Bernard of Cluny (or, of

Morlaix Morlaix (; , ) is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in northwestern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department. History The Battle of Morlaix, part of the Hundred Years' War, was fought near the town on 30 Septembe ...

or Morlay) was a twelfth-century French

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

monk A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...

, best known as the author of '' De contemptu mundi'' (''On Contempt for the World''), a long verse satire in Latin.

Life

Bernard's family of origin and place of birth are not known for certain. Some medieval sources list Morlaàs in

Béarn Béarn (; ; or ''Biarn''; or ''Biarno''; or ''Bearnia'') is one of the traditional provinces of France, located in the Pyrenees mountains and in the plain at their feet, in Southwestern France. Along with the three Northern Basque Country, ...

, as his birthplace. However, in some records from that period he is called ''Morlanensis'', which would indicate that he was a native of

Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...

. A writer in the ''Journal of Theological Studies'' (1907), Volume 8, pages 394–399, contended that he belonged to the family of the

seigneur A seigneur () or lord is an originally feudal title in France before the Revolution, in New France and British North America until 1854, and in the Channel Islands to this day. The seigneur owned a seigneurie, seigneury, or lordship—a form of ...

s of

Montpellier Montpellier (; ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of France, department of ...

in Languedoc, and was born at Murles. It is believed that he was at first a monk of Saint-Sauveur d'Aniane and that he entered the monastery of Cluny during the administration of Abbot Pons (1109–1122).

Works

Bernard is best known as the author of '' De contemptu mundi'' (''On Contempt for the World''), a 3,000 verse poem of stinging satire directed against the secular and religious failings he observed in the world around him. He spares no one;

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service and contemplation, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 5 ...

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

s, monks, and even Rome itself are mercilessly scourged for their shortcomings. For this reason it was first printed by

Matthias Flacius Matthias Flacius Illyricus (Latin; ) or Francovich () (3 March 1520 – 11 March 1575) was a Lutheran reformer from Istria, present-day Croatia. He was notable as a theologian, sometimes dissenting strongly with his fellow Lutherans, and as a sch ...

in ''Varia poemata de corrupto ecclesiae statu'' (Basle, 1557) as one of his ''testes veritatis'', or witnesses of the deep-seated corruption of medieval society and of the Church, and was often reprinted by

Protestants Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

in the course of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Bernard of Cluny also wrote the twelfth century hymn "Omni die dic Mariae" (Daily, daily sing to Mary). Several of Bernard's sermons and a theological treatise, ''Dialogue (Colloquium) on the Trinity'' are extant, as is a ''c.'' 1140 poem which he dedicated to the monastery's

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the head of an independent monastery for men in various Western Christian traditions. The name is derived from ''abba'', the Aramaic form of the Hebrew ''ab'', and means "father". The female equivale ...

Peter the Venerable (1122–1156).

Veneration

On 19 March 1895, a cause for Bernard's

beatification Beatification (from Latin , "blessed" and , "to make") is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a deceased person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in their name. ''Beati'' is the p ...

was formally opened, and he was given the title

Servant of God Servant of God () is a title used in the Catholic Church to indicate that an individual is on the first step toward possible canonization as a saint. Terminology The expression ''Servant of God'' appears nine times in the Bible, the first five in ...

Hymns

* 'Hic breve vivitur' * 'Hora novissima' * 'O hona patria' * 'Urbs Sion aurea'

Bibliography

* Bernardus Morlanensis, De contemptu mundi, Une vision du monde vers 1144 - Bernard le Clunisien. Latin text with French transl., introduction and commentary by André Cresson. (Témoins de notre histoire) Turnhout 2009. * Bernardi Cluniacensis Carmina de Trinitate et de fide catholica (Studia Latina Stockholmiensia). Stockholm, 1963. * Scorn for the world: Bernard of Cluny's De contemptu mundi. Latin text with engl. transl. and introd. by Ronald E. Pepin. Colleagues Press, East Lansing, Michigan, 1991. * The Scorn of the World: A Poem in Three Books, transl. and ed. by Henry Preble and Samuel Macauley Jackson. The American Journal of Theology vol. 10,1 (1906), pp. 72–101 (prologus and book 1
online
vol. 10,2 (1906), S. 286–308 (book 2
online
vol. 10,3 (1906), S. 496–516 (book 3
online

References

* ''Scorn for the world: Bernard of Cluny's De contemptu mundi.'' Latin Text with engl. transl. and introd. by Ronald E. Pepin. Colleagues Press, East Lansing, Michigan, 1991. * Bernardus Morlanensis, ''De contemptu mundi, Une vision du monde vers 1144 - Bernard le Clunisien''. Latin Text, French transl., introd. and annotations by André Cresson. (Témoins de notre histoire) Turnhout 2009.

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bernard Of Cluny Cluniacs Christian apocalyptic writings 12th-century writers in Latin Medieval Latin-language poets French Benedictines 12th-century French writers 12th-century French poets Benedictine Servants of God French Servants of God French male poets French satirical poets