Prologue
TO HUGH, KNIGHT OF CHRIST AND MASTER OF CHRIST'S MILITIA:
BERNARD, IN NAME ONLY, ABBOT OF CLAIRVAUX, WISHES THAT
HE MIGHT FIGHT THE GOOD FIGHT
IF I AM NOT MISTAKEN, MY DEAR HUGH, you have asked
me not once or twice, but three times to write a few
words of exhortation for you and your comrades. You
say that if I am not permitted to wield the lance, at
least I might direct my pen against the tyrannical foe,
and that this moral, rather than material support of
mine will be of no small help to you. I have put you
off now for quite some time, not that I disdain your
request, but rather lest I be blamed for taking it lightly
and hastily. I feared I might botch a task which could
be better done by a more qualified hand, and which would
perhaps remain, because of me, just as necessary and
all the more difficult.
Having waited thus for quite some time to no purpose,
I have now done what I could, lest my inability should
be mistaken for unwillingness. It is for the reader
to judge the result. If some perhaps find my work unsatisfactory
or short of the mark, I shall be nonetheless content,
since I have not failed to give you my best.
CHAPTER ONE
A WORD OF EXHORTATION FOR THE KNIGHTS OF THE TEMPLE
IT SEEMS THAT A NEW KNIGHTHOOD has recently appeared
on the earth, and precisely in that part of it which
the Orient from on high visited in the flesh. As
he then troubled the princes of darkness in the strength
of his mighty hand, so there he now wipes out their
followers, the children of disbelief, scattering them
by the hands of his mighty ones. Even now he
brings about the redemption of his people raising up
again a horn of salvation for us in the house of his
servant David.
This is, I say, a new kind of knighthood and one unknown
to the ages gone by. It ceaselessly wages a twofold
war both against flesh and blood and against a spiritual
army of evil in the heavens. When someone strongly resists
a foe in the flesh, relying solely on the strength of
the flesh, I would hardly remark it, since this is common
enough. And when war is waged by spiritual strength
against vices or demons, this, too, is nothing remarkable,
praiseworthy as it is, for the world is full of monks.
But when the one sees a man powerfully girding himself
with both swords and nobly marking his belt, who would
not consider it worthy of all wonder,
the more so since it has been hitherto unknown?
He is truly a fearless knight and secure on every side,
for his soul is protected by the armor of faith just
as his body is protected by armor of steel. He is thus
doubly armed and need fear neither demons nor men. Not
that he fears death — no, he desires it. Why
should he fear to live or fear to die when for him to
live is Christ, and to die is gain? Gladly and faithfully
he stands for Christ, but he would prefer to be dissolved
and to be with Christ, by far the better thing.
Go forth confidently then, you knights, and repel the
foes of the cross of Christ with a stalwart heart. Know
that neither death nor life can separate you from the
love of God which is in Jesus Christ, and in every peril
repeat, "Whether we live or whether we die, we
are the Lord's." What a glory to return in victory
from such a battle! How blessed to die there as a martyr!
Rejoice, brave athlete, if you live and conquer in the
Lord; but glory and exult even more if you die and join
your Lord. Life indeed is a fruitful thing and victory
is glorious, but a holy death is more important than
either. If they are blessed who die in the Lord, how
much more are they who die for the Lord!
2.
To be sure, precious in the eyes of the Lord is the
death of his holy ones, whether they die in battle or
in bed, but death in battle is more precious as it is
the more glorious. How secure is life when the conscience
is unsullied! How secure, I say, is life when death
is anticipated without fear; or rather when it is desired
with feeling and embraced with reverence! How holy and
secure this knighthood and how entirely free of the
double risk run by those men who fight not for Christ!
Whenever you go forth, O worldly warrior, you must fear
lest the bodily death of your foe should mean your own
spiritual death, or lest perhaps your body and soul
together should be slain by him.
