The Reichsmünzordnung ( German: [ˈʁaɪçsˌmʏntsˌʔɔʁdnʊŋ] , " imperial minting ordinance") was an attempt to unify the numerous disparate coins in use in the various states of the Holy Roman Empire in the 16th century.
75-483: The ordinance was issued in several steps at Diets at Augsburg during the 1530s to 1560s, but it was never adopted entirely by all princes within the empire. A first Reichsmünzordnung was issued by Charles V in 1524 at Esslingen , declaring the Cologne Mark as the general standard for coin weights. But due to protests by the larger principalities of the empire, the ordinance was never implemented. In 1551,
150-554: A basis for a reconciliation between the Lutheran Reformers and the Roman Church.” It had been prepared by Philipp Melanchthon and Johannes Brenz at the behest of John, Elector of Saxony . Based on Melanchthon's earlier Articles of Schwabach , it contained twenty-one succinct articles of faith to show that the doctrines preached did not violate the norms that were traditionally present as well as justifications for
225-569: A centralization of the government of the different provinces while ensuring the training of the religious. In 1499, the Reform of Albi aimed at a return to a more strict observance and in 1513 was approved as a "Congregation of Observance". However, this reform was suppressed in 1584 by Pope Gregory XIII In 1603, Henri Sylvius, Prior General of the Order, went to France at the request of the king Henri IV of France , to undertake with Philippe Thibault
300-525: A decision the College of Cities would be informed. If they also agreed to the decision this would become a final decision and passed to the Emperor. If the Emperor approved this recommendation he could adopt it but if there were any issues or concerns he would send it back and the process would start again. The 1530 Imperial Diet of Augsburg was requested by Emperor Charles V to decide on three issues: first,
375-587: A few decades, these hermits began to leave the Holy Land as a result of the insecurity linked to the Muslim reconquests which marked the end of the Crusades . They then returned to Europe where they spread this new monastic order. The rule of St. Albert was not approved by a pope until 30 January 1226 in the bull Ut vivendi normam of Honorius III . In 1229 Pope Gregory IX confirmed this rule again and gave it
450-641: A house was built in Vannes to accommodate a first community and on 2 November 1463 nine nuns arrived there from Liège and settled permanently. While the Vannes convent, such as Les Trois Maries , was to suffer suppression in 1792, during the French Revolution, in the meantime convents of Carmelite nuns had spread rapidly, including many in Spain and Italy. John Soreth played an extremely important role in
525-568: A large number of fraternities in many countries. Following the return of the Carmelites of the Old observance to France in 1989, at the request of the laity, fraternities began to be formed. The first fraternity was established in the diocese of Toulon in 1992. A second was in Nantes in 2001. Reform in Spain began in earnest in the 1560s, with the work of Teresa of Ávila , who, together with John of
600-422: A major cause of the decline of the order. The constitutions of the order dating from 1362 were revised and the text approved by the general chapter of Brussels in 1462. They insisted on The divine office, the vow of poverty, silence and solitude, the custody of the convent and the cell, studies, work and the visits of the superiors. The reform took hold in some of the convents, the "observant convents", and
675-541: A multitude of angels and holding in her hand the Scapular of the Order . In his vision, Mary said Receive, my dear son, this scapular of your Order, as the distinctive sign of the mark of the privilege that I have obtained for you and the children of Carmel; it is a sign of salvation, a safeguard in perils and the pledge of peace and special protection until the end of the centuries. Whoever dies in this garment will be preserved from eternal fires. Following this vision, and
750-728: Is centered on prayer and defined the way of life of hermits. The first act of the Order of Brothers of The Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel was to dedicate a chapel to the Virgin Mary under the title of Mary, Star of the Sea (in Latin: Stella Maris ). Elisabeth Steinmann considers it probable that the hermits of Mount Carmel also settled in some cities of Palestine ( Acre, Israel , Tire , Tripoli , Beaulieu in Lebanon), but after
825-527: Is lacking. In the Carmelite rule, reference is made only to "Brother B." (in the introductory sentence of the rule) who asked the patriarch for a rule of life for hermits. Tradition has established that it was Brocard, second prior general of the order, who asked the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem , Albert of Vercelli , to provide the group of hermits with a written rule of life. This rule, dated 1209,
