Notre Dame de Rouen. The façade of the Gothic Church in France. Photographer: Hippo1947. Licence: SHUTTERSTOCK.

Sunday 30 September 2012

Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, Abbot and Doctor of the Church (Part Nine)


Text and Illustrations from Wikipedia - the free encyclopedia,
unless otherwise stated.

20 August (Feast of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, Abbot and Doctor of the Church)
Double
White Vestments



English: Stained glass representing St. Bernard of Clairvaux. Upper Rhine, circa 1450.
Français : Saint Bernard de Clairvaux, vitrail. Rhin supérieur, vers 1450.
Source/Photographer: Jastrow (2006)
(Wikimedia Commons)


St. Bernard of Clairvaux was named a Doctor of the Church in 1830. At the 800th anniversary of his death, Pope Pius XII issued an encyclical on Bernard, Doctor Mellifluus, in which he labelled him "The Last of the Fathers." Bernard did not reject human philosophy which is genuine philosophy, which leads to God; he differentiates between different kinds of knowledge, the highest being theological. Three central elements of Bernard's Mariology are how he explained the virginity of Mary, the "Star of the Sea", how the faithful should pray to the Virgin Mary, and how he relied on the Virgin Mary as Mediatrix.

Bernard also held some doctrines which the Reformers would later rekindle at the beginnings of the Protestant movement. Some people have therefore equated him with a Protestant before there were Protestants. In truth, he held to a mix of the Reformers' doctrines and the doctrines of the Roman Catholic Church of his day. Bernard fought against the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception of Mary. Also of great importance to the Reformers would be Bernard's conception of justification. Calvin quotes Bernard several times to show the historical validity of Sola Fide, which Luther described as the article upon which the Church stands or falls. Calvin also quotes him in setting forth his doctrine of a forensic alien righteousness, or, as it is commonly called, imputed righteousness.

Bernard was instrumental in re-emphasising the importance of Lectio Divina and contemplation on Scripture within the Cistercian Order. Bernard had observed that, when Lectio Divina was neglected, monasticism suffered. Bernard considered Lectio Divina, and contemplation guided by the Holy Spirit, the keys to nourishing Christian spirituality.





Bernard of Clairvaux, as shown in the church of Heiligenkreuz Abbey, near Baden bei Wien, Lower Austria. Portrait (1700) with the true effigy of the Saint by Georg Andreas Wasshuber (1650-1732), (painted after a statue in Clairvaux with the true effigy of the saint)
Author: Georges Jansoone.
Photo: June 2006.
(Wikimedia Commons).


Bernard's theology and Mariology continue to be of major importance, particularly within the Cistercian and Trappist Orders. Bernard led to the foundation of 163 monasteries in different parts of Europe. At his death, they numbered 343. His influence led Pope Alexander III to launch reforms that would lead to the establishment of Canon Law. He was the first Cistercian monk placed on the Calendar of Saints and was canonized by Pope Alexander III on 18 January 1174. Pope Pius VIII bestowed on him the title of Doctor of the Church. He is fondly remembered as the "Mellifluous Doctor" (the Honey-Sweet-voiced Doctor) for his eloquence. The Cistercians honour him, as only the founders of Orders are honoured, because of the widespread activity which he gave to the Order.

The works of Bernard are as follows:

De Gradibus Superbiae, his first treatise;
Homilies on the Gospel, Missus est, written in 1120;
"Apology to William of St. Thierry" against the claims of the monks of Cluny;
"On the Conversion of Clerics," a book addressed to the young ecclesiastics of Paris, written in 1122;
De Laude Novae Militiae, addressed to Hugues de Payens, first Grand Master and Prior of Jerusalem (1129). This is a eulogy of the military Order, instituted in 1118, and an exhortation to the knights to conduct themselves with courage in their several stations;
De Amore Dei", wherein Bernard argues that the manner of loving God is to love without measure and gives the different degree of this love;
"Book of Precepts and Dispensations" (1131), which contains answers to questions upon certain points of the Rule of St Benedict, from which the abbot can, or cannot, dispense;
De Gratia et Libero Arbitrio, in which the Roman Catholic Dogma of Grace and Free Will was defended according to the principles of St Augustine;
De Consideratione ("On Consideration"), addressed to Pope Eugenius III;
De Officiis Episcoporum, addressed to Henry, Archbishop of Sens.

