Swiss Congregation

The Swiss Congregation is a grouping of Benedictine monasteries belonging to the Benedictine Confederation. It was established in 1602 at the urging of the papal legate to Switzerland, during a period when Catholic religious institutions were seeking stronger coordination and reform after the disruptions of the Reformation. The congregation initially brought together most of the Benedictine monasteries that had survived in Swiss territory. By 1647, its membership had expanded to include the surviving Swiss Benedictine houses or their continuing communities: Einsiedeln, Fischingen, Muri, St. Gall, Pfäfers, Rheinau, Engelberg, Disentis and Mariastein. The congregation's history has been shaped less by commercial activity than by the political, religious and territorial upheavals affecting Catholic institutions in Switzerland and neighboring regions. In 1798, the monasteries were dissolved in the aftermath of the French Revolution and the associated political reorganization of Switzerland. Most were restored by a Napoleonic decree in 1803, although St. Gall was not restored because its prince-abbot did not accept the political concessions required for re-establishment. During the nineteenth century, liberal and anticlerical policies in several Swiss cantons led to further suppressions: Pfäfers was dissolved in 1838, Muri in 1841, Fischingen in 1848 and Rheinau in 1863. Some communities survived in exile or were later re-founded elsewhere. Muri was re-established at Gries in what is now South Tyrol in 1845, while Fischingen returned as an independent priory in 1977. The Kulturkampf produced another major disruption. Mariastein was dissolved in 1874–1875, and its monks moved through several places of exile. The community first went to France, then relocated to Austria in 1901, settling at Bregenz. In 1941, the Gestapo deported the monks again. The Swiss government subsequently permitted the community to return to its former monastery as political refugees, although Mariastein was not formally re-established as a monastery until the 1970s. The precarious position of Swiss Catholic institutions also encouraged Einsiedeln and Engelberg to establish new Benedictine foundations in the United States. These American houses eventually developed their own institutional identity as the Swiss-American Congregation of the Benedictine Confederation, rather than remaining simply dependent branches of the Swiss Congregation. The Swiss Congregation also acquired an international dimension when Marienberg Abbey in South Tyrol transferred from the Austrian Congregation in 1931. The present congregation is composed of Einsiedeln Abbey, Fischingen Priory, Engelberg Abbey, Disentis Abbey, Marienberg Abbey, Mariastein Abbey and Muri-Gries Abbey. Muri-Gries serves as the head of the congregation. The organization functions as a historical and ecclesiastical association of Benedictine communities rather than as a consumer-facing commercial brand. Its principal scope is monastic governance, cooperation and the preservation of Benedictine religious life among member houses in Switzerland and in historically connected communities outside the country.

The Swiss Congregation was founded in 1602 in response to the condition of Benedictine monasticism in Switzerland after the Reformation. The papal legate to Switzerland encouraged the surviving monasteries to form a common congregation with a reforming purpose and stronger internal coordination. Seven of the nine Benedictine monasteries then surviving in Switzerland joined by 1604. Einsiedeln, Fischingen, Muri and St. Gall entered in May 1602; Pfäfers joined in November of the same year; Rheinau entered in 1603; and Engelberg followed in 1604. Disentis, whose participation was initially delayed by the politically sensitive religious situation in Graubünden, joined in 1617. The continuing community of Beinwil, whose monastery had been dissolved in 1554, later joined in 1647 after plans were made for its re-foundation at Mariastein. From that point, the congregation represented the extant Swiss Benedictine monasteries. The congregation and its member communities endured repeated suppressions and restorations. In 1798, all the Swiss Roman Catholic establishments were dissolved as a consequence of the French Revolution and the political transformation of Switzerland. A Napoleonic decree restored most of them in 1803. St. Gall remained an exception because its prince-abbot declined to make the political concessions demanded for restoration. During the nineteenth century, cantonal political changes produced further closures. Pfäfers was dissolved in 1838, Muri in 1841, Fischingen in 1848 and Rheinau in 1863. The Muri community continued at Gries in South Tyrol after its re-foundation there in 1845. Fischingen eventually returned in 1977 as an independent priory. Mariastein experienced a particularly prolonged period of exile. The monastery was suppressed during the Kulturkampf in 1874–1875. Its community sought refuge in France before moving to Austria in 1901, where it settled at Bregenz. The monks were deported by the Gestapo in 1941 during the Second World War. Switzerland later allowed them to return to their former monastery as political refugees. The community's formal restoration as a monastery occurred only in the 1970s. The nineteenth-century threat to Catholic religious life also influenced the congregation's geographic development. Einsiedeln and Engelberg established Benedictine houses in the United States as potential places of refuge for Swiss monasteries and convents if further expulsions occurred. Although the immediate crisis eventually subsided, these American foundations matured independently and became the Swiss-American Congregation of the Benedictine Confederation. The congregation later incorporated a further community outside present-day Switzerland. Marienberg Abbey in South Tyrol transferred from the Austrian Congregation in 1931. The present membership consists of Einsiedeln Abbey, Fischingen Priory, Engelberg Abbey, Disentis Abbey, Marienberg Abbey, Mariastein Abbey and Muri-Gries Abbey. Muri-Gries, the community descended from the displaced Muri monastery, is the head of the congregation. The Swiss Congregation therefore combines a Swiss institutional origin with a membership shaped by exile, restoration, cross-border monastic foundations and the political history of Central European Catholicism.

• 1977

  Fischingen re-founded

  [1]Swiss Congregationen.wikipedia.org

  Fischingen returned as an independent priory after the nineteenth-century suppression of its monastic community.

• 1931

  Marienberg joins

  [1]Swiss Congregationen.wikipedia.org

  Marienberg Abbey in South Tyrol transferred from the Austrian Congregation to the Swiss Congregation.

• 1845

  Muri re-founded at Gries

  [1]Swiss Congregationen.wikipedia.org

  The Muri community was re-established at Gries in South Tyrol, later becoming Muri-Gries Abbey and the head of the congregation.

• 1803

  Most monasteries restored

  [1]Swiss Congregationen.wikipedia.org

  A Napoleonic decree restored the monasteries, except for St. Gall, whose prince-abbot did not accept the required political concessions.

• 1798

  Monasteries dissolved

  [1]Swiss Congregationen.wikipedia.org

  The Swiss Benedictine establishments were dissolved during the political upheaval associated with the French Revolution.

• 1647

  Mariastein community joins

  [1]Swiss Congregationen.wikipedia.org

  The continuing Beinwil community joined after plans were made for its re-foundation at Mariastein.

• 1617

  Disentis Abbey joins

  [1]Swiss Congregationen.wikipedia.org

  Disentis Abbey entered the congregation after an earlier delay connected with the political and religious situation in Graubünden.

• 1604

  Initial Swiss membership consolidated

  [1]Swiss Congregationen.wikipedia.org

  Seven of the nine Benedictine monasteries surviving in Switzerland had joined the new congregation.

• 1602

  Congregation founded

  [1]Swiss Congregationen.wikipedia.org

  The Swiss Congregation was established at the urging of the papal legate to Switzerland as a reform-oriented association of Benedictine monasteries.

An ecclesiastical association preserving cooperation and Benedictine monastic continuity among Swiss and historically Swiss-connected monasteries.

1. 1Swiss Congregationen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Swiss Benedictinesbenediktiner.ch