Christian History Home > Issue 49 > Warrior Spirituality
Warrior Spirituality
Princes and knights were expected to be men of noble character, military prowess, and deep Christian faith.
John Sommerfeldt is professor of history at the University of Dallas in Irving, Texas. He is the author of "The Spiritual Teachings of Bernard of Clairvaux" (Cistercian). | posted 1/01/1996 12:00AM
Toward the end of the tenth century, Adalberon, bishop of Laon, wrote, “There is a noble class which comprises the warriors and protectors of the churches. They defend all the people, great and small, and, incidentally, protect themselves.”
This class was no group of ruffians looking for a fight, at least not after the dynamic reformation that swept through Europe from roughly 1000 to 1300. Like the sixteenth-century Reformation, this movement sought to restore the values of the early church. In regard to the warrior class, it encouraged the rise of chivalry and the glorification of the Christian knight.
Though only an elite few became knights, nearly every medieval person had contact with them. Furthermore, the values of the ruling class, composed of princes and knights, permeated society.
Servant Warriors
Bishop Adalberon also wrote this: “The city of God we believe is not only one but subdivided into three parts: some pray, others fight, and still others work.… The service of each allows ... To view this item, you must be a member of ChristianHistory.net.
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