Living under a rule: Early latin monasticism as a case of study of sustainable low-carbon socio-ecological system

Aim of this paper is to study ancient Christian monasticism with a multidisciplinary approach, which may be able to understand the importance of the ascetic way of life according to a rule for the study of socio-ecological systems. The geographic extension of monastic phenomenon guarantees us the presence both of a great variety of environmental and of cultural background of the pre-existing human settlements. A further reason of interest is related to the fact that such communities developed along a transition period, and they have also been interpreted as a response to the huge restructuring of state and economy that occurred in the early decades of the fourth century. So, it may be related to a real socio-ecological system, which is defined as a set of critical resources (natural, socio-economic, and cultural) whose flow and use are regulated by a combination of ecological and social systems, according to a model of “integration of the parts”. This investigation is based on a defined set of texts: Latin monastic rules written between the fourth and the seventh centuries, a veritable golden age in monastic legislation. Within this kind of texts, according to a classificatory approach, we searched a specific set either of specific subjects/keywords. These subjects are, then, classified with respect to the number of times of appearance, allowing us to understand their relative importance and, above all, to realize how energy matters are important in the ordinary organization of a monastic settlement. Finally, a related aim of this paper is to transcend limitations of any academic discipline: the best way to do that is to join together different specializations, trying to force the boundaries conceived as natural. The second and third paragraphs (pp. 383-386) are written by R. Alciati. The first and the fourth by M. Casazza. Introduction and conclusion were written by both authors.