Tuesday, August 28, 2012
One of
the very remarkable features of this time was that it was a period marked by an
intense revival in learning. Mental exercise was considered work unlike the
preceding era. This perception of work years after its dominance ushered in the
Renaissance.
The
fall of the Roman Empire marked the beginning of a period generally known as
the Middle Ages. During this time, from 400 AD until 1400 AD, Christian thought
dominated the culture of Europe (Braude 1975, ¶4). Woven into the Christian
conceptions about work were Hebrew, Greek, and Roman themes (Hill 1996, ¶14).
From this standpoint, work was still perceived as a punishment by God for man's
original sin, but to this purely negative view was added the positive aspect of
earnings which prevented one from being reliant on the charity of others for
the physical needs of life (Tilgher 1930, 87). Thus, wealth was recognized as
an opportunity to share with those who might be less fortunate, and work which
produced wealth therefore became acceptable (Hill 1996, ¶14). This was the
reigning Christian theological rhythm at this particular time.
Following, was the Reformers
continuous repetition of the doctrine of original
sin, and work was taught to be one way man could give himself a sense of
purpose and belonging in a world that has been cursed. But this relinquishing
of hope was made bright through the Christian teachings on charity. The
opportunity to share with others our proceeds from working with the
less-privileged gave a sense of purpose and responsibility to man. And
therefrom, work was conventionally done by everyone for altruistic reasons so
as to give them peace with God.
Equally, “early Christian thought
placed emphasis on the shortness of time until the second coming of Christ and
the end of the world. Any attachment to physical things of the world or
striving to accumulate excessive wealth was frowned upon” (Ibid. ¶14), since the
end was near. This was a good reason for one not to amass wealth for him/herself.
Meanwhile, as time passed and the world did not end, the Christian Church began
to turn its attention to social structure and the organization of the believers
on earth as a new move for the Catholic Church. This savvy move was successful.
But in order to make this possible, the Church suddenly began to organize her
structure, and from this twist,
Monasteries were formed where monks performed the religious and intellectual work of the Church (reading, copying manuscripts, etc.), but lay people tended to the manual labor needed to supply the needs of the community. People who were wealthy were expected to meet their own needs, but to give the excess of their riches to charity. Handicraft, farming, and small scale commerce were acceptable for people of moderate means, but receiving interest for money loaned, charging more than a just price, and big business were not acceptable, (Tilgher 1930, 134).
Work
still was done for humane reasons. It gave people a reason to care and thus became
“…the voice of the world”. And then came, the Book of Common Prayer which reads, “All our doings without
charity are nothing worth”. Contemporary writers at this time concentrated
their penning heralding the imperative of almsgiving. For these writers, “he
who bears the interests of humanity in his breast, that man is blessed”
(Pestalozzi 2007, ¶1).
As was the case for the Greeks and
the Romans, social status within the medieval culture was related to the work a
person did. Aristotelianism[1]
was also evident in the system of divine law taught by the Catholic Church
during this time (Anthony 1977, 81). Then came the hierarchy of professions and
trades developed by St. Thomas Aquinas himself as part of his encyclopedic
consideration of all things human and divine (Tilgher 1930, 171). Agriculture
was ranked first, followed by the handicrafts and then commerce. However, the
work of the church was in a higher category (Rose 1985, ¶18), it took
precedence. The ideal occupation was the monastic life of prayer and
contemplation of God. (Braude 1975, 121). Little wonder why there were
countless vows for monastic life during this time. This shows that humans
choose their choice of work out of pride and egotism. This, inevitably, still
happens in today’s world. People want to do the most esteemed of work so as to
be placed superior to others.
Whether as a cleric or in some
secular field, each person embarked on a particular work path as a result of
the calling of God, and it was the duty of a worker to remain in his class,
passing on his family work from father to son (Hill 1966, ¶13). No wonder the
next generation of workers (in the Church) sparked reformation and spiritual
awakening at the prime of the medieval due to their earnest and right attitude
to work. Their drive was not to be better or superior than others like their
fathers struggled to, but just to work and represent their field of endeavor
significantly.
In the culture of the medieval
period, Hill argues that work still held no personal value. The function of
work was ultimately “to meet the physical needs of one's family and community,
and to avoid idleness which would lead to sin”, says Tilgher. Does today’s work
objective really have a different function from that of the medieval or is it aimed
at amassing personal worth? Work, in the medieval times, was part of the
economic structure of the society which, like all other things, was ordered by
God through the caveats of the Church but people later turned this opportunity
for selfish purposes.
[1] Aristotelianism is the philosophy of Aristotle that deals
with logic and metaphysics and ethics and poetics and politics and
natural science. It is also known as peripateticism.