Indeed, danger or victory for a Christian depends on
the dispositions of his heart and not on the fortunes
of war. If he fights for a good reason, the issue of
his fight can never be evil; and likewise the results
can never be considered good if the reason were evil
and the intentions perverse. If you happen to be killed
while you are seeking only to kill another, you die
a murderer. If you succeed, and by your will to overcome
and to conquer you perchance kill a man, you live a
murderer. Now it will not do to be a murderer, living
or dead, victorious or vanquished. What an unhappy victory
— to have conquered a man while yielding to vice, and
to indulge in an empty glory at his fall when wrath
and pride have gotten the better of you!
But what of those who kill neither in the heat of revenge
nor in the swelling of pride, but simply in order to
save themselves? Even this sort of victory I would not
call good, since bodily death is really a lesser evil
than spiritual death. The soul need not die when the
body does. No, it is the soul which sins that shall
die.
CHAPTER TWO
ON WORLDLY KNIGHTHOOD
3
WHAT, THEN IS THE END OR FRUIT of this worldly knighthood,
or rather knavery, as I should call it? What if not
the mortal sin of the victor and the eternal death of
the vanquished? Well then, let me borrow a word from
the Apostle and exhort him who plows, to plow in hope,
and him who threshes, to do so in view of some fruit.
What then, O knights, is this monstrous error and what
this unbearable urge which bids you fight with such
pomp and labor, and all to no purpose except death and
sin? You cover your horses with silk, and plume your
armor with I know not what sort of rags; you paint your
shields and your saddles; you adorn your bits and spurs
with gold and silver and precious stones, and then in
all this glory you rush to your ruin with fearful wrath
and fearless folly. Are these the trappings of a warrior
or are they not rather the trinkets of a woman? Do you
think the swords of your foes will be turned back by
your gold, spare your jewels or be unable to pierce
your silks?
As you yourselves have often certainly experienced,
a warrior especially needs these three things — he must
guard his person with strength, shrewdness and care;
he must be free in his movements, and he must be quick
to draw his sword. Then why do you blind yourselves
with effeminate locks and trip yourselves up with long
and full tunics, burying your tender, delicate hands
in big cumbersome sleeves? Above all, there is that
terrible insecurity of conscience, in spite of all your
armor, since you have dared to undertake such a dangerous
business on such slight and frivolous grounds. What
else is the cause of wars and the root of disputes among
you, except unreasonable flashes of anger, the thirst
for empty glory, or the hankering after some earthly
possessions? It certainly is not safe to kill or to
be killed for such causes as these.
CHAPTER THREE
ON THE NEW KNIGHTHOOD
4
BUT THE KNIGHTS OF CHRIST may safely fight the battles
of their Lord, fearing neither sin if they smite the
enemy, nor danger at their own death; since to
inflict death or to die for Christ is no sin, but rather,
an abundant claim to glory. In the first case
one gains for Christ, and in the second one gains Christ
himself. The Lord freely accepts the death of the foe
who has offended him, and yet more freely gives himself
for the consolation of his fallen knight.
The knight of Christ, I say,
may strike with confidence and die yet more confidently,
for he serves Christ when he strikes, and serves himself
when he falls. Neither does he bear the sword in vain,
for he is God's minister, for the punishment of evildoers
and for the praise of the good. If he kills an evildoer,
he is not a mankiller, but, if I may so put it, a killer
of evil. He is evidently the avenger of Christ towards
evildoers and he is rightly considered a defender of
Christians. Should he be killed himself, we know that
he has not perished, but has come safely into port.
When he inflicts death it is to Christ's profit, and
when he suffers death, it is for his own gain. The Christian
glories in the death of the pagan, because Christ is
glorified; while the death of the Christian gives occasion
for the King to show his liberality in the rewarding
of his knight. In the one case the just shall
rejoice when he sees justice done, and in the other
man shall say, truly there is a reward for the just;
truly it is God who judges the earth.
I do not mean to say that the pagans are to be slaughtered
when there is any other way to prevent them from harassing
and persecuting the faithful, but only that it now seems
better to destroy them than that the rod of sinners
be lifted over the lot of the just, and the righteous
perhaps put forth their hands unto iniquity.
5.
