Un Fils de Saint Benoît

This article traces the history of the Western monastic tradition from its origins to the ninth century. Belonging to the field of historical and theological study, it examines the successive forms of Western monasticism, from the first ascetics of the first three centuries to the Carolingian reform of Benedict of Aniane. The article shows how Western monasticism was constituted from a dual inspiration — the Egyptian desert and urban monasticism — before progressively becoming institutionalized around the Rule of Saint Benedict, under the successive influence of Cassian, Columban, the Anglo-Saxon monks, and Boniface. Its principal contribution is to highlight the continuity between the charismatic ideal of the origins and the later institutional forms, while emphasizing that the progressive unification around the Benedictine Rule gradually marginalized the theology of transfiguration in favor of a more rigid juridical and liturgical framework.