COPYRIGHT AND USE OF THIS THESIS This thesis must be used in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968. Reproduction of material protected by copyright may be an infringement of copyright and copyright owners may be entitled to take legal action against persons who infringe their copyright. Section 51 (2) of the Copyright Act permits an authorized officer of a university library or archives to provide a copy (by communication or otherwise) of an unpublished thesis kept in the library or archives, to a person who satisfies the authorized officer that he or she requires the reproduction for the purposes of research or study. The Copyright Act grants the creator of a work a number of moral rights, specifically the right of attribution, the right against false attribution and the right of integrity. You may infringe the author’s moral rights if you: - fail to acknowledge the author of this thesis if you quote sections from the work - attribute this thesis to another author - subject this thesis to derogatory treatment which may prejudice the author’s reputation For further information contact the University’s Copyright Service. sydney.edu.au/copyright The monastic conversion of Bernard of Clairvaux and its significance for Cistercian beginnings, ca. 1098–ca. 1128 by Joseph Ewan Millan-Cole Supervised by Julie Ann Smith and Andrew Fitzmaurice A Dissertation Submitted in Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of History School of Philosophical and Historical Inquiry University of Sydney 2015 Statement 1. This thesis is the result of my own independent work and investigation, except where otherwise stated. Other sources are acknowledged by explicit reference. The views expressed are my own. Signed ………………………………… (candidate) Date ………………………………… Statement 2. This thesis is under 100,000 words, excluding footnotes but including the bibliography Signed ………………………………… (candidate) Date ………………………………… In the interests of environmental conservation, this thesis has been printed on double-sided paper ` הֵן קַתִי מָה ֲ א ִ שׁ י ֶ ב ָךּ יָדִי שַׂמְתִּי לְמוֹ פִי Job 40.4 Figure 1 Bernard of Clairvaux, illumination portrait (ca. 1135). De gradibus humilitate et superbiae, Anglo-Norman Benedictine MS (St.- Augustine, Canterbury). Source: Bruno S. James, trans. (with B. M. Kienzle, ed.), The Letters of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux (Gloucestershire:Sutton, Burnes and Oates, 1998 [1953]), cover; cf. James France, Medieval Images of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux (Kalamazoo: Cistercian Publications, 2007), at p. 64 and Disc n. MA006 (the book’s accompanying disc was unavailable upon completion of this thesis). ABSTRACT This dissertation examines the importance of conversion discourse in early Cistercian history, and the relevance of moral contingency and ethical comparison in the formation of medieval religious learning institutions. The monastic conversion of Bernard of Clairvaux is approached as a key to many features of Cistercian thought and culture that are present in many narrative and legislative texts. Attention to his conversion in the context of intellectual continuities between religious authorities and dependent pupils allows an approach to conversion discourse that emphasizes engagement with unlearned or unskilled students as central to the promotion of a normative ascetic ethic and the assertion of a moral right to teach others. Conversion discourse is presently discussed as a central aspect of institution- building practices. These practices underline symbolic asymmetries of knowledge and institutionalized role-hybridism between religious superiors and fellows as penitents and lifelong conversi-learners. This thesis also appeals to the comparative examples of other new religious communities that were contemporary with the first Cistercians in the eleventh and twelfth centuries. The features of Cistercian monasticism that are brought into relief throughout this analysis signal broader sociological issues to which many religious communities committed their institution-building energies. Unlike many other new congregations, the Cistercians created not only a meaningful but also a durable institutional framework for the transmission of their new tradition between elders and disciples. The dynamic relationships between Cîteaux and Bernard, Bernard and his brothers, Clairvaux and others, as well as between Cîteaux, Molesme, and contemporary schools with which they sought relation, reveals the considerable syncretism involved in the organization of new religious movements, and in their preservation of respective claims to being distinctive schools of enlightenment. iv PREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The completion of this thesis was beset by many practical and creative difficulties. I have been in transit between multiple houses since mid-October 2014, following an electrical housefire and the condemnation of my former apartment-block residence. My readers who are residents of Sydney will be aware of the problems of the city’s rental market, and I hope that my readers will also appreciate the difficulty of completing