But in his second and much shorter answer to his central question about the Word’s movement, which we now move into, Bernard offers his readers a portrait of God that is more raw and earthy. Origen wrote homilies and a ten-volume commentary on it. Life and works of Saint Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux: Volume 4: Cantica Canticorum Eighty-Six Sermons On The Song Of Solomon. The poor cry “Return,” and quoting The Psalmist on page 87, Bernard says, “The Lord… [hears] the longing of the poor.” This helps us interpret a wrinkle in Bernard’s text that is initially difficult to reconcile with the Word’s gracious response to the soul’s unfaithfulness as outlined in the paragraph preceding this one. If the Word is inward and his coming is simply the soul becoming aware of he who is intrinsically present, then the soul itself is deepened each time it enters into awareness. Bernard of Clairvaux (1090–1153) was born in Burgundy, France, one of seven siblings, and in many ways he reinvigorated monastic theology. As stated in my introduction, union with God cannot mean union in an ontological sense, as humanity in Bernard’s thinking never, even in eternity, receives God’s direct kiss, but only the kiss’ kiss). How it works logically must be that the soul drifts away from inner attentiveness and then experiences remorse. No, his hand must be your guide to that end.…On having received such a grace then, you must kiss his hand, that is, you must give glory to his name, not to yourself. 5. St Bernard staunchly supported what amounted to an utter veneration of the Virgin Mary for the whole of his life and was also an enthusiastic supporter of a rather strange little extract from the Old Testament, entitled ‘Solomon’s Song of Songs’. With the advancement of the day you gave your servant reason to rejoice when, in the kiss of the hand, you imparted the grace to live rightly. This will come up again later. [3]Edward Howells, Bernard of Clairvaux: Some Notes, (unpublished), 5. B.C. (he specifically refers to songs in scripture… Moses’ song, the Psalms, songs in Isaiah etc.) Drawing from his own experience near the end of his sermon, Bernard states that he isn’t able to feel the Word coming when it comes since the Word doesn’t possess smell, sound or color in the same way other things do (90). Song of Solomon Commentary: All scripture, we are sure, is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for the support and advancement of the interests of his kingdom among men, and it is never the less so for there being found in it some things dark and hard to be understood, which those that are unlearned and unstable wrest to their own destruction. Those wishing to maintain a theology of God’s self-sufficiency might be quick to dismiss Bernard’s portrait of Divine desire as being somehow figurative, but clearly more love can pour from the text when all its images are permitted to stand by themselves in their apparent paradox and contradiction. The king has brought me into his chambers. In the mid-twelfth century, the Cistercian monk St. Bernard of Clairvaux (lived ca. From the highest ranks of the church to the most common laity, Bernard’s influence became widespread. St. Bernard's Commentary on the Song of Songs, sermons 1-86. Having stated that his question about where the Word comes from and goes to is unanswerable, Bernard immediately sets to build his discourse around two possible answers. ... many parallels in understanding to that of Origen and other Church Fathers and with Bernard of Clairvaux and other medieval mystics, rather than the physical interpretations prevalent among Third, having fallen at the feet of the Savior, and called him Lord, the person may have the most intimate experience with Jesus, which is called a “kiss of his mouth.” This moment was, as Bernard described it, rightly filled with awe and trembling, and only approached in the greatest of humility. [6]If God could appear as anything less than God, than he wouldn’t be God. [4]Bernard does not specify that he is offering two answers, but the bulk of his discourse seems easily divisible between that which reads in accordance with his theology of the Word’s substance and that which seems to stand in contrast to it. How did Saint Bernard of Clairvaux interpret the Song of Solomon (or the Song of Songs)? The first perfume, or ointment, is that of repentance, or sorrow for sins. Early life and career. And yet we must also ask how Bernard could not feel the Word coming if Bernard is in fact begging it to return with as much urgency as Song of Song’s longing bride. This question is the axis from which the rest of Bernard’s sermon flows as a “discourse of pure love” (87). Sermon Seventy-Four, the text to which we shall here dedicate our attention, should be read within the context of Bernard’s entire sermon series on the Song of Songs, at the heart of which is his understanding of how the soul achieves intimacy with God through the “kiss of the kiss.” Song of Songs opens with the soul’s burning plea, “Let him [the Word] kiss me with the kisses of his mouth!”