The Cistercian Family

Cis.... who? We from Monastic Experience are cistercian nuns from Seligenthal (Germany) and in this article we want to offer you some background information on our order and the whole cistercian family.

Table of contents

1. History of the Cistercian Order

2. Cistercian Order of the strict observance

3. further Members of the Cistercian Family

4. List of inhabited cistercian monasteries

   1. Northern America

   2. Latin America

   3. Europe

   4. Africa

   5. Asia

   6. Oceania

History of the Cistercian Order

The origin of the Cistercian Order is the foundation of the monastery of Citeaux in 1098. The first monks of Citeaux were Benedictines who, in their new foundation, strove for a more literal implementation of the Rule of St. Benedict than was customary in the Benedictine monasteries of their time.

In particular, they wanted to return to a simple life in which the brothers earned their living from the work of their hands.

The founding fathers Robert of Molesme, Stephan Harding and Alberich of Citeaux made sure to give the monasteries a solid constitution (the Carta Caritatis) to regulate the relationship between the monasteries. The resulting centralized structure of the order was the first of its kind, so that it can be said that the Cistercian order is the oldest order in the canonical sense in church history. The Cistercian Order was approved by Pope Calixt II. in the year 1119.

With the entry of St. Bernard of Clairvaux into the Cistercian order (1112), the order began to spread enormously, so that almost 200 years later there were over 700 Cistercian monasteries throughout Europe.

And the motto was: Una caritate, una regula similibusque vivamus moribus.

emblem of the cistercian order

Cistercian Order of the strict observance (OCSO)

After the Council of Trent (1545-1563), reform efforts for the renewal of religious life emerged within the Cistercian order. This led to the creation of several congregations.

In the 17th century, Abbot Armand Jean Le Bouthillier de Rancé presided over a reform of the monastery of La Trappe. He emphasized the importance of repentance, self-denial, humility and asceticism. Many admired him and several monasteries joined his reform and formed the congregation of La Trappe. During the French Revolution the community of La Trappe had to flee through multiple countries. This "monastic Odysee" helped the reform movement to spread more widely.

In 1892 Pope Leo XIII. united the three congregations of La Trappe, Sept Fons and Westmalle into an independent and new order. Since then there have been two independent Cistercian orders, each with its own abbot general and general chapter.

Further members of the Cistercian Family

The sisters and brothers of the various communities or monastic congregations associated with the spiritual heritage of the Cistercians form the Familia Cisterciensis or Cistercian family. Pope Pius IX used this term in his Breve 'Quae a sanctissimis' of February 7, 1871, in which he confirmed the legitimacy of the Cistercian rite.

Subsequently, the term Familia Cisterciensis was mainly used to refer to the Cistercian observances and congregations as a whole, which had since become independent entities under canon law.

The Cistercian family includes

• the Ordo Cisterciensis (OCist.)

• the Ordo Cisterciensis strictioris observantiae (OCSO)

• the Ordo Monialium Cisterciensium Bernardinarum de Esquermes (OCBE)

• the Ordo Monialium Bernardinarum de Divina Providentia in Helvetia

• the Congregatio Monialium Cisterciensium de S. Bernardo

• the Congregatio de Anagni (Suore Cistercensi de la Carità)

• the Zusters Bernardinnen Oudenaarde and

• the communities of the 'Lay Cistercians'

List of inhabited cistercian monasteries

You'll find the inhabited cistercian monasteries in your country in the list of the corresponding continent:

• Northern America

• Latin America

• Europe

• Africa

• Asia

• Oceania

Northern America

Cistercian monasteries in CA and the USA, markers are blue for male, violet for female, square for OCSO, round for OCist communities

Name	City, Country	Order	monks / nuns
Assomption	Rogersville, Canada	OCSO	nuns
Calvaire	Rogersville, Canada	OCSO	monks
Notre-Dame de Nazareth à Rougemont	Rougemont, Canada	OCist	monks
Val Notre-Dame	Saint-Jean-de-Matha, Canada	OCSO	monks
Holy Cross Abbey	Berryville, USA	OCSO	monks
Our Lady of Guadalupe	Carlton, USA	OCSO	monks
Monastery of the Holy Spirit	Conyers, USA	OCSO	monks
Our Lady of the Angels Monastery	Crozet, USA	OCSO	nuns
Our Lady of the Mississippi	Dubuque, USA	OCSO	nuns
Our Lady of Dallas	Irving, USA	OCist	monks
St. Joseph	Lucerne Valley, USA	OCist	monks
Mepkin	Moncks Corner, USA	OCSO	monks
New Melleray	Peosta	OCSO	monks
Our Lady of the Genesee	Piffard, USA	OCSO	monks
Valley of Our Lady	Prairie du Sac, USA	OCist	nuns
Saint Benedict	Snowmass, USA	OCSO	monks
Santa Rita	Sonoita, USA	OCSO	nuns
St. Joseph	Spencer, USA	OCSO	monks
Abbey of Gethsemani	Trappist, USA	OCSO	monks
New Clairvaux	Vina, USA	OCSO	monks
Our Lady of Sacramento	Walnut Grove, USA	OCist	monks
Our Lady of the Redwoods	Whitethorn, USA	OCSO	nuns
Willow Springs	Willow Springs, USA	OCist	monks
Mount St. Mary	Wrentham, USA	OCSO	nuns