What then? If it is never permissible for a Christian
to strike with the sword, why did the Savior's precursor
bid the soldiers to be content with their pay, and not
rather forbid them to follow this calling? But if it
is permitted to all those so destined by God, as is
indeed the case provided they have not embraced a higher
calling, to whom, I ask, may it be allowed more rightly
than to those whose hands and hearts hold for us Sion,
the city of our strength?
Thus when the transgressors of divine law have been
expelled, the righteous nation that keeps the truth
may enter in security. Certainly it is proper that the
nations who love war should be scattered, that those
who trouble us should be cut off, and that all the workers
of iniquity should be dispersed from the city of the
Lord. They busy themselves to carry away the incalculable
riches placed in Jerusalem by the Christian peoples,
to profane the holy things and to possess the sanctuary
of God as their heritage. Let both swords of the faithful
fall upon the necks of the foe, in order to destroy
every high thing exalting itself against the knowledge
of God, which is the Christian faith, lest the Gentiles
should then say, "Where is their God?"
6.
Once they have been cast out, he shall return to his
heritage and to his house, which aroused his anger in
the Gospel, "Behold," he said, "your
house is left to you desolate." He had complained
through the Prophet: "I have left my house, I have
forsaken my heritage," and he will fulfill that
other prophecy: "The Lord has ransomed his people
and delivered them. They shall come and exult on Mount
Sion, and rejoice in the good things of the Lord."
Rejoice Jerusalem, and recognize now the time in which
you are visited! Be glad and give praise together, wastes
of Jerusalem, for the Lord has comforted his people.
He has ransomed Jerusalem. The Lord has bared his holy
arm in the sight of all peoples. O virgin of Israel,
you were fallen and there was none to raise you up.
Arise now and shake off the dust, O virgin, captive
daughter of Sion. Arise, I say, and stand on high. See
the happiness which comes to you from your God. You
will no longer be referred to as the forsaken one, nor
your land any more termed a wilderness; for the Lord
takes his delight in you, and your land shall be peopled.
Raise your eyes, look about you and see; all these are
gathered together and come to you. Here is the help
sent to you from the Holy One! Through them is already
fulfilled the ancient promise, "I will make you
the pride of the ages, a joy from generation to generation.
You will suck the milk of the nations and be nourished
at the breasts of their sovereignty." And again,
"As a mother consoles her children, so will I console
you, and in Jerusalem you will be comforted."
Do you not see how frequently these ancient witnesses
foreshadowed the new knighthood? Truly, as we have heard,
so we have now seen in the city of the Lord of armies.
Of course we must not let these literal fulfillments
blind us to the spiritual meaning of the texts, for
we must live in eternal hope in spite of such temporal
realizations of prophetic utterances. Otherwise the
tangible would supplant the intangible, material poverty
would threaten spiritual wealth and present possessions
would forestall future fulfillment. Furthermore, the
temporal glory of the earthly city does not eclipse
the glory of its heavenly counterpart, but rather prepares
for it, at least so long as we remember that the one
is the figure of the other, and that it is the heavenly
one which is our mother.
CHAPTER FOUR
ON THE LIFE STYLE OF THE KNIGHTS OF THE TEMPLE
7
AND NOW AS A MODEL, or at least for the shame of those
knights of ours who are fighting for the devil rather
than for God, we will briefly set forth the life and
virtues of these cavaliers of Christ. Let us see how
they conduct themselves at home as well as in battle,
how they appear in public, and in what way the knight
of God differs from the knight of the world.
In the first place, discipline is in no way lacking
and obedience is never despised. As Scripture testifies,
the undisciplined son shall perish and rebellion is
as the sin of witchcraft, to refuse obedience is like
the crime of idolatry. Therefore they come and go at
the bidding of their superior. They wear what he gives
them, and do not presume to wear or to eat anything
from another source. Thus they shun every excess in
clothing and food and content themselves with what is
necessary. They live as brothers in joyful and sober
company, without wives or children. So that their evangelical
perfection will lack nothing, they dwell united in one
family with no personal property whatever, careful to
keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. You
may say that the whole multitude has but one heart and
one soul to the point that nobody follows his own will,
but rather seeks to follow the commander.
