Stephen Harding: A Biographical Sketch and Texts (review)

The title of this book clearly states what the reader can expect: namely, a biographical sketch of St. Stephen Harding, the third abbot of Cîteaux, with five important source pieces that can be definitely attributed to him, in Latin and English with a solid accompanying critical apparatus. It is, as the author states, “a collection of working material,” a firm place on which all further work on this extraordinary man and his place in the history of Cistercian monasticism can build.

Claudio Stercal, a professor at the Facoltà teologica dell’Italia Settentrionale in Milan and author of several studies on St. Bernard of Clairvaux and Cistercian spirituality, in this work, originally published in Italian in 2001, offers a brief study of the principal facts of Harding’s life and influence on the development of the Cistercian ideals. For an individual who contributed so significantly to the future of Cistercian monasticism through his emphasis on a return to a fundamental observance of the Rule of St. Benedict; his desire to obtain the purest form of the Vulgate Bible; his seeking the use of liturgical hymns sung in the sixth and seventh century; and his contributions to the Cistercian constitution, the Carta Caritatis, much remains debatable about the facts of his life. Born in the early 1060s, closely associated with Cîteaux from its origins and third abbot of the house from 1108 to 1133, and dying in 1134, he was very important in shaping the Cistercians from an early period in the existence of the order through his working with other leaders of the congregation and through his exemplary life. Following the perception of Thomas Merton and others, one finds that he and the first and second abbots of the house, Robert of Molesme and Alberic, formed a foundational trinity of immense importance for the future, but especially valuable was the life and work of Harding.

The strengths of this book are many, particularly its clear, succinct presentation of the roots and early development of Cîteaux. Also notable is its clear indication of the problems arising from lack of data or contradictions as, for example, the difficulty in determining the authorship of the Carta Caritatis in its various redactions. The book also nicely manages to keep its focus on the central importance for Harding of the Rule of St. Benedict, resulting in an extraordinary revitalization of Benedictine life by a return to its essence.

The principal deficiency is the failure to give more attention to the contributions of St. Bernard of Clairvaux. Stercal does indicate some significant differences between Harding and St. Bernard, but does not develop the subject as much as it deserves. Yet one must be grateful for what the book achieves. Highly readable in an excellent translation by Martha F.Krieg, it will serve future scholars well on so important a subject, through, for example, its double bibliography—one ordering studies chronologically, the other listing the studies alphabetically by name of the author. There is much yet to be said about Harding and the Cistercian roots, but Stercal has provided in this little book much assistance in having this important material studied more fully.