Letter CCCXII. To Raynald, Archbishop of Rheims

(A.D. 1130.)

Bernard thanks him for a letter which he had received from him.¹

To the most reverend father and lord R., by the grace of God Archbishop of Rheims, Brother BERNARD, of Clairvaux, wishes health and whatever the prayers of a sinner can effect on his behalf.

I thank the Lord who has inspired you with the thought of consoling me with a letter from your hand. I am, indeed, well enough able to return letter for letter, but when shall I ever be able to acquit myself to you of the debt of gratitude which you have placed me under by the goodness that you have shown towards me, in encouraging me by the sweetness of your blessing, in rousing me by your exhortations, and honouring me with your salutation? Assuredly there never was anyone less worthy than I of the names that you bestow upon me, or less worthy to be known to you; but the less I am worthy the more I am grateful to you. It is true, though, that when you act thus you act as becomes you, and as recognizing that you are debtor to the unwise as well as to the wise. You say to me that the reputation of which the report has come to your Excellency has moved you to this condescension towards so humble a person as myself; but this is, indeed, not only too flattering, but also dangerous to me. It is, however, a very happy and agreeable thing for me that a breath of reputation, though it be only like an empty puff of wind, should have moved a priest of the Most High of such high rank to have such kind feeling toward me, before even I had merited to come to his personal knowledge. The monk who is the bearer of this letter will tell your Holiness with respect to my coming to you why I have not come at the present time, and at what time I should be able to come. He will reply also with faithfulness to any other questions that it may please you to put to him with respect to me; it is for that purpose that I have sent him, while waiting until I shall be able to come to you myself.

Footnotes

1. This Letter is new; ihe former, No. 312, is now 398. Raynald, or Reginald, second Archbishop of Rheims of that name, occupied that See from 1 1 24 to 1139, according to our calculation, and died on the I3th of January of the latter year, as we have noted upon Letter 170. ↩