At the General Audience this morning in St. Peter's Square, the Holy Father continued the catechetical cycle on the great Christian writers of the East and West in the Middle Ages.
CATECHESIS ON
ST. PETER THE VENERABLE
The figure of Peter the Venerable, whom I wish to present in today's catechesis, leads us back to the famous Abbey of Cluny, to its decor (decorum) and its nitor (splendor). to use terms that are recurrent in Cluniac texts - decorum and splendor, which could be admired above all in the beauty of liturgy, the privileged way of reaching God.
But more than these aspects, the personality of Peter recalls the holiness of the great Cluniac abbots. At Cluny, "there was not a single abbot who was not a saint", Pope Gregory VII said in 1080.
And among them, Peter the Venerable, who had in him something of all the virtues of his predecessors, even if under him, Cluny was starting to experience some symptoms of crisis, in the face of new [Benedictine] orders like that of Citeaux. Peter is an admirable example of rigorous asceticism with himself and with others.
Born in 1094 in the French region of Auvergne, he entered the monastery of Sauxillanges as a child, where he became a professed monk and eventually abbot.
In 1122, he was elected Abbot of Cluny, a position he held until his death on Christmas Day, 1156, as he had wanted to.
"A lover of peace," his biographer Rudolph wrote, "he obtained peace in the glory of God on the day of peace" (Vita, I,17; PL 189,28).
Those who knew him exalted his lordly gentleness, his serene equilibrium, his self-control, correctness, loyalty, lucidity and a special talent for mediation.
"It is in my nature," he wrote, "to be rather indulgent, which comes from my habit of forgiving. I am accustomed to tolerate much and to forgive" (Ep. 192, in: The Letters of Peter the Venerable, Harvard University Press, 1967, p. 446).
He said further: "With those who hate peace, we wish, as much as possible, to be always peaceable" (Ep. 100, l.c., p. 261). And about himself: "I am not among those who are not happy with their lot... whose spirit is always anxious or in doubt, and who lament because others rest while they alone are at work" (Ep. 182, p. 425).
With his sensitive and affectionate temperament, he coupled his love for the Lord with tenderness towards his family, especially his mother, and to his friends.
He cultivated friendships, especially with his monks, who habitually confided in him, certain they would be heard and understood. According to his biographer's testimony, "he despised and rejected no one" (Vita, I,3: PL 189,19); "he appeared amiable to everyone; in his innate goodness, he was open to everyone" (ibid., I,1: PL, 189,17).
We can say that this holy abbot constitutes an example even for the monks and Christians of our time when life is marked by a frenetic rhythm, when episodes of intolerance and incommunicability, of divisions and conflicts, are not rare.
His witness invites us to learn how to unite love of God with love of neighbor, and not to tire of renewing relationships of brotherhood and solidarity.
Because that is how Peter the Venerable acted, finding himself at the head of the Abbey of Cluny during years which were not very peaceful for various reasons both outside and inside the abbey, succeeding to be simultaneously strict and gifted with profound humanity.
He used to say, "One can get more from a man by tolerating him than by irritating him with complaints" (Ep. 172, l.c., p. 409).
Because of his position, he had to make frequent trips to Italy, England, Germany and Spain. This forced abandonment of contemplative quiet weighed on him. He confessed, "I go from one place to another, it leaves me breathless, it makes me uneasy, it torments me, to be dragged here and there. My mind flits from my own problems to that of others, not without great spiritual agitation" (Ep. 91, l.c., p. 233).
Although he had to maneuver among the powers and lordships that surrounded Cluny, he succeeded nonetheless - thanks to his sense of proportion, his magnanimity and his realism - to maintain his habitual tranquillity.
Among the personalities to whom he related was Bernard of Clairvaux, with whom he undertook a growing friendship despite their differences in temperament and in perspective.
