LETTERS OF ST. BERNARD

1148, November 2

74. We went. We returned about midnight, for at that hour it was announced thatthe light shineth in darkness.898The house filled, the whole community was present, many abbots also who had assembled.With psalms and hymns and spiritual songs899we followed our friend as he returned to his own country.900In the fifty-fourthyear of his age,901at the place and time which he had chosen beforehand and predicted, Malachy, the bishop and legate of the holy Apostolic See, taken upby the angels,902as it were from our hands, happilyfell asleep in the Lord.903And indeed he slept. His placid face was the sign of a placid departure. And verilythe eyes of all werefixedupon him;904but none could perceive when he departed. When dead he was thought to be alive, when alive, dead; so true was it that there was no difference which might distinguish death from life. The same vivacity of face, the same serenity, as commonly appears in one who sleeps. You might say that death robbed him of none of these things, but rather very greatly increased them. He was not changed; but he changed us all. In wondrous fashion the sorrow and groaning of all suddenly sank to rest,sadnesswas changedinto joy,905singing banished lamentation.906He is borne forth, voices are borne to heaven, he is borne into the oratory on the shoulders of the abbots.Faith has conquered,907affection triumphs, things assume their normal course. All things are carried out in order, all proceed in the way of reason.

75. And in truth what reason is there to lament Malachy immoderately, as though hisdeathwas notprecious,908as though it was not rather sleep than death, as though it was not the port of death and the portal of life?909Our friendMalachysleepeth;910and I, must I mourn? such mourning is based on custom, not on reason. If the Lordhath given His beloved one sleep, and such sleep, in which there isan heritage of the Lord, evenchildren, and the reward, the fruit of the womb,911which of these things seems to call for weeping? Must I weep for him who has escaped from weeping? He rejoices, he triumphs, he has been broughtinto the joy of his Lord,912and I, must I lament for him? I desire these things for myself, I do not grudge them to him. Meanwhile the obsequies are prepared, the sacrifice is offered for him,913all is performed according to custom with the greatest devotion. There stood some way off a boy whose arm hung by his side dead, rather burdensome to him than useful. When I discovered him I signed to him to come near, and taking his withered hand I laid it on the hand of the bishop, and it restored it to life. For in truththe grace of healings914lived in the dead; and his hand was to the dead hand what Elisha was to the dead man.915The boyhad come from far916and the hand which he brought hanging down, he carried back whole to his own country. Now, all things having been duly accomplished in the very oratory of Saint Mary, Mother of God,in which he was well pleased,917Malachy is carried to his burial918in the eleven hundred and forty-eighth year from the Incarnation of the Lord, on the fourth of the Nones of November.919Thine, good Jesus, isthe depositwhich has been committed to us,920Thine is the treasure which is laid up with us.921Wekeepit922to be given back at the time when Thou shalt see fit to recall it; only that he may not go forth without his comrades, but that him whom we have had as our guest we may have also as our leader, when weshall reignwith Thee, and with him also,for ever and ever.923Amen.