His sermons are also numerous:

On Psalm 90, Qui habitat, written about 1125;
"On the Song of Songs". [with an autobiographical passage, sermon 26, mourning the death of his brother, Gerard];
There are also 86 "Sermons for the Whole Year."

530 letters survive.

Many letters, treatises, and other works, falsely attributed to him survive, such as the l'Echelle du Cloître, les Méditations, and l'Edification de la Maison intérieure.

Saint Bernard's Prayer to the Shoulder Wound of Jesus is often published in Catholic prayer books.

Saint Bernard's views on the Virgin Mary also influenced other saints, e.g., in the classic text on Mariology, "The Glories of Mary", Saint Alphonsus Liguori based his analysis of Mary as the "Gate to Heaven" on Saint Bernard's statement: No one can enter Heaven, unless by Mary, as though through a door.

Dante Alighieri's "Divine Comedy" places him as the last guide for Dante, as he travels through the Empyrean (Paradiso, cantos XXXI–XXXIII). Dante's choice appears to be based on Bernard's contemplative mysticism, his devotion to Mary, and his reputation for eloquence.

He is also the attributed author of the poem, often translated in English hymnals as, "O Sacred Head, Now Wounded".


THIS CONCLUDES THE ARTICLE ON SAINT BERNARD, ABBOT AND DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH.

7 October - High Mass for the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary




High Mass for our forthcoming feast day




Our Parish patronal feast day at Blackfen is the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, 7 October, which falls on a Sunday this year.


At the 10.30am Mass, the group Cantores Missae, a consort group of singers comprising some of the UK’s leading soloists will be singing for this Mass which will be a High Mass with Fr James Bradley of the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham as celebrant and preacher, Fr Bernard McNally as Deacon and Fr Timothy Finigan (parish priest) as Subdeacon.


Music for the Mass:
Andrea Gabrieli Missa Brevis;
Victoria Ave Maris Stella;
Elgar Ave Verum; 
Gounod Domine Salvum Fac; 
Schubert Salve Regina.


Here is a link to the website of Our Lady of the Rosary, Blackfen, which has directions for getting to the Church. (Check the TFL website for weekend engineering works if you are travelling by public transport.)


Monday 24 September 2012

"I want to be a courageous orthodox bishop"


This Article can be found on THE HERMENEUTIC OF CONTINUITY Blog, by Fr Finigan.




Bishop Egan of Portsmouth


In the booklet for the Mass at Portsmouth today, at which Philip Egan was consecrated eighth Bishop of Portsmouth, there is an introduction by Bishop Egan (a musically educated man himself) explaining, among other things, the choice of music for the Mass.

There were some "old favourite" Catholic hymns at appropriate points (O purest of creatures, Soul of my Saviour, Sweet Sacrament Divine) and some elements from "A Community Mass" by Richard Proulx, as well as Gregorian chant. It was good to see that after various motets, songs, organ pieces and the hymn Praise to the Holiest, which were sung before Mass, the introit Salve Sancta Parens was sung while the altar was incensed. Also from the (modern) gradual was the Alleluia and verse.

More on this Article can be found on THE HERMENEUTIC OF CONTINUITY Blog


Tuesday 18 September 2012

Solemn Pontifical Mass and Solemn Vespers and Benediction at Chislehurst, Kent



SAINT MARY'S CATHOLIC CHURCH,
CROWN LANE,
CHISLEHURST,
KENT.



ANNIVERSARY OF CONSECRATION





SUNDAY, 23 SEPTEMBER 2012. 




