Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, Abbot and Doctor of the Church

Bernard was born in 1090 at Fontaines near Dijon into a Burgundian noble family. In 1113 he entered the new and strict monastery of Cîteaux, bringing with him some thirty relatives and friends. Two years later he was sent to found Clairvaux, which he led until his death, and from it dozens of Cistercian houses were founded across Europe. His letters and sermons, above all those on the Song of Songs, made him the most influential churchman of his time: he backed Innocent II in the disputed papal election of 1130, opposed the teaching of Peter Abelard, and at Vézelay in 1146 preached the Second Crusade, whose failure grieved him. He died at Clairvaux on 20 August 1153, was canonized in 1174 and declared a Doctor of the Church in 1830.