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#1732787208631900-793: Is now Israel . The Order of the Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel are also known simply as the Carmelites or the Carmelite Order . To differentiate themselves from the Discalced Carmelites (founded in 1562), who grew out of the older order but today have more members, the original Carmelites are sometimes known as the Carmelites of the Ancient Observance and very rarely
975-739: The Augsburg Confession ( Confessio Augustana ), a central document of Lutheranism that was presented to the emperor. The Ninety-five Theses , published by Martin Luther in 1517, had sparked the Reformation in the German lands and an increasing number of princes turned Protestant . After the Great Peasants' Revolt was suppressed, the 1530 Diet was convoked to calm rising tensions over Protestantism, especially due to fears of
1050-677: The Augustinians . The Carmelites, barely spared, had to change their way of life from eremitic to mendicant. Gradually, during the 13th century, Carmelite hermits returning from Mount Carmel resettled throughout Europe, e.g. in Cyprus , Sicily , Italy , England , and southern France . Some dates and locations are known: However, the new settlements of the Carmelites in the European cities were very different from their eremitical life on Mount Carmel . In addition, they faced hostility from
1125-532: The Calced Carmelites ( discalced being a reference to some religious orders going barefoot or wearing sandals instead of shoes). Historical records about its origin remain uncertain, but the order was probably founded in the 12th century on Mount Carmel in the Crusader States . Berthold of Calabria , as well as Albert of Vercelli , have traditionally been associated with the founding of
1200-667: The Fugger and the reigning Habsburg emperors, particularly Maximilian I and his grandson Charles V . Nevertheless, the meetings of 1518, 1530, 1547/48 and 1555, during the Reformation and the ensuing religious war between the Catholic emperor and the Protestant Schmalkaldic League , are especially noteworthy. With the Peace of Augsburg , the cuius regio, eius religio principle let each prince decide
1275-494: The Kreuzer was introduced as the standard for small silver coinage, with 72 Kreuzer being equivalent to a Gulden , or a silver Guldengroschen . The silver Taler was set at 68 Kreuzer. An official Reichsgoldgulden was introduced but was only minted for a few years. The definition of a gold and a silver coin (Gulden vs. Guldengroschen) of equivalent value was problematic, as the value of the gold coin tended to rise above that of
1350-494: The Third Crusade , a group of hermits led by Berthold of Calabria began to inhabit the caves of Mount Carmel following the prophet Elijah . This first monastery was located in the east–west facing valley located 3.5 km (2.2 mi) south of the current monastery, and east of the "Haifa Sde Yehoshua Cemetery". At the beginning of the 13th century, their leader was supposed to be Brocard , although written evidence
1425-407: The "mixed convents". John Soreth hoped that his reform would gradually be imposed in all the houses of the order, but this attempt at reform remained largely unfulfilled since the prior general who followed him favored a return to a mitigation of the rule, and met with the approval of Popes Pius II and Sixtus IV. In 1523 Pope Hadrian VI appointed Nicolas Audet as vicar general. The latter organized
1500-730: The 16th century the tensions and relationship that existed between the Emperor, the Pope, the German Princes and the Protestants were quite complex. The confessions of the early centuries of the church were evoked by the Protestant Reformation and of the tensions that existed in the Church. The confession represented Protestant beliefs during the time of intense political and religious pressures. The Confession did discuss
1575-490: The Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel ( Latin : Ordo Fratrum Beatissimæ Virginis Mariæ de Monte Carmelo ; abbreviated OCarm ), known as the Carmelites or sometimes by synecdoche known simply as Carmel , is a mendicant order in the Catholic Church for both men and women. Historical records about its origin remain uncertain; it was probably founded in the 12th century on Mount Carmel in what
