Calogero (religion)

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The Metéora Monastery of Agía Triáda in Thessaly

A Calogero ( IPA : kaloˈʤɛːro ), also: Kalogeros; Plural: Calogeri, also: Kalogĕri, Koloyers, Kalojers, was a Greek monk within the Orthodox Church .

The Calogeri were mostly hermit monks of both sexes who lived according to the rules of St. Basil .

Except on Mount Athos , where only Calogeri lived, there were monasteries on the islands of the Greek archipelago and on the peaks of Thessaly . But they served in almost all Eastern Churches , took a vow similar to that of Western religious people, strictly adhered to their original way of life and to the old clothing. As far as is known, there was never any reform among them.

The origin of the name

François Pouqueville : Calogero from Mount Athos

The term Calogero comes from the Greek Καλόγερος (Kalogeros) and consists of the words καλός (kalos, “beautiful” or Modern Greek : “good”) and γέρων (geron, “older man”, “old”) with the literal translation “beautiful” Old ”,“ good old man ”,“ the one who has a good age ”.

According to Bergier, the name is said to have spread among the monks because they once chose a good old man as their superior, even if he was a lay brother .

clothing

The Jesuit Father Filippo Bonanni and the French book illustrator Bernard Picart report on the clothing of the Calogeri .

“You wear a long tunic made of black or camel-colored wool with a hip belt. On top of this they wear another black robe, open at the front, with frangles (thread hem) that can be closed with buttons. The sleeves are about three palms wide. They always wear a black felt or wool cap on their head that also covers their ears. Over it they wear a large hood, on which they attach two four finger-width bandages that fall over the arms, which according to them means the cross. They also let the hair and beard grow. "

Liturgical vestments

According to the Franciscan Terziarier Pierre Hélyot , the Calogeri were divided into three ranks:

  • the first, that of the novices, commonly called Archari,
  • the second, that of the profession , called microchimoi (Μικρόσχημοι) and
  • the third, that of the perfect, called Megaloschemoi (μεγαλόσχημοι).

The three ranks were distinguished by accessories or special badges that determined the external appearance.

The novices

The novices contributed to the tunic one to the knee-reaching Zimarra , a kind of round big cap that covered the ears and instead of clogs, as was common with the other monks, they wore pointed slippers. Three years after their admission, they were given the robes of profession.

The professed

The robe of the professed was characterized by a wide belt that narrowed the tunic above the kidneys. A cap covered the ears and a capa (overgarment with hood) covered the head. The shoes were almost like those of the barefoot Franciscans .

The perfect ones

A palm-sized piece of cloth (anablo) was added to the gown of the perfect, also known as the great and angelic gown, which was placed between the shoulders under the tunic. The anablo was attached to the four corners of the fabric with the help of cords, through which the arms were put. The cross or any other picture related to the Passion of Christ was embroidered on the Anablo . The capa was very wide, covered the shoulders at both the front and back and ended in a pointed hood. Five crosses made of woolen ribbons were placed on the forehead, chest, back, and either side of the shoulders.

  • Novice's robe

  • Robe of the professed (microchimoi)

  • Robe of the Perfect (Megaloschemoi)

Anchor cell in Skipton

The perfects continued to split into:

  • Koinobites who “lived together under one roof” and were separated from the outside world by a wall and prayed from midnight to sunset.
  • Anchorites who lived ascetically in a small cell outside the monastery and only went to the monastery on holidays to which they belonged to take part in the divine ceremonies.
  • Hermits who lived alone in grottos and caves on the mountains.

The way of life of the Calogeri

The Calogeri led a very strict and withdrawn life. They slept on the bare ground, and several times a week they flagellated themselves and covered their bodies with stigmas . They divided their time between manual labor and divine service in the church or in their cell, and their usual reading consisted of the text of the gospel or the sermons of the Church Fathers .

They mainly sold their self-made objects in Greece and the nearby provinces. They also cultivated the land for their monasteries.

The calogeri never ate meat, even when they were sick; they had this in common with the other Greek religious of St. Basil. On Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays it was allowed to eat fish and dairy products, while on the other days there were legumes and vegetables with oil. They only ate bread when it was earned through their physical labor.

Lent

The Calogeri strictly observed the four great fasts (quadragesime) prescribed by the Greek Orthodox Church .

The first and largest Lent is the one before Easter, which is also called "Megali Tesseracosti" (the "great forty days") and lasted eight weeks without exception. Fish, eggs, milk and cheese were only allowed in the first week. In the other weeks, mussels and other testaea (shell-bearing molluscs such as snails and mussels) were also allowed to be eaten with the normal diet. There was only water to drink.

The second Lent is that before the feast of the Apostles Peter and Paul. It begins eight days after Pentecost and lasts more or less long according to the calendar of movable festivals. During this Lent it was legal to eat fish and wine.

The third Lent is the Marie Lent before the feast of the Assumption and lasts 14 days. During this time, the Calogeri were only allowed to eat fish on Sunday and the feast day of the Transfiguration of the Lord .

The fourth Lent falls during Advent and lasts 40 days before Christmas with the same rules as those of the Apostles.

