Bernard of Clairvaux

 St. Bernard has a reputation for eloquence of his writings. Equally compelling as is the rhetoric in the quote that follows is the loftiness of the sentiment:

Sermon 1:11

"But there is that other song, by its unique dignity and sweetness, exceeds all those I have mentioned and any others there might be; hence by every right do I acclaim it as the Song of Songs

. It stands at a point where all the others culminate. Only the touch of the Spirit can inspire a song like this, and only personal experience can unfold its meaning. Let those who are versed in the mystery revel in it; let all others burn with desire rather to attain to this experience than merely to learn about it. For it is not a melody that resounds abroad but the very music of the heart, not a trilling on the lips but an inward pulsing of delight, a harmony not of voices but of wills. It is a tune you will not hear in the streets, these notes do not sound where crowds assemble; only the singer hears it and the one to whom he sings – the lover and the beloved. It is preeminently a marriage song telling of chaste souls in loving embrace, of their wills in sweet accord, of the mutual exchange of the heart's affections."

CISTERCIAN FATHERS SERIES: NUMBER FOUR - THE WORKS OF BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX Volume Two - Song of Songs I

St. Bernard of Clairvaux

 Looking for some spiritual readings I came across Mystics, by William Harmless, S.J. Typical of many books on my shelf it is one of those only partially read, left unfinished due to another book capturing my all too fickle attention. Opening to a section on St. Bernard I began to read and was immediately taken by the very spiritual nature of the writings of St. Bernard, highly reminiscent of St. Augustine's Confessions.

In his Confessions St Augustine spoke to the heart of the seeker, in a way that elevated my sense of the transcendent and grew my desire for spiritual growth. St. Bernard writes in the same fashion. 

I'll be posting a series of quotes from St. Bernard's writings. Mostly from his Sermons on the Song of Songs. Here is a start from Sermon 1.2:

...there are two evils that comprise the main enemies of the soul:

a misguided love of the world and an excessive love of self. The two Books [Wisdom and Proverbs] can provide an antidote to these infections. One uproots pernicious habits of mind and body with the hoe of self-control. The other by enlightening reason quickly perceives a delusive tinge in all the world holds glorious, truly distinguishing between it and deeper truth. 

CISTERCIAN FATHERS SERIES: NUMBER FOUR - THE WORKS OF BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX Volume Two - Song of Songs I

More to come .......