, of Santo Spirito, in Rome, of Lochleven, Monymusk and St. Andrew's, in Scotland, and others like them, were all served by canons regular. Many houses of canons worked among

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4628-477: The apostolic life after the example of St. Augustine, the more urgent became both a separation from worldy life and measures regarding those canons who held to private ownership, in contradistinction to Benedictine monasticism, which till then was the mainstay of the Gregorian Reform. Pope Urban II deserves the credit for having recognized the way of life of the "canonici regulares" as sharply distinguished from

4717-540: The appointments as canon and professor have been made independently. Section 2 of the Church of England (Miscellaneous Provisions) Measure 1995 was passed for the express purpose of enabling Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford , to appoint not more than two lay canons. One of the motivations for this provision was that, under section 6 of the Ecclesiastical Commissioners Act 1840 ( 3 & 4 Vict. c. 113),

4806-473: The canons to that of her sister, Martha . According to St. Thomas Aquinas , a canon regular is essentially a religious cleric ; "The Order of Canons Regular is necessarily constituted by religious clerics, because they are essentially destined to those works which relate to the Divine mysteries, whereas it is not so with the monastic Orders." This is what constitutes a canon regular and what distinguishes him from

4895-583: The care of canons regular, as were certain places of pilgrimage. The shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham in England was just such a shrine, and the cathedrals of Saint John Lateran in Rome, Salzburg and Gurk in Austria, Toledo and Saragossa in Spain, St. Andrew's in Scotland, were among many others to be reformed by canons regular. The canons also took a leading role in the intellectual life of the Church by founding cathedral and collegiate schools throughout Europe. For example,

4984-480: The cathedral chapter. All canons of the Church of England have been secular since the Reformation , although an individual canon may also be a member of a religious order. Mostly, however, they are ordained, that is, priests or other clergy. Today, the system of canons is retained almost exclusively in connection with cathedral churches. A canon is a member of the chapter of (for the most part) priests, headed by

5073-645: The cleric is involved administratively with a cathedral. Canons may be members of the diocesan or bishop's staff rather than the cathedral staff, such as in the United States Episcopal Church , where a diocese's "Canon to the Ordinary" is a senior priest who works directly for the diocesan bishop (ordinary). Honorary canons within the Catholic Church may still be nominated after the Second Vatican Council . Also, priests (and honorary chaplains) of

5162-532: The different varieties of canons regular are to be distinguished not only from secular canons but also from: Writing at a time before the foundation of the mendicant orders (friars), Pope Urban II (died 1099), said there were two forms of religious life: the monastic (like the Benedictines and Cistercians ) and the canonical (like the Augustinian Canons). He likened the monks to the role of Mary , and

5251-557: The diocese, who is usually, though not exclusively, a lay person). It has traditionally been said that the King of England (now the British Sovereign ) is a canon or prebendary of St David's Cathedral, Wales . However, this is based on a misconception. The canonry of St Mary's College, St David's became the property of the Crown on the dissolution of the monasteries . The Sovereign was never

5340-399: The early 20th century, the canons regular were represented in England by the Premonstratensians at Crowley, Manchester , Spalding and Storrington and currently Chelmsford ; the Canons Regular of the Lateran Congregation at Bodmin , Truro , St Ives , and Newquay , in Cornwall; at Spettisbury and Swanage , in Dorsetshire; at Stroud Green and Eltham , in London; the Canons Regular of

5429-505: The first to officially use the name Canonici secundum regulam sancti Augustini viventes , which would give the new ordo of canonical life a distinctive stamp. The norm of life of the canons regular was concretized from the last third of the 11th century by a general following of the vita apostolica and the vita communis of the early Church based more and more on the precepts handed down by Augustine. Secundum regulam Augustini vivere, an expression first employed in Rheims in 1067, signified

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5518-476: The foundation of a cathedral or collegiate establishment. They take part in the daily services. They have sometimes formed a distinct corporation as at St Paul's Cathedral , London. In St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin , they are distinct from, and rank before, the Vicars Choral . The two groups overlap however; the two senior vicars, the Dean's Vicar and the Succentor , are also the two senior Minor Canons. Some Minor Canons do sit with, but are not voting members of,

5607-437: The founder, found it difficult to retain his jurisdiction over the English monasteries, who wished to make themselves independent. He determined to affiliate the entire Congregation to Cîteaux , which was effected at the General Chapter of 1147. Several English monasteries objecting to this, were finally obliged to submit by Pope Eugene III (1148). Each of the newly affiliated houses was surveyed, and brought within conformity of

