Benedictines carry on a monastic tradition that stems from the origins of the Christian monastic movement. St. Benedict is one of the many Abbots who wrote a Rule for monasteries. At first it was one of a number of rules accepted by a particular monastery but later, especially through the promotional efforts of Charlemagne and his son Louis, it became the rule of choice for monasteries of Europe from the ninth century onwards. In this way, St. Benedict became the father of many monasteries that followed his rule and his spirituality and thus St. Benedict is venerated as the founder of the “Order of Saint Benedict”.
Today, there are number of independent monasteries and Congregations in the Order. They are separate families guided by an Abbot or a Prior and each has its own administrative set up. While each monastery has its specific character depending on the time and place of its origin, there are more common characteristics that make them Benedictine Monasteries. In 1893, in an attempt at centralisation Pope Leo XIII directed the setting up of the Abbots’ Congress, under the Abbot Primate, which meets in Rome every four years. The Abbot Primate is elected to a primacy of honour and resides at the Monastery of St. Anselm in Rome. Today there are more than twenty five Congregations within the Benedictine Confederation and Sylvestrine Benedictine Congregation is one of them.