My dear brothers and sisters in the Lord,
The 12th century in the history of the Church has been called by some the Bernadine Period.
St. Bernard of Clairvaux, born in 1090 and canonized only 21 years after his death in 1153, was proclaimed a Doctor of the Church in 1830 by Pope Pius VIII. The son of a French nobleman, he entered the Abby of Cîteaux at the age of 23 and was accompanied by many friends and relatives.
He was truly their leader and led the revival of the Cistercian Order, and soon he became the Abbot at Clairvaux, a daughter house of Cîteaux. His influence extended far beyond his particular monastery. In fact, Bernard was instrumental in establishing over 100 monasteries of the Cistercian Order throughout Europe.
He was an adept theologian who produced many works that enlightened the people of his day. He was particularly known for his treatise on the Blessed Virgin Mary. The theological works of Bernard are not his only contribution, although they gained him the title Doctor of the Church. He was also well known in the Church politics of the day.
It was the period in which a new Crusade was launched to free the Holy Land. The pope of that time, Eugenius III, appointed Bernard to be the one to preach that Crusade. As you know, the Crusades have not been always judged kindly by history. I remember seeing one presentation on the History Channel that maligned Bernard as the one who incited the murderous and unethical practices of some of the crusaders. This could not be further from the truth. Bernard was declared a Doctor of the Church not only because of his learnings but also because of his leadership skills. He intervened in several of the local councils of the day, to the consternation of the clerics who were running those councils. His wisdom and intelligence seemed to solve problems that no other person of that day dared to attempt.
Bernard is known as the “Mellifluous Doctor” because he strove in word and deed to bring harmony to the Church. This is particularly the case in the year 1130 when two popes were elected at the same time in Rome, Innocent II and Anacletus II. Bernard traveled throughout Europe in order to encourage Christians to obey the lawfully elected pope, Innocent II. On the other hand, Bernard battled strongly against the heretics of his time and was also given the name, “Hammer of the Heretics.”
Bernard is a controversial figure in the history of the Church. And yet, when all is said and done, he strove for and found sanctity in his life. In a busy life with much responsibility, he was still able to find the contemplation proper to the life of a monk.
Bernard put out into the deep in order to find the living God. Most of us are not quite that busy, yet we need to be encouraged to make efforts to find our place before the living God. As this summer draws to an end, let us take advantage of the extra free time that we might have to pray more intently seeking the face of God, just as Bernard did so many years ago.