[821]I.e."If I die in Ireland."[822]In Armagh. See §§ 19, 65.[823]All Souls' Day, November 2.[824]Matt. v. 18.[825]Ps. xlviii. 8.[826]Note that the pall is called a sacrament.[827]See § 38.[828]Bernard Paganelli, a monk of Clairvaux, was sent to Rome by St. Bernard at the request of Innocent II. and was appointed abbot of the monastery of St. Anastasius. On the death of Lucius II. he was elected Pope, February 15, 1144, and assumed the title of Eugenius III. (H. K. Mann,Lives of the Popes, ix. 131 ff.)[829]Eugenius left Viterbo at the beginning of 1147. He was at Lyons in March, and at Troyes on April 10 (Jaffé, p. 624 ff.; Mann, ix. 185).[830]In accordance with the instructions of Innocent II. (§ 38): "A Synod was convened at Inis Patraic by Mael Maedoc, coarb of Patrick, at which were present fifteen bishops and two hundred priests, to establish rules and morals for all, both laity and clergy; and Mael Maedoc Ua Morgair, by the advice of the Synod, went a second time to Rome (sic) to confer with the comarb of Peter" (A.F.M.1148). Inispatrick is a small island off Skerries, co. Dublin. For the date seeR.A.I.xxxv. 249 f. In the same year Malachy had consecrated the monastery of Knock (A.F.M.See p. 67, n. 3).[831]St. Bernard seems to have thought that St. Malachy set sail immediately after the Synod, and from a port not far from the place where it met. But this is impossible, for one day's sail brought him to Scotland (§ 68). He seems to have embarked at Bangor, which is about a hundred miles north of Inispatrick.[832]Cp. Lam. ii. 11.[833]Ruth i. 14.[834]Matt. xx. 20, combined with Mark x. 35, 36.[835]Susanna, 22.[836]That is, the first day after his landing in Scotland.[837]The Green Lake. It is now Soulseat, about eight miles from Cairngarroch. At this place Fergus, lord of Galloway (p. 76, n. 4), founded a famous monastery of Premonstratensian canons (Grub,Eccl. Hist. of Scotland, i. 269), which must not be confused with Malachy's more humble community.[838]The abbot was Michael, who had belonged to the community at Bangor (§ 15). As this new community is called "a convent of monks" we may infer that it was of the Cistercian Order.[839]Note the leisureliness of the journey in its earlier stages. Later on Malachy encountered difficulties, which no doubt involved further delay (Serm. i. § 1).[840]Gisburn is a village in the West Riding of Yorkshire on the river Ribble, not far from the border of Lancashire. It is clear that on this occasion Malachy followed the line of Watling Street, which ran through Ribchester, on the Ribble, about fourteen miles from Gisburn. His road probably passed within three miles of that place between Settle and Chetburn. He seems to have avoided entering England as long as possible—supposing no doubt, and with good reason, that he was safer in the dominions of David than in those of Stephen. For details of the journey seeR.I.A.xxxv. 239 ff., 249. The monastery of Gisburn, of which the ruins remain to the south of the parish church, was founded for Augustinian canons, in 1129, by Robert de Brus (Dugdale, vi. 1, 265 ff.).[841]Malachy was probably suspected (not without cause) of being an emissary of the supporters of the Empress Matilda. He had just spent some days with David I., and with him and his stepson Waltheof he was on terms of intimate friendship (§§ 36, 40). King David invaded England in the following year.[842]The reference is apparently to King Stephen's attempt to prevent Theobald of Canterbury and other bishops from attending the Council of Rheims in March 1148. But Malachy does not seem to have been summoned to the Council, and he did not reach the Channel till long after it was over (see next note).[843]Eugenius left Clairvaux on April 27, and Lausanne on May 20 (Jaffé, p. 634). At this rate he might have been expected to reach Rome by the end of July. About that time, therefore, we may conjecture that Malachy was on the coast of Kent. Actually, the Pope was not near Rome till he reached Viterbo on November 30 (ibid.636). St. Bernard, therefore, when he wrote this passage, was ignorant of his movements for a considerable time before Malachy's death.[844]Oriens: literally, "east."[845]Luke i. 78.[846]Ps. cxviii. 24.[847]St. Bernard's life-long and ever-increasing frailty is constantly alluded to by his biographers. It was largely due to his extreme austerity. In this incident we have an example of the way in which, on many occasions, the strength of his mind conquered the weakness of his body (V. P.v. 4).[848]Gen. xxix. 13.[849]Cant. iii. 4.[850]Ps. cxxxiii. 1.[851]Matt. xii. 42; Luke xi. 31.[852]October 18. Malachy had therefore reached Clairvaux on October 13 or 14. In the interval he met St. Gilbert of Sempringham and presented him with a pastoral staff (Dugdale, vi. 2, p. xii.). In France Malachy travelled alone—having been parted from his companions in England—and probably on horseback (§ 36). He may, therefore, have left England about September 30, and traversed the 270 miles from Wissant to Clairvaux by October 14. He apparently intended to start for Rome on St. Luke's Day (Serm. i. § 1).[853]That is, in the presence of the community.[854]Prov. xiv. 13 (inexact quotation).[855]Luke x. 40.