"Ora et Labora"

The idea of cultivating the ground has been a part of Christian doctrine since it's origins. When Adam and Eve are still in the garden of Eden, God says to Adam, " I give you all plants that bear seed everywhere on Earth, and every tree bearing fruit which yields seed." (Gen) This builds a spiritual relationship between humanity and the land on which he dwells. This land that, because of God's word, is established as a divine gift can now be treated as a channel to the heavens. It can be realized in it's natural form. It is blessed. After being expelled from the paradise that was Eden, God said, "Accursed shall be the ground on your account. With labour you shall win your food from it all the days of your life." This inserts another characteristic into the relationship of man and earth. Only through labour and struggle, will one be able to perceive and fully extract the beautiful essence of creation. Without work, the land remains barren and lifeless. Without prayer, life in general encounters the same result. Therefore these two things were capitalized on within the developing Christian monastic community. They became the cornerstones of monastic life. It was work and prayer that enabled the Christian monks to sanctify their relationship with God, because we are no longer in His realm. Beauty and heavenly peace are not at our immediate disposal as was the case in Eden. Salvation does not await those who lack devotion. The same goes for the earth, it must be cared for, nurtured, caressed and loved before it relinquishes its magnificent potential.
This concept was what drove people like At. Antony to develop monastic lifestyles involving prayer and work. Although St. Antony and the others around his time were mostly alone, living their own secluded lives, they set the foundation for what was to be an overwhelmingly popular form of spiritual discourse.
The monastic idea spread heavily into Europe where an Italian nobleman named Benedict abandoned his Roman studies for a monastic lifestyle. It was the contributions of St. Benedict that really paved the way for future monastic gardens. He developed the Rule of Benedict, which came to be the precepts under which all Christian monasticism was governed. It was under this Rule that Christian monasteries were really given a chance grow and along with them, the gardens as well.
Taking into account that Christian rule had spread considerately through the developing Western culture by the Medieval times, it is no surprise that the development of garden design in it's popular form was coupled so strongly with increasing monastic popularity. Gardens became a place of spiritual reflection, artistically organized so that the observer feels a sense of comfort and peace. Interwoven within the essence of the garden is also the time and devotion that has been dedicated to constructing the garden, perfecting it. The observer gets a since of wholeness, allowing them to receive God's words and decipher them. The garden is an escape from the false mechanics of society and the evils it brings, giving the individual a chance to focus on interpreting scripture in both a meaningful and spiritual way and even, philosophically. Because of this, as Benedictine monasteries became entire complexes, serving a vast amount of purposes along with the needs of the community, they began to incorporate ancient Roman and especially Greek statues and artifacts into their gardens. Other influences from the Greco-Roman culture like fountains and geometric design, allowed the monasteries to return to the roots of Christianity and embellish the method of spiritual cleansing that cultures the world over had integrated successfully into their paradigm. From the practices of Eastern cultures to the more direct influences of western thought such as the gardens where socrates was allowed to contemplate and use the full potential of his mind, Medieval gardens were governed by the same underlying principle. Geometric design for example, perfect circles inside of squares inside of circles perhaps, or even the artistic placement of statues, fountains, and relics all placed in symmetrical designs, aspiring to both human creativity and the symmetrical geometry that occurs in nature.
As western culture expanded, gardens evolved from being a private reserve for individual monks to massive vistas of political and religious power. Gardens became a tool for displaying a person's social status. Architects were brought in to artistically perfect the visual essence meant to impress those who are doing the observing. These 'power gardens' evolved from 'princely gardens' that were established to open the gardens up to a wider audience, intending their attention to be directed to their 'princely' creators. These gardens would become so complex in their layout that flowers were often forgotten altogether. This attitude is seemingly distant from the spiritual demonstration of St. Antony devoting his body to the earth and his mind to the heavens.
The Renaissance garden at this point has become a tool for climbing the human hierarchy. In other words it has become corrupt with human fault as does anything when presented to the public. Opinions and the control and money that is manifest within those opinions has become the primary motive for constructing these gardens of the Renaissance. In a way they have become saturated with the things they tried to escape. The corporate struggle of society was now fully present within the Renaissance garden, taking away some of the purest aspects of what the earlier monastic gardens represents.
To this day, the actual act of gardening holds, in it's essence, the concept of being crafted in God's image. This establishes the role of the keeper of God's creation. Humans are destined to become God's. To plant the seeds of life, allowing the natural forces to play out.