Bernard called him "an important man occupied with important affairs" and held him in great esteem (Ep. 147, ed. Scriptorium Claravallense, Milano 1986, VI/1, pp. 658-660). In turn, Peter the Venerable called Bernard "the lamp of the Church" (Ep. 164, p. 396), and "a strong and splendid pillar of the monastic order and of the entire Church"(Ep. 175, p. 418).
With an active ecclesial sense, Peter the Venerable affirmed that the experiences of the Christian people should be felt "in the intimacy of the heart" by those who considered themselves "among the members of the Body of Christ" (Ep. 164, l.c., p. 397).
He added: "He who does not feel the wounds on the Body of Christ is not nourished by the Spirit of Christ", wherever these wounds may be produced (ibid.).
Moreover, he showed care and concern for those who were outside the Church, particularly the Jews and the Muslims. To better know the latter, he had the Koran translated.
A contemporary historian noted in this regard: "Amid the intransigence of the men of the Middle Ages - even the greatest among them - we admire (in Peter) a sublime example of the delicacy to which Christian charity leads" (J. Leclercq, Pietro il Venerabile, Jaca Book, 1991, p. 189).
Other aspects of Christian life which were dear to the saint were love for the Eucharist and devotion to the Virgin Mary. On the Blessed Sacrament, he has left us pages that constitute "one of the masterpieces of Eucharistic literature of all time" (ibid., p. 267), and on the Mother of God, he wrote illuminating reflections, always contemplating her in close relation with Jesus the Redeemer and his work of salvation.
It suffices to report this inspired exaltation by him: "Hail, Blessed Virgin, who has made the curse go away. Hail, Mother of the Most High, spouse of the gentlest Lamb. You conquered the serpent, you crushed its head, when the God you generated annihilated it... Brilliant Star of the east, who sends the shadows from the west fleeing. Dawn who precedes the sun, day who does not know night... Pray to the God born of you, that he may absolve our sins, and after forgiveness, grant us grace and glory" (Carmina, PL 189, 1018-1019).
Peter the Venerable also had a predilection for literary activity for which he possessed the talent. He noted down his reflections, persuaded of the importance of using his pen almost like a plow in order to "sow on paper the seed of the Gospel" (Ep. 20, p. 38).
Although he was not a systematic theologian, he was a great investigator into the mystery of God. His theology is rooted in prayer, especially liturgical; and of the mysteries of Christ, he liked best the Transfiguration which prefigures the Resurrection.
It was he who introduced this celebration at Cluny, composing a special office for it which reflects the characteristic theological piety of Peter and the Cluniac order - focused on contemplating the glorious Face (gloriosa facies) of Christ, finding in this the reasons for that radiant joy that distinguished his spirit and which irradiated the liturgy of the Abbey.
Dear brothers and sisters, this holy monk is certainly a great example of monastic saintliness, fed at the springs of Benedictine tradition. For him, the monk's ideal consisted in "adhering tenaciously to Christ" (Ep. 53, l.c., p. 161), in a cloistered life marked by 'monastic humility' (ibid.) and by industriousness (Ep. 77, l.c., p. 211), as well as an atmosphere of silent contemplation and constant praise of God.
The first and most important occupation of a monk, according to Peter of Cluny, was the solemn celebration of the divine office - "heavenly work, the most useful of all" (Statuta, I, 1026) – to be accompanied by reading, meditation, personal prayer and penitence done with discretion (cfr Ep. 20, l.c., p. 40).
In this way, all life is pervaded by profound love for God and love for others, a love that is expressed in a sincere openness to one's neighbor, in forgiveness, and in the search for peace.
We can say, in conclusion, that if this lifestyle coupled with his daily work, constituted the monastic ideal for St. Benedict [ora et labora], it also concerns all of us.
It could be, in large measure, the lifestyle of the Christian who wants to be an authentic disciple of Christ, characterized precisely by tenacious adherence to him, by humility, by industriousness, and by the capacity for forgiveness and peace.