[2] In Bernard’s thinking, the pure “kiss of the mouth” can only occur within deity (i.e., between the Father and the Son), but humans can receive the kiss of that first and fullest kiss through the Holy Spirit and the gift of the Incarnation[3]. Knowing Jesus Christ in this most intimate way was the fullest extent of the grace of God, and a glorious gift to the Christian. In the Middle Ages, the Song was the subject of more commentaries than any other Old Testament book. This is the third installment of a five-part series called, "5 Great Sermons from Church History." Early and medieval Christians shared this high opinion of the Song. Its intimacy reveals the soul in love with a most lovely Divine lover (85).[1]. I think that nobody can grasp what it is except the one who receives it.…, [2] I should like however to point out to persons like this [who are burdened with sins] that there is an appropriate place for them on the way of salvation. Cist. Despite the failure that came to define the Second Crusade, Bernard refused to blame God, and reflected instead upon his own inadequacies and those of the people. The modern critical edition is Sancti Bernardi opera (1957–1977), edited by Jean Leclercq. Rachel Davies is editor of the spirituality section here at Spectrum. Publication date. Extreme redaction is unavoidable with such a project. AD 1136). First of all you must glorify him because he has forgiven your sins, secondly because he has adorned you with virtues.…. You must therefore turn your attention inwards, each one must take note of his own particular awareness of the things I am about to discuss. This leads to another separate but very tantalizing question: Why would a soul so deeply in love, one who has been visited often by the Word, ever lose its attentiveness? [1]All in-text references are taken from Bernard of Clairvaux, On the Song of Songs IV, translated by Irene Edmonds, (Kalamazoo: Cistercian Publications, 1980). mentaries on the Song of Songs: it was clearly a much loved monastic text, catching something essential of the monastic ethos.5 1t is not sur­ prising that we find Bernard of Clairvaux in the twelfth century adding his own contribution to this tradition. Certainly, Bernard was a theologian of experience. So godly a man was he that Luther said of him: "If there has ever been a pious monk who feared God, it was St. Bernard; whom alone I hold in much higher esteem than all other monks and priests throughout the globe." Despite this, the Song of Solomon does not promote sexual immorality. St. Gregory of Nyssa stated, “Let us then come within the Holy of Holies, that is, the Song of Songs. Of course this makes perfect sense. Bernard began composing the Sermons on the Song of Songs in 1135. His 86 sermons on the Song of Solomon are extant. Saint Bernard, the founding abbot of Clairvaux Abbey in Burgundy, was one of the most commanding Church leaders in the first half of the twelfth century as well as one of the greatest spiritual masters of all times and the most powerful propagator of the Cistercian reform. In our belief, both of the divine extraction and of the spiritual exposition of this book, we are confirmed by the … The second is that of devotion, of confident praise and worship of God. Bernard of Clairvaux was one of the most influential religious and political voices of twelfth-century Western Europe, and as a result, his eighty-six sermons on the Song of Songs had a significant impact on future generations of Christian thinkers and mystics. ... SERMON 27 THE BEAUTY OF THE BRIDE COMPARED TO THE CURTAINS OF SOLOMON WHY SHE IS CALLED A HEAVEN SERMON 28 THE BLACKNESS AND BEAUTY OF THE BRIDEGROOM AND THE BRIDE Lord, I do seek your face.” In the dawn you brought me proof of your love, in my first approach to kiss your revered feet you forgave my evil ways as I lay in the dust. By Mark Fugitt. Origen wrote homilies and a ten-volume commentary on it. The “kisses of the mouth” (SOS 1:2) of Christ were, for Bernard, indications of intimacy with the Lord. This major historical moment further established Bernard’s influence. Moreover, Bernard himself understood that his reading of Scripture was a true and appropriate interpretation of Scripture, understood canonically. What was supposed to be a debate turned into a trial, and it was at this Council of Sens that Abelard’s condemnation was determined. The following introduction to and selection from St. Bernard's Sermons on the Song of Songs was done by Prof. Katherine Gill for her courses at Yale Divinity School and Boston College. He supported Innocent II, and then traveled extensively promoting the cause. Perhaps inattentiveness is just an inherent feature of humanity—something that is not frowned upon by God but actually cherished for the opportunity it presents for deeper union with the creatures he loves. Some may argue that this makes God look co-dependent, but surely the holiness behind God’s desires purifies his neediness of the destructive and controlling tendencies that so often characterize human neediness. 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