During Lent, the Calogeri spent most of the nights in prayer and penance (flagellation) for their own sins and those of others.

In addition to these four major fasts and the Wednesday and Friday fasts of each week, there were numerous smaller fasts.

The calogere

Calogere (plural of Calogera) were Greek religious or nuns who, according to the rules of St. Basil, lived in seclusion in monasteries or in their homes under the direction of a superior or an abbess . However, they were not forced to take a regular retreat . The Calogere earned their living with embroidery and sewing.

The clothing

The Calogere could be recognized by their shaved heads, by their long black wool dresses, the sleeves of which covered their hands to their fingertips. Over it they wore a black cloak.

The Calogere, who lived alone in their homes, were usually widows who were not forced to take a vow, but simply declared that they would renounce marriage forever. It has been reported that these calogere usually roamed freely in the cities, protected by their religious garb and black veil.

The way of life of the Calogere

For the Ottomans , for the input of their monasteries was free, bought in the Calogere by themselves sewn and embroidered belts and other handicrafts. However, the entrance of the nuns living in cloister was strictly forbidden to the Greek priests.

While the rich among the Calogere had a girl to be served, others kept young girls in their cells to teach them the good manners and duties of religion.

The first name Calogero in Italy

The male first name Calogero (Calogera the feminine form) is traditionally widespread in Italy and characteristic of Sicily thanks to the cult of Calogerus of Sicily ( Italian : San Calogero) . Calogerus of Sicily was a hermit near Naro and lived as an abbot on Monte Calogero near Sciacca in the province of Agrigento in the 5th century AD . Some scholars think that the name of the Saint of Sicily was not Calogerus, but the epithet with which he became known. Others claim that Calogerus was his name.

The Calogeri in Italy

Hodegetria from the 15th century

There are many legends about the arrival of the Calogeri in southern Italy , all of which are associated with the Madonna Hodegetria . During the second siege of Constantinople in the years 717/18 by the Muslim Arabs , the Madonna Hodegetria with child (also shortened to Madonna d'Itria, dell'Itria or dell'Idria) is said to be thrown into the sea in a box and miraculously on the coast To be “stranded” in Calabria , Sicily and Sardinia . Sometimes accompanied by two Calogeri and sometimes the box with the Madonna of Calogeri carried on the shoulders is said to have been brought ashore, which is why in the depictions of the Madonna of Constantinople the image of the Virgin and Child who climbs out of a box and often appears carried on the shoulders of two elderly calogeri.

How the Madonna came to Bari from Constantinople

When the Byzantine Emperor , Leo III. declared the previous cult of images to be "idolatry", he ordered in 730 (in other sources 728) the removal of all "images of Christ, the Mother of God, the saints and martyrs from the churches and the holy places". The walls should possibly be painted over with paint. Many of the cult images are said to have been burned and even more hidden by the Christians in order to return them to the cult after iconoclasm .

When Pope Gregory III. Leo III, who tolerated image worship for educational reasons ("Bible of the Poor"), excommunicated all iconoclasts and thus also the emperor in November 731 at a council in Rome . At the end of January 733, a navy of war in support of the exarch Eutychius from Ravenna to Italy , to attack Rome forcibly, to destroy the images of the saints and to take the Pope prisoner. However, the fleet was shipwrecked .

Thereupon Leo III confiscated. all papal goods in Calabria and Sicily , the removal of all of Sicily and all Balkan countries from the papal jurisdiction and their incorporation into the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople . Gregor then broke off contact with Byzantium .

Icon of the Madonna of Constantinople with Riza in the crypt of the Cathedral of San Sabino, Bari

Legend has it that the Greek monks (Calogeri) of Constantinople, who during the iconoclastic persecution kept the icon of the Madonna Hodegetria painted by Saint Luke, decided to bring it to Rome to meet Pope Gregory III. to be handed over for safekeeping. Two of them embarked in 733 with the help of two sailors from Bari with the precious picture in a box on one of three to Italy from Emperor Leo III. dispatched ships as sailors. At dawn on the first Tuesday in March 733, the only ship in the fleet that had survived a terrible storm landed in the port of Bari.

The sailors from Bari, who had discovered the real contents of the box, forced the Calogeri to leave the Madonna Hodegetria in Bari. In a large procession, in which all citizens took part, the image of the saint was brought to the Chiesa dell'Assunta, today's crypt in the Cathedral of San Sabino in Piazza dell'Odegitria, where today an icon with Riza from a later period as the Madonna of Constantinople is to be considered. Archbishop Bursa ordered the two calogeri, along with two other priests of the local clergy, to watch over the icon day and night and to praise Mary every Tuesday, as was done in Constantinople. The Calogeri stayed until 1158, when the picture was in the care of the cathedral chapter .

See also

Web links

Commons : Calogero (monk)  - collection of images, videos and audio files
  • Calogero. In: Treccani.it. Retrieved July 9, 2017 (Italian).

