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BENEDICT 483 BENEDICTINE urbanity and friendliness toward all Christians. The Protestants of Ger- many revered Benedict. With regard to France, he carefully avoided everything that could in the least encourage the fanatical party in that country in reviv- ing the persecution against the Prot- estants of Languedoc. Benedict was learned, not only in theology, but in his- tory an,d literature, and had also a taste for the fine arts. His works were pub- lished at Rome, in 12 volumes quarto. He died in 1758, and was succeeded by Clement XIII. BENEDICT XV., Gdacomo della Chiesa, born near Genoa in 1854. He was con- secrated to the Church from his youth and educated for holy orders at Rome, being ordained a priest in his twenty- fourth year. From his first active years he seemed marked for an executive POPE BENEDICT XV. career. In 1883 he was appointed Sec- retary to the Nunciature at Madrid as chief aid to Cardinal Rampolla. After returning to Rome four years later he held various positions in the Secretariate there. His advancement after he had reached his thirty-fifth year was rapid. In 1900 he became a prelate of the Church — the following year Consultor of the Holy Office. In 1907 he was ad- vanced to be Archbishop of Bologna. He became a Cardinal in 1914, shortly be- fore the election which advanced him to the Papal chair on Sept. 3, 1914. During the World War he remained neutral, and, at various times, sought to bring about peace. See World War. BENEDICT, ST., the founder of the Order of the Benedictine Monks, was born at Nursia, in the Dukedom of Spo- leto, in Italy, in 480 A. D. He was sent to Rome when very young, and there 32 — Vol. I — Cyc received the first part of his education; when 14 years of age, he removed to Subiaco, a desert place about 40 miles distant, where he was concealed in a cav- ern. The monks of a neighboring mon- astery subsequently chose him for their abbot; their manners, however, not agreeing with those of Benedict, he re- turned to his solitude, whither many per- sons followed him, and in a short time he was enabled to build no fewer than 12 monasteries. About 528 he retired to Monte Cassino, where idolatry was still prevalent. Having converted the people of the adjacent country, he broke the statue of Apollo, overthrew the altar, and built two oratories on the mountain, one dedicated to St. Martin, the other to St. John. Here St. Benedict also founded a monastery, and instituted the Order of his name, which in time extended all over Europe. It was here, too, that he composed his "Regula Monachorum." Authors are not agreed upon the place where St. Benedict died; some say at Monte Cassino; others affirm it to have been at Rome about 543 or 547. Gregory the Great, in the second "Book of his Dialogues," has written a "Life of St. Benedict." BENEDICTINE, a liqueur prepared by the Benedictine monks of the abbey of Fecamp, in Normandy, consisting of spirit (fine brandy) containing an in- fusion of the juices of plants. It has been made in the same way since 1510. BENEDICTINE, a follower of ST. Benedict (q. v.). In 529 St. Benedict transformed the temple of Apollo at Monte Cassino into a monastery, and be- came its first abbot. He composed rules for its management, making every monk pledge himself to perfect chastity, absolute poverty, and implicit obedience in all respects to his superiors. These vows were irrevocable, whereas up to that time the monks had been allowed to alter the regulations of their founder at their pleasure. The rule here insti- tuted was adopted at an early period by various other monastic communities; it was confirmed, about 52 years after the death of its founder, by Pope Gregory the Great, and was ultimately accepted by nearly all the monkish communities of the West. As long as the Benedictines remained poor, they were a blessing to the coun- tries in which they lived, and especially to Germany, spending, as they did, sev- eral hours a day in gardening, agricul- ture, and mechanical labor, and another portion of their time in reading, besides keeping school outside the walls of their convents. Science and literature are also