Liber Quintus, Caput IV. Angeli quomodo considerandi.
Turning Our Eyes to the Heavenly City
Bernard invites contemplation of the heavenly Jerusalem and its angelic citizens, describing their nature, bodies, understanding, and the names by which their ranks are known, while acknowledging the limits of faith and hearing.
With these matters settled, then, let your attention now turn toward that Jerusalem above, our mother, and with all three paths I've mentioned, let us carefully and watchfully track down what can be explored — as far as we're permitted, or rather, as far as it's given to us. First of all, the citizens there are spirits — powerful, glorious, blessed, distinguished as persons, arranged in ranks of dignity, standing from the beginning in their own order, perfect in their kind, ethereal in body, deathless in immortality, beyond suffering — not created, but made, that is, by grace, not by nature; pure in mind, gentle in affection, devout in their religious life, whole in chastity, inseparable in harmony, secure in peace, brought into being by God, devoted to divine praises and service. All this we've discovered through reading, and we hold it by faith. And yet, regarding their bodies — not only where they come from, but whether they exist at all — the judgment of some remains uncertain. So if anyone thinks this should be placed among matters of opinion, I won't argue. Furthermore, we understand them to be endowed with understanding — not by faith, not by opinion, but by understanding itself — because they cannot be without it and at the same time be sharers in God. There are also certain names known to us in the same way, from hearing — through which the roles, merits, ranks, and orders of these blessed beings, even those the mortal ear has not clearly perceived, can to some extent be inferred and distinguished by us. But what doesn't come from hearing no longer comes from faith — for faith comes from hearing.
The Names and Ranks of the Heavenly Host
Bernard presses the question of why angelic names have been revealed if we cannot form sound opinions about the realities they name, listing the nine heavenly orders and asking what distinguishes them.
So then, we've spoken about these things by way of opinion. For what purpose were the names of heavenly beings made known, if we're not even allowed to form an opinion about the realities they name—and still keep the faith intact? Angels, Archangeli, Virtutes, Potestates, Principatus, Dominationes, Throni, Cherubin, and Seraphin—these are names.✦✦ But what do they signify? Is there any distinction between those spirits who are simply called Angels and those who are named Archangeli?
Guardians, Messengers, and Powers Over Creation
Bernard begins to assign roles to the lower angelic orders: Angels as guardians of individuals, Archangels for great divine purposes, Virtutes working signs in the elements, Potestates restraining darkness, and Principatus governing earthly authority.
So what, then, is the point of this graded ranking? Let us consider that those are called Angels who are believed to have been given, one by one, to individual human beings: sent into ministry, according to Paul's teaching, for those who receive the inheritance of salvation — about whom the Savior said, Their Angels always see the face of my Father.1 Let’s consider Archangels to preside over them, who, being aware of divine mysteries, are sent only for the greatest and most important purposes. Among them, we read that the great archangel Gabriel was sent to Mary — for a purpose, surely, than which none could be greater.✦2 Let’s consider that above these are the Powers, at whose command signs and wonders are produced in the elements, or appear from the elements, as a warning to mortals. This may well be why, when you read in the Gospels, There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, a little later you have, The powers of heaven will be shaken — these, surely, are the spirits through whom such signs occur.✦3 Let’s consider the Powers to be set above these, by whose authority the power of darkness is restrained and the malice of this present air is held in check, so that it cannot harm as much as it wants to — cannot act harmfully except in a way that ultimately serves good. Let’s consider that the Rulers are set over these as well, by whose governance and wisdom every earthly authority is established, directed, limited, transferred, cut down, and transformed.
Thrones of Peace and Cherubim of Wisdom
Bernard contemplates the higher orders: Dominions presiding over all lower ranks, Thrones resting in God's surpassing peace, and Cherubim drawing wisdom from God's mouth and pouring it out to the heavenly citizens.
