This process becomes the seed for a theological reflection critical of the nation
of Israel before the coming of Christ.
CISTERCIAN FATHERS SERIES: NUMBER THIRTY-ONE - BERNARD OF
CLAIRVAUX – ON THE SONG OF SONGS III
Lest you begin to feel that St. Bernard
is too hard on the Jewish people a reading of Matthew 23:29-36, in fact all of
Mt 23, you will see Jesus equally critical and even condemnatory of his chosen
people.
More on the fig tree as a symbol of
the Jewish people in the next post.
The post dated November 20, 2021 presented an excerpt from the introduction to volume 3 of St. Bernard's Sermons on the Song of Songs which gave good reason for reading St. Bernard's sermons.
On occasion I reconsider the reasons for my reading of St. Bernard and why I post some of his thoughts on this blog and even why I post on this blog at all. With very few followers it is obvious that my persistence in maintaining the blog is for my own edification. Ronald Rolheiser in his book "The Holy Longing" states the fundamental reason underlying all contemplation of the transcendent. "We are infinite beings in a finite world." As such we will always be just a little bit dissatisfied with what this world offers. I ascribe my persistent blogging then to a restlessness. St. Augustine describes this restlessness and the solution to its satisfaction in his Confessions. Enough name dropping.
St Bernard is really the only writer that I've read and studied in such a sustained manner. Through my twenty odd posts since June of 2021 I've tried to distill the essence of his preaching on the Song of Songs. Now, I'm beginning to experience, in an unexpected way, the effects of presenting the posts . My feelings are the result of a sustained preoccupation with St. Bernard's religious and spiritual principles. By placing myself in his presence, so to speak, I am confronted with a frequent reminder of the meaning of charity and God as the essence of love. St. Bernard's exposition of the Christian Spirit is sometimes eloquent, sometimes condemnatory and frequently demands penance from himself and his monks. This traditional message is not popular in the culture of our times. However, St. Bernard conveys a profound faith in mankind's ability to experience God's love here on earth. Through a habitual focus on Christian charity we can prevent our relatively unimportant earthly concerns from consuming all our mental, and especially spiritual, energies.
I adjure you, Daughters of Jerusalem, by the gazelles and the does of the field. Do not awaken, or stir up love until it is ready. Song of Songs 2:7
From Volume 3-Sermon 3-6:
3. Well then, let me explain if I can what this sleep in which the bridegroom wishes his beloved to enjoy, from which he will not allow
her to be wakened under any circumstances, except at her good pleasure …. It is
a slumber which is vital and watchful, which enlightens the heart, drives away
death, and communicates eternal life. For it is a genuine sleep that does not
stupefy the mind but transports it. And – I say without any hesitation-it is a
death, for the apostle Paul in praising people still living in the flesh spoke
thus: ‘For you have died, and your life is hid with Christ in God.’ (Col 3:3)
4. It is not absurd for me to call the bride’s ecstasy a
death, then, but one that snatches away not life but life's snares, so that one
can say: 'we have escaped as a bird from the snare of the Fowlers'. (PS123: 7)
in this life we move about surrounded by traps, but these cause no fear when
the soul is drawn out of itself by a thought that is both powerful and holy,
provided that it so separates itself and flies away from the mind that it
transcends the normal manner and habit of thinking; for a net is spread in vain
before the eyes of winged creatures. (Prov 1:17) Why dread wantonness where
there is no awareness of life? For since the ecstatic soul is cut off from
awareness of life though not from life itself, it must of necessity be cut off
from the temptations of life. 'O that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away
and be at rest.' (Ps 54:7) How I long often to be the victim of this death that
I may escape the snares of death, (Ps 17:6) that I may not feel the deadening
blandishments of a sensual life, that I may be steeled against evil desire,
against the surge of cupidity, against the goads of anger and impatience,
against the anguish of worry and the mysteries of care. Let me die the death of
the just, (Num 23:10) that no injustice may ensnare or wickedness seduce me.
How good the death that does not take away life but makes it better; good in
that the body does not perish but the soul is exalted.
5. Men alone experienced this. But, if I may say so, let me
die the death of Angels that, transcending the memory of things present, I may
castoff not only the desire for what are corporal and inferior but even their
images, that I may enjoy pure conversation with of those who bear the likeness
of purity.
