"The Bridegroom [God] comes to you IN your desire. His desire gives rise to yours. For he first loved us, not we him . . . Therefore, love is its own merit and its own reward. Love needs no cause, no fruit besides itself; its enjoyment is its practice. I love because I love; I love that I may love. Love is a great thing; as long as it returns to its beginning in God, goes back to its origin, turns again to its Source, it will always draw afresh from it and flow freely. When God loves, he wants nothing but to BE love, knowing that those who love him are blessed by their very love. Love is the very BEING of the Bride [the soul]."
St. Bernard of Clairvaux,
12th century French Cistercian monk
Today in class we are studying the mystics of the 12th century, including the Cistercian monks. They wrote and practiced during the era of Courtly Love, when people realized that desire itself - even without erotic consummation - IS its own reward. The monks applied this realization to God, understanding that our desire for God IS God's desire for us. How apropos for Valentine's Day!
Photos: Ladybug and Spring-beauty flowers, Lory State Park, CO, February 11th and 12th, 2015
12th century French Cistercian monk
Today in class we are studying the mystics of the 12th century, including the Cistercian monks. They wrote and practiced during the era of Courtly Love, when people realized that desire itself - even without erotic consummation - IS its own reward. The monks applied this realization to God, understanding that our desire for God IS God's desire for us. How apropos for Valentine's Day!
Photos: Ladybug and Spring-beauty flowers, Lory State Park, CO, February 11th and 12th, 2015
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