Let's suppose that Dominions so far surpass all the orders mentioned earlier that, compared to them, the rest all seem like ministering spirits, and that to them, as to lords, are referred the governances of Principalities, the protections of Powers, the operations of Virtues, the revelations of Archangels, and the care and providence of Angels. Let's suppose that Thrones have risen up even from these by a lofty retreat — they who are called Thrones because they sit, and who sit because God has sat in them. Nor, for that matter, could he sit in them if they themselves did not sit. You ask what I think that sitting amounts to. The highest tranquility, the most placid serenity, a peace that surpasses all understanding.✦ Such is the Lord of hosts who sits on the Thrones, judging all things with tranquility — most placid, most serene, most peaceful.✦ And such Thrones he established for himself, most like to himself. Let's suppose that Cherubim draw from the very fountain of wisdom, from the mouth of the Most High, and pour back streams of knowledge to all their fellow citizens.
Seraphim Ablaze with Love and Knowledge
Bernard considers the Seraphim as spirits wholly inflamed with divine fire, setting all things ablaze with love and knowledge, like the rushing stream that gladdens the city of God.
And see whether he is the one the prophet spoke of—the rushing stream that brings joy to the city of God. Let us consider the Seraphim, spirits wholly inflamed with divine fire, to set all things ablaze, so that each citizen may be a burning and shining lamp; burning with love, shining with knowledge.
Longing to Dwell in the House of the Lord
Bernard exclaims with Eugene how good it is to contemplate this heavenly realm, confessing that only a thin consideration flies ahead while the soul is weighed down by the body, yet even this small taste kindles longing to dwell in God's house and behold His beauty.
O Eugenius, how wonderful it is for us to be here! How much better it would be if we followed completely where we've only gone partway! We've only preceded in spirit, and not even fully, but just in a small part. Our affections are weighed down by our physical bodies and cling to desires like mud, while only a dry and thin consideration moves ahead. And yet, from this small gift that is now given, I feel compelled to exclaim: Lord, I have loved the beauty of your house and the place where your glory dwells. What if the soul were to gather itself completely, and, having withdrawn the affections from all the places where captives are held, fearing what should not be feared, loving what should not be loved, grieving in vain, rejoicing more vainly, might enter upon this flight with total freedom, striking with the impulse of the spirit, and gliding into the richness of grace? Surely, when it has begun to traverse the shining mansions, and to examine that bosom of Abraham more curiously, and to revisit the souls of the martyrs beneath the altar, whatever that may be, in the first robe awaiting the second most patiently, then much more will it insist, speaking with the prophet: "One thing I have asked of the Lord; this I seek, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord and to visit his temple." Why not let the heart of God be revealed there?
The Depths of Mercy Open to the Soul
Bernard wonders why the soul should not there behold God's heart and test His good, pleasing, and perfect will, where the depths of mercy, peace, and salvation lie open, and where holy fear gives way to love.
Why shouldn't that will of God be put to the test there — the will that is good and pleasing and perfect?✦ Good in itself, pleasing in its effects, well-pleasing to those who enjoy it, perfect for the perfect, and seeking nothing beyond. The depths of mercy lie open, the designs of peace lie open, the riches of salvation and the mysteries of a good will; the hidden things of kindness, which are shut to mortals and remain suspect even to the chosen themselves. This much is surely wholesome: that they never stop fearing, so long as they are not yet found worthy to love.
Perceiving God Through Every Order of Angels
Bernard teaches that to perceive the Seraphim is to understand divine love and purification; the Cherubim reveal God as all-knowing light; the Thrones show a tranquil and innocent Judge; the Dominions display sovereign authority; the Principalities hold all things at their source; and the Powers protect and restrain opposing forces.