[856]Cp. 2 Tim. iv. 6, in which the phraseology of the vg. differs entirely from that of the text.[857]Not strictly accurate. Malachy reached Clairvaux before his companions. See p. 123, n. 3.[858]The physicians said the same (Serm. i. § 2).[859]This saying is quoted in a slightly different form in Serm. i. § 2.[860]2 Tim. iv. 6.[861]2 Tim. i. 12.[862]Ps. lxxviii. 30 (vg.).[863]Ps. cxxxii. 14 (inexact quotation).[864]Ps. xvii. 7.[865]2 Tim. iv. 8.[866]All Souls' Day.[867]For the Cistercian method of administering unction seeUsus antiquiores ordinis Cisterciensis, iii. 94 (P.L.clxvi. 1471).[868]Solario.[869]Cp. Letter iv. § 2, where it is added that he commended the Irish brothers to the care of St. Bernard.[870]Solio.[871]Matt. xxiv. 33.[872]2 Cor. iii. 7.[873]Tim. iv. 7.[874]2 Sam. i. 23 (inaccurate quotation).—Contrast St. Bernard's lament for his brother Gerard (Cant.xxvi. 4): "We loved in life, how have we been divided in death? Most bitter separation!"[875]Ireland.[876]John xi. 16.[877]November 1. For the translation of relics which took place, apparently on that day, see Serm. i. § 2.[878]Ecclus. xxii. 6.[879]1 Thess. iv. 17.[880]Ps. lxxvi. 10 (vg.).[881]Sanctorum ... sollemnitatem.Not the Festival of All Saints, for that had already come, but, as the next sentence shows, the festival assembly of the saints in heaven. Compare Ps. lxxiv. 4, wherecongregationsrepresentssolemnitatisin the Vulgate.[882]John xiv. 19, etc.[883]Cp.Cant.xxvi. 11, "For thee, brother, even at midnight the day dawned."[884]Rom. xiii. 12.[885]Ps. lxvi. 12.[886]See § 71.[887]Luke xxii. 51.—This saying is quoted in Serm. i. § 5.[888]Ps. lxxviii. 30 (vg.).[889]Ps. cxxxix. 11 (vg.).—Cp.Cant.xxvi. 11: "Already for thee, my brother, even at midnight the day was dawning, andthe night was shining as the day; straightwaythat night was light about thee in thy pleasure. I was summoned to that miracle, to see a man exulting in death and mocking death."[890]John xiv. 1.[891]Mark ix. 23.[892]1 Cor. xiii. 8.[893]Mark vii. 34.[894]John xvii. 11.[895]John xvii. 20.[896]Cp. Praef. 2.[897]John vii. 30.[898]John i. 5.[899]Eph. v. 19; Col. iii. 16.[900]The meaning of the phrase is explained inDe Cons.v. 2: "This will be a returning to our own country, when we leave the country of our bodies and reach the realm of spirits—I mean our God, the Mighty Spirit, the great abiding place of the spirits of the blest" (Lewis's translation, slightly altered). Cp. Serm. ii., § 6.[901]A.F.M.say, "after the fifty-fourth year of his age." St. Bernard appears to be right. For Malachy was made bishop of Connor when he was just entering his thirtieth year (§ 16),i.e.about his twenty-ninth birthday.A.F.M.give the date as 1124. But if he was over fifty-four on November 2, 1148 (§ 75), his twenty-ninth birthday would have been before November 1123. If he was under fifty-four on that day it may have been in 1124.[902]Luke xvi. 22.[903]Acts vii. 60 (vg.).[904]Luke iv. 20.[905]Esth. xiii. 17 (vg.); xvi. 21 (vg.); cp. John xvi. 20, etc.[906]Cp. Amos viii. 10.[907]1 John v. 5.[908]Ps. cxvi. 15.[909]Cp. Serm. ii. § 8.[910]John xi. 11.[911]Ps. cxxvii. 2, 3 (vg.).[912]Matt. xxv. 21, 23.[913]St. Bernard himself celebrated Mass, and by divine inspiration, "when the sacrifice was finished, changed the order of the prayer and introduced the collect for the commemoration of saints who were bishops instead of that which was used for the commendation of the dead," anticipating, as we may suppose, Malachy's canonization. He then devoutly kissed his feet (V.P.iv. 21).[914]1 Cor. xii. 9 (vg.).[915]2 Kings xiii. 21.[916]Mark viii. 3.[917]Matt. iii. 17.[918]Malachy was buried on the north side of the Oratory, vested in St. Bernard's habit. Five years later St. Bernard was buried before the Altar of Saint Mary, clad in the habit in which Malachy died, and which he had worn ever since his death when he celebrated Mass (V.P.v. 15, 23, 24). For further particulars of St. Malachy's burial and the disposal of his relics seeR.Q.H.lii. 43 f.[919]November 2. From this statement (see p. 128, n. 1) we may infer that Malachy was born in 1095, before November.[920]2 Tim. i. 12.[921]The biographers of St. Bernard give no detailed account of any of Malachy's visits to Clairvaux. But one of them—Geoffrey, St. Bernard's secretary—wrote a prayer for the Bright Valley, in which he placed Malachy on a par with the great Cistercian, thereby revealing to us the extraordinary impression which he made on the community (V.P.v. 25). I owe the following translation of it to a friend: "Grant, O Lord, thy never-failing bounty to the spiritual harvest of the Valley, which thou didst deem worthy to illumine with two stars of such surpassing brightness, so making it brighter in very truth even than in name. Do thou guard the house wherein this twofold treasure is laid up and guarded for thee. Be it also unto us according to thy word, that as thy treasure is there so may thy heart be also; there too thy grace and mercy: and may the favour of thy compassion for ever rest on all who are gathered together in the self-same place in thy Name, which is above every name, even as thou art over all, God blessed for ever.—Amen."[922]2 Tim. i. 12.[923]Rev. xxii. 5.

