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Sustainability for Centuries: Monastic Governance of Austrian Benedictine Abbeys

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Leadership in the Context of Religious Institutions

Part of the book series: CSR, Sustainability, Ethics & Governance ((CSEG))

Abstract

In this chapter the authors take a historical view on the development of the Benedictine Confederation. They use data about the lifespan of Benedictine abbeys and reflect on the reasons why they are such long-lasting and stable institutions, compared for example with the average lifespan of corporations. They ask if there are any unique governance mechanisms that can explain this longevity which might be useful in the secular world. However, they are sceptical regarding the possibilities for direct best practice transfers. In spite of this, they recommend studying the Benedictines leadership principles to encourage new thinking about corporate leadership.

This article was already published in: European Journal of Management (2012), Vol. 12, No. 3. The present version contains several stylistic alterations.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Fry (1981).

  2. 2.

    Inauen et al. (2010a, b), Rost et al. (2010), Chan et al. (2011) and Tredget (2002).

  3. 3.

    Fry (1981).

  4. 4.

    Salzburger Äbtekonferenz (1995).

  5. 5.

    SS. Patriarchae Benedicti Familiae Confoederatae (2000).

  6. 6.

    Inauen et al. (2010a, b) and Rost et al. (2010).

  7. 7.

    I.e. Rost et al. (2010).

  8. 8.

    Steiger (2001).

  9. 9.

    Inauen and Frey (2008).

  10. 10.

    E.g. Jensen and Meckling (1976), Arrow (1985) and Eisenhardt (1989).

  11. 11.

    Jensen and Meckling (1976) and Eisenhardt (1989).

  12. 12.

    Eisenhardt (1989) and Jacobides and Croson (2001).

  13. 13.

    Austrian Benedictine Congregation (2006), Statutes no. 207–237.

  14. 14.

    Statutes no. 208.

  15. 15.

    Statutes no. 214.

  16. 16.

    Statutes no. 213.

  17. 17.

    Statutes no. 213.

  18. 18.

    Davis et al. (1997).

  19. 19.

    Davis et al. (1997) and Grundei (2008).

  20. 20.

    Fry (1981), Regula Benedicti 4.

  21. 21.

    Fry (1981), RB 2.

  22. 22.

    Fry (1981), RB 2.

  23. 23.

    Fry (1981), RB 66,6.

  24. 24.

    Fry (1981), RB 64.

  25. 25.

    Austrian Benedictine Congregation (2006), Statutes no. 45–84; similar regulations for other congregations: e.g. Swiss-American Benedictine Congregation (2008).

  26. 26.

    Austrian Benedictine Congregation (2006), Statutes no. 16.

  27. 27.

    Austrian Benedictine Congregation (2006), Statutes no. 124–165; similar regulations for other congregations: e.g. Swiss-American Benedictine Congregation (2008).

  28. 28.

    Austrian Benedictine Congregation (2006), Statutes no. 166–206.

  29. 29.

    Austrian Benedictine Congregation (2006), Statutes no. 75, 195 and 209.

  30. 30.

    Austrian Benedictine Congregation (2006), Statutes no. 207–237.

  31. 31.

    Austrian Benedictine Congregation (2006), Statutes no. 262–345.

  32. 32.

    Ius Proprium Confoederationis Benedictinae 1985.

  33. 33.

    Austrian Benedictine Congregation (2006), Statutes no. 132.

  34. 34.

    Austrian Benedictine Congregation (2006), Statutes no. 178.

  35. 35.

    Austrian Benedictine Congregation (2006), Statutes no. 178.

  36. 36.

    Austrian Benedictine Congregation (2006), Statutes no. 26.

  37. 37.

    Austrian Benedictine Congregation (2006), Statutes no. 180.

  38. 38.

    Austrian Benedictine Congregation (2006), Statutes no. 180.

  39. 39.

    Generalsekretariat der österreichischen Bischofskonferenz (2008).

  40. 40.

    Austrian Benedictine Congregation (2006), Statutes no. 318.

  41. 41.

    Austrian Benedictine Congregation (2006), Statutes no. 325–337.

  42. 42.

    Kieser (1987).

  43. 43.

    Bayerische Benediktinerakademie München (2000, 2001, 2002).

  44. 44.

    Panek (1952).

  45. 45.

    Feldbauer-Durstmüller and Neulinger (2010).

  46. 46.

    Birnbacher (2000).

  47. 47.

    Inauen and Frey (2008).

  48. 48.

    Duller et al. (2011).

  49. 49.

    Anzengruber (2001).

  50. 50.

    Neulinger (1995).

  51. 51.

    Hilpisch (1929).

  52. 52.

    Maaß (1956).

  53. 53.

    Schenker (1999).

  54. 54.

    Inauen and Frey (2008).

  55. 55.

    Anzengruber (2001).

  56. 56.

    N.U. (2008); translator’s note.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Johannes Kepler University Linz, Linz, Austria

    Birgit Feldbauer-Durstmüller & Simon Sandberger

  2. Benedictine Abbey, Lambach, Austria

    Maximilian Neulinger

Authors
  1. Birgit Feldbauer-Durstmüller
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  2. Simon Sandberger
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  3. Maximilian Neulinger
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Birgit Feldbauer-Durstmüller .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. IFB Institute of Management, University of St. Gallen, St. Gallen, Switzerland

    Günter Müller-Stewens

  2. Archabbey of Sankt Ottilien, St. Ottilien, Germany

    Notker Wolf

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Feldbauer-Durstmüller, B., Sandberger, S., Neulinger, M. (2019). Sustainability for Centuries: Monastic Governance of Austrian Benedictine Abbeys. In: Müller-Stewens, G., Wolf, N. (eds) Leadership in the Context of Religious Institutions. CSR, Sustainability, Ethics & Governance. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-13769-4_4

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