The term "abbot" belongs to Western culture, but thanks to literary translations it is well known in Russia. Usually, it is understood as a certain spiritual person, occupying a certain step in the hierarchy of the Catholic Church. But what exactly is the abbot's place in it? This is a difficult question for most of our compatriots. Let's try to figure it out.
Origin of the term
First of all, we will solve the issue of etymology. Here, in fact, everything is simple. The word "abbot" is the Latinized form of the Aramaic word "abba", which means "father."
The emergence of the term in the context of Christian culture
The first mention in this word is already found in the Bible. So, for example, Jesus turned to God. His disciples who followed him followed, and then the followers of the new religion converted by them. Gradually, this word became an informal respectful appeal to a spiritual mentor, mainly a monastic way of life. By the 5th century, it was in this vein that it was firmly entrenched in the Christian vocabulary of Egypt, Palestine, and other countries where the monastic movement flourished.
Formalization of the term
After the reform of monasticism, initiated by the government, many traditions either disappeared or turned from an informal tradition into a canon established by canon. Thus, starting from the 5th century, in Europe, the word “abbot” was used to refer exclusively to the rectors of monastic communities. Later, when an extensive system of orders was formed, the title of abbot was preserved only in the tradition of the Benedictines, Clunians and Cistercians. And such orders as the Augustinians, Dominicans and Carmelites began to call their leaders priors. As for the Franciscans, the title of their abbot is the Guardians.
Hierarchy within the abbots
As you know, there is a certain gradation within the abbey, so to speak, community. For example, the abbot of a provincial subsidiary of the order of the monastery or the abbot of the courtyard occupied a lower level than the head of the entire order or a major monastic center. Therefore, those of them who held the most significant posts could be called archiabbats. So, for example, the general rectors of Cluny were called. Another option for a similar regalia is the abbot of the abbots. In the Middle Ages, the role of these people was very high not only in the church, but also in the political plane. In part, this led to the fact that the abbots of many central monasteries began to be ordained as bishops and were, in fact, heads of dioceses, and not just monasteries.
Who became abbot
If we talk about the beginning of the Christian era, then the most advanced in spiritual practice and authoritative monks who earned their reputation as a lifestyle were awarded the honorary title of leader. Over time, things have changed dramatically. In medieval Europe, as a rule, only an immigrant from a noble family could become an abbot. In fact, this role was assigned to the second and third sons, who had been preparing for this ministry since childhood. In spirit, it was more secular, and from a person was not required sincere monastic zeal and spiritual charisma. In extreme cases, as it was, for example, in France, the abbots could generally use the monastery only as a source of income, but not live in it and not engage in any real management of it, delegating authority to their governors. In addition, there was a layer of purely secular abbots who received monasteries as a reward from state power. They were persons of noble origin, had no dignity and did not take monastic vows. Nevertheless, having authority over the abbeys, they also bore the formal title of abbot.
As for France itself, the abbot there is such a monk who, after a period of seclusion, returned to secular life. In other words, so in the jargon they called rastrig.
Abbots in other faiths
The Abbot is, as we have already found out, the official title in the Catholic Church . In Eastern Christianity, where Greek is used more than Latin, the closest analogue is the word "Avba." This is the same Aramaic root, but not in the Latin, but in the Greek interpretation. However, in Orthodoxy this is still an unofficial appeal to authoritative spiritual mentors from among the religious.
An Orthodox abbot in a purely Western sense of the word can only be if the monastery adheres to the Western liturgical tradition. There are few such institutions of the Latin rite in Orthodoxy, but they exist and consist mainly of former Catholics and Protestants.
Abbots can also be in monastic associations of the Church of England, which, after evading Catholicism into Protestantism, still managed to maintain monasticism. In other Protestant countries, abbots were sometimes called the heads of secular institutions, which were located in the walls of former monasteries.