[821]I.e."If I die in Ireland."

[822]In Armagh. See §§ 19, 65.

[823]All Souls' Day, November 2.

[824]Matt. v. 18.

[825]Ps. xlviii. 8.

[826]Note that the pall is called a sacrament.

[827]See § 38.

[828]Bernard Paganelli, a monk of Clairvaux, was sent to Rome by St. Bernard at the request of Innocent II. and was appointed abbot of the monastery of St. Anastasius. On the death of Lucius II. he was elected Pope, February 15, 1144, and assumed the title of Eugenius III. (H. K. Mann,Lives of the Popes, ix. 131 ff.)

[829]Eugenius left Viterbo at the beginning of 1147. He was at Lyons in March, and at Troyes on April 10 (Jaffé, p. 624 ff.; Mann, ix. 185).

[830]In accordance with the instructions of Innocent II. (§ 38): "A Synod was convened at Inis Patraic by Mael Maedoc, coarb of Patrick, at which were present fifteen bishops and two hundred priests, to establish rules and morals for all, both laity and clergy; and Mael Maedoc Ua Morgair, by the advice of the Synod, went a second time to Rome (sic) to confer with the comarb of Peter" (A.F.M.1148). Inispatrick is a small island off Skerries, co. Dublin. For the date seeR.A.I.xxxv. 249 f. In the same year Malachy had consecrated the monastery of Knock (A.F.M.See p. 67, n. 3).

[831]St. Bernard seems to have thought that St. Malachy set sail immediately after the Synod, and from a port not far from the place where it met. But this is impossible, for one day's sail brought him to Scotland (§ 68). He seems to have embarked at Bangor, which is about a hundred miles north of Inispatrick.

[832]Cp. Lam. ii. 11.

[833]Ruth i. 14.

[834]Matt. xx. 20, combined with Mark x. 35, 36.

[835]Susanna, 22.

[836]That is, the first day after his landing in Scotland.

[837]The Green Lake. It is now Soulseat, about eight miles from Cairngarroch. At this place Fergus, lord of Galloway (p. 76, n. 4), founded a famous monastery of Premonstratensian canons (Grub,Eccl. Hist. of Scotland, i. 269), which must not be confused with Malachy's more humble community.

[838]The abbot was Michael, who had belonged to the community at Bangor (§ 15). As this new community is called "a convent of monks" we may infer that it was of the Cistercian Order.

[839]Note the leisureliness of the journey in its earlier stages. Later on Malachy encountered difficulties, which no doubt involved further delay (Serm. i. § 1).

[840]Gisburn is a village in the West Riding of Yorkshire on the river Ribble, not far from the border of Lancashire. It is clear that on this occasion Malachy followed the line of Watling Street, which ran through Ribchester, on the Ribble, about fourteen miles from Gisburn. His road probably passed within three miles of that place between Settle and Chetburn. He seems to have avoided entering England as long as possible—supposing no doubt, and with good reason, that he was safer in the dominions of David than in those of Stephen. For details of the journey seeR.I.A.xxxv. 239 ff., 249. The monastery of Gisburn, of which the ruins remain to the south of the parish church, was founded for Augustinian canons, in 1129, by Robert de Brus (Dugdale, vi. 1, 265 ff.).

[841]Malachy was probably suspected (not without cause) of being an emissary of the supporters of the Empress Matilda. He had just spent some days with David I., and with him and his stepson Waltheof he was on terms of intimate friendship (§§ 36, 40). King David invaded England in the following year.

[842]The reference is apparently to King Stephen's attempt to prevent Theobald of Canterbury and other bishops from attending the Council of Rheims in March 1148. But Malachy does not seem to have been summoned to the Council, and he did not reach the Channel till long after it was over (see next note).

[843]Eugenius left Clairvaux on April 27, and Lausanne on May 20 (Jaffé, p. 634). At this rate he might have been expected to reach Rome by the end of July. About that time, therefore, we may conjecture that Malachy was on the coast of Kent. Actually, the Pope was not near Rome till he reached Viterbo on November 30 (ibid.636). St. Bernard, therefore, when he wrote this passage, was ignorant of his movements for a considerable time before Malachy's death.

