Bernard of Clairvaux and the Knights Templar: The New Knighthood as a Solution to Violence in Christianity
By Nicholas A. Boysel
Master of Arts, University of Akron, History, 2009
Abstract: This thesis examines the origins of the crusader ideology and how the Knights Templar were formed from this mindset. Using writings from Bernard of Clairvaux and other religious and secular writers of the time, this thesis will examine how the crusades were originally meant to redeem Europe from its violent nature, not to extend that violence. In this way, the crusades were intended to be a military pilgrimage of penance for the men who participated, a way of channeling the evil of their violence into a godly purpose. It was this idea that Bernard latched onto when he aided in the forming of the Templar order.
Bernard of Clairvaux and the Knights Templar: The New Knighthood as a Solution to Violence in Christianity
By Nicholas A. Boysel
Master of Arts, University of Akron, History, 2009
Abstract: This thesis examines the origins of the crusader ideology and how the Knights Templar were formed from this mindset. Using writings from Bernard of Clairvaux and other religious and secular writers of the time, this thesis will examine how the crusades were originally meant to redeem Europe from its violent nature, not to extend that violence. In this way, the crusades were intended to be a military pilgrimage of penance for the men who participated, a way of channeling the evil of their violence into a godly purpose. It was this idea that Bernard latched onto when he aided in the forming of the Templar order.
Click here to read this thesis from OhioLink
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