Latin America

Name	City, Country	Order	monks / nuns
Abadía Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles	Azul, Argentina	OCSO	monks
Monasterio de la Madre de Cristo	Hinojo, Argentina	OCSO	nuns
B.M.V. de Nazareth	Apolo, Bolivia	OCist	nuns
Ave Maria	La Paz, Bolivia	OCist	nuns
Nossa Senhora do Novo Mundo	Campo do Tenente, Brazil	OCSO	monks
Nossa Senhora Aparecida	Campo Grande, Brazil	OCist	nuns
Nossa Senhora do Espirito Santo	Claraval, Brazil	OCist	monks
Nossa Senhora da Santa Cruz	Itaporanga, Brazil	OCist	monks
Nossa Senhora de Fátima	Itararé, Brazil	OCist	monks
Nossa Senhora d'Assunçâo de Hardehausen-Itatinga	Itatinga, Brazil	OCist	monks
Jequitibá	Jequitibá, Brazil	OCist	monks
Nossa Senhora da Boa Vista	Rio Negrinho, Brazil	OCSO	nuns
Nossa Senhora de Santa Cruz	Santa Cruz do Monte Castelo, Brazil	OCist	nuns
N. Sra. de São Bernardo	São José do Rio Pardo, Brazil	OCist	monks
Nuestra Señora de Quilvo	Curicó, Chile	OCSO	nuns
Santa Maria de Miraflores	Rancagua, Chile	OCSO	monks
Santa Maria del Evangelio	Jarabacoa, Dom. Rep.	OCSO	monks
Santa Maria de la Esperanza	Esmeraldas, Ecuador	OCSO	nuns
Santa María del Paraíso	Latacunga, Ecuador	OCSO	monks
El Encuentro	Ciudad Hidalgo, Mexico	OCSO	nuns
Virgen del Curutaran	Jacona, Mexico	OCSO	monks
Santa Maria de la Paz	Chame, Panama	OCSO	nuns
N.S. de Coromoto	El Tocuyo, Venezuela	OCSO	nuns
Nuestra Señora de Los Andes	Mérida, Venezuela	OCSO	monks

Europe

Since there are a lot of cistercian monasteries on the european continent, you'll find the full lists in a post of its own: Cistercian monasteries in Europe

Several countries are grouped together:

• Austria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovenia

• 
  

• Belgium, Germany and Netherlands

• France

• Ireland, UK and Scandinavia

• Italy and Switzerland

• Portugal and Spain

Africa

Name	City, Country	Order	monks / nuns
Nasoma Y’Ombembwa	Huambo, Angola	OCSO	nuns
N.-D. de Kokoubou	Parakou, Benin	OCSO	monks
L'Étoile Notre-Dame	Parakou, Benin	OCSO	nuns
Bamenda	Bamenda, Cameroon	OCSO	monks
N.-D. de Koutaba	Koundja, Cameroon	OCSO	monks
N.-D. des Mokoto	Gisenyi, Dem. Rep. Congo	OCSO	monks
N.-D. de l'Emmanuel	Kinshasa, Dem. Rep. Congo	OCSO	monks
N.-D. de Mvanda	Kinshasa, Dem. Rep. Congo	OCSO	nuns
La Clarté-Dieu	Murhesa, Dem. Rep. Congo	OCSO	nuns
S. Maria Assunta in Cielo	Asmara, Eritrea	OCist	monks
S. Stephano	Keren, Eritrea	OCist	monks
St. Joseph Shola	Addis Abeba, Ethiopia	OCist	monks
Our Lady Queen of Peace	Gondar, Ethiopia	OCist	monks
Holy Trinity	Hosana, Ethiopia	OCist	monks
Immaculate Conception	Mendida, Ethiopia	OCist	monks
Masina Maria (Ampibanjinana)	Fianarantsoa, Madagascar	OCSO	nuns
Masina Maria (Maromby)	Fianarantsoa, Madagascar	OCSO	monks
N.-D. de l'Atlas	Midelt, Maroc	OCSO	monks
St. Justina	Abakaliki, Nigeria	OCSO	nuns
O.L. of Mount Calvary	Enugu, Nigeria	OCSO	monks
Holy Cross Monastery	Illah, Nigeria	OCSO	monks
Our Lady of the Angels	Onitsha, Nigeria	OCSO	monks
Kibungo	Kibungo, Rwanda	OCSO	nuns
O.L. of Victoria	Kyotera, Uganda	OCSO	monks
O.L. of Praise	Masaka, Uganda	OCSO	nuns

Asia

Name	City, Country	Order	monks / nuns
N.-D. de Vĩnh-Phước	Biên Hòa, Vietnam	OCist	nuns
An Phước	Bưu Điện Tam Phước, Vietnam	OCist	monks
Thanh Mau Tam My Ca	Cam Hòa, Vietnam	OCist	monks
Châu Thủy	Hàm Tân, Vietnam	OCist	monks
Châu Sơn	Lạc Xuân, Vietnam	OCist	monks
Châu Sơn	Nho Quan, Vietnam	OCist	monks
Phước Sơn	Phước Hòa, Vietnam	OCist	monks
Phước Thiên	Phước Hòa, Vietnam	OCist	nuns
Phước Vĩnh	Thôn Rôn, Vietnam	OCist	monks
N.-D. de Phước Hải	Trần Phú, Vietnam	OCist	nuns
Thiên Phước	Trần Phú, Vietnam	OCist	monks
Phước Lý	Vĩnh Thanh, Vietnam	OCist	monks

Oceania

Name	City, Country	Order	monks / nuns
Tarrawarra	Tarrawarra, Australia	OCSO	monks
Southern Star	Hawke's Bay, New Zealand	OCSO	monks