Bernard of Clairvaux

Bernard of Clairvaux (1090 – 20 August 1153), known as Saint Bernard, was an abbot, mystic, and a key figure in the Cistercian reform of the Benedictine order. He also helped found the Knights Templar. Shortly after becoming a monk at Cîteaux, he was tasked with establishing Clairvaux Abbey. At the Council of Troyes in 1128, he helped draft the rule for the Knights Templar. During the church schism following Pope Honorius II’s death in 1130, Bernard strongly backed Pope Innocent II, successfully arguing his case against the Antipope Anacletus II. He promoted crusades and, through a well-known sermon at Vézelay in 1146, persuaded many to join the unsuccessful Second Crusade. Bernard was born to Tescelin de Fontaine and Alèthe de Montbard, both from Burgundy’s highest nobility. He was the third of seven children, with six brothers. At nine, he studied literature and rhetoric at a school in Châtillon-sur-Seine run by the secular canons of Saint-Vorles. After his mother died, he considered becoming a priest. In 1098, Robert of Molesme founded Cîteaux Abbey to follow a strict interpretation of the Rule of St. Benedict, creating the Cistercian Order. Following his mother’s death, Bernard joined Cîteaux in 1113 along with thirty other young noblemen, many relatives. His example drew many others, including his father, into monastic life, and he is considered a patron of religious vocations. Cîteaux grew quickly. Three years after entering, Bernard led twelve monks to found a new house in the Vallée d’Absinthe, in the Diocese of Langres. He named it Clairvaux on 25 June 1115, and the two names became closely linked. William of Champeaux, Bishop of Châlons-sur-Marne, made Bernard abbot, and they developed a strong friendship. Clairvaux’s early days were harsh, and Bernard’s extreme fasting often made him ill. Still, many sought to join him, and Clairvaux soon founded new communities: Trois-Fontaines Abbey in 1118, Fontenay Abbey in 1119, and Foigny Abbey in 1121. Over sixty abbeys followed during Bernard’s lifetime, some transferred to the Cistercians. Bernard spent much time away as a preacher and diplomat for the pope, and he called himself the “chimera of his age.” He faced trials, including when the prior of Cluny convinced his cousin Robert of Châtillon to leave Clairvaux, prompting a long, emotional letter. His brother Gerard’s death devastated him and inspired a moving sermon. The Cluny Benedictines criticized the Cistercians, so Bernard defended his order in his *Apology*. Peter the Venerable of Cluny responded with admiration and friendship, and Cluny undertook reforms. Bernard was canonized just 21 years after his death by Pope Alexander III. In 1830, Pope Pius VIII declared him a Doctor of the Church. In 1953, Pope Pius XII’s encyclical *Doctor Mellifluus* called him “the last of the Fathers.” Bernard opposed the scholastics’ rational approach to God, instead preaching poetically and appealing to emotion and conversion. He is considered a master of Christian rhetoric, and his lyrics appear in the Cistercian Hymnal. He emphasized personal, experiential friendship with Christ. As a mariologist, Bernard was not original but effectively spread devotion to Mary, stressing her humility and central role in theology.