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Kalogĕri . In: Pierer's Universal Lexicon . tape 9 . Altenburg 1860, p. 252 ( zeno.org ).
  2. ↑ Del costume antico e moderno di tutti i popoli . Giulio Ferrario, Milan 1829, p. 283 (Italian).
  3. ↑ Dizionario di cognizioni utili specialmente alla italiana studiosa gioventù d'ambo i sessi . tape 2 . Unione Tipografico-Editrice, Turin 1863, p. 372 (Italian, online version in Google Book Search).
  4. ↑ a b c Nicolas Silvestre Bergier: Dizionario enciclopedico della teologia, della storia della chiesa, degli autori che hanno scritto intorno alla religione, concilii eresie, ordini religiosi ec. ec. tape 1 . Carlo Turati Libraio-Editore, Milan 1840, p. 376 (Italian, online version in Google Book Search).
  5. ↑ Calogero. In: Behindthename.com. Retrieved July 9, 2017 (Italian).
  6. ↑ AB. Bergier: Dizionario enciclopedico della teologia, della storia della chiesa, degli autori che hanno scritto intorno alla religione, concilii eresie, ordini religiosi ec. tape II. . Girolamo Tasso, Venice 1828, p. 13 (Italian, online version in Google Book Search).
  7. ↑ Filippo Bonanni: ordinum religiosorum in ecclesia Militanti catalogus: eorumque indumenta in iconibus expressa, & oblata Clementi XI. Pont. Max. Band I . Typis Georgii Plachi, Rome 1722, p. 217 (Italian, archive.org ).
  8. ↑ Bernard Picart: Ceremonies et coutumes religieuses de tous les peuples du monde . tape 3 . JF Bernard, Amsterdam 1733, p. 132 (French, online version in Google Book Search).
  9. ↑ a b Giulio Ferrario: Il costume antico e moderno, ovvero storia del governo, della milizia, della religione, delle arti, scienze ed usanze di tutti i popoli antichi e moderni . tape 2 . A. Fontana, Turin 1831, p. 313 (Italian, online version in Google Book Search).
  10. ↑ Pierre Héliot in the Encyclopaedia Britannica (11th edition).
  11. ↑ a b c Giulio Ferrario, p. 314
  12. ↑ Giulio Ferrario, p. 312
  13. ↑ Giulio Ferrario, p. 313
  14. ^ François Charles Hugues Laurent Pouqueville : Viaggio in Morea a Costantinopoli ed in Albania non che in molte altre parti dell'Impero ottomano negli anni 1798, 1799, 1800 e 1801 . tape 2 . Sonzogno, Milan 1816, p. 83 (Italian, online version in Google Book Search).
  15. ↑ a b c Dizionario delle origini, invenzioni e scoperte nelle arti, nelle scienze, nelle geografia, nel commercio, nell'agricoltura ecc. ecc. Angelo Bonfanti, Milan 1831, p. 594 (Italian, online version in Google Book Search).
  16. ^ Jacob Spon: Viaggi di Mons. Spon per la Dalmazia, Grecia e Levante, portati dal Franzese da CT Freschot . Bologna 1688, p. 300 (Italian, online version in Google Book Search).
  17. ↑ 40 days after deducting the preparatory weeks with increasing abstinence from food.
  18. ^ Jacob Spon, p. 508
  19. ↑ a b c d e Giulio Ferrario, p. 315
  20. ↑ a b c d Giulio Ferrario, p. 317
  21. ↑ Calogerus of Sicily. In: Heiligenlexikon.de. Retrieved July 23, 2017 .
  22. ↑ San Calogero. In: Santiebeati.it. Retrieved July 23, 2017 (Italian).
  23. ^ Restaurata la tela della “Madonna dell'Idria”. 24live.it, accessed June 6, 2017 (Italian).
  24. ^ Herbert Gutschera, Joachim Maier, Jörg Thierfelder: History of the churches: An ecumenical non-fiction book . Herder, Freiburg 2006, ISBN 3-451-29188-6 , pp. 100 ( online version in Google Book Search).
  25. ^ Theodor Dielitz: Geographical-synchronistic overview of world history . Alexander Duncker, Berlin 1846, p. 17 ( online version in Google Book Search).
  26. ↑ a b c d Michele Scaringella: La Madonna Odigitria o Maria Santissima di Costantinopoli e San Nicola venerati a Bari. (PDF) p. 6 , accessed on July 25, 2017 (Italian).
  27. ^ Byzantine Empire: Iconoclasm . In: Brockhaus in test and picture . Bibliographisches Institut & FA Brockhaus AG, Mènchen 2006.
  28. ^ Ferdinand Gregorovius: History of the city of Rome in the Middle Ages. Chapter 81. In: projekt-gutenberg.org. Retrieved July 26, 2017 (Italian).
  29. ↑ Ferdinand Gregorovius, Chapter 81
  30. ↑ Gregory III. In: Heiligenlexikon.de. Retrieved July 26, 2017 .
  31. ^ Walter Ullmann: Brief history of the papacy in the Middle Ages . Walter de Gruyter, Berlin 1978, p. 65 ( limited preview in Google Book search).
  32. ^ Bari, cathedral di San Sabino, cripta. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on July 28, 2017 ; Retrieved March 9, 2019 (Italian). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.nigrasum.it