11AM – SOLEMN PONTIFICAL MASS



CELEBRANT:

THE MOST REVEREND 

KEVIN McDONALD




TRUMPET MINUET – HOLLINS 

ECCE SACERDOS MAGNUS – ELGAR 

CHRIST IS MADE THE SURE FOUNDATION – PURCELL/HAWKINS 

MASS IN C “CREDO MASS” – MOZART 

LAUDATE DOMINUM – MOZART 

PANIS ANGELICUS – FRANCK 

HOLY LIGHT ON EARTH’S HORIZON – CASWELL 

FINALE FROM ORGAN SONATA NO 1 – MENDELSSOHN




5PM – SOLEMN VESPERS 
AND 
BENEDICTION




PSALMS – PLAINCHANT -  GUERRERO 

MAGNIFICAT – PALESTRINA 

O SALUTARIS – ELGAR 

AVE VERUM – BYRD 

TANTUM ERG0 – VIERNE 

SALVE REGINA – PLAINCHANT 

FANFARE - LEMMENS

Saturday 15 September 2012

Stabat Mater


The Stabat Mater (the Mother stood) is the Sequence 
for today's Mass (15 September) of the Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary.







Stabat Mater dolorosa,
Juxta crucem lacrimosa,
Dum pendebat Filius.

At the Cross, her station keeping,
Stood the mournful Mother weeping,
Close to Jesus to the last.

Cujus animam gementem,
Contristatam et dolentem,
Pertransivit gladius.

Through her heart, His sorrow sharing,
All His bitter anguish bearing,
Now at length the sword had passed.

O quam tristis et afflicta,
Fuit illa benedicta,
Mater Unigeniti !

Oh, how sad and sore distress'd,
Was that Mother, highly blest
Of the sole-begotten One !

Quae maerebat, et dolebat,
Pia Mater dum videbat
Nati poenas inclyti.

Christ above in torment hangs;
She beneath beholds the pangs
Of her dying glorious Son.






Quis est homo, qui non fleret,
Matrem Christi si videret
In tanto supplicio ?

Is there one who would not weep
Whelm'd in miseries so deep
Christ's dear Mother to behold ?

Quis non posset contristari,
Christi Matrem contemplari
Dolentem cum Filio ?

Can the human heart refrain
From partaking in her pain,
In that Mother's pain untold ?

Pro peccatis suae gentis
Vidit Jesum in tormentis
Et flagellis subditum.

Bruis'd, derided, curs'd, defil'd,
She beheld her tender child:
All with bloody scourges rent.

Vidit suum dulcem natum
Moriendo desolatum,
Dum emisit spiritum.

For the sins of His own nation,
Saw Him hang in desolation,
'Til His spirit forth He sent.






Eia Mater, fons amoris,
Me sentire vim doloris
Fac, ut tecum lugeam.

O thou Mother, fount of love !
Touch my spirit from above;
Make my heart with thine accord.

Fac ut ardeat cor meum
In amando Christum Deum,
Ut sibi complaceam.

Make me feel as thou hast felt;
Make my soul to glow and melt
With the love of Christ Our Lord.

Sancta Mater, istud agas,
Crucifixi fige plagas
Cordi meo valide.

Holy Mother ! Pierce me through;
In my heart each wound renew
Of my Saviour crucified.

Tui nati vulnerati,
Tam dignati pro me pati,
Poenas mecum divide.

Let me share with thee His pain,
Who for all my sins was slain,
Who for me in torments died.






Fac me tecum pie flere,
Crucifixo condolere,
Donec ego vixero.

Let me mingle tears with thee,
Mourning Him who mourn'd for me,
All the days that I may live.

Juxta crucem tecum stare,
Et me tibi sociare
In planctu desidero.

By the Cross with thee to stay,
There with thee to weep and pray,
Is all I ask of thee to give.

Virgo virginum praeclara,
Mihi jam non sis amara:
Fac me tecum plangere.

Virgin of all virgins best,
Listen to my fond request:
Let me share thy grief divine.

Fac ut portem Christi mortem,
Passionis fac consortem,
Et plagas recolere.

Let me, to my latest breath,
In my body bear the death
Of that dying Son of thine.







Fac me plagis vulnerati
Fac me cruce inebriari,
Et cruore Filii.

Wounded with his every wound,
Steep my soul 'til it hath swoon'd
In His very blood away.

Flammis ne urar succensus,
Per te, Virgo, sim defensus,
In die judicii.

Be to me, O Virgin, nigh,
Lest in flames I burn and die,
In His awful Judgment Day.

Christe, cum sit hinc exire,
Da per Matrem me venire
Ad palmam victoriae.

