Vatican Spiritual Exercises: St. Bernard ‘the Idealist’

The Roman Curia’s Lenten spiritual exercises moved on to the second and third meditations Monday, Feb. 23, following the program schedule with sessions at 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. in the Pauline Chapel.

In the morning, Cistercian Bishop Erik Varden spoke to the pope and the Roman Curia about St. Bernard of Clairvaux, focusing on the theme “Bernard the Idealist.”

According to Varden, Bernard is “a good, wise companion for anyone setting out on a Lenten exodus from selfishness and pride, wishing to pursue authenticity with eyes set on the all-illumining love of God.”

Varden described Bernard as “a genuinely humble man, fully given to God, capable of tender kindness, a firm friend — indeed, able to befriend former enemies — and a compelling witness to God’s love. He was, and remains, fascinating.”

In the afternoon, Varden introduced a new theme: “God’s help.” He began with a line from Mary Ward: “Do your best and God will help.”

“The notion that God can and will help us in our predicaments is axiomatic to Biblical faith,” Varden said. “It sets the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God made compassionate flesh in Christ Jesus, apart from the Unmoved Mover of philosophy.”

He then turned to a difficult question: What about times when believers fall and appear abandoned — when they cry out to heaven and receive no answer, hearing only the echo of their own voice?

Varden pointed to Job as the scriptural figure who embodies this experience, proposing that Job’s book can be read “as a symphony in three movements, going from a visceral Lament through an exposition of Menace to a wholly surprising experience of Grace.”

This story was first published by ACI Stampa, the Italian-language partner of EWTN News, and has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.