To perceive is to understand how the Seraphim love, even though they have no source of love, and to know that they do not hate anything of what they have created to save; how they nurture, how they promote, how they embrace, how they deal with the sins of the chosen youth, and how the consuming fire of ignorance purifies the most pure and worthy love. To perceive is to understand in the Cherubim, who are called the fullness of knowledge, that God is the Lord of knowledge, who alone knows no ignorance, who is all light, and in whom there is no darkness; who is entirely sight, and who is never deceived, because he is never closed off; who does not seek light outside himself, to whom it is drawn so that he may see, he who sees, and he from whom he sees. To perceive is to understand in the Thrones, that a judge who is not suspect in all innocence sits among those who do not wish to be circumvented, and cannot be circumvented; for he loves and sees in this way. There is no vacancy in the session: it is a mark of tranquility. From such a countenance, I wish my judgment to proceed, may love be present, may error be absent, and may disturbance be absent as well. To perceive is to understand in the Dominions, how great the Lord of majesty is, whose authority is established by his nod, and by whose authority the universe and the eternity of the limits exist. To perceive is to understand in the Principalities the principle from which all things come; and just as the door hinges from its pivot, so does the universe hinge from the king himself. To perceive is to understand in the Powers, how the same prince governs those whom he rules, protecting them, while restraining and repelling contrary powers.
The Hidden Power and Tender Care of Angels
Bernard concludes by contemplating the Virtues as God's single, omnipresent power working all things and breaking forth in marvels, and the Angels and Archangels as faithful guardians who visit, instruct, admonish, and comfort us without ceasing.
To perceive in the Virtues is to see one single power equally present everywhere, the power through which all things exist: life-giving, effective, invisible, and unmoving, yet moving all things with purpose and holding them fast with strength; and when this power breaks forth in effects less common among mortals, people call them miracles or wonders. Finally, to perceive and to marvel in the Angels and Archangels is to grasp the truth and lived experience of that voice: 'They themselves care for us' — they who never cease to gladden us with their visits, to instruct us through revelations, to admonish us through promptings, and to comfort us with their devoted care.✦
Read the original Latin
His ita expeditis, age jam dirigatur consideratio in eam quae sursum est Jerusalem mater nostra, ac totis tribus memoratis viis caute et vigilanter vestigemus investigabilia: quatenus tamen licet, vel magis quatenus nobis donabitur. Et primo quidem cives spiritus esse illic potentes, gloriosos, beatos, distinctos in personas, dispositos in dignitates, ab initio stantes in ordine suo, perfectos in genere suo, corpore aethereos, immortalitate perpetuos, impassibiles non creatos, sed factos, id est gratia, non natura; mente puros, affectu, benignos, religione pios, castimonia integros, unanimitate individuos, pace securos, a Deo conditos, divinis laudibus et obsequiis deditos. Haec omnia legendo comperimus, fide tenemus. Quanquam de corporibus horum non modo unde sint, sed an aliquatenus sint, haeret sententia aliquorum. Unde si quis inter opinabilia magis id ponendum censuerit, non contendo. Porro intellectu praeditos, non fide, non opinione, sed intellectu capimus; quia non possunt hujus expertes, et Dei simul participes esse. Sunt et nomina quaedam nota nobis similiter ex auditu, per quae harum beatitudinum, etiam quae non liquido mortalium percepit auditus, officia, merita, gradus, ordines, utcumque a nobis conjici et dicerni queunt. Sed enim quod ex auditu non est, jam non ex fide; nam fides ex auditu.
Itaque opinando ista dixerimus. Ad quid enim coelestium nomina innotuerunt, si ne opinari quidem salva fide aliquid licet de rebus, quarum nomina sunt? Angeli, Archangeli, Virtutes, Potestates, Principatus, Dominationes, Throni, Cherubin, et Seraphin, haec nomina. Quae significata eorum? Nullane inter illos spiritus qui simpliciter Angeli, et eos qui Archangeli nuncupantur, distantia?