Christ, when Thou shalt call me hence,
Be Thy Mother my defence,
Be Thy Cross my victory.

Quando corpus morietur,
Fac ut animae donetur
Paradisi gloria.

Amen. Alleluia.

While my body here decays,
May my Soul Thy goodness praise,
Safe in Paradise with Thee.

Amen. Alleluia.

The Feast of the Seven Sorrows of Our Lady


CLICK HERE. THIS ARTICLE CAN BE FOUND ON THE TRANSALPINE REDEMPTORISTS' BLOG.



SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2012


Feast of the Seven Sorrows of Our Lady



It is part of our monastery devotions to recite one of our Lady's dolours everyday after the afternoon recreation. The image above was put together by one of the brothers.

St Alphonsus in the glories of Mary says that it was revealed to St. Elizabeth, that at the request of Our Lady, Our Lord promised four principal graces to those devoted to Her Sorrows:

1. That those who before death invoke the divine Mother in the name of Her Sorrows will obtain true repentance of all their sins;

2. That He will protect all who have this devotion in their tribulations, and will protect them especially at the hour of death;

3. That He will impress on their minds the remembrance of His Passion;

4. That He will place such devout servants in Mother Mary’s hands to do with them as She wishes and to obtain for them all the graces She desires.


In addition to these four graces there are also seven promises (revealed to St. Bridget) attached to the practice of daily praying seven Hail Mary’s while meditating on Our Lady’s Tears and Sorrows:

I will grant peace to their families.

They will be enlightened about the divine mysteries.

I will console them in their pains and I will accompany them in their work.

I will give them as much as they ask for as long as it does not oppose the adorable will of my divine Son or the sanctification of their souls.

I will defend them in their spiritual battles with the infernal enemy and I will protect them at every instant of their lives.

I will visibly help them at the moment of their death, they will see the face of their Mother.

I have obtained (This Grace) from my Divine Son, that those who propagate this devotion to my tears and sorrows, will be taken directly from this earthly life to eternal happiness since all their sins will be forgiven and my Son and I will be their eternal consolation and joy.

Friday 14 September 2012

15 September - The Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Part Four)







MY HEART IS ALL SHINING WITH LOVE.

FOR YOU, THE HEART OF MY MOTHER

WAS PIERCED WITH SORROW.



THIS ENDS THE ARTICLE ON THE SEVEN SORROWS OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

15 September - The Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Part Three) (Stabat Mater (Marco Frisina))

15 September - The Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Part Two)


Italic Text taken from The Saint Andrew Daily Missal
Illustrations taken from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia,
unless stated otherwise.

Double of the Second Class
White Vestments





The Blessed Virgin Mary surrounded by her Seven Sorrows.
Nederlands: Linkerluik van een diptiek Onze-Lieve-Vrouw der Zeven Weeën 
door Adriaen Isenbrant (circa 1490-1551); KMSKB, Brussel.
Author: Georges Jansoone (JoJan) - artwork by Adriaen Isenbrant. 
Photo: June 2009. 
(Wikimedia Commons). 


PLEASE NOTE: 
THERE WILL BE A
MISSA CANTATA 
AT 
OUR LADY OF THE ROSARY 
ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH, 
BLACKFEN, SIDCUP, 
KENT,
ENGLAND, 
ON
SATURDAY, 15 SEPTEMBER 2012, 
AT
1030 HRS.


Contact Details:
Our Lady of the Rosary RC Church,
330A, Burnt Oak Lane,
Sidcup, 
Kent DA15 8LW,
England.
Tel: 020 8300 2697.


Mary stood at the foot of the Cross, where Jesus was hanging (Introit, Gradual, Alleluia, Sequence, Gospel), and, as Simeon had prophesied (Collect), a sword of sorrow pierced her Soul (Secret).

Powerless, "she saw her sweet child desolate in the anguish of death, and she received His last breath" (Sequence). The compassion, which her maternal heart felt at the foot of the Cross, obtained for her as its reward the palm of martyrdom without death (Communion).

This Feast was celebrated with great solemnity by the Servites in the 17th-Century. In 1817, it was extended by Pope Pius VII to the whole Church, so as to recall the sufferings she (the Church) had undergone in the person of her exiled and captive head (Pope Pius VII), delivered by the protection of the Blessed Virgin.