III. This kind of ecstasy, in my opinion, is alone or
principally called contemplation. Not to be gripped during life by material
desires is a mark of human virtue; but to gaze without the use of bodily
likenesses is the sign of angelic purity. Each, however, is a divine gift, each
is a going out of oneself, each a transcending the self, but in one, one goes
much farther than in the other. Happy the man who can say: 'See, I have escaped
far away, and found a refuge in the wilderness'. (Ps 54:8)
CISTERCIAN FATHERS SERIES: NUMBER THIRTY-ONE - BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX – ON THE SONG OF SONGS III
Following this quote from the post of
November 14, are quotes from Sermons, 42.6-7.
“You
see then how great the evils from which a man delivers both himself and me when
he responds with meekness on being corrected, submits respectfully, obeys
modestly, and humbly admits his fault. To a man like this I shall in all things
be a debtor, I shall minister to and serve him as a genuine lover of my Lord,
for he is one who can truly say: "while the king was on his couch, my nard
gave forth its fragrance.”
From the citing of this verse St.
Bernard takes exegetical flight and expresses a theological
reflection on the spiritual meaning he sees in this verse.
“How good
the fragrance of humility that ascends from the valley of tears, that permeates
all places within reach, and perfumes even the royal couch with its sweet
delight.
The nard is an insignificant herb, said by those who
specialize in the study of plants to be of a warm nature. Hence it seems to be
fittingly taken in this place for the virtue of humility, but aglow with the
warmth of holy love. I say this because there is a humility inspired and
inflamed by charity, and a humility begotten in us by truth but devoid of
warmth. This latter depends on our knowledge, the former on our affections. For
if you sincerely examine your inward dispositions in the light of truth, and
judge them unflatteringly for what they are, you will certainly be humiliated
by the baseness that this true knowledge reveals to you, though you perhaps as
yet cannot endure that, others too, should see this image so far it is truth
that compels your humility, it is as yet untouched by the inpouring of love. But
if you were so moved by a love of that truth which, like a radiant light, so wholesomely
discovered to you the reality of your condition, you would certainly desire, as
far as in you lies, that the opinions of others about you should correspond
with what you know of yourself. I say, as far as in you lies, because it is
often inexpedient to make known to others all that we know about ourselves, and
we are forbidden by the very love of truth and the truth of love to attempt to
reveal what would injure another. But if under the impulse of selflove you
inwardly conceal the true judgment you have formed of yourself, who can doubt
that you lack a love for truth, since you show preference for your own interest
and reputation?
7. Convicted by the light of truth then, a man may judge
himself of little worth, but you know this is far from the equivalent of a
spontaneous association with the lowly that springs from the gift of
love. Necessity compels the former, the latter is of free choice. "He
emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, and so gave us the pattern of
humility. He emptied himself, he humbled himself, not under constraint of an
assessment of himself but inspired by love for us. Though he could appear
abject and despicable in men's eyes, he could not judge himself to be so in
reality, because he knew who he was. It was his will, not his judgment, that 
moved him to adopt a humble guise
that he knew did not represent him; though not unaware that he was the highest
he chose to be looked on as the least. And so we find him saying: ''Learn from
me for I am gentle and humble in heart. "He said “in heart;" in the
affection of the heart, which signifies the will, and a decision arising from
the will excludes compulsion. You and I truly know that we deserve disgrace and
contempt, that we deserve the worst treatment and the lowest rank, that we
deserve punishment, even the whip; but not he. Yet he experienced all these
things because he willed it; he was humble in heart, humble with
that humility that springs from the heart's love, not that which is exacted by
truthful reasoning.
CISTERCIAN FATHERS SERIES: NUMBER SEVEN - BERNARD OF
CLAIRVAUX - Song of Songs II
If you are looking for a reason to spend the time and effort to read St. Bernard's Sermones, a very eloquently put reason is provided by the author of the introduction of Volume 3.
 |
| Feed the Hungry |
EMERO STIEGMAN, Saint Mary University Halifax, Nova
Scotia
CISTERCIAN FATHERS SERIES: NUMBER THIRTY-ONE - BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX – ON THE SONG OF SONGS III, p. xix
At the start of this sermon St. Bernard presents the mental processes all of us go through when faced with someone who is obviously on a wayward path. Should we try to correct their actions? Do I have the moral authority to correct someone? Is it my responsibility to point out the error of their ways? What happens if they get angry with me? Will I end up losing a friend?
