Having
endured the winter of 1133 at Skelldale, the community sought affiliation
with the Cistercian Order, in order to receive the
guidance and support of the Cistercian family, instead of functioning
in isolation. The monks decided to subject themselves to Clairvaux Abbey,
in Burgundy. They sent a letter to the abbey’s charismatic
leader, Bernard, explaining
their departure from St Mary’s,
their present situation and hopes for the future. They hoped that
Clairvaux would be their mother and Bernard their father, who would
advise and support them in all matters. Bernard responded with
a positive and encouraging letter, fully approving of their decisions
and commending their way of life.(33) In
1135 the community was formally welcomed within the Cistercian
family.
You have grown hot again
with the fire of God, grown strong from weakness, bloomed afresh in holiness.
This is the finger of God working subtly a wholesome change, not turning
bad men into good, but good men into better.
[from Bernard of Clairvaux’s letter to Abbot Richard of Fountains.]
Membership of the Cistercian
Order
As members of the Cistercian family, the Fountains community now
had an identity and a sense of belonging to this large and highly-renowned
movement which, it was claimed, offered the surest path to salvation.
This would have surely boosted the community’s flagging morale.
Incorporation within the Order also brought security of sorts and,
more importantly, the support of the Cistercian family. On a more
practical level, the monks were now expected to follow Cistercian
customs to the letter, for the Order was greatly concerned to uphold
unity and uniformity of practice. This meant that every aspect
of daily life was highly regulated, from the clothes that the monks
wore to the food and drink that was served, the celebration of
the Divine Office and,
not least of all, the layout and design of their buildings. Bernard
sent one of his monks, Geoffrey
of Ainai, to instruct the Skelldale community on all manners
of Cistercian life. Geoffrey was an experienced instructor who
had visited a
number of monasteries that had subjected themselves to Clairvaux,
to teach them Cistercian customs. The account of his visit to Fountains
shows how precisely the Order sought to implement unity and uniformity
of practice across Europe. Geoffrey was allegedly extremely impressed
by the piety and devotion of this Yorkshire community, and under
his guidance, the monks learnt how to celebrate the Canonical
Hours and to construct their buildings in accordance
with Cistercian practice. An exciting discovery was made at Fountains
during the
excavations of 1979-80, when these early wooden buildings were
recovered beneath the site of the present south transept.(34)Hugh
of Kirkstall, the author of the foundation history of Fountains,
had not at this point entered the Cistercian life, but nonetheless
knew of Geoffrey whom he describes as aged, devout and ‘strenuous
in matters human and divine.’(35)
