⛪Born in France in 1090, Saint Bernard of Clairvaux was one of the most influential figures of the 12th century. After joining the newly founded Cistercian Order with thirty companions, including his brothers, he was sent to establish a new abbey at Clairvaux, which became a center of reform and spirituality. His fervent preaching, profound writings, and counsel to popes, kings, and councils shaped the Church of his time. Called the "Doctor Mellifluus" (Honey-tongued Doctor) for his eloquence, he composed notable works on grace, the love of God, and the Virgin Mary, to whom he had a tender devotion, with the "Memorare" prayer being attributed to him. His life was a testament to the power of contemplation overflowing into apostolic action.
🙏 Introit (Sir 15:5 | Ps 91:2)In medio Ecclesiae aperuit os ejus... In the midst of the Church the Lord opened his mouth; and filled him with the spirit of wisdom and understanding: He clothed him with a robe of glory. Ps. It is good to give praise to the Lord: and to sing to Thy Name, O Most High. ℣. Glory be to the Father.
📜 Epistle (Sir 39:6-14)
The just man will give his heart to resort early to the Lord that made him, and he will pray in the sight of the most High. He will open his mouth in prayer, and will make supplication for his sins. For if the great Lord will, he will be filled with the spirit of understanding: And he will pour forth the words of his wisdom as showers, and in his prayer he will confess to the Lord. And he shall direct his counsel, and his knowledge, and in his secrets shall he meditate. He shall shew forth the discipline he hath learned, and shall glory in the law of the covenant of the Lord. Many shall praise his wisdom, and it shall never be forgotten. The memory of him shall not depart away, and his name shall be in request from generation to generation. Nations shall shew forth his wisdom, and the church shall declare his praise.
✨ Gospel (Mt 5:13-19)
At that time, Jesus said to His disciples: You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt lose its savour, wherewith shall it be salted? It is good for nothing any more but to be cast out, and to be trodden on by men. You are the light of the world. A city seated on a mountain cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel, but upon a candlestick, that it may shine to all that are in the house. So let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. Do not think that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets. I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For amen I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot, or one tittle shall not pass of the law, till all be fulfilled. He therefore that shall break one of these least commandments, and shall so teach men, shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven. But he that shall do and teach, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
🤔 Reflections
✍️The God-infused wisdom described in the Epistle is the "salt" that preserves from corruption and the "light" that illuminates the nations, as seen in the lives of saints like Bernard. Salt signifies the desire for heavenly things, which preserves the soul from the corruption of earthly desires. But if the disciples, who are to salt the masses, lose this desire for the kingdom of heaven out of fear of earthly persecution, by whom will they be freed from error, since they were chosen by the Lord to free others? (Saint Augustine, Commentary on the Sermon on the Mount). The light is not lit for itself, but to shine for all; thus, it is not enough to be virtuous, one must shine with example so that God may be glorified, for a holy life is the greatest praise to God (Saint John Chrysostom, Homilies on Matthew). In saying He came not to abolish the Law but to fulfill it, Christ teaches that the ancient precepts find their perfection in Him, who reveals their full meaning and grants the grace to live them; thus, to keep and teach the commandments is to reveal the fullness of truth in Christ (Saint Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica).
📖Comparing Matthew's Gospel, Luke also presents the metaphors of salt and light, but in different contexts that highlight other facets. In Luke 14:34-35, the warning about tasteless salt concludes the discourse on the radical cost of discipleship, linking the loss of "savor" to the inability to renounce everything for Christ. The image of the light on a lampstand appears in Luke 8:16 and 11:33, where it is connected not only to good works but to the need for the Word of God, once heard, to illuminate the entire inner person, so that the whole body may be luminous. Mark 9:50 offers a unique application of the salt metaphor, exhorting the disciples: "Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another," directly connecting divine wisdom and spiritual fervor to community harmony.
🕊️Saint Paul deepens the themes of salt, light, and the Law in his epistles. He echoes the image of light by affirming that Christians should "shine as lights in the world" (Philippians 2:15) and that God "has shone in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ" (2 Corinthians 4:6), connecting the light not only to works but to the knowledge of Christ. Regarding the Law, Paul explains how Christ is its "end" (Romans 10:4), not in the sense of abolition, but of fulfillment and goal. He contrasts the "letter that kills" with the "Spirit that gives life" (2 Corinthians 3:6), showing that the Law is perfectly fulfilled not by external observance, but by the charity infused by the Holy Spirit, which is "the fulfilling of the law" (Romans 13:10).
🏛️Church documents consistently interpret the role of teachers of the faith, like Saint Bernard, through the images of salt and light. The Roman Catechism, for example, teaches that pastors of souls are the salt of the earth by preserving the faithful from the corruption of heresy and sin with sound doctrine. They are the light of the world when, by their preaching and the example of their lives, they dispel the darkness of ignorance and show the way of salvation. The encyclical Aeterni Patris of Pope Leo XIII extols the Doctors of the Church as lights who, with inherited and deepened wisdom, illuminated the mysteries of the faith, perfectly fulfilling the mandate not to hide the light but to place it on the lampstand to enlighten the entire Church.