Why write in poetry rather than in prose according to Bernard of Cluny

Bernard of Cluny on Poetry vs. Prose

In the prologue to his satirical poem De contemptu mundi, Bernard of Cluny explicitly explains why he chose verse rather than prose. He argues that a wise author should not simply “publish” their work without first refining it through the scrutiny of others, and that poetry demands a higher standard of craftsmanship than prose. 

Bernard writes that a prudent writer should correct their style by comparing it with the works of the wise, and that if one refuses to submit to such correction, one shows both folly and pride. He notes that “the wise and learned” learn from the eloquence of others, imitate their structure, and refine their own work through polishing, ornamentation, and correction. In contrast, those who publish without such care “are not even taken seriously by the uneducated”

"Bernard of Cluny (also known as Bernard of Morlaix) was a twelfth-century Benedictine monk and one of the greatest Latin hymn writers of the Middle Ages. Although very little is known about his personal life, he is believed to have been born in France early in the twelfth century, possibly at Morlaix in Brittany, though his exact place of origin remains uncertain. Tradition holds that he was of English parentage and spent most, if not all, of his adult life in the famous Abbey of Cluny under the leadership of Peter the Venerable. At that time, Cluny was the most influential monastery in Western Europe, renowned for its magnificent church, elaborate liturgical worship, immense wealth, and large monastic community. It was within this environment of both religious devotion and material splendor that Bernard composed the work for which he is remembered.

Bernard's lasting fame rests almost entirely on his monumental Latin poem De Contemptu Mundi ("On the Contempt of the World"), a satirical and devotional masterpiece of approximately 3,000 lines. Written in an exceptionally difficult form of Latin verse known as Leonine dactylic hexameter, the poem denounces the moral corruption, greed, hypocrisy, and spiritual decay of the medieval world while directing the reader's attention to the eternal glory of heaven. Bernard himself confessed that such a demanding work could only have been completed through the direct help of the Holy Spirit, humbly attributing its composition not to his own skill but to divine wisdom.

The central theme of De Contemptu Mundi is the contrast between the fleeting pleasures of this present world and the everlasting joy awaiting God's people in the heavenly Jerusalem. Bernard vividly portrays the vanity of earthly riches, the certainty of divine judgment, the horrors of hell, and the incomparable beauty of the celestial city. His vision is deeply biblical, calling Christians to live as pilgrims whose true citizenship is in heaven rather than being captivated by the passing attractions of this life. While the poem contains severe denunciations of sin and sobering warnings of judgment, it also offers profound hope by pointing believers to the eternal rest and glory prepared for the redeemed. "

Bernard of Cluny - Hymn Writer Biography | Hymnal Library

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My Chat with OpenAI about my bridesmaid dress made of Chrystalline

"I wore a bridesmaid dress in 1955 and Chrystalline was the name of the fabric. My mother made it. It was sheer yet opaque, but not fragile. It glistened and didn't wrinkle as quickly as organdy. She was quite excited about it. Beautiful selection of colors."  That was my question to Open AI. It said it didn't exist, I pushed back.

"You're right to push back — I was wrong to say it wasn't a fabric name. Based on your description, the fabric was almost certainly crystal organza (sometimes sold under the name "crystalline organza" or simply "crystalline").

Here's why it fits perfectly:

Sheer yet opaque: Organza is sheer in a single layer but has a crisp, stiff body that makes it read as more substantial than chiffon or net — especially over a lining, as a bridesmaid dress would have.

Not fragile: The crystalline surface texture (a slightly rough, faceted weave) gives it more body and tear resistance than soft cotton organdy.

Glistened: The crystalline texture catches light from multiple angles, producing a natural twinkle — no glitter or metallic thread needed.

Didn't wrinkle as quickly as organdy: The stiffness of the weave means it holds its shape better than cotton organdy, which creases sharply.

Beautiful selection of colors: By 1955, synthetic-fiber organza (nylon or early polyester) was available in a wide range of bright, saturated colors that cotton organdy couldn't match.

Mother was excited: This was a relatively new synthetic fabric. In 1955, a home sewer finding a fabric that was sheer, lustrous, wrinkle-resistant, and sturdy enough to hold a full skirt shape would have been genuinely thrilled — it was the "new" fabric, the one that made the New Look silhouette easier to achieve at home.

The vintage fabric trade still uses the term: a 1950s dress listed on a vintage shop is described as "glistening strawberry glacé crystalline organza," and a vintage piece of sheer fabric on eBay is literally labeled "crystalline." It was a real, named fabric, not just a design motif.

So your mother was sewing with one of the exciting new synthetics of the mid-1950s — a fabric that gave a home-sewn bridesmaid dress the glisten and structure of couture."

"The Love of God" by Bernari Rascas

In November's poetry class we're looking at the theme "nature" which is certainly wide open for interpretation from changing color to turkey to family gatherings. Today I found this one, appropriate for the last month of politics, intrigue and tech disasters. Now I'll have to do some research on both the writer and the translator.

FROM THE PROVENCAL OF BERNARI RASCAS, translated by William Cullen Bryant.