[844]Oriens: literally, "east."

[845]Luke i. 78.

[846]Ps. cxviii. 24.

[847]St. Bernard's life-long and ever-increasing frailty is constantly alluded to by his biographers. It was largely due to his extreme austerity. In this incident we have an example of the way in which, on many occasions, the strength of his mind conquered the weakness of his body (V. P.v. 4).

[848]Gen. xxix. 13.

[849]Cant. iii. 4.

[850]Ps. cxxxiii. 1.

[851]Matt. xii. 42; Luke xi. 31.

[852]October 18. Malachy had therefore reached Clairvaux on October 13 or 14. In the interval he met St. Gilbert of Sempringham and presented him with a pastoral staff (Dugdale, vi. 2, p. xii.). In France Malachy travelled alone—having been parted from his companions in England—and probably on horseback (§ 36). He may, therefore, have left England about September 30, and traversed the 270 miles from Wissant to Clairvaux by October 14. He apparently intended to start for Rome on St. Luke's Day (Serm. i. § 1).

[853]That is, in the presence of the community.

[854]Prov. xiv. 13 (inexact quotation).

[855]Luke x. 40.

[856]Cp. 2 Tim. iv. 6, in which the phraseology of the vg. differs entirely from that of the text.

[857]Not strictly accurate. Malachy reached Clairvaux before his companions. See p. 123, n. 3.

[858]The physicians said the same (Serm. i. § 2).

[859]This saying is quoted in a slightly different form in Serm. i. § 2.

[860]2 Tim. iv. 6.

[861]2 Tim. i. 12.

[862]Ps. lxxviii. 30 (vg.).

[863]Ps. cxxxii. 14 (inexact quotation).

[864]Ps. xvii. 7.

[865]2 Tim. iv. 8.

[866]All Souls' Day.

[867]For the Cistercian method of administering unction seeUsus antiquiores ordinis Cisterciensis, iii. 94 (P.L.clxvi. 1471).

[868]Solario.

[869]Cp. Letter iv. § 2, where it is added that he commended the Irish brothers to the care of St. Bernard.

[870]Solio.

[871]Matt. xxiv. 33.

[872]2 Cor. iii. 7.

[873]Tim. iv. 7.

[874]2 Sam. i. 23 (inaccurate quotation).—Contrast St. Bernard's lament for his brother Gerard (Cant.xxvi. 4): "We loved in life, how have we been divided in death? Most bitter separation!"

[875]Ireland.

[876]John xi. 16.

[877]November 1. For the translation of relics which took place, apparently on that day, see Serm. i. § 2.

[878]Ecclus. xxii. 6.

[879]1 Thess. iv. 17.

[880]Ps. lxxvi. 10 (vg.).

[881]Sanctorum ... sollemnitatem.Not the Festival of All Saints, for that had already come, but, as the next sentence shows, the festival assembly of the saints in heaven. Compare Ps. lxxiv. 4, wherecongregationsrepresentssolemnitatisin the Vulgate.

[882]John xiv. 19, etc.

[883]Cp.Cant.xxvi. 11, "For thee, brother, even at midnight the day dawned."

[884]Rom. xiii. 12.

[885]Ps. lxvi. 12.

[886]See § 71.

[887]Luke xxii. 51.—This saying is quoted in Serm. i. § 5.

[888]Ps. lxxviii. 30 (vg.).

[889]Ps. cxxxix. 11 (vg.).—Cp.Cant.xxvi. 11: "Already for thee, my brother, even at midnight the day was dawning, andthe night was shining as the day; straightwaythat night was light about thee in thy pleasure. I was summoned to that miracle, to see a man exulting in death and mocking death."

[890]John xiv. 1.

[891]Mark ix. 23.

[892]1 Cor. xiii. 8.

[893]Mark vii. 34.

[894]John xvii. 11.

[895]John xvii. 20.

[896]Cp. Praef. 2.

[897]John vii. 30.

[898]John i. 5.

[899]Eph. v. 19; Col. iii. 16.

[900]The meaning of the phrase is explained inDe Cons.v. 2: "This will be a returning to our own country, when we leave the country of our bodies and reach the realm of spirits—I mean our God, the Mighty Spirit, the great abiding place of the spirits of the blest" (Lewis's translation, slightly altered). Cp. Serm. ii., § 6.

