Bernard of Clairvaux

Burgundian saint, abbot and theologian (1090-1153)

  • Fame63.7
  • Momentum0.0
  • Wikipedia41.4K
Source-basedStable
Lived 1091–1153, aged 62France
  • Wikipedia
    66 languages
    Cross-language footprint
  • Era
    1091–1153
    Aged 62
Summary
Updated 2026-06-08

A twelfth-century abbot who wrote the rulebook for warrior monks, tipped a papal schism, and preached a crusade that failed — all while reforming monasticism from a single French valley.

Biography

About

Bernard became a monk at Cîteaux and was sent to found Clairvaux Abbey within a few years. In 1128 he attended the Council of Troyes, where he traced the outlines of the Rule of the Knights Templar, shaping an ideal of Christian nobility. When Pope Honorius II died in 1130 and the church split, Bernard argued effectively for the legitimacy of Pope Innocent II over Antipope Anacletus II. He advocated crusades broadly and in 1146 delivered a famous sermon at Vézelay that convinced many to join the Second Crusade, which ultimately failed. He was canonized in 1174, just 21 years after his death on…

Voice

In their own words

Sourced, dated quotes from Bernard of Clairvaux

Bernard of Clairvaux
said
Look at those detractors. Look at those dogs. They ridicule us for baptizing infants, praying for the dead, and asking the prayers of the saints.
Sermon LXVI: "On the Heretical Doctrines Concerning Marriage, Holy Orders, and Purgatory"
Bernard of Clairvaux
said
Among us on the earth there is His memory; but in the Kingdom of heaven His very Presence.
On Loving God, Ch. 3, Paul Halsall trans.
Bernard of Clairvaux
said
The reason for loving God is God Himself; and the measure of our love for Him is to love Him without measure.
On Loving God, Ch. 6, as translated in Leon Cristiani, St. Bernard of Clairvaux, trans. M. Angeline Bouchard (Boston: St. Paul Editions,
Bernard of Clairvaux
said
What of the souls already released from their bodies? We believe that they are overwhelmed in that vast sea of eternal light and of luminous eternity
On Loving God, Ch. 11, Paul Halsall trans.
Bernard of Clairvaux
saidundated
My burden is light," said the blessed Redeemer, a light burden indeed, which carries him that bears it.
Reported in Josiah Hotchkiss Gilbert, Dictionary of Burning Words of Brilliant Writers (1895), p. 88
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Score breakdown

The six component signals behind the Fame score, and their ranks across the leaderboards.

Fame
Stable
63.7
Composite of search demand, mentions, audience & graph footprint.
Score components
Historical25.5
Now attention5.6
Source confidence60.0
Completeness70.0
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Country rank
Category rank
Receipts

Sources

  • Wikidata
    wikidata · wikidata.org
    High confidence
  • Wikipedia
    wikipedia · en.wikipedia.org
    High confidence
  • Pantheon 2.0
    database · pantheon.world
    High confidence