Just as the first Feast of the Sorrows of Mary, in Passiontide, shows us how she had her share in the sacrifice of Jesus, the second Feast, in the Season after Pentecost, tells us of all the compassion which the Mother of the Saviour feels for the Church, the spouse of Jesus, who is crucified in her turn and whose devotion to the Sorrows of Mary increases in these calamitous times. 

His Holiness, Pope Saint Pius X, in 1908 raised this Feast to the rank of a Solemnity of the Second Class.

15 September - The Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Part One)


Double of the Second Class
White Vestments



Pictures and Italic text taken from Wikipedia (the free encyclopaedia) (unless otherwise accredited)

Our Lady of Sorrows (Latin: Beata Maria Virgo Perdolens), the Sorrowful Mother or Mother of Sorrows (Latin: Mater Dolorosa, at times just Dolorosa), and Our Lady of the Seven Sorrows or Our Lady of the Seven Dolours are names by which the Blessed Virgin Mary is referred to in relation to sorrows in her life. 

As Mater Dolorosa, it is also a key subject for Marian art in the Catholic Church.




Archetypal Gothic Lady of Sorrows from a triptych 

The Seven Sorrows of Mary are a popular Roman Catholic devotion. There are devotional prayers which consist of meditations on her Seven Sorrows. Examples include the Servite Rosary, or the Chaplet of the Seven Sorrows of Our Lady. Also, there is a corresponding devotion to the Seven Joys of Mary. The term "Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary" refers to the combined devotion of both the Immaculate Heart and the Seven Sorrows of Mary as first used by the Franciscan TertiaryBerthe Petit.

The Seven Sorrows (or Dolors) are events in the life of the Blessed Virgin Mary which are a popular devotion and are frequently depicted in art. It is a common devotion for Catholics to say daily one Our Father and seven Hail Marys for each of the Seven Sorrows, which are:

The Prophecy of Simeon. (Luke 2:34-35) or the Circumcision of Christ
The Flight into Egypt. (Matthew 2:13)
The Loss of the Child Jesus in the Temple. (Luke 2:43-45)
Mary Meets Jesus on the Way to Calvary.
Jesus Dies on the Cross. (John 19:25)
Mary Receives the Body of Jesus in Her Arms. (Matthew 27:57-59)
The Body of Jesus Is Placed in the Tomb. (John 19:40-42)

These Seven Sorrows should not be confused with the five Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary.






The Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows was originated by a Provincial Synod of Cologne in 1413 as a response to the iconoclast Hussites. It was designated for the Friday after the third Sunday after Easter. It had the title: Commemoratio angustiae et doloris Beatae Mariae Virginis. Before the 16th-Century, the Feast was celebrated only in parts of northern Europe.

Earlier, in 1233, seven youths in Tuscany founded the Servite Order (also known as the "Servite Friars", or the "Order of the Servants of Mary"). Five years later, they took up the "Sorrows of Mary, standing under the Cross", as the principal devotion of their Order.

Over the centuries, several devotions, and even Orders, arose around meditation on Mary's Sorrows. The Servites developed the two most common devotions to Our Lady's Sorrows, namely the Rosary of the Seven Sorrows and the Black Scapular of the Seven Dolours of Mary. The Black Scapular is a symbol of the Confraternity of Our Lady of Sorrows, which is associated with the Servite Order. Most devotional scapulars have requirements regarding ornamentation or design. The devotion of the Black Scapular requires only that it be made of black woollen cloth.





  Our Lady, who softens evil hearts. Russian icon, 19th-Century


On February 2, the same day as the Great Feast of the Meeting of the LordOrthodox Christians andEastern Catholics commemorate a wonder-working icon of the Theotokos (Mother of God) known as "the Softening of Evil Hearts" or "Simeon's Prophecy."

It depicts the Virgin Mary at the moment that Simeon the Righteous says: "Yea, a sword shall pierce through thy own soul also...." (Luke 2:35) She stands with her hands upraised in prayer, and seven swords pierce her heart, indicative of the seven sorrows. This is one of the few Orthodox icons of the Theotokos which do not depict the infant Jesus. The refrain "Rejoice, much-sorrowing Mother of God, turn our sorrows into joy and soften the hearts of evil men!" is also used.