[901]A.F.M.say, "after the fifty-fourth year of his age." St. Bernard appears to be right. For Malachy was made bishop of Connor when he was just entering his thirtieth year (§ 16),i.e.about his twenty-ninth birthday.A.F.M.give the date as 1124. But if he was over fifty-four on November 2, 1148 (§ 75), his twenty-ninth birthday would have been before November 1123. If he was under fifty-four on that day it may have been in 1124.

[902]Luke xvi. 22.

[903]Acts vii. 60 (vg.).

[904]Luke iv. 20.

[905]Esth. xiii. 17 (vg.); xvi. 21 (vg.); cp. John xvi. 20, etc.

[906]Cp. Amos viii. 10.

[907]1 John v. 5.

[908]Ps. cxvi. 15.

[909]Cp. Serm. ii. § 8.

[910]John xi. 11.

[911]Ps. cxxvii. 2, 3 (vg.).

[912]Matt. xxv. 21, 23.

[913]St. Bernard himself celebrated Mass, and by divine inspiration, "when the sacrifice was finished, changed the order of the prayer and introduced the collect for the commemoration of saints who were bishops instead of that which was used for the commendation of the dead," anticipating, as we may suppose, Malachy's canonization. He then devoutly kissed his feet (V.P.iv. 21).

[914]1 Cor. xii. 9 (vg.).

[915]2 Kings xiii. 21.

[916]Mark viii. 3.

[917]Matt. iii. 17.

[918]Malachy was buried on the north side of the Oratory, vested in St. Bernard's habit. Five years later St. Bernard was buried before the Altar of Saint Mary, clad in the habit in which Malachy died, and which he had worn ever since his death when he celebrated Mass (V.P.v. 15, 23, 24). For further particulars of St. Malachy's burial and the disposal of his relics seeR.Q.H.lii. 43 f.

[919]November 2. From this statement (see p. 128, n. 1) we may infer that Malachy was born in 1095, before November.

[920]2 Tim. i. 12.

[921]The biographers of St. Bernard give no detailed account of any of Malachy's visits to Clairvaux. But one of them—Geoffrey, St. Bernard's secretary—wrote a prayer for the Bright Valley, in which he placed Malachy on a par with the great Cistercian, thereby revealing to us the extraordinary impression which he made on the community (V.P.v. 25). I owe the following translation of it to a friend: "Grant, O Lord, thy never-failing bounty to the spiritual harvest of the Valley, which thou didst deem worthy to illumine with two stars of such surpassing brightness, so making it brighter in very truth even than in name. Do thou guard the house wherein this twofold treasure is laid up and guarded for thee. Be it also unto us according to thy word, that as thy treasure is there so may thy heart be also; there too thy grace and mercy: and may the favour of thy compassion for ever rest on all who are gathered together in the self-same place in thy Name, which is above every name, even as thou art over all, God blessed for ever.—Amen."

[922]2 Tim. i. 12.

[923]Rev. xxii. 5.

To Malachy.1141.924

(Epistle 341.)

To the venerable lord and most blessed father, Malachy, by the grace of God archbishop of the Irish, legate of the Apostolic See, Brother Bernard called to be abbot of Clairvaux, [desiring] to find grace with the Lord.

1. Amid the manifoldanxietiesandcaresof myheart,925by the multitude of whichmy soul is sore vexed,926the brotherscoming from a far country927that they may serve the Lord,928thyletter,and thy staff, they comfort me:929the letter, as a proof of good will; the staff, to support my weak body; the brothers, because they serve the Lordin a humble spirit.930We have received them all, we are pleased with all,allalikework together for good.931But as to the wish that you have expressed that two of thebrothers932should be sent to look out a place for you beforehand, having taken counsel with the brothers, we have not thought it meet that they should beseparated one from another933until Christ be more fully formed in them,934until they are wholly instructed inthe battles of the Lord.935When therefore they have been taught in the school of the Holy Spirit, when they have beenendued with power from on high,936then at length the sons shall return to their father that they maysing the Lord's song, not nowin a strange land,937but in their own.