5696-507: The founding prior of Scone , united the houses of canons through his patronage and by engaging them as his advisors. At the time of the Reformation the chief houses were: Many of the houses which claimed to have been founded by St. Columba remained in the possession of canons regular till the Reformation, including Oronsay and an alleged foundation at an unidentified locality in the Western Isles named as Crusay. The Augustinian canons regular established 116 religious houses in Ireland in

5785-412: The general chapter of the Lateran Congregation held at Ravenna in 1558, at the request of many Spanish canons, Don Francis de Agala, a professed canon regular from Spain, who for some ten years had already laboured in the newly discovered country, was created vicar-general in America, with powers to gather into communities all the members of the canonical institute who were then dispersed in those parts, and

5874-428: The head of a Congregation, numbering thirty-three subordinate houses, within thirty years of its own inception. Saint Bernard of Cîteaux also held them in high esteem, and it was at his request that their monks, in the troubled times of the Antipope Anacletus II , declared in favour of Pope Innocent II . By 1147, the Order was experiencing financial and administrative difficulties. Abbot Serlo, third successor of

5963-426: The largest religious house in Cornwall. The priory was suppressed on 27 February 1538. In England houses of canons were more numerous than Benedictine monasteries. The Black Death left the canons regular seriously decimated, and they never quite recovered. Between 1538 and 1540, the canonical houses were suppressed, and the religious dispersed, according to Cardinal Gasquet's computation, ninety-one houses in all. In

6052-456: The main force of the expansion of the monastic orders had declined. In England, in the 12th century there was a great revival of canons regular, in the wake of various congregations newly found in France, Italy and the Low countries, some of them reaching England following the Norman invasion. In England alone, from the Conquest to the death of Henry II Plantagenet , no fewer than fifty-four houses of canons regular were founded. The first of these

6141-411: The monks for the use of the canons. According to St. Augustine, a canon regular professes two things, "sanctitatem et clericatum". He lives in community, he leads the life of a religious, he sings the praises of God by the daily recitation of the Divine Office in choir; but at the same time, at the bidding of his superiors, he is prepared to follow the example of the Apostles by preaching, teaching, and

6230-506: The most celebrated in France. Aimo of Landecob was a noted member. The Congregation founded daughter-houses such as that at Furness Abbey and Calder Abbey , both in Cumbria , England . In 1119, Pope Celestine II , then in Angers , took it under his immediate protection, and strongly commended it to the neighbouring nobles. Under Geoffroy, successor to Vitalis, Henry I of England , established and generously endowed twenty-nine monasteries of this Congregation in his dominions. Early in

6319-411: The obligation to report to the authorities of the order. Especially from the 19th century onwards, the order has undertaken the work of evangelization. By the 13th century, there was widespread adherence to the Rule of St. Augustine . This came in piecemeal fashion. There were in fact three different rules of St. Augustine from which to choose: Of all the new monastic and religious groups to settle in

6408-666: The papal basilica of Saint Mary Major is the King of Spain , currently Felipe VI . Before the English Reformation , the King of England was a canon of the basilica of Saint Paul outside the Walls . In addition to canons who are clerics in holy orders , cathedrals in the Anglican Communion may also appoint lay persons as canons. The rank of "lay canon" is especially conferred upon diocesan chancellors (the senior legal officer of

6497-456: The period of church reform early in the 12th century. The role of the Augustinian Canons within the population was the main reason for their being the largest single order in Ireland. The canons regular did not practise the isolation from the general population operated by the Cistercians, and participated in a great variety of pastoral activities in parishes, hospitals and schools, as permitted by

6586-474: The poor, the lepers, and the infirm. The clerics established by St. Patrick in Ireland had accommodation for pilgrims and the sick whom they tended by day and by night. And the rule given by Chrodegang to his canons enjoined that there should be a hospital near their house for this purpose. Augustine of Hippo (354–430), also known as Saint Augustine , did not found the canons regular, not even those who are called Augustinian Canons. Although Augustine of Hippo

6675-604: The position of Regius Professor of Ecclesiastical History in the University of Oxford was annexed to a residentiary canonry of the cathedral, meaning that the Regius professorship could be held only by an Anglican priest. Following the death of Peter Hinchliff in 1995 the Regius professorship was held by Henry Mayr-Harting , a Catholic layman, from 1997 until 2003, and was taken up by another lay person, Sarah Foot , in Michaelmas Term 2007. Three other Statutory Professorships ,

6764-429: The principles of the "canonici saeculares", and at the same time as a way of communal perfection equal to monasticism. In granting numerous privileges to reformed houses of canons he clearly emphasized the nature and goal, the rights and duties of the canons regular. Thus from the renewal of the canonical life there inevitably arose a new "order"—which initially had not been the intention. The privileges of Pope Urban II are

