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BBC News
3 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Search for descendants of 1525 Bayham Abbey rioters
Historians are searching for living descendants of rioters who fought to save a Kent abbey from destruction 500 years than 100 villagers from Bayham near Tunbridge Wells took up arms in 1525 against a plan by Cardinal Thomas Wolsey to close the local monastery as part of religious Heritage now wants to find relatives of those who stormed Bayham Abbey, with 4 June marking the rebellion and closure of the monastery is seen by historians as a "harbinger" of the dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII a decade later. Roy Porter, senior curator of properties for English Heritage, said the abbey was closed by Cardinal Wolsey in order to help fund his own religious colleges at Oxford and said: "This was about the cash. "What Cardinal Wolsey would say if he was standing here today was that he was transferring resources from a relatively small and insignificant abbey to something much bigger which would train the next generation of priests." More than 100 people carrying longbows, swords and clubs stormed the gatehouse and temporarily restored the abbey's canons - only to see them finally evicted just a week a result of the riot 31 of the men were indicted by the Crown. English Heritage wants to find descendants of the local tradesman, including shoemakers, labourers and only does this list contain familiar surnames of today such as Godfrey, Large and Palmer but it also gives an insight into the occupations of those whose livelihood depended on the religious Heywood was a rapier who sold fish inland and which appeared on the abbey menu, William Lamkyn was a tailor, while Stephen Palmer was a cordwainer who made Carter, English Heritage historian, said: "The Bayham Abbey uprising is a fascinating precursor to Henry VIII's religious reforms, a harbinger not only of the dissolution of the monasteries just ten years later, but also of the Pilgrimage of Grace."Anyone who thinks they may have a family connection to the rioters should contact English Heritage.
Hospitality Net
30-05-2025
- Business
- Hospitality Net
What Hotels Could Learn from Monks
A Journey to the Abbey Somewhere along I-94, just less than two hours northwest of Minneapolis/St. Paul, amid Minnesota's rolling farmlands, spread across twenty-six acres of land adjacent to Lake Sagatagan, sits St. John's Abbey. Arriving in late March with sideways snow, not much, but enough to know you were in Minnesota—driving into the Abbey along a sweeping drive, the emergence of the Abbey Church is startling. Contemplation of brutalist architecture has had a reexamination due to a recent Oscar-winning film. But nothing could prepare you for the gargantuan cement testament to faith Marcel Breuer conceived in the 1950s. A 'Bell Banner' with many bells, peals for prayer three times a day. There is no mistaking it. Gorgeous, beckoning as its intention and raw in its testament. A Hotel Hidden Within a Monastery My mission was to help the Brothers, Benedictine Monks all, improve the hotel's sales performance of a gorgeous, spare, thirty room jewel box called, 'Guest House', of St. John's Abbey. I am not Catholic. I might best be described as a failed Episcopalian. But none of that matters. What mattered is that my host, Brother Benedict, needed to turn a profit, at least a modest one. Brother Benedict was my employer, my guide, my inspiration. His is a difficult task; lead a Benedictine Monastery, curate a remarkable collection of creative Monks, and make payroll. Added to this, every day, no matter what befalls him, he stops three formal times a day: and prays. Every day. Today there are 90 men who comprise the Monks of St. John's Abbey, in 1950 there were 450. The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune are well documented about the Catholic Church. The fact that a Conclave begins tomorrow is no small matter either. But, back to Brother Benedict. A man with a twinkle in his eye and faith in his heart. The critical skills of running a charitable, endowment leveraged, joyful expression of monastic artists who produce Church pipe organs, milled from lumber they harvest on property built over three years at a selling price of three million dollars with minimal margin, or pottery that rivals the world's best in class, or St. John's Bibles of gargantuan size lovingly scripted and illustrated complete bibles, or curating a library repository of the worlds Benedictine aspirations—is no small feat. He also has to run a hotel. A Jewel Box of Hospitality With Brother Isidore (A GM we would call him), they do that spectacularly. I call it a jewel box because it is. The Guest House is spare in all furnishing, Scandinavian perhaps, but Japanese in its simplicity and accents of glass, carved blocks and windows prominent to let all the light refract as it will. The rooms are spare, designed for solitude and contemplation. No TVs. I didn't miss it once in my three days. And a massive window dominates the wall facing their wonderful lake. After fourteen years of 'original equipment' (no renovations), the property is immaculate. This is a property running