They never sit in idleness or wander about aimlessly,
but on the rare occasions when they are not on duty,
they are always careful to earn their bread by repairing
their worn armor and torn clothing, or simply by setting
things to order. For the rest, they are guided by the
common needs and by the orders of their master.
There is no distinction of persons among them, and
deference is shown to merit rather than to noble blood.
They rival one another in mutual consideration, and
they carry one another's burdens, thus fulfilling the
law of Christ. No inappropriate word, idle deed, unrestrained
laugh, not even the slightest whisper or murmur is left
uncorrected once it has been detected. They forswear
dice and chess, and abhor the chase; they take no delight
in the ridiculous cruelty of falconry, as is the custom.
As for jesters, magicians, bards, troubadours and jousters,
they despise and reject them as so many vanities and
unsound deceptions. Their hair is worn short, in conformity
with the Apostle's saying, that it is shameful for a
man to cultivate flowing locks. Indeed, they seldom
wash and never set their hair — content to appear tousled
and dusty, bearing the marks of the sun and of their
armor.
8.
When the battle is at hand, they arm themselves internally
with faith and externally with steel rather than decorate
themselves with gold, since their business is to strike
fear in the enemy rather than to incite his cupidity.
They seek out horses which are strong and swift, rather
than those which are brilliant and well-plumed, they
set their minds on fighting to win rather than on parading
for show. They think not of glory and seek to be formidable
rather than flamboyant. At the same time, they are not
quarrelsome, rash, or unduly hasty, but soberly, prudently
and providently drawn up into orderly ranks, as we read
of the fathers. Indeed, the true Israelite is a man
of peace, even when he goes forth to battle.
Once he finds himself in the thick of battle, this
knight sets aside his previous gentleness, as if to
say, "Do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord;
am I not disgusted with your enemies?" These
men at once fall violently upon the foe, regarding them
as so many sheep. No matter how outnumbered they
are, they never regard these as fierce barbarians or
as awe-inspiring hordes. Nor do they presume on their
own strength, but trust in the Lord of armies to grant
them the victory. They are mindful of the words of Maccabees,
"It is simple enough for a multitude to be vanquished
by a handful. It makes no difference to the God of heaven
whether he grants deliverance by the hands of few or
many; for victory in war is not dependent on a big army,
and bravery is the gift of heaven." On numerous
occasions they had seen one man pursue a thousand, and
two put ten thousand to flight.
Thus in a wondrous and unique manner they appear gentler
than lambs, yet fiercer than lions. I
do not know if it would be more appropriate to refer
to them as monks or as soldiers, unless perhaps it would
be better to recognize them as being both. Indeed
they lack neither monastic meekness nor military might.
What can we say of this, except that this has been done
by the Lord, and it is marvelous in our eyes. These
are the picked troops of God, whom he has recruited
from the ends of the earth; the valiant men of Israel
chosen to guard well and faithfully that tomb which
is the bed of the true Solomon, each man sword in hand,
and superbly trained to war.
CHAPTER FIVE
THE TEMPLE OF JERUSALEM
9
THEIR QUARTERS indeed are in the very temple of Jerusalem,
which is not as vast as the ancient masterpiece of Solomon,
but is no less glorious. Truly all the magnificence
of the first temple lay in perishable gold and silver,
in polished stones and precious woods; whereas all the
beauty and gracious charming adornment of its present
counterpart is the religious fervor of its occupants
and by their well-disciplined behavior. In the former,
one could contemplate all sorts of beautiful colors,
while in the latter one is able to venerate all sorts
of virtues and good works. Indeed holiness is the fitting
ornament for God's house. One is able to delight there
in splendid merits rather than in shining marble, and
to be captivated by pure hearts rather than by gilded
paneling.