The first altar to the Mater Dolorosa was set up in 1221 at the monastery of Schönau. Especially in Mediterranean countries, parishioners traditionally carry statues of Our Lady of Sorrows in processions on the days leading to Good Friday.

No Feast in her honour was included in Pope Saint Pius V's 1570 Tridentine Calendar. Vatican approval for the celebration of a Feast, in honour of Our Lady of Sorrows, was first granted to the Servite Order in 1667.





 Our Lady of Sorrows, El Viso del AlcorSeville, Spain.


By inserting the Feast into the Roman Catholic Calendar of Saints in 1814, Pope Pius VII extended the celebration to the whole of the Latin Church. It was assigned to the third Sunday in September. In 1913, Pope Pius X moved the Feast to September 15, the day after the Feast of the Cross. It is still observed on that date.

Another Feast, originating in the 17th-Century, was extended to the whole of the Latin Church in 1727. It was originally celebrated on Friday in Passion Week, one week before Good Friday. In 1954, it still held the rank of Major Double (slightly lower than the rank of the September 15 Feast) in the General Roman Calendar.

In 1962, the Feast was reduced to a Commemoration.

By 1969 the Vatican had come to consider it a duplication of the 15 September Feast, and the Passion Week Feast was omitted in that year's revision of the Roman Catholic calendar of saints.

Each celebration was called a Feast of "The Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary."

The 15 September Feast that now combines and continues both of them is known as the Feast of "Our Lady of Sorrows" (Beatae Mariae Virginis Perdolentis). The Sequence known as Stabat Mater may be sung at Mass on that day.





 Nuestra Señora de los Dolores, 1816.
Fernando Estévez de Salas
Parroquia de San Juan Bautista, Villa de La Orotava. 
Dolorosa Estévez from Wikimedia Commons. 
Photo taken by JosuHdez, April 2010


Our Lady of Sorrows, depicted as "Mater Dolorosa" (Mother of Sorrows) has been the subject of some key works of Roman Catholic Marian art. Mater Dolorosa is one of the three common artistic representations of a sorrowful Virgin Mary, the other two being Stabat Mater ("Stood the Mother") and Pietà.

In this iconography, Our Lady of Seven Sorrows is at times simply represented in a sad and anguished mode by herself, her expression being that of tears and sadness. In other representations, the Virgin Mary is depicted with seven swords in her heart, a reference to the prophecy of Simeon, at the Presentation.

Our Lady of Sorrows is the patron saint of:


Slovakia;
the Congregation of Holy Cross;
the village of Mola di Bari and the Molise region of Italy;
the state of Mississippi, USA;
Dolores, in the Philippines;
LanzaroteCanary Islands.
Mater Dolorosa (Berlin-Lankwitz).


Thursday 13 September 2012

13 September - The Sixth Day within the Octave of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary


The Text is taken from The Liturgical Year by Abbot Gueranger, O.S.B.
Translated from the French by Dom Laurence Shepherd, O.S.B.
The Illustration is from Wikimedia Commons





The Virgin in Prayer.
Giovanni Battista Salvi "Il Sassoferrato", 
Jungfrun i bön (1640-1650). 
(Wikimedia Commons)


The Book of Canticles, vii. 1, 2.
How beautiful are thy first steps, O prince's daughter !
Our eyes are never weary of contemplating in thee the marvel of harmonious sweetness united to the strength of an army.

Blessed child, continue to grow in grace;
   may thy course be prosperous;
   may thy royalty be strengthened and established.
But the Church will not wait till thou be grown up,
   to sing to thee her beautiful antiphon:

First Antiphon of the Third Nocturn of the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Rejoice, O Virgin Mary;
   thou alone hast destroyed all heresies throughout the world.



Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, Abbot and Doctor of the Church (Part Eight)


Text and Illustrations from Wikipedia - the free encyclopedia,
unless otherwise stated.

