Gerhard von Clairvaux (Chamberlain)
Gerhard von Clairvaux (also: Gerhard von Fontaine) (* approx. 1089 in Fontaine-lès-Dijon ; † October 13, 1138 in Clairvaux ) was a Burgundian nobleman, Cistercian monk and blessed . He was the brother of St. Bernard of Clairvaux and should not be confused with the Abbot Gerhard of Clairvaux .
Life
The family
Gerhard (French: Gérard ) was (after Guido) the second child of the couple Tescelin de Fontaine and Aleth von Montbard . After him came his brothers Bernard , André, Barthélémy, Nivard and the sister Hombeline . Since the year of birth of St. Bernard is known, one can assume that Gerhard was born around 1089.
Entry into the order and life in the order
Gerhard was a soldier. When Bernhard asked him, like his brothers, to enter the new Cîteaux monastery in the middle of fighting in Grancey in 1113 and he vigorously fought off the request, Bernhard predicted his conversion after an injury, events that occurred after two weeks. In 1115 Gerhard belonged to the founding community of Clairvaux Monastery , where he held the office of chamberlain (housekeeper) until his death . In 1137 he accompanied Bernhard on a trip to Italy, fell seriously ill and recovered in Viterbo . A year later he died in Clairvaux.
In the 26th sermon on the Song of Songs, Bernhard von Clairvaux set a moving memorial to his brother in the form of a lament (in Latin). In it he not only honors his love for his brother, but also his life's work. Because Bernhard regarded Gerhard as a capable treasurer in Clairvaux as a wall against the temporal and temporal, which made the contemplative life of the monks possible in the first place.
Adoration
In the Cistercian order, Gerhard is venerated as a blessed and celebrated on January 30th (confirmed by the Vatican in 1869 and 1871). In La Laigne ( Charente-Maritime department ) a church is dedicated to his name.
literature
- Pierre Aubé: Saint Bernard de Clairvaux . Fayard, Paris 2003.
- Anselme Dimier : GÉRARD DE CLAIRVAUX (Bienheureux), dit also Gérard de Fontaines, moine cistercien († 1138) . In: Dictionnaire d'histoire et de géographie ecclésiastiques , Vol. 20 (1984), Col. 755-757.
- Gerhard B. Winkler : Gerhard v. Claurvaux . In: Walter Kasper (Ed.): Lexicon for Theology and Church . 3. Edition. tape 4 . Herder, Freiburg im Breisgau 1995, Sp. 509 .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Patrologia Latina by Migne , Vol. 183, columns 903-912.
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Gerhard of Clairvaux |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Burgundian nobleman, Cistercian monk and blessed |
| DATE OF BIRTH | around 1089 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Fontaine-lès-Dijon |
| DATE OF DEATH | October 13, 1138 |
| Place of death | Clairvaux |