Today is the feast of St. Bernard of Clairvaux. It is celebrated as a Solemnity in Cistercian communities around the world. Bernard is a great light to their order, and to the entire church. In the the greater liturgical calendar, today is a memorial. Meaning, there is a prayer specifically for Bernard, in the Liturgy of the Hours, and in the Missal.
I suggest a stop by the old style Breviary. It is a site with exquisite art work if nothing else. As always, I would encourage you to try the Responsories, and think about them. If you read the first paragraph of II. The Responsories Of The Divine Office, it will be clear that as liturgical history, or, the history of our worship, they are worth remembering.
I took this novel approach in order to take a new look at how I do the Doctor's. It's possible to click on many links and find enough information to make even the most heart-devoted Reference Librarian weep for joy. That is not the information I want to learn about the Doctors of the Church. And, some people would say after their first encounter with Bernard's writings that he was not worth the effort. Or, what is he talking about?
Bernard founded a lot of monasteries, and was involved in many of the major issues of the day. By all accounts he was good looking and must have had a lot of personal charisma. When he entered the New Monastery at Citeaux, he had thirty-one men with him! He helped settle the issue of two Popes simultaneously. Dealt with heresy, and so forth. All the typical things the Doctors we've looked at so far have had in common.
What's much more interesting about Bernard is his prayer life. I'll close today with this article link, by Pope Benedicit XVI.
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