The author analyses and interprets the ethos of a knight-monk in the context of theology of war included in the Rule of the Knights Templar and the writings by Bernard of Clairvaux. He refers to theological, cultural and moral aspects of the life in the Middle Ages. His presentation of the features of a monk and a Christian soldier shows similarities between the two lifestyles. The Order of the Knights Templar was based on i ght and obedience. These two elements can also be found in the life of a religious. Feudal and ecclesiastical hierarchy were based on obedience, i ghting was also part of a monk’s life. A religious was obliged to i ght, however, not against ‘l esh and blood’. He was to combat his carnal desires and be constantly alert.The Rule of the Knights Templar combined the elements of a contemplative and active lives, which made it a crucial document in the history of the Church. It attempted at creating a coherent ethos of a warrior-monk. Its authors aimed at giving the Knights Templar the tools to combine the earthly, ‘material’ and spiritual life, putting the emphasis on temperance. It was not possible for them to lead the life modelled upon the life of the secular knights and enjoy its pleasures and exaggerate mortii cations and the zeal in prayer.
In 2011, a sensational discovery was made in the former Cistercian presbytery in Cieplice Slaskie Zdroj (Warmbrunn), currently a district of the city of Jelenia Gora (Hirschberg) in Silesia: a collection of almost 90 baroque frescoes was discovered beneath layers of plaster. Among these was a cycle of estimated 54 paintings (only 26 were actually uncovered) dedicated to the persona of St. Bernard of Clairvaux. The renovation and partial reconstruction work conducted in 2012 revealed what is in all probability the most numerous set of painterly representations of the legend of Doctor Mellifluus in Central Europe. Moreover, the circumstances of the creation of these paintings throw new light on the baroque iconography of the Cistercian patron in the region.
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