2. But do you yourselves in the mean time, according tothe wisdom given you938by the Lord, look out beforehand andpreparebeforehanda place for them,939like the places which you have seen here, apart from the commotions of the world.For the time is at hand940when, by the operation of the grace of God, we shall bring forth for younew menout of theold.941Blessed be the Name of the Lord for ever,942of whose only gift it cometh that943I have sons in common with you, whom your preachingplantedand our exhortationwatered, butGod gave the increase.944We beseech your holiness topreach the word of the Lord945so that you maygive knowledge of salvation unto His people.946Fora doublenecessity is laid upon you,947both from your office as legate and your duty as bishop. Finally, sincein many things we offend all,948and, being often thrown among the men of this age, we are much besmirched with the dust of the world, I commend myself to your prayers and to those of your companions,that in His fountain of mercy Jesus Christ, himself the fountain of pity, may deign to wash and cleanse us, who said to Peter,If I wash thee not, thou shalt have no part with me.949And, indeed, I not only earnestly entreat this of you, but also require it as in some sense the payment of a debt, since I cry to the Lord for you, if the prayer of a sinner can do anything. Farewell in the Lord.

To Malachy.1141or1142.950

(Epistle 356.)

To Malachy, by the grace of God bishop, legate of the Apostolic See, Brother Bernard, called to be abbot of Clairvaux, if the prayer of a sinner can do anything, and if the devotion of a poor man is of any advantage.

We have done what your holiness commanded, not perhaps as it was worthy to be done, yet as well as was possible considering the time in which we live. So great evil everywhere struts about among us that it was scarcely possible to do the little that has been done. We have sent only a few grains of seed,951as you see, to sow at least a small part of thatfieldinto which the trueIsaaconce went outto meditate, whenRebekahwas first brought to him by Abraham'sservant, to be happily joined tohim in everlasting marriage.952And the seed is not to be despised concerning which we find that word fulfilled at this time in your regions,953Except the Lord of Sabaoth had left us a seed, we had been as Sodoma, and been made like unto Gomorrha.954I, therefore, have sown, do youwater, andGod shall give the increase.955All the saints who are with you we salute through you, humbly commending ourselves to their holy prayers and yours. Farewell.

III

To Malachy.1143or1144.956

(Epistle 357.)

To our most loving father and most revered lord, Malachy, by the grace of God bishop, legate of the Holy and Apostolic See, the servant of his holiness, Brother Bernard, called to be abbot of Clairvaux, health and our prayers, of whatever value they may be.

1.How sweet are thy words unto my taste,957my lord and father. How pleasant isthe remembrance of thy holiness.958If there is any love, any devotedness, any good will in us, without doubt the charity of your belovedness claims it all as its due. There is no need for a multitude of words where affection blossoms abundantly.For I am confident thatthe Spirit whichyou havefrom God959bearswitness with your spirit that960what we are,961however small it be,is yours.962You also, most loving and most longed-for father,deliver notto forgetfulnessthe soul of the poor man, which cleavesto theewith the bonds of charity,and forget not the soul of thy poor man for ever.963For neither, as it were anew,do we commend ourselves unto you964when now for a long time weglory in the Lord965that our littleness has been worthyto find grace in the sight ofyour holiness;966but we pray that our affection, no longer new, may advance with new accessions day by day. We commend to you our sons, yea also yours, and the more earnestly because they are so far removed from us. You know that, after God, all our trust was in you, in sending them, because it seemed to us wrong not to fulfil the prayers of your holiness. See, as becomes you, that with your whole heart of love you embrace them and cherish them. In no wise for any cause let your earnest care for them grow cold, nor let that perishwhich thy right hand hath planted.967

2. We have now indeed learned both from your letter and from the report of our brothers968that the house is making good progress, [and] is being enriched both in temporal and spiritual possessions.969Wherefore we rejoice greatly with you and give thanks with our whole heart to God and to your fatherly care. And because there is still need of great watchfulness, because the place is new, and the land unaccustomed to the monastic life, yea, without any experience of it,we beseech you inthe Lord,970that you slack not your hand,971but perfectly accomplish that which you have well begun. Concerning our brothers who have returned from that place,972it had pleased us well if they had remained. But perhaps the brothers973of your country, whose characters are less disciplined and who have lent a less ready ear to advice in those observances, which were new to them, have been in some measure the reason for their return.

3. We have sent back to you Christian, our very dear son, and yours. We have instructed him more fully, as far as we could, in the things which belong to the [Cistercian] Order, and henceforth, as we hope, he will be more careful concerning its obligations.974Do not be surprised that we have not sent any other brothers with him; for we did not find competent brothers who were ready to assent to our wishes, and it was not our plan to compel the unwilling. Our much-loved brother, Robert,975assented on this occasion also to our prayers,as an obedient son.976It will be your part to assist him that your house may now be set forward, both in buildings and in other necessaries. This also we suggest to your fatherhood, that you persuade religious men and those who, you hope, will be useful to the monastery, to come into their Order, for this will be of the greatest advantage tothe house, and to you they will pay the greater heed. May your holiness have good health, being always mindful of us in Christ.

