The Beuronese Congregation, or Beuron Congregation, is a union of mostly

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

or German-speaking religious houses of both monks and nuns within the Benedictine Confederation. The congregation stands under the protection of Saint Martin of Tours.

History

The origin of the Beuron Congregation begins with the Archabbey of St. Martin, Beuron, founded in 1863, the first declarations of which in 1866 already had in view an expansion to a congregation. After a further foundation, that of Maredsous Abbey in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, the first constitutions of the Beuronese Congregation were ratified in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

in 1873.

20160501 Kloster Gerleve, Billerbeck (05017)

Further foundations outside Germany followed during the period of "cultural struggle" (''" Kulturkampf"''), when the community was driven out of Beuron. Most relocated to an old

Servite The Servite Order, officially known as the Order of Servants of Mary ( la, Ordo Servorum Beatae Mariae Virginis; abbreviation: OSM), is one of the five original Catholic mendicant orders. It includes several branches of friars (priests and brothe ...

monastery in Volders in the Austrian Tyrol.Alston, George Cyprian. "The Benedictine Order." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 2. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907. 19 October 2022 In 1876, some of the monks were given refuge in

Erdington Abbey Erdington Abbey Church () on Sutton Road, Erdington, Birmingham, England, is the more usual name of the grade II listed church of Saints Thomas and Edmund of Canterbury. It is the church of a Roman Catholic parish in the Archdiocese of Birmingh ...

, Birmingham, England until after the First World War. After their return it was possible to found more monasteries inside Germany:

Maria Laach Abbey Maria Laach Abbey (in German: ''Abtei Maria Laach'', in Latin: ''Abbatia Maria Lacensis'' or ''Abbatia Maria ad Lacum'') is a Benedictine abbey situated on the southwestern shore of the Laacher See (Lake Laach), near Andernach, in the Eifel ...

(1893);

Gerleve Abbey Gerleve Abbey (in German Kloster or Abtei Gerleve) is a monastery of the Benedictine Order situated between Coesfeld and Billerbeck in Westphalia (North Rhine-Westphalia), in Germany. History The community, dedicated to Saint Joseph, was founded ...

(1904); Neresheim Abbey (1920);

Weingarten Abbey Weingarten Abbey or St. Martin's Abbey (german: Reichsabtei Weingarten until 1803, then merely ) is a Benedictine monastery on the Martinsberg (''St. Martin's Mount'') in Weingarten near Ravensburg in Baden-Württemberg (Germany). First foundat ...

(1922); Neuburg Abbey (1926); and others. The last foundations were

Tholey Abbey Tholey Abbey (german: Abtei Tholey) in Tholey, in the district of Sankt Wendel in Saarland, is a Benedictine monastery dedicated to Saint Maurice. It is part of the Beuronese Congregation within the Benedictine Confederation. History As early a ...

, resettled in 1949, and Nütschau Priory, a new foundation established by Gerleve Abbey in 1951."Maurus (Rudolf) Wolter", Portal Rheinische Geschichte
/ref> The congregation also continued to be active outside Germany, in among other places

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

and Japan; in 1906 the Abbey of the

Dormition The Dormition of the Mother of God is a Great Feast of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Eastern Catholic Churches (except the East Syriac churches). It celebrates the "falling asleep" (death) of Mary the ''Theotokos'' ("Mother of ...

(or

Assumption Assumption, in Christianity, refers to the Assumption of Mary, a belief in the taking up of the Virgin Mary into heaven. Assumption may also refer to: Places * Assumption, Alberta, Canada * Assumption, Illinois, United States ** Assumption Tow ...

) (now Hagia Maria Sion Abbey) in

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

was founded. The congregation's first nunnery was St. Gabriel's Priory, later elevated to St. Gabriel's Abbey, established at

Smíchov Smíchov () is (since 1909) a district of Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic, and is part of Prague 5. It is on the west bank of the Vltava river. History Between 1945 and 1989, the district contained a monument dedicated to Soviet ta ...

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...

in 1889, which relocated in 1919–20 to Schloss Bertholdstein in

Pertlstein Pertlstein is a former municipality in the district of Südoststeiermark in the Austrian state of Styria. Since the 2015 Styria municipal structural reform, it is part of the municipality Fehring Fehring is a municipality in the district of ...

in Styria. This was followed in 1893 by Maredret Abbey in Belgium, then in 1904 by St. Hildegard's Abbey, Eibingen and in 1924 St. Erentraud's Abbey, Kellenried. More recent foundations are Engelthal Abbey (1965) and

Marienrode Priory Marienrode Priory is a Benedictine nunnery in Marienrode, a district of Hildesheim in Germany. An Augustinian monastery was founded here in 1125 by the Bishop of Hildesheim, Berthold I von Alvensleben, in a place then known as ''Baccenrode''. ...

(1988). Other nunneries were taken into the congregation as already existing communities. The Congregation generously help fund the

College of Sant'Anselmo The College of Sant'Anselmo ( it, Collegio Sant'Anselmo) is an international Benedictine college founded by Pope Leo XIII in 1887 and located in Rome, Italy. Situated on the Aventine Hill, it is one of four Benedictine institutions that occupy the ...

, founded in 1887, and the

Pontifical Athenaeum of Saint Anselm The Anselmianum, also known as the Pontifical Athenaeum of Saint Anselm ( it, Pontificio Ateneo Sant'Anselmo; ) is a pontifical university in Rome associated with the Benedictines. It offers courses in philosophy, theology, liturgy, monastic studi ...

