A chunky Norman-esque font (1868) by R.R.Banks & C.Barry Jr at All Saints, #Helmsley. Font spire by George Pace.

An usually “high” church for a rural parish in the York diocese, with fine devotions (in glass and murals) to the northern saints #Aelred, #Cuthbert and #Aidan.

#fontsonFriday

Whenever #Aelred felt his sexual desire for beautiful men was getting out of hand, he would submerge himself in a tank of icy water. His love for Simon was erotic if, perhaps, unconsummated. After Simon’s death, Aelred wrote that Simon was torn

A glorious day at a favourite place. #Rievaulx #Aelred #DeSpiritaliAmicitia #SpeculumCaritatis

On the traditional Feast of St #Aelred, abbot of Revesby and #Rievaulx, a brief extract from his first great work, “The Mirror of Charity”, commissioned by no less a person than St Bernard of Clairvaux. Here he portrays Christ at the apex of the “spiritual ark, alone in his beauty, without peer.”

Three Kinds of Love This article is a continuation of one I wrote a couple years ago based on the teachings of Aelred of Rievaulx. Aelred was a Cistercian monk and theologian who lived on both sides of the Scottish/En…

Following on from the essay I shared yesterday about Aelred’s threefold love, I look at each one in more detail. In the first love the soul is recollected within itself, in the second love it is extended outside itself, in the third love it is lifted up beyond itself. #Aelred #Love #Contemplation

To Love Yourself is the Beginning of Wisdom Aelred of Rievaulx, in his book The Mirror of Charity, talks about a threefold understanding of love within the soul. He takes this from that famous line of Jesus: “‘Love the Lord your God with all…

To love ourselves is to love our neighbor, to love our neighbor is to love God, and to love God is to love ourselves. Though these three loves are distinct, a marvelous bond exists between them...Click the thumbnail to read more... #Aelred #Love #Contemplation