Medieval English nuns and the Benedictine rule: The evidence and example of Wintney Priory

Medieval society was a 'traditional' society-not in the sense that society was unchanging, because in fact society and culture were highly dynamic. But it was traditional in that tradition legitimized." Surely no truer words have been written. Applicable in all sectors of medieval society, these words carry particular relevance for Benedictine monastic society, as groups of men and women, in hugely varying places and contexts, over vast centuries, chose to live and work and strive together, always drawing guidance from unchanging texts while at the same time applying those texts within their own specific contexts. The Rule of Saint Benedict- an appreciation of which so many of Michael Casey's publications have both derived from and contributed to-is of course a key medieval example here.