A hieromonk is The meaning of the term "hieromonk"

2024 Author: Miguel Ramacey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 06:11

Hieromonk is a concept from the Orthodox lexicon. Therefore, in Russia it is quite recognizable. However, the subtleties of the meaning, as well as the history of this term, are little known outside of church orthodoxy. This article will be devoted to them.

Origin and etymology

The term "hieromonk" is a Greek construction that comes from two roots - "hieros" and "monos". The first of them is translated as "sacred", and the second - "one". Therefore, literally this word is translated as "sacred loner." However, “monos” is also a special, as they say, technical term, which means a hermit who has chosen the path of religious perfection outside the bonds of marriage and attachment to the world. Therefore, this word entered the Russian language without translation in the form "monk". As for “hieros”, the word “hiereus” comes from it, that is, “priest”. In such a refraction, a hieromonk is simply a priest-monk. It is in this sense that the word is used in Orthodoxy and in general in Christianity.

History

It is known that initially monks could not take holy orders. It wasdue to the fact that they lived a hermit life and could not engage in pastoral, social activities, which was associated with the ministry of the priest. Therefore, for the first centuries of Christianity, a hieromonk is something unthinkable, contradictory. However, in the future, when the monks began to unite and form their own communities, which grew into monasteries, they needed both their leaders and their priests. Therefore, some of them began to be elected and presented for ordination. This is how the first hermit priests appeared. The sermon of the hieromonk was limited to the monastic brethren and occasionally pilgrims who came to them. The ancient monasteries were located in deserted, deserted places, and therefore the laity appeared there infrequently. However, already in the early Middle Ages, monasteries began to appear more and more often in the suburbs and even within the cities themselves. Most often they were founded by ruling persons - monarchs, barons and other aristocrats. The life of a hieromonk in such a monastery, unlike his brothers on the periphery of civilization, was connected with politics no less, and sometimes more, than with priestly and spiritual service. In the modern world, monastics no longer hide from the world, as before, and therefore a lot of monasteries are located in the city. In addition, if earlier only selected brothers from among the inhabitants of the monastery were honored with the priesthood, today in male monasteries almost 100% of the monks are priests. Of course, there are exceptions to this rule, but the trend is just that.

Hierarchyinside monastic priests

We found out that a hieromonk is a priest who has taken monastic vows. But the official title of such a clergyman may change over time. For example, there is the rank of hegumen. Previously, only abbots of monasteries were called abbots. In other words, they were hieromonks, who were given, in addition to the priestly, the supreme administrative power in the monastery. A similar position, but more honorary and higher in the hierarchy, is the archimandrite. In the Orthodox tradition, it is from the archimandrites that the bishops are chosen. Even a hieromonk elected to the episcopal chair accepts the rank of bishop only after having previously received the rank of archimandrite. Sometimes such archimandrites wear their title for no more than a day. At present, both abbess and archimandrite are, as a rule, not administrative positions, but honorary award titles. Such priests are really no different from ordinary hieromonks, with the exception of more luxurious vestments and some authority among believers.

Hieromonks in other denominations

Orthodoxy is not the only Christian denomination where there are monastic priests. There are also such in Catholicism and in Anglicanism. In addition, there are a number of churches that associate themselves with Orthodoxy, but historically date back to the Monophysite and Nestorian communities. Being very ancient, they also preserve the monastic tradition and, accordingly, have priests from the monks. They are called, however, everywhere in different ways. The Greek term "hieromonk"- this is the property of only Orthodox churches of the Byzantine tradition, which includes the ROC MP. In addition, this word is used by Greek Catholics, that is, Catholics who adhere to the Eastern, Orthodox rite.