Letters475 Letter CDLXXV. To the Chancellor S.

To the honourable and noble S., the Chancellor, Bernard), Abbot of Clairvaux, health in the Lord.

God has bestowed upon you much property in this world.

But among things temporal and earthly the great danger that you have to fear is lest, if you make no provision for the safety of your soul by means of these things, you should lose those things which are heavenly and eternal for the sake of those which are transitory and perishable.

1 [I. e, of entering a monastery.]

2 [There were two Abbeys of this name: one in Flanders (Nord) the other in Champagne (Aube). The latter is probably) meant here. (E.)]

Allow me simply to suggest to your prudence that I am desirous to separate some *....

from the rest of our brethren and to construct an Abbey. If then you are willing to build, retaining both them and their habitation, which you are easily able to do, be so good as to notify me by a letter from you by the bearer of this. And in truth you ought to bear in mind that it is for no other end that you have lately been warned from above, by the great weakness of which I have heard, that by this, or some other good work, you should provide a means of help for your soul, which is struggling among the deceptive pleasures of this world.