A swarm from the Blessed hive: The social networks of the Jura monasteries

This article sets out to examine the social context within which the monastic communities depicted in the Vita patrum Iurensium, an early sixth-century hagiographical composition, were founded and functioned. The establishment of at least three communities - Condat, Lauconne, and La Balme - took place against the backdrop of a rapidly changing political and social landscape. As Roman power receded and eventually disappeared, the Gallic countryside responded by profoundly restructuring itself. Having differed in their location and in the makeup of their population from earlier establishments such as Lérins and Marmoûtiers, the Jura communities reacted to these changes by developing a unique monastic regimen. The Vita patrum Iurensium allows us to retrace the novel and experimental approach taken by these communities, which allowed them to emerge as foci of authority, providing patronage and organizing labor on a regional scale