Vigils Reading – St Bernard

BERNARD’S WIDENING MISSION

From the “Vita prima” by William of Saint-Thierry 1 ◊◊◊

Bernard was beloved by God and mankind. In that valley of his and in the local towns and regions that he was often obliged to visit for the requirements of the house, he blossomed with his virtuous deeds and miracles. Then he began to be drawn farther afield into distant places either because of the common needs of the church or the love of the brothers, or by obedience to superiors, or else to bring back peace so desperately needed and restore it between churches and secular princes in discord with one another… and by the power of faith to make possible many things that seemed impossible to the spirit of the world; as it were by moving mountains…

His powerful preaching began especially to shine out to such an extent that he even softened the hardhearted among his hearers, so that he hardly ever returned empty handed. After a while he became so remarkably proficient in his sermons and in his exemplary way of life that he was like a net for the word of God in the hand of a fisherman, so great was the quantity of rational fish that he began to catch. From each of these captures the boat of the house of God seemed to be filled. Briefly, then, it came about that what this little-known and ailing man, at death’s door and strong only in speech, did in this life was a greater miracle than all his other miracles.

At that time Clairvaux (in name and in reality a Clear Valley), that valley whose light radiated with divine brilliance as if from the peaks, was spreading its vigor down into the sloping plains of the world… From a valley within narrow limits it has grown exceedingly wide and spacious into a cloistered dwelling… growing rapidly and increasing in numbers, so that now this place is too cramped for the great number of

those abiding there… From all sides the brothers are sought after and sent, since the kings of the nations and princes of the church reckon themselves blessed, as do the cities and regions everywhere, if they can merit to increase in renown by having a company from that house and regime of the man of God…

God’s fisherman, then, did not fail to let down his net for capturing fish at the Lord’s command, and while some turned away and others followed their own path, the full tally of that holy congregation never lessened. To this very day, those catches of his have come and amazingly are still coming from Châlons, from Paris, from Mainz, from Liège, and from many other cities. From other regions too: Flanders, Germany, Italy, Aquitaine. Wherever he goes, for whatever reason, or wherever he is needed, or where still to this day the man of God is required to visit, wherever he goes he comes back full, totally supported by the grace of the Holy Spirit. This fullness accompanies him everywhere.

Nor does he forget those he has sent elsewhere, but wherever they are he himself always preserves fatherly concern over them. Just as rivers return to the place from which they arise, so either his sons’ glad news or their sorrowful news comes back to him daily. Often what is happening among them is made known to him from his fatherly concern for them, by divine intuition without any human contact, though they are far away from him. If anything is provided, if anything is to be corrected among them, their temptations or their extravagances, sicknesses or death, or any intrusion of worldly troubles, he knows. So he often enjoins on those at home prayers for certain needs of absent brothers. Sometimes even those dying in far-off places make known to him through vision that he should come to them, asking him for his blessing and indeed for permission to die. This is done out of obedience in those being sent and love in the one who sends them