The Institutio canonicorum Aquisgranensis (the Instruction of canons of Aachen) was a text disseminated in 816 at a
church council gathered at
Aachen (Aix-la-Chapelle) by
Emperor Louis the Pious, which sought to distinguish
canons from
monks
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 dedica ...
and to provide canons with a rule, called the ''Regula canonicorum'' (Rule of Canons) or Rule of Aix. The ''Institutio'' consists of a prologue, a collection of texts from
church fathers, and the rule itself. Similar to
Chrodegang's Rule (itself at times called the ''Regula canonicorum''), it differed on certain points. It was, for instance, more insistent on canons living a common life, eating and sleeping together. Yet canons were allowed to hold private property, and, with their bishop's permission, even have their own houses.
In the beginning of the eleventh century, the ''Institutio'' itself and a version of Chrodegang's rule with interpolations from the Rule of Aix were put forth as models for reforming
Cathedral chapters. During the
Gregorian Reforms
The Gregorian Reforms were a series of reforms initiated by Pope Gregory VII and the circle he formed in the papal curia, c. 1050–80, which dealt with the moral integrity and independence of the clergy. The reforms are considered to be nam ...
of the mid and later eleventh century, however, many reformers believed that the ''Institutio'' was not rigorous enough. These reforms helped to lead to the creation of the various forms of the
Augustinian Rule
The Rule of Saint Augustine, written about the year 400, is a brief document divided into eight chapters and serves as an outline for religious life lived in community. It is the oldest monastic rule in the Western Church.
The rule, developed ...
. Canons still following the Rule of Aix were said to be part of the ''ordo antiquus'' (old order), as opposed to ''ordo novus'' (new order).
[Dereine, 386–90.]
Notes
Sources
*Dereine, Charles. "Chanoines (des origines au XIIIe s.)." In ''Dictionnaire d'histoire et de géographie ecclésiastiques'', edited by Alfred Baudrillart, Albert de Meyer, and Van Cauwenbergh, vol. 12, 353–405. Paris: Librairie Letouzey et Ané, 1950.
*Veyrenche, Yannick. "Quia vos estis qui sanctorum patrum vitam probabilem renovatis... Naissance des chanoines réguliers, jusqu'à Urbain II." In ''Les chanoines réguliers: émergence et expansion (XIe-XIIIe siècles); actes du sixième colloque international du CERCOR, Le Puy en Velay, 19 juin-1er juillet 2006'', edited by Michel Parisse, 29–69. Saint-Étienne: Publications de l'Université de Saint-Étienne, 2009.
*Werminghoff, Albert, ed. "Institutio canonicorum Aquisgranensis." ''In Monumenta Germaniae Historica Concilia'' 2, part 1, 307–421. Hanover: Impensis Bibliopolii Hahniani, 1906.
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History of Catholic monasticism