20 August (Feast of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, Abbot and Doctor of the Church)
Double
White Vestments



Church of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux in Flachsmeer, 
District of Leer, East Frisia, Germany.
Deutsch: Hist. Kirche (kath.) in Flachsmeer, LK Ler, Ostfriesland. 
Photo: May 2009. 
(Wikimedia Commons) 



Second Crusade (1146–49)

News came at this time from the Holy Land that alarmed Christendom. Christians had been defeated at the Siege of Edessa and most of the country had fallen into the hands of the Seljuk Turks. The Kingdom of Jerusalem and the other Crusader states were threatened with similar disaster. Deputations of the bishops of Armenia solicited aid from the Pope, and the King of France also sent ambassadors. The Pope commissioned Saint Bernard to preach a Second Crusade and granted the same Indulgences for it which Pope Urban II had accorded to the First Crusade.

There was, at first, virtually no popular enthusiasm for the Crusade, as there had been in 1095. Bernard found it expedient to dwell upon the taking of the Cross as a potent means of gaining absolution for sin and attaining grace. On 31 March, with King Louis present, he preached to an enormous crowd in a field at Vézelay. When Bernard was finished, the crowd enlisted en masse; they supposedly ran out of cloth to make Crosses. Bernard is said to have given his own outer garments to be cut up to make more.

Unlike the First Crusade, the new venture attracted royalty, such as Eleanor of Aquitaine, then Queen of France; Thierry of Alsace, Count of Flanders; Henry, the future Count of Champagne; Louis’ brother Robert I of Dreux; Alphonse I of Toulouse; William II of Nevers; William de Warenne, 3rd Earl of Surrey; Hugh VII of Lusignan; and numerous other nobles and bishops.

But an even greater show of support came from the common people. Bernard wrote to the Pope a few days afterwards, "Cities and castles are now empty. There is not left one man to seven women, and everywhere there are widows to still-living husbands."



Church of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, Kurrenberg, Germany. 
Deutsch: katholische Kirche St. Bernhard in Kürrenberg
Author: GFreihalter
Photo: April 2011. 
(Wikimedia Commons) 



Bernard then passed into Germany, and the reported miracles which multiplied almost at his every step undoubtedly contributed to the success of his mission. Conrad III of Germany and his nephew, Frederick Barbarossa, received the Cross from the hand of Bernard. Pope Eugenius came in person to France to encourage the enterprise. As in the First Crusade, the preaching inadvertently led to attacks on Jews; a fanatical French monk named Radulphe was apparently inspiring massacres of Jews in the Rhineland, Cologne, Mainz, Worms, and Speyer, with Radulphe claiming Jews were not contributing financially to the rescue of the Holy Land.

The archbishop of Cologne and the archbishop of Mainz were vehemently opposed to these attacks and asked Bernard to denounce them. This he did, but when the campaign continued, Bernard travelled from Flanders to Germany to deal with the problems in person. He then found Radulphe in Mainz and was able to silence him, returning him to his monastery.

The last years of Bernard's life were saddened by the failure of the Second Crusade he had preached, the entire responsibility for which was thrown upon him. Bernard considered it his duty to send an apology to the Pope and it is inserted in the second part of his "Book of Considerations." There he explains how the sins of the Crusaders were the cause of their misfortune and failures. When his attempt to call a new Crusade failed, he tried to disassociate himself from the fiasco of the Second Crusade, altogether.



Interior of Church of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, Rome.
Chiesa di San Bernardo alle terme, nel quartiere Castro Pretorio, a Roma. Interno. 
Author: gaspa
Photo: August 2006. 
(Wikimedia Commons). 



The death of his contemporaries served as a warning to Bernard of his own approaching end. The first to die was Abbot Suger in 1152, of whom Bernard wrote to Eugenius III: "If there is any precious vase adorning the palace of the King of Kings, it is the soul of the venerable Suger". Conrad III and his son, Henry, died the same year. From the beginning of the year 1153, Bernard felt his death approaching. The passing of Pope Eugenius had struck the fatal blow by taking from him one whom he considered his greatest friend and consoler.

Bernard died at age sixty-three on 20 August 1153, after forty years spent in the cloister. He was buried at Clairvaux Abbey, but, after its dissolution in 1792 by the French revolutionary government, his remains were transferred to Troyes Cathedral.


PART NINE FOLLOWS


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