Of course the facade of this temple is adorned, but
with weapons rather than with jewels, and in place of
the ancient golden crowns, its walls are hung round
about with shields. In place of candlesticks, censers
and ewers, this house is well furnished with saddles,
bits and lances. By all these signs our knights clearly
show that they are animated by the same zeal for the
house of God which of old passionately inflamed their
leader himself when he armed his most holy hands, not
indeed with a sword, but with a whip. Having fashioned
this from some lengths of cord, he entered the temple
and ejected the merchants, scattered the coins of the
money changers, and overturned the chairs of the pigeon
venders, considering it most unfitting to defile this
house of prayer by such traffic.
Moved therefore by their King's example, his devoted
soldiers consider that it is even more shameful and
infinitely more intolerable for a holy place to be polluted
by pagans than to be crowded with merchants. Once they
have installed themselves in this holy house with their
horses and their weapons, cleansed it and the other
holy places of every un-Christian stain, and cast out
the tyrannical horde, they occupy themselves day and
night in both pious exercises and practical work. They
are especially careful to honor the temple of God with
zealous and sincere reverence, offering by their devout
service, not the flesh of animals according to the ancient
rites, but true peace offerings of brotherly love, devoted
obedience and voluntary poverty.
10.
These events at Jerusalem have shaken the world. The
islands hearken, and the people from afar give ear.
They swarm forth from East and West, as a flood stream
bringing glory to the nations and a rushing river gladdening
the city of God. What could be more profitable and pleasant
to behold than seeing such a multitude coming to reinforce
the few? What, if not the twofold joy of seeing the
conversion of these former impious rogues, sacrilegious
thieves, murderers, perjurers and adulterers? A twofold
joy and a twofold benefit, since their countrymen are
as glad to be rid of them as their new comrades are
to receive them. Both sides have profited from this
exchange, since the latter are strengthened and the
former are now left in peace. Thus Egypt rejoices in
their conversion and departure while Mount Sion rejoices
and the daughters of Juda are glad to acquire these
new protectors. The former glory in being delivered
from their hands, while the latter have every reason
to expect deliverance by means of these same hands.
The former gladly see their cruel despoilers depart,
while the latter gladly welcome their faithful defenders;
so that the one is agreeably heartened, while the other
is profitably abandoned.
This is the revenge which Christ contrives against
his enemies, to triumph powerfully and gloriously over
them by their own means. Indeed, it is both a happy
and fitting thing that those who have so long fought
against him should at last fight for him. Thus he recruits
his soldiers among his foes, just as he once turned
Saul the persecutor into Paul the preacher. Therefore
I am not surprised that, as our Savior himself has affirmed,
the court of heaven takes more joy in the conversion
of one sinner than in the virtues of many just men who
have no need of conversion. Certainly the conversion
of so many sinners and evil doers will now do as much
good as their former misdeeds did harm.
11.
Hail then, holy city, sanctified by the Most High for
his own tabernacle in order that such a generation might
be saved in and through you! Hail, city of the great
King, source of so many joyous and unheard-of marvels!
Hail mistress of nations and queen of provinces, heritage
of patriarchs, mother of apostles and prophets, source
of the faith and glory of the Christian people! If God
has permitted you to be so often besieged, it has only
been to furnish brave men an occasion for valor and
immortality.
Hail promised land, source of milk and honey for your
ancient inhabitants, now become the source of healing
grace and vital sustenance for the whole earth! Yes,
I say, you are that good and excellent soil which received
into its fruitful depths the heavenly seed from the
heart of the eternal Father. What a rich harvest of
martyrs you have produced from that heavenly seed! Your
fertile soil has not failed to furnish splendid examples
of every Christian virtue for the whole earth — some
bearing fruit thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundredfold.
Therefore those who have seen you are most happily filled
with the great abundance of your sweetness and are well
nourished on your munificent bounty. Everywhere they
go they publish the fame of your great goodness and
relate the splendors of your glory to those who have
never seen it, proclaiming the marvels accomplished
in you even to the ends of the earth.
Indeed, glorious things are told of you, city of God!
Now then we will set forth something of the delights
in which you abound, for the praise and glory of your
name.
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