To the Brothers in Ireland.November 1148.977

(Epistle 374.)

To the religious brothers who are in Ireland, and especially to those communities which Malachy the bishop, of blessed memory, founded, Brother Bernard, called to be abbot of Clairvaux, [wishing them]the consolation of the Comforter.978

1. Ifhere we had a continuing citywe should rightly mourn with most abundant tears that we had lost such a fellow-citizen. But ifweratherseek one to come,979as befits us, it is nevertheless no small cause of grief that we are bereaved of a guide so indispensable. We ought, however, to regulate passion with knowledge and to mitigate grief with theconfidence of hope.980Nor does it become any one to wonder if love compels groaning, if desolation draws forth tears: yet we must set a limit to these things, nay in no small measure be consoled while we gazenot at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.981First, indeed, we ought to rejoice with the holy soul, lest he accuse us of want of charity, saying also himself what the Lord said to the apostles, "If ye loved me ye wouldrejoice because I go unto the Father."982The spirit of our father has gone before us tothe Father of spirits,983and we are convicted, not only as wanting in charity, but even as guilty of ingratitude for all the benefits which came to us through him, if we do not rejoice with him who hasdepartedfrom labour to rest, from danger to safety, fromthe world unto the Father.984Therefore, if it is an act of filial piety to weep for Malachy who is dead, yet more is it an act of piety to rejoice with Malachy who is alive. Is he not alive? Assuredly he is, and in bliss.In the eyes of the foolish he seemed to have died; but he is in peace.985

2. Hence even the thought of our own advantage provides us with another motive for great joy and gladness, because so powerful a patron, so faithful an advocate has gone before us to the heavenly court.986For his most fervent charity cannot forget his sons, and his approved holiness must securefavour with God.987For who would dare to suppose that this holy Malachy can now be less profitable [than before] or less loving to his own? Assuredly, if he was loved aforetime, now he receives from God surer proofs of His love, andhaving loved his own, he loved them unto the end.988Far be it from us, holy soul, to esteem thy prayer now lesseffectual, for now thou canst make supplication with more vigour in the presence ofthe Majesty989and thou no longerwalkest in faith, but reignestin the sightof Him.990Far be it from us to count that laborious charity of thine as diminished, not to say made void, now that thou prostratest thyself at the very fountain of eternal charity, quaffing full draughts of that for the very drops of which thou didst thirst before. Charity,strong as death,991yea even stronger than death itself, could not yield to death. For even at the moment of his departure he was not unmindful of you, with exceptional affection commending you to God, and with his accustomedmeekness and lowliness992praying our insignificance also that we should notforget you for ever.993Wherefore also we thought good to write to you that you may know that we are ready to bestow upon you all consolation with entire devotion, whether in spiritual things, if in them our insignificance can ever do anything by the merits of this our blessed father, or in temporal, if ever perchance opportunity should be given us.

3. And now also, dearly beloved, we are filled with heartfelt pity for this grievous bereavement of the Irish Church.994And we unite ourselves the more with you in suffering because we know that by this very thing we have become the more your debtors. For theLord did great things for us995when He deigned to honour this place of ours by making it the scene of his blessed death, and to enrich it with the most costly treasure of his body.996But do not take it ill that he is buried among us; for God so ordered,according to the multitude of His mercies,997that you should possess him in life, andthat it might be allowed to us to possess him, if only in death. And to us, indeed, in common with you, he was, and still is, father.Foreveninhisdeaththistestament was confirmedto us.998Wherefore as, for the sake of so great a father, we embrace you all as our true brothers, with the unstinted yearning of charity, so also concerning yourselves, spiritual kinship persuades us that you are like-minded.

4. But we exhort you, brothers, that you be always careful towalk in the steps ofthisourblessedfather,999by so much the more zealously as by daily proofs hisholy conversation1000was more certainly known to you. For in this you shall prove yourselves to be his true sons, if you manfully maintain the father's ordinances, and if, as you have seen in him, and heardfrom him how you ought to walk, you so walk that you may abound more and more:1001for the glory of a father is the wisdom of his sons.1002For even for us the example of so great perfection in our midst has begun in no slight degree both to expel our sloth and impel us to reverence. And would that he may in such wisedraw us after himthat he may draw us to the goal,runningmore eagerly and more quickly inthe fragrancewhich his virtues have left so fresh behind them.1003May Christ guard all of youwhile you pray for us.1004

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