6853-688: The reign of King Henry IV , the heads of state of France have been granted by the Pope the title of sole honorary canon of Saint John Lateran and Saint Peter's . On the demise of the Kingdom of France this honour became transferred to the Presidents of the Republic , and hence is currently held by Emmanuel Macron . This applies even when the French President is not a Catholic or even an atheist. The proto-canon of

6942-754: The reign of the Emperor Charlemagne (AD 800). Important milestones for the Ordo Antiquus form of canonical life include the reform and rule of the Benedictine Bishop of Metz, Chrodegang (763), and the Synods of Aachen (816–819) , which established a rule of life for canons in the Carolingian Empire. The ecclesiastical constitution or ordinance of Chrodegang, the Regula vitae communis (Rule of Common Life),

7031-598: The religious life. With canons as with the clerks regular, Holy Orders are the principal thing, and the religious life is superadded to the Holy Orders. Canons Regular The Canons Regular of St. Augustine are Catholic priests who live in community under a rule ( Latin : regula and κανών, kanon , in Greek) and are generally organised into religious orders , differing from both secular canons and other forms of religious life, such as clerics regular , designated by

7120-617: The same congregation. Already in the Middle Ages canons regular were engaged in missionary work. Saint Vicelin (c. 1090 – 1154) took the Gospel to the pagan Slavs of Lower Germany; his disciple Meinhard (died 1196) evangelized the people of eastern Livonia. In the 16th century the Portuguese Congregation of Saint John the Baptist took the good news of salvation to the Congo, Ethiopia and India. At

7209-535: The strictures and standards of the Cistercian order. The Savigny Abbey continued to exist until the Revolution reduced it to a heap of ruins, and scattered its then existing members. Of all its former dependencies only La Grande Trappe , a daughter of Le Breuil-Benoît Abbey , which was a direct foundation of Savigny, remains. Canon (priest) Canon ( Greek : κανονικός , romanized :  kanonikós )

7298-507: The year 1100. In some houses the canonical life was combined with hospitality to travelers, nursing the sick and other charitable works. Often a number of houses were grouped together in a congregation. One of the most famous houses was the Abbey of Saint Victor, founded in Paris in 1108, celebrated for its liturgy, pastoral work and spirituality. Also worth mention are the Abbey of Saint Maurice of Agaune,

7387-463: The year 492, re-established the regular life in the Archbasilica of Saint John Lateran . From there the reform spread till at length the rule was universally adopted by almost all the canons regular. Over time abuses crept into clerical life, including those of concubinage and independent living with the scandals and disedification of the faithful which followed. Vigorous reforms were undertaken during

7476-526: Was at Colchester in 1096, followed by Holy Trinity, Aldgate, in London, established by Queen Maud, in 1108. From 1147, Andrew of St. Victor served as abbot of the newly founded abbey at Wigmore. The first General Chapter of the Augustinian Canons in England, intended to regulate the affairs of the Order, took place in 1217. In the 12th century the Canons Regular of the Lateran established a priory in Bodmin. This became

7565-463: Was at once a restoration and an adaptation of the Rule of St. Augustine , and its chief provisions were that the ecclesiastics who adopted it had to live in common under the Bishop's roof, recite common prayers, perform a certain amount of manual labour, keep silence at certain times, and go to confession twice a year. They did not take the vow of poverty and they could hold a life interest in property. Twice

7654-459: Was instituted the monastic life, following the Rule of St. Benedict , interpreted in a manner similar to the Cistercians . The community wore grey habits. In 1112, the local lord, Rudolph of Fougeres, confirmed to the monastery the grants he had formerly made to Abbot Vitalis, and from then dates the foundation of the monastery. Once firmly established, its growth was rapid, and it soon became one of

7743-443: Was no longer strictly observed, the sources of revenue were divided and the portions were allocated directly to the individual canons. This soon led to differences of income, and consequently to avarice, covetousness, and the partial destruction of the canonical life. In the 11th century the life of canons regular was reformed and renewed, chiefly owing to the efforts of Hildebrand (c. 1020–1085), later Pope Gregory VII, culminating in

7832-514: Was their attitude toward private property. Both permitted the canons to own and dispose of property as they saw fit, but while Chrodegang counseled a renunciation of private property, the Aachen Synod did not, since this was not part of the tradition of the canons. It is from this period that there dates the daily recitation by the canons of the Divine Office or canonical hours . In the 9th, 10th, and 11th centuries, laxity crept in: community life

7921-626: Was under St Augustine that the "canonical life" reached its apotheosis. None of the Fathers of the Church were as enthusiastic about the community life of the Apostolic Church of Jerusalem (Acts 4:31–35) or as enthralled by it as St. Augustine. To live this out in the midst of like-minded brethren was the goal of his monastic foundations in Thagaste, in the "Garden Monastery" at Hippo and at his bishop's house. The "rules" of St. Augustine intended to help put

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