Quid ergo sibi vult gradualis distinctio haec? Putemus Angelos dici (nisi ut convenientius aliquid considerasti) qui singuli singulis hominibus dati creduntur; missi in ministerium, secundum Pauli doctrinam, propter eos qui haereditatem capiunt salutis: de quibus Salvator, Angeli eorum semper vident faciem Patris. Putemus his praeesse Archangelos, qui conscii mysteriorum divinorum, nonnisi ob praecipuas et maximas causas mittuntur. E quibus magnus ille archangelus Gabriel missus legitur ad Mariam, ob causam utique, qua major esse non potuit. Putemus esse super istos Virtutes esse, quorum nutu vel opere signa et prodigia in elementis, sive ex elementis facta apparent ad commonitionem mortalium. Inde est fortassis, quod cum in Evangeliis legas: Erunt signa in sole et luna et stellis, paulo post habes, Nam virtutes coelorum movebuntur; hi nimirum spiritus, per quos signa fiunt. Putemus Potestates superiores istis, quarum virtute potestas tenebrarum comprimitur, et coercetur malignitas aeris hujus, ne quantum vult noceat; ne malignari, nisi ut prosit, possit. Putemus Principatus his quoque praelatos, quorum moderamine et sapientia omnis in terris principatus constituitur, regitur, limitatur transfertur, mutilatur, mutatur.
Putemus Dominationes adeo cunctis supereminere praefatis ordinibus, ut respectu horum caeteri videantur omnes administratorii spiritus, et ad istos, tanquam ad dominos, referri regimina Principatuum, tutamina Potestatum, operationes Virtutum, revelationes Archangelorum, curam et providentiam Angelorum. Putemus Thronos alto etiam ab his evolasse recessu, qui ex eo quod sedent, Throni dicuntur; et ex eo sedent, quod sedit in eis Deus. Neque enim sedere in eis qui non sederent posset. Quaeris quid illam sentiam sessionem? Summam tranquillitatem, placidissimam serenitatem, pacem quae exsuperat omnem intellectum. Talis est qui sedet in Thronis Dominus sabaoth, judicans omnia cum tranquillitate, placidissimus, serenissimus, pacatissimus. Et tales sibi constituit Thronos, simillimos sibi. Putemus Cherubin ex ipso sapientiae fonte, ore Altissimi haurientes, et refundentes fluenta scientiae universis civibus suis.
Et vide ne is sit, quem propheta loquebatur, fluminis impetus laetificans civitatem Dei. Putemus Seraphin, spiritus totos divino igne succensos, succendere universa, ut singuli cives singulae sint lucernae ardentes et lucentes; ardentes charitate, lucentes cognitione.
O Eugeni, quam bonum est nos hic esse! quam fore melius, si quando tamen toti sequamur quo ex parte praecessimus! Praecedimus animo, et ne ipso quidem toto, sed parte modica nimis. Affectus jacent mole corporea praegravati et luto haerentibus desideriis, sola interim arida et tenuis consideratio praevolat. Et tamen ex tantillo quod jam datur, libet exclamare: Domine, dilexi decorem domus tuae, et locum habitationis gloriae tuae. Quid si totam se colligat anima, et reductis affectibus, e cunctis locis, quibus captivi tenentur, timendo quae non oportet, amando quae non decet, dolendo vane, gaudendo vanius, cum his ineat tota libertate volatum, pulset impetu spiritus, et in pinguedine gratiae illabatur? Nonne cum coeperit circuire lucidas mansiones, et sinum illum etiam Abrahae curiosius perscrutari, et sub altari, quodcumque illud est, martyrum revisere animas, in prima stola secundam patientissime exspectantes, multo magis tunc instabit loquens cum propheta: Unam petii a Domino: hanc requiram, ut inhabitem in domo Domini omnibus diebus vitae meae, ut videam voluntatem Domini, ac visitem templum ejus? Quidni ibi videatur cor Dei?
quidni ibi probetur quae sit voluntas Dei bona, et beneplacens, et perfecta? Bona in se, placens in effectibus, beneplacens fruentibus, perfecta perfectis, et nihil ultra quaerentibus. Patent viscera misericordiae, patent cogitationes pacis, divitiae salutis mysteria bonae voluntatis; benignitatis arcana, quae clausa mortalibus, etiam ipsis electis suspecta sunt. Id quidem salubriter, ne desinant timere, dum necdum digne amare idonei inveniuntur.