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#17327872086311650-484: The Carmelite rule and thus formed communities in the second half of the 15th century. Prior General John Soreth worked to transform these beguinages into Carmelite women's convents. On 7 October 1452, Pope Nicholas V promulgated the bull Cum Nulla introducing the Carmelites in France. Under his protection, Françoise d'Amboise (†1485), Duchess of Brittany, erected the first convent for Carmelite nuns in France. In 1463,
1725-404: The Carmelites could then rightly perform their apostolic mission. Nonetheless, a conflict ensued between the Carmelites who desired an eremitic life and those who desired an apostolic life in cities, including preaching. Consequently, two kinds of Carmelite monastery developed, one in the heart of cities and another outside them. Carmelites began to study theology at universities. The mitigation of
1800-568: The Cross , established the Discalced Carmelites . Teresa's foundations were welcomed by King Philip II of Spain , who was most anxious for all Orders to be reformed according to the principles of the Council of Trent (1545–1563). But she created practical problems at the grassroots level. The proliferation of new religious houses in towns that were already struggling to cope economically was an unwelcome prospect. Local townspeople resisted direction by
1875-496: The Diet of Augsburg began to emerge in the 1530s and the sessions were to be conducted under these guidelines. Either the emperor or the estates organized day-to-day business of the diet and the proposito functioned as the agenda for the Diet but could be easily altered by the convention. The business of the Diet was conducted on three levels; the committees, the colleges, and the plenary session. The plenary sessions or colleges created
1950-686: The Diet was forced to recognize the new status quo and introduced the Reichstaler (at 29.23 grams of 88.9% silver) as the official coin of the empire. The Taler remained in use throughout the Holy Roman Empire until the early 18th century. Diet of Augsburg The diets of Augsburg were the meetings of the Imperial Diet of the Holy Roman Empire held in the German city of Augsburg . Both an Imperial City and
2025-636: The Diet. Staying at the Veste Coburg , he made himself present through a variety of publications including the composition of Admonition to All the Clergy Assembled at Augsburg. Five hundred copies were quickly sold and circulated around during the Diet. A member of the Saxon group, Justus Jonas wrote that Luther’s work seemed inspired while “rebuking the haughtiness of the higher clergy, forcefully asserting ‘the article on necessity,’ and reducing
2100-735: The Discalced Carmelites had their own superior general styled praepositus general, the first such being Nicholas Doria. Due to the politics of foundation, the Discalced friars in Italy were canonically erected as a separate juridical entity. After the rise of Protestantism and the devastation of the French Wars of Religion , a spirit of reform renewed 16th–17th century France, as well as the Carmelite Order in France. In
2175-596: The Empire. After his victory over the Schmalkaldic League, Charles V convened the Diet of 1547/48 ( geharnischter Reichstag - 'harnessed diet', due to its tense atmosphere, very close to outright hostility), where the Augsburg Interim was proclaimed. This attempt to give Catholicism the priority was rejected by many princes, though, and a resolution of the confessional tensions was only achieved at
2250-788: The Holy Land. The Carmelites who had chosen to remain there were massacred by the Mamelukes . Jerg Ratgeb painted a fresco retracing the life of the Carmelites at the beginning of the 16th century, on the walls of the refectory of the Carmelite monastery in Frankfurt. Back in Europe, the hermits of Carmel encountered many difficulties. Their eremitic life did not adapt well to their new settlements, they were scattered in different nations, and they found themselves in "competition" with other mendicant orders . Pope Innocent III wished to bring
2325-528: The Order can no longer observe the rule because of its severity and rigor, both because of the fragility human than by weakness of the body. Two Carmelites were sent to convey this request to the Pope. The Pope responded in 1435 with the bull Romani Pontificis , dated 15 February 1432, the date of the petition. Addressed to the Prior General, Jean Faci, the bull granted the Carmelites permission to freely and lawfully stay and walk "in their churches, and in
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2400-655: The Ottoman advance; the forces of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent had almost taken the Habsburg residence Vienna in 1529 and Emperor Charles V wanted Christianity to unite against the invasions. After the 1521 Diet of Worms had imposed an Imperial ban on Martin Luther and his tracts, problems of enforcement emerged, as Charles' wars against France and commitments in the rest of his empire prevented him from focusing on German religious problems. In 1529, however,