a PhD when one’s library and workspace are mostly packed away in storage. The experience of the past months has, at least, given me some insight into one aspect of Bernard’s career, that is, of the effort required for stability of profession despite instability of place. It has also been a great lesson in humility. I owe debts of deep gratitude to many people. First, due to the above circumstance, the completion of this thesis is indebted to Bastion Moore, Rakini Devi, and to my parents – Marianne Millan and Creagh Cole, Victor Baueris, and Ann Groth – for providing this wandering student (quasi-hermit) with a living and working space over these months. I feel a great gratitude to my family in particular, for their endless support and encouragement throughout these years of my studies. I dedicate this thesis to my large family with much love. Many friends are to be thanked as well for their support for my interests. In particular, for recent moral and creative support, I owe sure thanks to Blake Kendall, Nicki Playford, and Larry Pritchard. Many more could be named; the study of religion and spirituality is much enriched by friendship. I owe a profound debt to my teachers at the University of Sydney: Julie Ann Smith, John Pryor, Lyn Olson, Juanita Ruys, and Andrew Fitzmaurice. These scholars have coached and encouraged my education since I was an undergraduate student and new to medieval studies. They have inspired me in many ways, even if areas of my research have surprised expectations. This thesis is the outcome of an already very syncretic background, and I thank all of these teachers for their insights, encouragement, reminders, and corrections. I also v received valued friendliness and encouragement from Fr. Martinus Cawley of Guadalupe abbey (OC, USA), and I would like to thank him for his correspondence – I hope that I have done justice to his interest in my Honours thesis and this PhD, and I thank him for his supporting my continued research on Robert of Molesme, Stephen Harding, and pre- Cistercian Caritas. (I have still not read The Lord of the Rings.) I am very grateful to the Commonwealth Government for the financial aid of the Australian Postgraduate Award between the years 2011-2014. Without such support, the scope of research required for this thesis would have been impracticable. Similarly, I owe many thanks to the staff of Fisher Library, particularly the Document Delivery and Interloans personnel. I would also like to express gratitude to the hard-working presenters and newsreaders of ABC Triple J radio. Their aural presence has been of major importance in ensuring that I remain still (somewhat) anchored in this century, despite so much time in the company of medieval hermits and penitents. Thank you very much, Triple J. I dedicate this thesis once more to my family, and especially my parents, Marianne and Creagh, Victor, and Ann, with much love. I would also like to dedicate this thesis to my primary supervisor, Julie Ann Smith, and likewise with love. Without Julie’s mentorship and friendship, as well as her insights, conversation, corrections, encouragement, and patience, I could not have completed this project. I hope that this work honours the kindness, care, and true caritas that my family, friends, and teachers have shown me. vi FIGURES AND MAP Figure 1 Bernard of Clairvaux, illumination portrait (ca. 1135). De gradibus humilitate et superbiae, Anglo-Norman Benedictine MS. (St.-Augustine, Canterbury). Source: Bruno S. James, trans. (with B. M. Kienzle, ed.), The Letters of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux (Gloucestershire: Sutton, Burnes and Oates, 1998 [1953]), cover; cf. James France, Medieval Images of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux (Kalamazoo: Cistercian Publications, 2007), p. 64 and Disc n. MA006 (Disc unavailable upon final completion of this thesis) Figure 2 Hugh Lacerta and Stephen of Muret. Panel from the retable of Grandmont’s high altar, ca. 1189; Paris, Musée de Cluny. Source: C. A. Hutchison, The Hermit Monks of Grandmont (1989), cover; J. Martin and L. E. M. Walker, ‘At the feet of St. Stephen of Muret: Henry II and the order of Grandmont ‘redivivimus,’’ Journal of Medieval History,16 (1990), Fig. 2 at p. 4. Figure 3 (Map) Frankish (Ducal) Burgundy in the eleventh and twelfth centuries. Source: C. B. Bouchard, Sword, Miter, and Cloister: Nobility and the Church in Burgundy, 980-1198 (Ithaca and London: Cornell University Press, 1987), p. 30. vii ABBREVIATIONS MGH G. H. Pertz (et. al., eds.), Monumenta Germaniae Historica PL J.-P. Migne (et. al. eds.), Patrologia Latina SBOp Jean Leclercq (with H. Rochais, et. al. eds.), Sancti Bernardi Opera, 9 vols. (Rome: Editiones Cistercienses, 1957-74, 1998). The Cistercian Order Mette B. Bruun, ed. The Cambridge Companion to the Cistercian Order (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013). Waddell Narrative and Legislative Texts from Early Cîteaux: Latin Text in Dual Edition with English Translation and Notes (Cîteaux: Commentarii Cistercienses, 1999). William of St.-Thierry, William of St.-Thierry (with Geoffrey of Vita Bernardi Clairvaux, ed.), Vita Prima S.