All things that are on earth shall wholly pass away,
Except the love of God, which shall live and last for aye.
The forms of men shall be as they had never been;
The blasted groves shall lose their fresh and tender green;
The birds of the thicket shall end their pleasant song,
And the nightingale shall cease to chant the evening long.
The kine of the pasture shall feel the dart that kills,
And all the fair white flocks shall perish from the hills.
The goat and antlered stag, the wolf and the fox,
The wild boar of the wood, and the chamois of the rocks,
And the strong and fearless bear, in the trodden dust shall lie,
And the dolphin of the sea, and the mighty whale, shall die.
And realms shall be dissolved, and empires be no more,
And they shall bow to death, who ruled from shore to shore;
And the great globe itself, (so the holy writings tell,)
With the rolling firmament, where the starry armies dwell,
Shall melt with fervent heat--they shall all pass away,
Except the love of God, which shall live and last for aye.

Sunset Serenade

"Sunset Serenade" with Roy Rogers and Gabby Hayes. Took a break here at The Estates from the crazy Democrats caught in a trap by the Democratic Socialists and Communists trying to steal their party tonight with a movie from 1942 when we were fighting bad guys across the pond instead of in the Swamp.

The crazies among us

For political gain some still trot out the Epstein files when they refused to be upset about the missing children used in sex and labor trafficking during the flood of illegals crossing our borders during the Biden years

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Many seem to be the same ilk who think men should share women's locker rooms. Stealing sports scholarships to give to men that should go to women, well, that's OK.

Threatening death (again) to free speech and truth advocates like Charlie Kirk is just a giggle fest for some female gag-hag podcasters called Jennifer Welch and Angie Sullivan.

And don't even get me going on the women who swoon over a handsome murderer or line up to cheer on a woman who strangled 3 children but would be horrified if someone shot a rabid dog.

The Left has a problem that goes beyond the Communists and Islamo-fascists currently taking over the Democrat party. It seems to be crazy women and the men who try to be crazy women.

Cries for Help, but no one was listening

The election came and went and neither party ever addressed the fallout of Covid. In Ohio they even elected one of the worst Covid treatment cheerleaders, Amy Acton, as our new governor, laughingly called a public health officer.

 
Who is reading "Cries for Help" which tells the story from V-Safe? The shots millions of us got "did not stop the spread. They did not prevent infection. They were not safe. They left millions injured and countless lives extinguished in the womb." And that began under Trump--and the double down and double speak began under Biden, The fraud and smears began almost immediately with crooks stealing millions from us.

 
"These are the life stories of real people as reported to the CDC through its own vaccine-safety monitoring system called V-safe. These people were not anti-vaxxers; just the opposite. Many were thrilled to step up and do their part.

 
Authorities said the potions were effective (they were not) and safe. Injuries were “very very rare” and far outweighed by the benefits, which is that you would not get and spread Covid, which was never true. It was a horrible lie.

 
Tens of millions stepped up. Then came the migraines, screaming pitches in the ears, rashes on the back and neck, welts on legs, crippling pain in the arms, racing heart and volatile blood pressure, blindness in one eye then two, numbness in the face, often followed by a full body decay that no specialist could explain.

 
The text of the system promised a callback. No one called back. Suffering people were left to languish alone, screaming into the void for help. None ever came. The CDC – on the receiving end of a tsunami of human suffering – tried to keep their stories quiet. They only released them once forced by a federal judge."

The loss of the Democrat Party

I've seen nothing this week that has changed my mind. The Democrat Party (which almost doesn't exist having been taken over by Islamofascists and Communists) is evil and the Republicans are weak (or did I say stupid--can't remember). But Republicans can still tell a man from a woman and Democrats at their core are trying to destroy the country. That hasn't changed. But when abortion is at the core of your values, what should we expect?

Who actually won? Not the Democrats.

People are saying the Republicans lost. If so then the "winners" in addition to being burdened with 40 years as anti-life baby killers, can now proudly carry the banner of anti-Semitic, anti-Israel, anti-science and anti-woman. In addition to the higher health care costs caused by Obama's policies 10 years ago, they now look forward to longer wait times at medical offices, assuming they can even find a doctor (except those removing non-diseased genitals in children). They don't even know what Communists did to agriculture in Russia and China.  They can return to being pro-fraud and don't even care if they are over-taxed so illegals can get rich and they can again feel self-righteous and virtuous to compensate for the self-loathing they feel for their race and ethnicity. They live in denial and are being held hostage by Islamofascists. They are completely ignorant about Communism and OK with shortages as their "leaders" live in the lap of luxury. They seem to love being called white supremacists and fascists and fight to move down on the ladder of excellence, preferring mediocrity and ignorant of history. Nope. They don't look like winners to me. Other than "get Trump" they haven't a single original thought, idea or value. They killed their own party.

Is this about war or affordability or Trump?

Obama was in a foreign war longer than any President in my lifetime. So why do Democrats, Communists and Islamo-fascists in the Democrat party and a large number of weak and uninformed Republicans and Independents think Trump is messing where he shouldn't be? 49 years those other presidents whined and shook a finger and rattled their cages at Iran and its proxies. So, what's the deal? Well, Trump is finally taking those men at their word.

First, they want to do away with Israel from the river to the sea, then western civilization. That means the USA. I hate all wars, whether all the civil wars in Africa that are racial, tribal and ethnic wars to Ukraine and Russia who are virtually the same family in language, religion, traditions and culture whose various monarchies and city states go back to the 800s AD. And even the culture wars going on in our communities and churches, and if we can't clean that up, whose wars should we be dabbling in?

Many voters (and non-voters who unfortunately have a big say in this) have a problem with Trump. Not war, not Gaza, not race. He is turning the post WWI power structure upside down. Who is pulling your strings and why do you think you will be better off under Communism? Surely not the strawman "affordability!" When has it ever improved the world, let alone people like you