2475-544: The Pope confirmed their anteriority. After the General Chapter of the Order of 1287 in Montpellier , France , the Carmelites replaced the white and brown striped, or barred, coat of their habit with a white cloak, because of which cloak they therefore colloquially were denominated "White Friars". The assimilation of the Carmelites as a mendicant order in 1326 by Pope John XXII ended the final hindrances, and
2550-614: The Rule came after the great epidemic of the Black Death in the middle of the 14th century, which brought about a collapse of the European population accompanied by a decrease of members of monastic orders. During the chapter of Nantes, a majority of Carmelites asked to appeal to Pope Eugene IV for a second mitigation of the Rule of 1209 of Saint Albert; the reform of 1247 was considered the first mitigation. The letter, dated 15 February 1432, indicated that Many professed members of
2625-628: The Touraine Reform, after the Province from which the movement originated. Carmelite nunneries were established in New Spain (Mexico), the first founded in 1604 in Puebla de los Angeles , New Spain's second largest city, followed by one in the capital Mexico City 1616. In all, before Mexican independence in 1821, there were five Carmelite convents among 56 nunneries. Daniel Papebroch
2700-402: The ancient observant rule. The Carmelites of Mantua obtained from Pope Eugene IV the bull Fama laudabilis , in 1442, which allowed them to be a separate congregation, governed by a vicar general and only distantly subject to the prior general. While influential during the 15th century, the "Reform of Mantua" subsequently became of marginal influence. Finally, this mitigation introduced around 1465
2775-532: The basis and role of the papal authority in the Church “but it was decided not to incorporate a statement of the Lutheran position on the papacy in the confession in order to avoid upsetting Charles V and running the risk that he might simply refuse to negotiate with the Lutheran part at the Diet”. At the time of the Diet of Augsburg, Martin Luther was an outlaw of the Empire and as a result was unable to be present at
2850-526: The bull Dum attendant meditatatione of 28 November 1476, which conceded many advantages to the mendicant orders. However, this mitigation of the Rule was somewhat resisted. Even before its promulgation, there was some protest against "a general relaxation" of the Rule. The advantages of the new rule were sometimes frowned upon in certain monasteries which wished to return to the old rule of 1247. The convents of La Selve (near Florence), Mantua and Géronde (Switzerland) thrived because of their tendency to observe
2925-423: The changes in worship and life that occurred from abusive traditions. The Confession was presented to the emperor on 25 June. During the Diet, Melanchthon withstood a variety of attacks while formulating the text. According to Joachim Camerarius , his first biographer, he “did not bend the truth to win favor or meet objections; at the same time he avoided unnecessary conflict”. Camerarius also mentions that during
3000-501: The church cast him as an enemy of the pope: "'His Holiness abuses Scripture', retorted Luther. 'I deny that he is above Scripture'." Cajetan's original instructions had been to arrest Luther if he failed to recant, but the legate desisted from doing so. With help from the Carmelite friar Christoph Langenmantel , Luther slipped out of the city at night, unbeknownst to Cajetan. Emperor Charles V could not bring himself to openly discuss
3075-482: The cloisters of these and in the places adjoining them at the appropriate times", moreover, it granted the faculty to eat meat three days a week, except during Advent and Lent and on other days when this was prohibited by general law. Pope Pius II completed this permission on 5 December 1469 by granting the Prior General the faculty of dispensing from fasting on days when abstinence was lifted. Pope Sixtus IV granted greater freedom, commonly known as Mare magnum , in
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3150-441: The committees; this level was staffed by members and/or experts of the Diet. The committees would prepare material that would be discussed by colleges and once acted upon, the issue entered the plenary session stage, however this was only ceremonial during the Diet of Augsburg. The issue would continue to be discussed independently then collectively by the College of Electors and College of Sovereigns. Once they were able to confer on
