engleski

Facing a Great Challenge: The Benedictine Abbey of Rogovo in the 13th Century

The Benedictine abbey of St John the Evangelist in Biograd was founded in 1060 by the Croatian King Petar (Peter) Krešimir IV (b. in the first half of the 11th century – d. ca. 1074). It is also known as the abbey of Rogovo after its largest estate. King Peter Krešimir IV endowed the abbey with the privileges of royal freedom (monasterium regale). After the Venetian destruction of Biograd in 1125, the monks moved to the nearby island of Pašman, where they continued their religious life in a new monastery (Saints Cosmas and Damian). Among the weighty results of the Fourth Lateran Council – “an event that changed Europe” – there is one concerning the monastic world, imposing more rigour in everyday life and work, as well as a tighter internal monastic system with the General Chapter at its head. When looking at the area of present-day Croatia, the internal situation of the Benedictine royal monastery (monasterium regale) of Rogovo may serve as an illustrative example. In the middle and the second half of the 13th century, the abbey seems to have been in a state of crisis, not so much in terms of economy, but rather in terms of organization and spirituality. Here it should be stressed that the 13th century saw the emergence and rapid growth of the new, so-called Mendicant orders: the Franciscans and the Dominicans. Before that, the decision was made, in accordance with the decrees and intentions of the Fourth Lateran Council in 1215, to reform the Benedictine Order. The ordo Cisterciensis was chosen to participate in that task, being themselves a Benedictine branch that arose from the reform ideas within the order just at the end of the 11th century. In a letter dated 13 June, 1268, Pope Clement IV wrote to Lovro (Lawrence), Archbishop of Zadar, that he should see to it that the Pašman Benedictines be reformed and organized as a Cistercian community and put under the care of the Cistercian abbey in Topusko. Considering the said conditions, it is more than likely that the wishes and requests of 1268 did not result in any actual improvement.

Fourth Lateran Council (1215), reforms, Benedictines, Benedictine abbey of Rogovo (Monastery of St John the Evangelist in Biograd, later Monastery of Saints Cosmas and Damian on the island of Pašman / Ćokovac hill, near Tkon), Dalmatia, 13th century

This research was supported by the Croatian Science Foundation (grant no. 6547) and by the Scientific Centre of Excellence for Croatian Glagolitism (Zagreb).