close to 60% annually, and 100% in peak season. — Source: Cayuga Hospitality Consultants The food was delicious. The staff attendant. The genuine hospitality evident. Yet the world is a tricky place when you minister to the poor, the downtrodden, the seekers, who at times cannot pay, who need a hand. It's a fact of Benedictine service: you give comps. You have to, it is what you do. Serving Guests, Serving Souls The financial reality says, 'Ah, within reason…' So, on the culminating moment of the last day; six men, dressed in monastic robes, sat before me and my flip charts. With a little tweaking, it was clear St. John's Abbey Guest House will be fine, and profitable. Brother Benedict, at my request, on a slick, snowy Minnesota afternoon took the wheel and toured me through St. Jo's and the local hotel competition, the adjacent St. John's University and St. Benedict's College (for women), and some of the local fare of restaurants, it looked like Ann Arbor. With a whimsical smile of a man, 'in this world, but not of it', Br. Benedict would chuckle at my typical routine of getting young desk clerks to tell me more than they should about rates, best clients, and ADR. 'You sure see many things I would have no idea to look for!' I suppose so. Learnings from Monastic Life What I saw in Br. Benedict was faith in action, financial realities, and an openness to the world, oftentimes the cause of his profession. His gentle brilliance is that he takes it all in and judges none, laughs out loud at goofy consultants, and saves souls with nowhere else to turn. I share what hotels can learn: Contemplating what is happening three times a day is a good thing. Faith is a matter for each to their own. Striving for perfection is a journey, even if never reached. Laughing at the absurdities of our world, even Monks do it! Discipline is its own reward. A profit, even if a small one, makes the mission—possible. As I stepped to my rental car, escorted by Brother Benedict, he offered, 'Do you think I could call you? Especially if I get stuck on something about hotels, I just don't understand?' Sure, anytime. No charge. — Source: Cayuga Hospitality Consultants View source
Associated Press
14-05-2025
- Associated Press
AP PHOTOS: Orthodox monks carry on long tradition of monastic life at medieval cliffside monastery
The Monastery of Simonos Petra clings almost impossibly to a sheer cliff above the Aegean Sea in northern Greece. Also known as Simonopetra or Simon's Rock, the Christian Orthodox monastery transcends country-based branches of the faith by embracing monks from across the world, including converts from non-Orthodox nations. The monastery is one of 20 in the autonomous all-male monastic community of Mount Athos, known in Greek as Agion Oros, or Holy Mountain. The peninsula is no stranger to foreigners. Of the 20 monasteries, one is Russian, one is Bulgarian and one is Serbian, and the presence of monks from other nations is not unusual. But it is in Simonos Petra where the greatest range of nationalities lies. ____ This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.
The Independent
14-05-2025
- The Independent
On Greece's Mount Athos, a cliffside monastery transcends country-based branches of Orthodoxy
The medieval monastery clings almost impossibly to sheer cliffs high above the shimmering turquoise of the Aegean Sea. Rising from the rugged granite rock, its walls enclose a diverse Christian Orthodox community. The Monastery of Simonos Petra, also known as Simonopetra — or Simon's Rock — transcends country-based branches of the Christian faith, embracing monks from across the world, including converts from nations where Orthodox Christianity is not the prevailing religion. The monastery is one of 20 in the autonomous all-male monastic community of Mount Athos, known in Greek as Agion Oros, or Holy Mountain. The peninsula in northern Greece is no stranger to non-Greeks: of the 20 monasteries, one is Russian, one is Bulgarian and one is Serbian, and the presence of monks from other nations is not unusual. But Simonos Petra has the greatest range of nationalities. Spirituality transcends borders 'Spiritually, there are no borders, because the Holy Mountain has an ecumenical nature' seeking to embrace all, said Archimandrite Eliseos, the abbot of Simonos Petra. This links back to the Byzantine Empire, Eliseos explained. 'We say that Byzantium was a commonwealth ... in which (different) peoples lived together in the same faith.' The monastery welcomes anyone who would like to visit — provided they are male. In a more than 1,000-year-old tradition, women are banned from the entire peninsula, which is deemed the Virgin Mary's domain. While men from other faiths can spend a few days at Mount Athos as visitors, only Orthodox men can become monks. Most of Simonos Petra's 65 monks hail from European countries where Orthodoxy is the predominant religion, such as Romania, Serbia, Russia, Moldova, Cyprus and Greece. But there are others from China, Germany, Hungary, the United States, Australia, France, Lebanon and Syria. Founded in the 13th century by Saint Simon the Myrrh-bearer, the seven-story Simonos Petra is considered an audacious marvel of Byzantine architecture. Renowned for its ecclesiastical choir, the monastery has become a symbol of resilience during its long history, recovering from three destructive fires — the most recent in the late 1800s — to embrace global Orthodoxy. A lifelong quest It was within these walls nearly 20 years ago that Father Isaiah — who like other monks goes by one name — found the answer to a lifelong spiritual quest that had spanned half the globe. Born in Vietnam to Chinese parents, the now 50-year-old monk grew up in Switzerland, where his family moved when he was a child. 