3225-508: The communal dimension of their life was clearly emphasized. Pope Innocent IV clarified and corrected some ambiguities and mitigated some severities of the original Rule, and on 1 October 1247 he established the text in the bull Quae honorem conditoris omnium . Thereafter, e.g., the Carmelites no longer ate meals in their cells separately and instead ate in common in a refectory . Thereafter Carmelites also preached and heard confessions in secular (ordinary) churches. The last great uncertainty for
3300-513: The defense of the Empire against the Ottoman threat; second, issues related to policy, currency and public well being; and, third, disagreements about Christianity, in attempt to reach some compromise and a chance to deal with the German situation. The Diet was inaugurated by the emperor on 20 June. It produced numerous outcomes, most notably the 1530 declaration of the Lutheran estates known as
3375-548: The diet, Melanchthon cried when hearing his work during this intense time of negotiations. There has been a long dispute regarding the Augsburg Confession and what type of confession it truly is. One suggestion is that it is a political and theological confession, which established the Protestant church. A second view is that it is a catholic confession that dispensed with minor teachings such as penance. During
3450-567: The emperor signed a successful peace treaty with France. After these successes, Charles aimed to assert his control over what he saw as German religious heresies. At the Diet of Speyer , the Edict of Worms was affirmed, resulting in the Protestation at Speyer enacted by the Lutheran princes. The Augsburg Confession was intended “to be an expression of the faith of the universal Church, and thus
3525-744: The end of this was the Schmalkaldic War and the ensuing Augsburg Interim in 1548 which was the Imperial decree given by Charles V after his army won against the Schmalkaldic League during the Schmalkaldic War of 1547/48. The tensions between Charles V and the German Lutheran princes were finally resolved with the Peace of Augsburg in 1555, which formally acknowledged Protestantism as a legitimate religion of
3600-423: The founding of the Third Order of the Carmelites. Pope Nicholas V supported this action in his bull Cum Nulla , too. In France, there were many Carmelite fraternities of the Third Order before the Revolution. Many died during the French Revolution , but a few evolved and organized themselves into a religious congregation of apostolic life. Currently the Third Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel has
3675-399: The general chapter held in Rome, the provincial of Touraine, Léon de Saint-Jean, was appointed a member of a committee to further revise these constitutions with a view to having them adopted by all the reformed convents of the order. From the Middle Ages, women close to the communities of Carmelite friars were drawn to their life of prayer. Thus, in the Low Countries some beguinages adopted
3750-409: The interior life and regular observance as the antidote to the laxity and decadence into which religious life had fallen, in addition, incorporating currents of renewal from the Discalced Reform, the French School , and the Society of Jesus . Thibault is said to have wished to marry the spirit of the society with the Order of Carmelites as far as possible. One of the most renowned figures of the Reform
3825-431: The late 16th century, Pierre Behourt began an effort to restore the state of the Province of Touraine , which was continued by the practical reforms of Philip Thibault. The Provincial Chapter of 1604 appointed Thibault the prior of the Convent in Rennes, and moved the Novitiate to Rennes, thereby ensuring that new members of the Province would be formed by the reform-minded friars. The Observance of Rennes advocated poverty,
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#17327872086313900-456: The matters of religious dispute and cause for division throughout Europe so he often stayed away from the sessions of the Diet. Instead he sent his younger brother Ferdinand I to have authority over discussions. The Diet was organized into three separate colleges: Prince-electors , ecclesiastical and secular sovereigns, and imperial cities. However, unlike other diets, the Diet did not possess fixed rules or methods to conduct. Tradition for
3975-419: The mendicant orders all together under the direction of the Order of Friars Minor and the Order of Preachers . In 1215, the Fourth Lateran Council decided to group the existing Mendicant orders under the two primary ones. In 1274 the Second Council of Lyon disestablished all mendicant orders that were founded after 1215; only four remained: the Franciscans , the Order of Preachers , the Carmelites , and