Cernere est in his qui Seraphin appellantur, quomodo amet qui unde amet non habet, sed est et qui nihil horum quae fecerit odit: quos salvandos fecit, quomodo foveat, quomodo provehat, quomodo amplexetur, quomodo delicta electae juventutis, et paleas ignorantiarum ejus ignis ille consumens, ipsam purgatissimam et suo amore dignissimam reddat. Cernere est in Cherubin, qui plenitudo scientiae dicuntur, Deum scientiarum dominum esse, qui solus solam nesciat ignorantiam, qui totus sit lux, et tenebrae in eo non sint ullae; totus sit oculus, et qui minime aliquando fallitur, quia minime clauditur; qui extra se non quaerat lumen, cui admoveatur ut videat, ipse qui videt, ipse unde videt. Cernere est in Thronis, quam non suspectus omni innocentiae judex sedeat in his, qui circumvenire nolit, circumveniri non possit; quippe sic amans, et sic videns. Nec vacat sessio: tranquillitatis insigne est. De vultu tali judicium meum prodeat opto, cui insit amor, error absit, absit et perturbatio. Cernere est in Dominationibus, quantae sit Dominus majestatis, cujus nutu imperium constat, et imperio universitas atque aeternitas termini sunt. Cernere est in Principatibus principium ex quo omnia; et quomodo a cardine ostium, sic ab ipso regi universitatem. Cernere est in Potestatibus, quam potestative idem princeps quos regit, protegit, contrarias potestates arcens et propulsans.
Cernere est in Virtutibus unam ubique aequaliter praesto esse virtutem, per quam omnia, vivificam, efficacem, invisibilem, immobilemque, omnia tamen moventem utiliter, tenentem fortiter: quae cum in minus usitata effecta apud mortales eruperit, miracula sive prodigia vocant. Cernere postremo et mirari est in Angelis et Archangelis veritatem atque experientiam vocis illius, Quoniam ipsi cura est de nobis; qui talium nos et tantorum non desinit jucundare visitationibus, instruere revelationibus, suggestionibus commonere, sedulitate solatiari.
Scripture echoes
- ↩Col.1.16 — For in him all things were created, in the heavens and on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities — all things have been created through him and for him.
- ↩Eph.1.21 — far above every rule and authority and power and dominion and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come
- ↩Luke.1.26 — In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee whose name was Nazareth,
- ↩Luke.21.25-Luke.21.26 — There will be signs in the sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, Luke.21.26 — People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
- ↩Phil.4.7 — And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
- ↩Isa.6.1;Ps.9.4-Ps.9.7 — In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of his robe filled the temple. Ps.9.4 — When my enemies turn back, they stumble and perish before you. Ps.9.5 — For you have upheld my right and my case; you sat on the throne, judging righteously. Ps.9.6 — You rebuked the nations, you destroyed the wicked; you blotted out their name forever and ever. Ps.9.7 — The enemy has come to an end — ruins forever; and the cities you uprooted — their memory has perished.
- ↩Rom.12.2 — And do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.
- ↩Ps.90.10 — The days of our years in them are seventy years, or if in strength, eighty years; and their pride is toil and trouble, for it is soon cut off, and we fly away.
Notes
- 1 ↩Conflated allusion to Matthew 18:10 ('their angels always see the face of my Father') with Hebrews 1:14 and Acts 12:15; the internal quote is scriptural in tone and rendered accordingly.
- 2 ↩Allusion to Luke 1:26 (the Annunciation), where Gabriel is sent to Mary.
- 3 ↩Quoted spans echo Luke 21:25 ('there will be signs in the sun, moon and stars' and 'the powers of heaven will be shaken'); rendered with familiar scriptural cadence.
De consideratione (On Consideration) companion
Make consideration a daily appointment
Bernard told Eugene to set aside time every day. Chosen Portion holds that time for you, free.
Bernard's core prescription — a fixed daily time reserved for examining the soul — is exactly the habit Chosen Portion installs with its daily devotional portion.
- One 10-minute daily portion for self-examination and prayer
- Reflection prompts drawn from historic texts, not improvised journaling
- A visible streak that protects the daily interval Bernard insisted on