Who are the Trappists and what is the O.C.S.O.?
Trappist monks and Trappistine nuns belong to the monastic family following Christ according to the Rule of Saint Benedict, which was written at Monte Cassino, Italy, in the 6th century. The nickname of Trappist comes from a reform movement that started in the 17th century starting at a French monastery, La Trappe, in Normandy. The communities embracing this reform are often called “Trappist”. The Trappist reform was inspired by a broader movement of renewal that had taken place within Benedictine monasticism 500 years before, in the 12th century, starting at the monastery of Cteaux, near Dijon in central France. The Latin word for Cteaux is Cistercium and the monasteries that followed this 12th century reform are called “Cistercian”. Spearheaded by Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, the Cistercian movement spread quickly throughout Europe to include over 500 monasteries by the end of the 13th century. Today there are several monastic Orders within the family of Cistercian monasteries. “O.C.S
