On 23 October 2014, Pope Francis applied the norms of the motu proprio Ecclesia Catholica of Paul VI (1976)[1] to the abbey, removing from its jurisdiction all 53 parishes and reducing its spiritual jurisdiction to the abbey itself – while retaining its status as a territorial abbey. Cassino is the second most populous city in the province of Frosinone and develops for 1 sq km at the foot of the hill on which stands the famous Montecassino Abbey, Italy's oldest Benedictine monastery together with the monastery of St. Scholastica. In his earlier setting Benedict "had twice shown complete mastery over his aggressiveness, Benedict is now allowed to use it without restraint in the service of God. According to chronicler Leo of Ostia the Greek artists decorated the apse, the arch and the vestibule of the basilica. The abbey on Monte Cassino was originally founded by Saint Benedict in 529, making it one of Europe's oldest monasteries. In 744, a donation of Gisulf II of Benevento created the Terra Sancti Benedicti, the secular lands of the abbacy, which were subject to the abbot and nobody else save the Pope. It was for the community of Monte Cassino that the Rule of Saint Benedict was composed. Then the Crypt is there beneath to be revealed with the astonishing golden mosaics. The monastic routine called for hard work. And if you are visiting the Abbey you might meet some of them having a walk in the cloisters before they go back to their rooms to pray alone or to gather later for the common prayer. It was directly subject to the pope and many monasteries in Italy were under its authority. Edsel goes on to note that these cases had been delivered to Göring in December 1943, for "his birthday". Montecassino Abbey, via Montecassino s.n.c. Robert Edsel (2006) is more to the point about German looting. The Battle of Monte Cassino (also called the Battle for Rome and the Battle for Cassino) was a battle during the Italian Campaign of World War II. "[9] In 581, during the abbacy of Bonitus, the Lombards sacked the abbey, and the surviving monks fled to Rome, where they remained for more than a century. A former head of the ancient abbey of Monte Cassino in Italy is under investigation for allegedly stealing €500,000 (£355,000) of church funds and … "[8], While scholars see some similarities between the story of Benedict's encountering demonic phenomena and diabolic apparitions at Monte Cassino with the story of Saint Anthony the Great's temptation in the desert, the influence of the story of St. Martin is dominant – with the resistance of Satan substituting for Martin's outraged pagan populace. "[6], Benedict scholars (such as Adalbert de Vogüé and Terrence Kardong) note the heavy influence of Sulpicius Severus' Life of Martin on Pope Gregory I's biography of Benedict, including the account of his seizure of Monte Cassino. So they began to buy and collect medical and other books by Greek, Roman, Islamic, Egyptian, European, Jewish, and Oriental authors. Pope Gregory also relays that the monks found a pagan idol of bronze when digging at the site (which when thrown into the kitchen gave the illusion of a fire until dispelled by Benedict). In one story, Satan invisibly sits on a rock making it too heavy to remove until Benedict drives him off. The trucks were loaded and left in October 1943, and only "strenuous" protests resulted in their delivery to the Vatican, minus the 15 cases which contained the property of the Capodimonte Museum in Naples. In 1799, Monte Cassino was sacked again by French troops during the French Revolutionary Wars. The Romans renamed the settlement Casinum and built a temple to Apollo at the citadel. +39 0776311529  Email: guide@abbaziamontecassino.org, Email: segreteria.abate@abbaziamontecassino.orgTel. 03043 Cassino (Fr), Italy, Tel:  +39 0776311529Email: info@abbaziamontecassino.org, For press contacts and events information, Tel. It acquired a large secular territory around Monte Cassino, the so-called Terra Sancti Benedicti ("Land of Saint Benedict"), which it heavily fortified with castles. [7] Benedict scholar Terrence Kardong examines why Benedict did not face stiffer opposition in his seizure of the site from the local pagans. It maintained good relations with the Eastern Church, even receiving patronage from Byzantine emperors. It was rebuilt after the war. The 11th and 12th centuries were the abbey's golden age. "[8], Once established at Monte Cassino, Benedict never left. So in Monte Cassino St. Benedict founded a hospital that is considered today to have been the first in Europe of the new era. It was St. Benedict of Nursia who established this very first Benedictine monastery around the year 529. Actually, the Germans were able to remove both the monks and the treasures of the abbey; and, after the bombardment ceased, they in… Around it had grown up a grove dedicated to demon worship, where even at that time a wild crowd still devoted themselves to unholy sacrifices. Where Satan concealed himself behind underlings at Subiaco, at Monte Cassino he drops the masks to enter into a desperate attempt to prevent an abbey from being built, and "that the sole cause of this eruption of satanic action is the suppression of pagan worship on the high places. The southern end of the valley was protected by large hills overlooking the town of Cassino and atop which sat the abbey of Monte Cassino. Monte Cassino. The monastery at Monte Cassino shows only the outer walls remaining after the Allied bombing. In 1944 during World War II it was the site of the Battle of Monte Cassino and the building was destroyed by Allied bombing. By the 10–11th centuries Monte Cassino became the most famous cultural, educational, and medical center of Europe with great library in Medicine and other sciences. The first monastery on Monte Cassino was sacked by the invading Lombards around 570 and abandoned. The abbey is extremely beautiful in itself, with some parts of it dating back to the 6th century and the rest beautifully reconstructed after WW2, according to the medieval layout and architecture. In 1057, Pope Victor II recognised the abbot of Monte Cassino as having precedence over all other abbots. In 1454 the abbey was placed in commendam and in 1504 was made subject to the Abbey of Santa Giustina in Padua. Every day thousands of pilgrims and visitors from all around the world come to this threshold. In 1322, Pope John XXII elevated the abbey into a bishopric but this was suppressed in 1367. They can go through the history of the Abbey from the very beginning till today and grasp why Montecassino Abbey is known as the Lighthouse of Western Civilization. Adalbert de Vogüé recounts that "Traces have been found of the oratories of St. Martin and of St. John the Baptist, with additions from the eighth and eleventh centuries, together with their pre-Christian cellars. The Monastery was a pile of rubble and Cassino was not captured until May 1944 by Polish troops. "[8], Pope Gregory I's account of Benedict at Monte Cassino is seen by scholars as the final setting for an epic set in motion at Subiaco. Monte Cassino (sometimes called Montecassino) is a rocky hill, around 81 km southeast of Rome in the Latin Valley. Site of the Roman town of Casinum, it is best known for its abbey, the first house of the Benedictine Order, having been established by Benedict of Nursia himself around 529. [5], Pope Gregory I's biography of Benedict claims that Satan opposed the monks repurposing the site. 57th Field Regiment, RA ? The second oratory, on the mountain-top, where the pagan altar had stood in the open air, was of the same width but somewhat longer (15.25 meters)."[8]. When you are visiting Monte Cassino, you can catch some wonderful panoramic views of the valley from the top of the abbey and see the Polish Cemetery. No doubt Gregory had this biblical model uppermost in his mind, as is clear from the terms he uses to describe the work of destruction. Almost totally destroyed by bombing in World War II, it was rebuilt and consecrated by Pope Paul VI in 1964. The Volsci in the area were defeated by the Romans in 312 B.C. Benedict's violence against a pagan holy place recalls both Martin's assault against pagan shrines generations before and the Biblical story of conquering Israel entering the Holy Land (see Exodus 34:12–14). 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