Fonte Avellana or the Venerable Hermitage of the Holy Cross, is a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

hermitage in Serra Sant'Abbondio in the

Marche Marche ( , ) is one of the twenty regions of Italy. In English, the region is sometimes referred to as The Marches ( ). The region is located in the central area of the country, bordered by Emilia-Romagna and the republic of San Marino to the ...

region of Italy. It was once also the name of an order of

hermit A hermit, also known as an eremite ( adjectival form: hermitic or eremitic) or solitary, is a person who lives in seclusion. Eremitism plays a role in a variety of religions. Description In Christianity, the term was originally applied to a C ...

s based at this hermitage.

History

Fonte Avellana was established by a group of hermits living at that site around 980. The tradition of the monastery holds that it was founded by Ludolfi Pamfili, a former soldier, later hermit. It was closely connected to the reforms of

St. Romuald Romuald ( la, Romualdus; 951 – traditionally 19 June, c. 1025/27 AD) was the founder of the Camaldolese order and a major figure in the eleventh-century "Renaissance of eremitical asceticism".John Howe, "The Awesome Hermit: The Symbolic S ...

, and its early customs and documents share much in common with the nearby hermitage of

Camaldoli Camaldoli () is a ''frazione'' of the ''comune'' of Poppi, in Tuscany, Italy. It is mostly known as the ancestral seat of the Camaldolese monastic order, originated in the eponymous hermitage, which can still be visited. The name was derived from ...

which Romuald founded. In 1035

Peter Damian Peter Damian ( la, Petrus Damianus; it, Pietro or '; – 21 or 22 February 1072 or 1073) was a reforming Benedictine monk and cardinal in the circle of Pope Leo IX. Dante placed him in one of the highest circles of '' Paradiso'' ...

entered the community, where he became a Benedictine monk and became prior in 1043. He enlarged the library, constructed a nearby cloister, and established a monastic house near San Severino. Albertino of Montone later also became prior there. It was raised to the status of an

abbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns. The c ...

in 1325, and remains the only Camaldolese house to have such a designation (all other such houses being designated simply as hermitages or

monasteries A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...

). It soon came under

lay Lay may refer to: Places *Lay Range, a subrange of mountains in British Columbia, Canada *Lay, Loire, a French commune * Lay (river), France *Lay, Iran, a village * Lay, Kansas, United States, an unincorporated community People * Lay (surname) ...

control, however, and the fortunes of the community quickly deteriorated. The community, in fact, eventually became part of the

Camaldolese The Camaldolese Hermits of Mount Corona ( la, Congregatio Eremitarum Camaldulensium Montis Coronae), commonly called Camaldolese is a monastic order of Pontifical Right for men founded by Saint Romuald. Their name is derived from the Holy Hermita ...

congregation A congregation is a large gathering of people, often for the purpose of worship. Congregation may also refer to: *Church (congregation), a Christian organization meeting in a particular place for worship *Congregation (Roman Curia), an administra ...

. Nevertheless, it continued in existence, until it was scattered by

Napoleonic Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...

forces. Yet after the upheavals of that period, the monastic community was again established and continues today as a major house of the congregation. One notable feature of its architecture is that the cells of the hermits were built as

suite Suite may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Suite (music), a set of musical pieces considered as one composition ** Suite (Bach), a list of suites composed by J. S. Bach ** Suite (Cassadó), a mid-1920s composition by Gaspar Cassadó ** ''Suite ...

s. This way a hermit and his disciple could share the cell, yet each had their own sleeping space within it. This reflects the ancient custom of a hermit taking a young

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedic ...

as a disciple, whom he would train in the

ascetic Asceticism (; from the el, ἄσκησις, áskesis, exercise', 'training) is a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from sensual pleasures, often for the purpose of pursuing spiritual goals. Ascetics may withdraw from the world for their p ...

life and often who would care for the older hermit as he aged.

Dante Dante Alighieri (; – 14 September 1321), probably baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri and often referred to as Dante (, ), was an Italian poet, writer and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', originally called (modern Italian: ' ...

visited Fonte Avellano and described it in the

Divine Comedy The ''Divine Comedy'' ( it, Divina Commedia ) is an Italian narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, begun 1308 and completed in around 1321, shortly before the author's death. It is widely considered the pre-eminent work in Italian literature a ...

. Pope John Paul II celebrated a 1000-year anniversary mass at Fonte Avellana in 1985."Fonte Avellana", Loyola University Maryland
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References

{{Authority control Monasteries in the Marche Catholic Church in Italy Catholic orders and societies