St. Bernard then goes on to discuss the possible consequences of correcting someone’s errant ways. Will his actions produce a penitential response? Will it produce a defensive response? Will it produce a hardened conviction, a rationalization, that the error was actually a good? Will it produce an anger toward you that ruptures a relationship?
“Sometimes the anger is spiced with impudence, as when the correction is not only met with impatience, but the error impudently defended. … While refusing to be angry with the archer who shot him, he is angry with his physician!”
Then St. Bernard expresses what many in this predicament say.
“For this reason I should sometimes prefer to remain silent and pretend I had not seen some wrong being done, rather than to bring about so great a calamity by a reprimand.
Perhaps you will
tell
me
that
my
good deed will
redound
to
my welfare; that
I
have
freed
my
own
soul
and
am
innocent
of
the
blood
of
that
man
in
speaking
and
warning
him
to
turn
away
from
his
evil
path
that
he
might
live. But though
you give me countless
reasons, they will not
comfort me because my
eyes rest on a
son who is dying.
It is as if
by that reprimand I
sought to achieve my
own salvation rather
than his.
… How much
more
should
I
weep
and
lament
for
the
eternal
death
of
a
son
of
mine
even
if
I
am
conscious
of
no
failure
on
my
part, even
though
I
have
warned
him?
You
see
then
how
great the evils from which a
man
delivers
both
himself
and
me
when
he
responds
with
meekness
on
being
corrected, submits
respectfully, obeys
modestly, and
humbly
admits
his
fault. To
a
man
like
this
I
shall
in
all
things be
a
debtor, I
shall
minister to
and
serve
him as
a
genuine
lover
of
my
Lord….”
CISTERCIAN FATHERS SERIES: NUMBER SEVEN - BERNARD OF
CLAIRVAUX - Song of Songs II
 |
| Abbey at Clairvaux |
Most Christians will admit the truthfulness of the fact that
we humans are all sinners. Some will make removal of these evil tendencies the
center of their spiritual lives through penance and mortification. Perhaps this
stems from the belief that only perfection will be worthy of salvation. Some will
prefer to focus on the human capacity for good through the practice of virtue.
The two approaches are seen in various degrees of emphasis in the people we
live and share our lives with. On the spectrum of God’s certain judgement of us
to God’s unfailing mercy for us, where does our practice lie?
Each of us must make a serious effort to answer this
question. In Sermon 6 St. Bernard offers an interpretation of one who kisses
the “spiritual feet” of God.
“However, I must not omit to speak of those spiritual feet
of God to which the penitent’s first kiss, understood in a spiritual sense,
ought to be directed. … it should not seem unreasonable to us to ascribe the
feet to his humanity. Let us call one of these feet mercy, the other judgement.
… With these very feet he finds his way into the souls of his lovers,
tirelessly enlightening and searching the hearts and the loins of the
faithful.” Ser 6:6-7
“There are two signs by which you may
recognize such a one, for he cannot but bear upon him the imprint of these
divine footsteps. These signs are fear and hope, the former presenting the
imprint of judgement, the latter that of mercy. Truly, the Lord takes pleasure
in them that fear him, and in them that hope in his mercy, for fear of the Lord
is the beginning of wisdom, hope the growth of wisdom. … It is clearly
inexpedient to kiss the one without the other; a man who thinks only of the
judgement will fall into the pit of despair, another who deceitfully flatters
God’s mercy gives birth to a pernicious security.” Ser.6:8
The purpose of the above preamble is to say that St. Bernard,
as old a Catholic as he is, presents in his Sermons on the Song of Songs a most
balanced approach to good and evil. Frequently in the Sermons he reminds us of
our capacity for sin and our need to clean up our act. He tells us that the
effort to do so is a necessary condition if we ever hope to see God face to
face and experience the ecstasy of His presence. The higher degree to which we
can convert from our sinfulness to the exercise of virtue is indicative of the degree to which we can
experience God. He never despairs of our
capacity to fight our sinfulness. Through the expression of Christian virtues,
virtues that have been and always will be a part of Catholicism, we can elevate
ourselves closer and closer to God until in life eternal we can experience him
face to face.
Above quotes taken from CISTERCIAN FATHERS SERIES: NUMBER FOUR - THE WORKS OF BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX Volume Two - Song of Songs I