'In this Swiss environment, I was trying to understand what I'm doing, where I'm going, what is the meaning of life,' he explained on a recent morning, standing on a fifth-floor balcony next to a winch used to bring supplies up from the monastery's storerooms in wicker baskets. 'While searching I found some answers through virtue, and this virtue was connected to the image of Orthodoxy,' he said, his fluent Greek bearing a hint of a foreign accent. Delving into this new faith, he found relationships based on love and a search for God, he said. His quest led him to an Orthodox monastery in France affiliated with Simonos Petra. That, in turn, led him to Mount Athos in 2006. 'It was in essence a deep searching of spiritual life, which is the answer for the meaning of life,' he said. Within the monastery, he found a brotherhood of monks from 14 countries. He decided to stay. 'We gather together with some principles, which are those of love towards our neighbor and the love for God,' Isaiah said. In the human and spiritual connections he experienced in Simonos Petras, 'I found a deep answer to everything I had been seeking in my youth.' Monastery life Life in the monastery — and across Mount Athos — has changed little in the more than 1,000 years of religious presence there. Days begin long before dawn and are punctuated by prayer services followed by daily tasks, which can include farming, carpentry, winemaking, cooking, art, clerical and ecclesiastical work. Set among forested slopes, nearly every inch of Simonos Petra's land is cultivated, with the monks tending to herbs, fruit and vegetables used in the monastery's kitchen. Electricity comes from sustainable sources such as solar panels. Embracing foreigners Father Serafeim, a Lebanese-Syrian who has lived in the monastery since 2010, said Eliseos and his predecessor as abbot, the Elder Emilianos, had always embraced foreigners. 'You don't feel that you're a stranger, you feel from the start that you're an equal member of the brotherhood,' said Serafeim, who joined the monastic community seven years after he first arrived in Greece to study theology in the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki. 'This spirit, this open spirit of the elder attracted many souls who were searching for a genuine, emphatic meaning of life,' he said. One of the oldest non-Greek monks in the monastery is Father Makarios. The Frenchman's spiritual quest began in May 1968, when as a young man he experienced first-hand the social uprising sparked by student demonstrations in Paris. His search led him to Mount Athos for the first time in 1975. 'I found this monastery and an embrace,' he said. 'I found people who understood and accepted me. They didn't judge me. It was very easy for me to decide that in the end, after I finish my studies, I will come to Mount Athos, I will try to see if I can become a monk.' Converting from Catholicism to Orthodoxy in Mount Athos, Makarios is now the monastery's librarian. He has been living in Simonos Petra for 46 years. All (men) are welcome Eliseos, the abbot, stresses his monastery is open to all visitors. 'We say we are open to people with love,' he says. 'Someone comes along and wants to visit Mount Athos, he visits it. … Does he want to take it further? We say: 'Let's discuss it, with your will'. What does he want? Does he want to participate in this life, does he want to enter into our spirit, embrace our values and our faith? We will accept that. We will not discriminate.' ___ Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP's collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
Associated Press
14-05-2025
- Associated Press
On Greece's Mount Athos, a cliffside monastery transcends country-based branches of Orthodoxy
MOUNT ATHOS, Greece (AP) — The medieval monastery clings almost impossibly to sheer cliffs high above the shimmering turquoise of the Aegean Sea. Rising from the rugged granite rock, its walls enclose a diverse Christian Orthodox community. The Monastery of Simonos Petra, also known as Simonopetra — or Simon's Rock — transcends country-based branches of the Christian faith, embracing monks from across the world, including converts from nations where Orthodox Christianity is not the prevailing religion. The monastery is one of 20 in the autonomous all-male monastic community of Mount Athos, known in Greek as Agion Oros, or Holy Mountain. The peninsula in northern Greece is no stranger to non-Greeks: of the 20 monasteries, one is Russian, one is Bulgarian and one is Serbian, and the presence of monks from other nations is not unusual. But Simonos Petra has the greatest range of nationalities. Spirituality transcends borders 'Spiritually, there are no borders, because the Holy Mountain has an ecumenical nature' seeking to embrace all, said Archimandrite Eliseos, the abbot of Simonos Petra. This links back to the Byzantine Empire, Eliseos explained. 