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Fountains Abbey: History
Fountains Abbey: Buildings
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Visitors Gerald of Wales, a harsh critic of the Cistercians, noted their generosity as hosts but questioned their means of supporting this. For Gerald, the end did not justify the means, and to underline his point, he evoked the scene at Judgement Day: What shall they answer who
seize other men’s goods and have then given
them away in alms? They will say: ‘O Lord, in thy name we have done
charitable deeds, we have fed the poor, clothed the naked, received
the stranger at the gate.’ The Lord will answer: ‘You speak
of what you have given away, but you do not mention the fact that
you have stolen
it in the first place. You are mindful of those whom you have fed,
but you have forgotten those whom you have destroyed. |