The Swiss Congregation of the

Benedictine Confederation The Benedictine Confederation of the Order of Saint Benedict ( la, Confœderatio Benedictina Ordinis Sancti Benedicti) is the international governing body of the Order of Saint Benedict. Origin The Benedictine Confederation is a union of monasti ...

is a grouping of

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

monasteries in

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

or with significant historical Swiss connections.

Foundation

The Congregation was founded, at the urging of the

Papal legate 300px, A woodcut showing Henry II of England greeting the pope's legate. A papal legate or apostolic legate (from the ancient Roman title ''legatus'') is a personal representative of the pope to foreign nations, or to some part of the Catholic ...

to Switzerland, in 1602,Benediktinerkloster Mariastein
/ref> with a significant reform agenda. Of the nine Benedictine monasteries in Switzerland which had survived the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

, seven had joined by 1604.

Disentis Abbey Disentis Abbey (german: Reichskloster Disentis) is a Benedictine monastery in the Graubünden, Canton of Graubünden in eastern Switzerland, around which the present town of Disentis ( rm, Mustér) grew up. Early history Formerly the date of the f ...

was prevented at first by considerations of the sensitive politico-religious situation in Graubünden, but joined in 1617. Beinwil Abbey had been dissolved in 1554, but the community was still together, and at last, after it had been decided that a re-foundation would take place at Mariastein, joined in 1647. The membership of the Congregation as at 1647 was thus all the extant Benedictine monasteries still in Switzerland: Engelberg kloster 2011-08-20 16 40 23 PICT4025

Engelberg kloster 2011-08-20 16 40 23 PICT4025

Einsiedeln Abbey Einsiedeln Abbey (german: Kloster Einsiedeln) is a Benedictine Catholic monastery in the village of Einsiedeln in the canton of Schwyz, Switzerland. The abbey is dedicated to Our Lady of the Hermits, in recognition of Meinrad of Einsiedeln, a he ...

(May 1602) *

Fischingen Abbey Fischingen Abbey (Kloster Fischingen), now Fischingen Priory, is a Benedictine monastery situated in Fischingen in the Canton of Thurgau, Switzerland, on the upper reaches of the Murg, a tributary of the Thur. It was founded in 1138, dissolved ...

(May 1602) *

Muri Abbey Muri Abbey (german: Kloster Muri) is a Benedictine monastery dedicated to Saint Martin of Tours. It flourished for over eight centuries at Muri, in the Canton of Aargau, near Zürich, Switzerland. It is currently established as Muri-Gries in Sout ...

(May 1602) *

St. Gall Abbey The Abbey of Saint Gall (german: Abtei St. Gallen) is a dissolved abbey (747–1805) in a Catholic religious complex in the city of St. Gallen in Switzerland. The Carolingian Renaissance, Carolingian-era monastery existed from 719, founded by Sa ...

(May 1602) *

Pfäfers Abbey Pfäfers Abbey (german: Kloster Pfäfers), also known as St. Pirminsberg from its position on a mountain, was a Benedictine monastery in Pfäfers near Bad Ragaz, in the canton of St. Gallen, Switzerland. Situated at the junction of the Tamina an ...

(Nov 1602) *

Rheinau Abbey Rheinau Abbey (Kloster Rheinau) was a Order of St. Benedict, Benedictine monastery in Rheinau, Switzerland, Rheinau in the Canton of Zürich, Switzerland, founded in about 778 and suppressed in 1862. It is located on an island in the Rhine. Histor ...

(1603) *

Engelberg Abbey Engelberg Abbey (german: Kloster Engelberg) is a Benedictine monastery in Engelberg, Canton of Obwalden, Switzerland. It was formerly in the Diocese of Constance, but is now in the Diocese of Chur. It is dedicated to Our Lady of the Angels and ...

(1604) *

(1617) * Mariastein Abbey (1647)

Changes

The fortunes of

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 lette ...

establishments in Switzerland were turbulent, especially in the 19th century. All were dissolved as a consequence of the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

in 1798, but were restored by

Napoleon 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 who ...

ic decree in 1803, with the exception of St. Gall, where the Prince-Abbot refused to make the necessary political concessions. The politics of the Swiss cantons brought about the dissolution of Pfäfers (1838), Muri (1841), Fischingen (1848) and Rheinau (1863), of which Muri was re-founded in 1845 at Gries in what is now the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

province of

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

and Fischingen not until 1977, as an independent priory. The ''"

Kulturkampf (, 'culture struggle') was the conflict that took place from 1872 to 1878 between the Catholic Church led by Pope Pius IX and the government of Prussia led by Otto von Bismarck. The main issues were clerical control of education and ecclesiastic ...

"'' caused the dissolution of Mariastein in 1874/75. The exiled community sought refuge first in France, and, exiled again in 1901, in

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 ...

, where they settled at

Bregenz Bregenz (; gsw, label= Vorarlbergian, Breagaz ) is the capital of Vorarlberg, the westernmost state of Austria. The city lies on the east and southeast shores of Lake Constance, the third-largest freshwater lake in Central Europe, between Switze ...

, only to be deported yet again in 1941, by the

Gestapo The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one organi ...

. The Swiss government then allowed them as political refugees to re-occupy their old monastery, which was however not re-established as such until 1973. AbbaziaMonteMaria2

The outlook for Swiss Roman Catholics during the ''"Kulturkampf"'' was so bleak that Einsiedeln and Engelberg began a programme of establishing new religious houses in the

United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...

so that the remaining monasteries and nunneries in Switzerland would have a refuge if they were all exiled. Eventually the crisis passed, but the new foundations took on a life of their own as the Swiss-American Congregation of the Benedictine Confederation. Political changes outside Switzerland brought the addition of

Marienberg Abbey Marienberg Abbey (german: Abtei Marienberg; it, Abbazia Monte Maria) is a Benedictine Order, Benedictine abbey in Mals, Vinschgau in South Tyrol, northern Italy. It was founded in 1149 or 1150 by Ulrich von Tarasp and other nobles. It has ma ...

in South Tyrol, which transferred from the

Austrian Congregation The Austrian Congregation is a congregation of Benedictine monasteries situated in Austria, within the Benedictine Confederation. History The Congregation was founded on 3 August 1625 by Pope Urban VIII, and consisted of eleven Benedictine monaster ...

in 1931.

Present membership

The member houses of the Swiss Congregation are presently as follows: *

* Fischingen Priory (re-founded in 1977) *

(since 1931; in South Tyrol) * Mariastein Abbey (re-founded in 1970/71) * Muri-Gries Abbey (since 1845 in South Tyrol; head of the congregation)

References

External links

*
Swiss Benedictines website
*

* ttp://www.osb.org/swissam/ Swiss-American Benedictine Congregation website {{Authority control Benedictine congregations 1602 establishments in Europe 17th-century establishments in Switzerland Religious organizations established in the 1600s Catholic religious institutes established in the 17th century