4050-452: The nobility and diocesan clergy. Teresa tried to make her monasteries as self-sufficient as was practicable, and accordingly restricted the number of nuns in each community. The Discalced Carmelites also faced much opposition from unreformed Carmelite houses, as when Carmelites from Toledo arrested and imprisoned John of the Cross in their monastery. Only in the 1580s did the Discalced Carmelites gain official approval of their status. In 1593,
4125-420: The opponents to silence”. Further, Luther’s impact was evident in August 1530 with the increased resistance of the Protestants to demands for concessions in the later stages of negotiations. Luther was able to read Melanchthon’s confession at an early stage, and admitted that he could have never written it in such a finely-argued way. He did later note that there “was no article on purgatory and no unmasking of
4200-447: The order the "Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel" and asked bishops to kindly accept them in their dioceses. However, the hostility of the secular clergy to the Carmelites was such that it prompted repetition of this recommendation on 4 October later that year. In 1247, the Carmelites asked Pope Innocent IV to modify the Rule of Saint Albert of 1209 to adapt it to their new way of life in cities. In this modification,
4275-413: The order, but few clear records of early Carmelite history have survived. The order of Carmelite nuns was formalised in 1452. The Carmelite Order is one of the few monastic orders, if not the only one, not to refer to a charismatic founder, but to a prophet of the Old Testament : Elijah and his disciple Elisha are considered by the Carmelites as the spiritual fathers of the order. Tradition indicates
4350-438: The papal Antichrist”. During mid-July 1530 Luther was reported as having told a number of friends that he had no expectation that the Diet would lead to any sort of agreement between the two sides. The General Synod of the Lutheran church accepted the twenty-one doctrinal articles with the Abuses altered. Following the Diet of Augsburg in 1530 was the Nuremberg Religious Peace which gave the Reformation more time to spread. At
4425-435: The pope Leo X to have Luther examined at Augsburg, instead of being called to Rome, where the Imperial Diet was held. Between 12 and 14 October 1518 Luther defended himself under questioning by papal legate Cardinal Cajetan . The pope's right to issue indulgences was at the centre of the dispute between the two men. The hearings degenerated into a shouting match. More than writing his theses, Luther's confrontation with
4500-421: The presence on Mount Carmel of a series of Jewish and then Christian hermits who lived, prayed and taught in the caves used by Elijah and Elisha. This is how the first Christian hermits (at the origin of the founding of the order) settled in the caves of Mount Carmel to pray to God. The first chapel built within the hermitages and bringing together this community is dedicated to the Virgin Mary . Very quickly,
4575-421: The reform of the province of Touraine. Pierre Behourt, Louis Charpentier, Philippe Thibault and Jean de Saint-Samson were to be the initiators and architects of this reform of the Carmelites of the Old observance. Figures of note in the Catholic Reformation , they were supported by Charles Borromeo , cardinal and archbishop of Milan . On 20 June 1604, at the provincial chapter of Nantes , Henri Sylvius published
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#17327872086314650-443: The religion of his subjects and inhabitants who chose not to conform could leave. An Imperial Diet took place at Augsburg from July to October 1518, during the reign of Maximilian I, who died a few months later. He tried, among other things, to appoint his grandson Charles as King of Romans , in order to guarantee his accession to the throne, but he failed. (His only son Philip had died in 1506.) The Elector Frederick persuaded
4725-399: The residence of the Augsburg prince-bishops , the town had hosted the Estates in many such sessions since the 10th century. In 1282, the diet of Augsburg assigned the control of Austria to the House of Habsburg . In the 16th century, twelve of thirty-five imperial diets were held in Augsburg, a result of the close financial relationship between the Augsburg-based banking families such as
4800-442: The ruins of the ancient Byzantine monastery which he rebuilt and renamed Saint Elijah. Tradition indicates that the order was founded in 1185, but that is based on the story of a pilgrim in the Holy Land, the interpretation of which remains questionable. The oldest (and most reliable) written accounts of the presence of Latin hermits on Mount Carmel date back to 1220 and another text from 1263 (See Steinmann 1963 , p. 24). During