, established in 1888, both located at

Sant'Anselmo all'Aventino Sant'Anselmo all'Aventino ( en, Saint Anselm on the Aventine) is a complex located on the Piazza Cavalieri di Malta Square on the Aventine Hill in Rome's Ripa rione and overseen by the Benedictine Confederation and the Abbot Primate. The ''San ...

in Rome. At the request of

Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII ( it, Leone XIII; born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2 March 1810 – 20 July 1903) was the head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 to his death in July 1903. Living until the age of 93, he was the second-old ...

in 1895, they also assisted in the revival of the Brazilian Congregation.Belsole O.S.B., Kurt. "Beuron" Germany, ''Encyclopedia of Monasticism'', (William M. Johnston, ed.) Routledge, 2013, p. 149
During World War II, a number of refugee monks of the Beuronese Congregation, established a temporary priory in

Keyport, New Jersey Keyport is a borough in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. At the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 7,240, Initially, the congregation was under the management of the Abbot of Beuron, who acted as its Archabbot. The General Chapter, which took place at lengthy intervals and was attended by the congregation's officiating abbots, served the purpose of promoting general agreement among the communities and the regulation of outstanding questions. It was a strongly centralised system: all houses of the congregation were obliged to follow the customs, daily routine, service times and forms prescribed by Beuron. In 1936 the Archabbot system was replaced by that of the Presiding Abbot; the General Chapter, which as a rule assembles every six years, elects one of the officiating abbots of the congregation as Presiding Abbot until the time of the next chapter meeting. This makes the congregation more federalistic, and individual monasteries and nunneries are better able to develop an individual profile. In 1984, in accordance with the Codex Iuris Canonici of 1983, the revised statutes of the congregation and the declarations for monasteries and nunneries were approved. The statutes identify as tasks of the congregation the furtherance of the observation of the rule in the member houses, mutual help and joint solutions to tasks and problems, as well as exchanges between monasteries and nunneries. The General Chapter, consisting of the heads of each religious house, as well as elected representatives, is to meet every six years. Since 2003 the representatives of women's communities have had full voting rights. The foundations outside Germany and Austria later separated from the Beuronese Congregation, often for political reasons. In 1920, Maredsous Abbey became a founding member of the Congregation of the Annunciation. Maredret Abbey is also affiliated with the Congregation of the Annunciation. After the monks returned from Erdington Abbey, they founded in 1922 St. Martin's Abbey, in Weingarten. The Birmingham parish was turned over to the

Redemptorists The Redemptorists officially named the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer ( la, links=no, Congregatio Sanctissimi Redemptoris), abbreviated CSsR,is a Catholic clerical religious congregation of pontifical right for men (priests and brother ...

; the former abbey is now

Highclare School Highclare School was founded in 1932 and is an independent primary and secondary school located on three sites in the Birmingham area providing children's education from 2 to 18 years.Dr R Luke"Highclare School Website" January 31, 2011. Two ...

. After repeated wartime internments of the monks, in 1951, Dormition Abbey was separated from the Beuron Congregation and placed under the direct supervision of the Abbot-Primate of the Benedictines in Rome. In 2007 the nuns of St. Gabriel's Priory left the Beuronese Congregation and joined the Federation of Sisters of St. Lioba.Orden-online.de: St. Gabriel, Benediktinerinnen
/ref>

Archabbots

Maurus Wolter Maurus Wolter (4 June 1825, in Bonn – 8 July 1890, in Beuron) was the first abbot of the Benedictine Beuron Archabbey, which he founded with his brother Placidus in 1863. William M. Johnston ''Encyclopedia of Monasticism'' (2000, ), pp. 1440- ...

(18731890) * Placidus Wolter (18901908) * Idelfons Schober (19081914) * Raphael Walzer (19181922)

Presidents

* Raphael Molitor (1922 * Albert Schmidt (20082021) * Franziskus Berzdorf (2021present)

Monasteries

# St. Martin's Archabbey, Beuron # Abbey of Our Dear Lady, Seckau, Styria #

# St. Martin's Abbey, Weingarten # St. Joseph's Abbey, Gerleve # Abbey of Saints Ulrich and Afra, Neresheim # Abbey of the "House of Grace of Maria at Grüssau", Wimpfen # St. Bartholomew's Abbey, Neuburg # St. Maurice's Abbey, Tholey # St. Ansgar's Priory, Nütschau

Nunneries

# St. Hildegard's Abbey, Eibingen # Abbey of the Holy Cross, Herstelle # St. Erentraud's Abbey, Kellenried # St. Mary's Abbey, Engelthal # Abbey of the Holy Cross, Säben,

South Tyrol it, Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano – Alto Adige lld, Provinzia Autonoma de Balsan/Bulsan – Südtirol , settlement_type = Autonomous area, Autonomous Provinces of Italy, province , image_skyline = ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

# Abbey of Our Dear Lady, Varensell # St. Mary's Abbey, Fulda #

# Priory of Our Lady, Åsebakken,

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

File:Benediktinerabtei Tholey.JPG, Abtei Tholey File:Kloster marienrode.jpg, Kloster marienrode File:Benediktinerstift Seckau.JPG, Benediktinerstift Seckau File:Kloster Säben 1.jpg, Kloster Säben

References

External links

Website of the Beuron Congregation
{{Authority control Benedictine congregations Religious organizations established in 1863 1863 establishments in Germany