Religious order

Religious orders often trace their lineage from revered teachers, venerate their founders, and have a document describing their lifestyle called a rule of life.

The earliest orders include the Cistercians (1098), the Premonstratensians (1120), the Poor Clares founded by Francis of Assisi (1212), and the Benedictine reform movements of Cluny (1216).

These orders consist entirely of independent abbeys and priories where power rests in the hands of the individual communities and their abbot or abbess, prior or prioress.

In the 16th century the orders of clerics regular began to emerge, including such institutes as the Society of Jesus, the Theatines, the Barnabites, the Somascans.

Each house's autonomy does not prevent it being affiliated into a congregation—whether national or based on some other joint characteristic—and these, in turn, form the supra-national Benedictine Confederation.

Well-known Roman Catholic religious institute include Augustinians, Basilians, Benedictines, Bethlehemites, Bridgettines, Camaldolese, Carmelites, Carthusians, Cistercians, Conceptionists, Crosiers, Dominicans, Franciscans, Hieronymites, Jesuits, Minims, Piarists, Salesians, Olivetans, Theatines, Trappists and the Visitandines.

[6] The Rite of Tonsure is printed in the Euchologion (Church Slavonic: Trebnik), the same book as the other Sacred Mysteries and services performed according to need.

Also, a Lutheran religious order following the Rule of St. Benedict, "The Congregation of the Servants of Christ", was established at St. Augustine's House in Oxford, Michigan, in 1958 when some other men joined Father Arthur Kreinheder in observing the monastic life and offices of prayer.

Religious orders in England were dissolved by King Henry VIII upon the separation of the English church from Roman primacy.

The Methodist Church of Great Britain, and its ancestors, have established a number of orders of Deaconesses, who are now ordained as clergy and are Ministers in equal standing alongside their presbyteral colleagues.

[14] Male and female members of such religious orders typically make a formal vow of poverty and are granted certain status and exemptions by many governments.

[17] A form of ordered religious living is common also in many tribes and religions of Africa and South America, though on a smaller scale, and some parts of England.

Cults and coercive groups such as Scientology and Moonies often rely heavily on devout religious orders as a tactic to indoctrinate and control their followers.

[18] Scientology's Sea Org, for example, are required to sign a one billion year contract[19] and pledge allegiance to founder L. Ron Hubbard and are responsible for senior management positions within the Organization.