Benedictine Congregations

[TuAutem]

I have looked but not found anywhere a sort of informal description of the differences between the various Benedictine congregations. (I don’t know if it’s correct to say the different ‘charisms’, since they all share the Benedictine charism, but perhaps ‘different ethos’ is fair to say.)

I have some idea from some of the abbeys I have visited in my corner of Europe, but would love to have this list of my impressions completed (or corrected!). Obviously these are just ‘broad strokes’ impressions, but I’d rather have that than just a name to go by!

English Congregation - tend to run schools
Solesmes Congregation - focus on Latin liturgy and Gregorian chant
Subiaco Congregation - more inward-focused, ideal of simplicity
Camaldolese Congregation - focus on the interior life, hermetic ideal
Olivetan Congregation - similar to Subiaco but with a unique history?
Ottilien Congregation - monastic life as a form of missionary witness

I don’t know anything about the others. Some appear to be mostly geographic (Hungarian, Swiss, Austrian, Bavarian, Brazillian, Beuronese), but I’d be interested to know if they have a particular character beyond that (as the English Cong. and Solesmes (French) one do).

I’d particularly be interested to know more about the American-Cassinese, and Swiss American congregations.

 

[Wesley7]

Various web search engines available to search any topic you want.

 

[Luigi_Daniele]

Various web search engines available to search any topic you want.

Be nice. Someone may have a “one-stop” page that explains them all