'We say that Byzantium was a commonwealth ... in which (different) peoples lived together in the same faith.' The monastery welcomes anyone who would like to visit — provided they are male. In a more than 1,000-year-old tradition, women are banned from the entire peninsula, which is deemed the Virgin Mary's domain. While men from other faiths can spend a few days at Mount Athos as visitors, only Orthodox men can become monks. Most of Simonos Petra's 65 monks hail from European countries where Orthodoxy is the predominant religion, such as Romania, Serbia, Russia, Moldova, Cyprus and Greece. But there are others from China, Germany, Hungary, the United States, Australia, France, Lebanon and Syria. Founded in the 13th century by Saint Simon the Myrrh-bearer, the seven-story Simonos Petra is considered an audacious marvel of Byzantine architecture. Renowned for its ecclesiastical choir, the monastery has become a symbol of resilience during its long history, recovering from three destructive fires — the most recent in the late 1800s — to embrace global Orthodoxy. A lifelong quest It was within these walls nearly 20 years ago that Father Isaiah — who like other monks goes by one name — found the answer to a lifelong spiritual quest that had spanned half the globe. Born in Vietnam to Chinese parents, the now 50-year-old monk grew up in Switzerland, where his family moved when he was a child. 'In this Swiss environment, I was trying to understand what I'm doing, where I'm going, what is the meaning of life,' he explained on a recent morning, standing on a fifth-floor balcony next to a winch used to bring supplies up from the monastery's storerooms in wicker baskets. 'While searching I found some answers through virtue, and this virtue was connected to the image of Orthodoxy,' he said, his fluent Greek bearing a hint of a foreign accent. Delving into this new faith, he found relationships based on love and a search for God, he said. His quest led him to an Orthodox monastery in France affiliated with Simonos Petra. That, in turn, led him to Mount Athos in 2006. 'It was in essence a deep searching of spiritual life, which is the answer for the meaning of life,' he said. Within the monastery, he found a brotherhood of monks from 14 countries. He decided to stay. 'We gather together with some principles, which are those of love towards our neighbor and the love for God,' Isaiah said. In the human and spiritual connections he experienced in Simonos Petras, 'I found a deep answer to everything I had been seeking in my youth.' Monastery life Life in the monastery — and across Mount Athos — has changed little in the more than 1,000 years of religious presence there. Days begin long before dawn and are punctuated by prayer services followed by daily tasks, which can include farming, carpentry, winemaking, cooking, art, clerical and ecclesiastical work. Set among forested slopes, nearly every inch of Simonos Petra's land is cultivated, with the monks tending to herbs, fruit and vegetables used in the monastery's kitchen. Electricity comes from sustainable sources such as solar panels. Embracing foreigners Father Serafeim, a Lebanese-Syrian who has lived in the monastery since 2010, said Eliseos and his predecessor as abbot, the Elder Emilianos, had always embraced foreigners. 'You don't feel that you're a stranger, you feel from the start that you're an equal member of the brotherhood,' said Serafeim, who joined the monastic community seven years after he first arrived in Greece to study theology in the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki. 'This spirit, this open spirit of the elder attracted many souls who were searching for a genuine, emphatic meaning of life,' he said. One of the oldest non-Greek monks in the monastery is Father Makarios. The Frenchman's spiritual quest began in May 1968, when as a young man he experienced first-hand the social uprising sparked by student demonstrations in Paris. His search led him to Mount Athos for the first time in 1975. 'I found this monastery and an embrace,' he said. 'I found people who understood and accepted me. They didn't judge me. It was very easy for me to decide that in the end, after I finish my studies, I will come to Mount Athos, I will try to see if I can become a monk.' Converting from Catholicism to Orthodoxy in Mount Athos, Makarios is now the monastery's librarian. He has been living in Simonos Petra for 46 years. All (men) are welcome Eliseos, the abbot, stresses his monastery is open to all visitors. 'We say we are open to people with love,' he says. 'Someone comes along and wants to visit Mount Athos, he visits it. … Does he want to take it further? We say: 'Let's discuss it, with your will'. What does he want? Does he want to participate in this life, does he want to enter into our spirit, embrace our values and our faith? We will accept that. We will not discriminate.' ___ Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP's collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