4875-418: The secular clergy and even from other mendicant orders, who saw them as competitors. According to tradition, the prior general of the Carmelites, Simon Stock , worried about the very difficult situation of the order, which was still threatened with dissolution by the Catholic Church, intensely prayed to the Blessed Virgin Mary to aid the order. In 1251, Our Lady of Mount Carmel appeared to him accompanied by
4950-412: The session in 1555, where the Peace of Augsburg was concluded. The treaty acknowledged the Augsburg Confession and codified the cuius regio, eius religio principle, which gave each prince the power to decide the religion of his subjects. The decrees of the Council of Trent were acknowledged by the Catholic princes of Germany at the Diet of Augsburg held in 1566. Carmelites The Order of
5025-407: The silver one, and soon the Gulden was de facto traded at more than the official 72 Kreuzer. This led to the abolition of the official standard linking of gold and silver coins in 1559 under Ferdinand I . The Gulden was now set at 75 Kreuzer, the Ducat was introduced as an additional gold coin, and the Guldengroschen, now valued 60 Kreuzer, gradually fell out of use in favour of the Taler. In 1566,
5100-422: The spirituality of the order turned to Mary who became the queen and mistress of Carmel. Before the presence of the Carmelites, in the 6th century Byzantine monks built a monastery dedicated to Saint Elijah in a valley a few kilometers south of the present monastery. This was destroyed in 614 by the Persians of Khosrow II . Around 1150, a Greek monk from Calabria established a community of about ten members among
5175-416: The spread of the Scapular, the Order of Carmel endured and spread rapidly. The historicity of these events is disputed because of the lack of contemporary written records for the period in question; the earliest extant written records are from approximately 150 years later), and some documents contradict this narrative. In the bull Paganorum incursus of 27 July 1247, Pope Innocent IV officially denominated
5250-420: The status of Regula bullata . At the end of the first crusade led by Louis IX of France in the Holy Land in 1254 (the Seventh Crusade ), Louis brought six Carmelites back to France who joined with those who since 1238 had started to seek and found houses all over Europe. The fall of Saint-Jean-d'Acre in 1291, and the fall of the Latin state of Outremer led to the destruction of the last Carmelite convents in
5325-414: The statutes of the reform, which intended to promote the interior life and return to the ancient tradition of the order, under the patronage of the Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph . By the middle of the 17th century, most of the French provinces had adopted the reform, which had already won over the convents of Belgium (1624) and Germany. Its constitutions were definitively affirmed in 1635. In 1645, during
5400-647: The survival of the order occurred in 1274. During the sanota vacillationis session of 17 July 1274, the Second Council of Lyon , presided by Pope Gregory X , suppressed all the mendicant orders that lacked regular legal status ( incert mendicita ). The Carmelites defended the anteriority of their foundation, i.e. their institution before 1215, and the pertinent decisions of the Fourth Lateran Council , and emphasized their pontifical approvals. After many Carmelite interventions during this session,
5475-560: Was John of St. Samson , a blind lay brother, highly regarded for his humility and exalted spiritual life. In 1612, Br. John was moved to the Convent at Rennes and, in addition to playing the organ, served as the instructor and spiritual director of the novices. Thus John of St. Samson became known as the "Soul of the Reform." Eventually, the Observance of Rennes spread to priories throughout France, Belgium, and Germany, and became known as
5550-655: Was a member of the Bollandists , a group of Jesuit hagiographers who produced the Acta Sanctorum , which took an analytical approach to the "Lives of the Saints". In his preliminary commentary on Albert of Vercelli , who is credited with the Carmelite Rule, Papebroch said that the tradition universally received by the Carmelites, that the origin of the order dated back to the prophet Elias, as its founder,
5625-637: Was definitively incorporated into the regulation of the Order of the Great Carmelites in 1783 by Pope Pius VI. John Soreth , a friar from the Carmelite Convent of Caen, who served as Prior General in the years 1451–1471, tried to convince his subjects to lead a more rigorous religious life by developing seeds already sown and promoting movements that already existed. His motto was "Return to the Rule of Saint Albert". In his early decrees he protested against privileges and exemptions, seen as
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