Saint Bernard, Abbot

First Point

It is impossible to understand how much Saint Lawrence loved and esteemed the poor. His love for them was such that when Saint Sixtus, whose deacon he was, was being led to martyrdom and told him to give to the poor all the wealth he had placed in his hands, he executed the assignment and completely emptied the treasury of the Church. Again he showed his extraordinary regard for the poor when the emperor, having learned that he had been given charge of all that belonged to the Church, demanded that he hand over the treasure entrusted to him. The saint gathered all the poor and presented them to the emperor, telling him, Here are the treasures of the Church. Let us admire how great the faith of this saint was, for it led him to look upon the poor as the treasure of the Church, that is, as being the most precious and most valuable part in the Church, having theclosest relationship with Jesus Christ. Let us share this saint’s attitude, we to whom God has entrusted the most valuable portion of his treasure.

Second Point

This saint attained such great chastity and reached such a high degree of modesty and self-control by means of a complete mortification of his senses that after spending a year in the monastery of Citeaux, he did not know whether the dormitory ceiling was made of stone or of wood. Likewise, after walking along the shore of a lake all day long, he had not seen it. He was so mortified with regard to drink that he once drank oil, believing that he was drinking water, and he had accustomed himself to fasting and taking so little food that eating, as he says, had become a torture for him. That is how this saint learned to die to himself and to become a perfect religious, appearing no longer to have any use of his senses. When will you be entirely detached from the pleasure you find in using your senses? Detachment requires you to watch closely in order to be mortified in some way on every occasion. Be faithful to this practice. practice.

Third Point

The astonishing virtues of Saint Bernard, as well as the great number of his miracles, made him known throughout the whole Church and won for him the respect of everyone. So high was the esteem he enjoyed that as Abbot of Clairvaux he was followed by a great crowd of people who came to place themselves under his direction. His abbey numbered as many as 700 religious, and there was an almost incredible number in the other monasteries he founded whom he helped to live in great perfection. This made him so venerated by bishops, princes, and the people that as a result, no one undertook any important project without coming to him for his advice and judgment. The more this saint tried to keep hidden, the more people came to him either to embrace the austerities of his Order or to answer to the needs of the Church. Virtue cannot hide. When it is seen, it is attractive, and the example it gives makes such a strong impression on those who witness it practiced or who hear it talked about that most people are led to imitate it. Is this the effect that your good behavior and piety produce in your students? It is the main means you ought to use to win them over to God.

Historical Context

Bernard (1090–1153) was born near Dijon, France. At the age of 22, he became a Benedictine monk at Citeaux, the austere abbey of the Cistercian reform. He did not join alone, however, but brought thirty others with him, among whom were relatives, a testimony to his extraordinary influence on others even at that early age. The abbey flourished and sent out groups to make other foundations, one of which was led by Bernard and settled at what became known as Clairvaux. It became the center of the Cistercian reform for all of Europe. His influence extended farther and farther as mediator and advocate in the reform of the whole Church. At the same time, he did not neglect the training of his own monks at Clairvaux and wrote many beautiful mystical and theological treatises. He was largely responsible for preaching the Second Crusade, at the request of the Pope, and was greatly saddened by its failure. He died on August 20, 1153, was canonized in 1174, and named Doctor of the Church in 1830.

Scripture Citation

1. Number 157, on Saint Joachim, is on March 20, between 110 and 111 in the present edition. It received its number from the 1882 edition, whose numerical designation has become standard for references