On Loving God
Bernard of ClairvauxSecond quarter of the twelfth century
A short treatise by Bernard of Clairvaux, addressed to the papal chancellor Haimeric, on why and how far God is to be loved. It sets out four degrees of love, from love of self to love of self only for God’s sake.
The dedication is to Haimeric, cardinal deacon and chancellor of the Roman church, who had asked Bernard of Clairvaux a question; Bernard styles himself “called Abbot of Clairvaux”. The treatise therefore belongs to his years as abbot. Its closing chapters reuse a letter that Bernard had written to the Carthusians.
It is short and argues largely from verses of Scripture. Its subject is the growth of love by stages, from the love of self with which everyone begins.
Cited in
- 1098 to 1115, estimated date