Crisóstomo Henríquez
Encyclopedia
Crisóstomo Henríquez was a Cistercian religious and church historian
of the Spanish Congregation working in the Low Countries.
in 1594. At the age of thirteen, after having finished his humanities, he entered the Cistercian Abbey of Huerta, Spain, where he received the religious habit
, and in 1612 was admitted to profession. He was then sent by his superiors to different monasteries of the order, where he studied successively philosophy and theology under the most eminent professors. During his studies he manifested a marked aptitude and taste for historical research; while yet a student, he published his first work, the "History of the Monastery of Meyra".
Having completed his studies, he returned to Huerta. During this time his parents had left Spain to take up their residence at the court of the Archduke Albert
, Habsburg Governor of Flanders (i.e. the Spanish Netherlands) and at their request this prince wrote to the general superior of the Cistercian Congregation of Spain to ask that Henríquez be sent to the Low Countries
. The general acceded to this petition and Henríquez left Spain, never to see it again.
He now received from his superiors the command to write the history of the Cistercian Order. With this end in view, he visited the various Belgian monasteries, especially those of Aulne
, Villers
and Dunes Abbey — then the most flourishing in all Europe — consulting their libraries, studying their archives and seeking all the information obtainable for the realization of his great project; everywhere he received cordial co-operation, his amiable character having won the sympathy and goodwill of all.
He died on 23 December 1632, at Louvain
, which still has the major Catholic university in the Low Countries. He was considered an exemplary religious from every point of view, his knowledge was only equaled by his humility and his submission to his superiors unqualified, while his agreeable demeanor gained for him the affection of all. His superiors were lavish in bestowing on him marks of esteem and honourable titles. He was appointed successively historian of the Spanish Congregation of the Cistercian Order, afterwards vicar-general of the same congregation and finally Grand Prior
of the Military Order of Calatrava.
From 1619 until 1632 he published upwards of forty separate works in Latin, Spanish and Dutch, chief among them being
His "Menologium
Cisterciense" (in folio) was his principal work; in the first volume he gives the lives of Cistercians notable for their sanctity, while the second volume contains the rule, the constitutions and privileges of the order, with a history of the founding of the military orders thereunto attached. It was through him, too, that portraits were engraved of very many of the beatified and other illustrious members of the Cistercian Order, for the honour and glory of which he never ceased to labour during his brief life.
All his works are written in a style at once elegant and concise, and manifest a profound erudition. Nevertheless, they are not wholly without fault: Claude Chalemot, Cistercian Abbot of La Colombe abbey (France), an esteemed historian, reproaches him omitting many saints of the order and inserting persons in his menology who have no right to be there, either because they did not merit it or because they were never clothed with the Cistercian habit. Another fault is that he does not always give the dates with exactitude.
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
of the Spanish Congregation working in the Low Countries.
Biography
He was born at MadridMadrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
in 1594. At the age of thirteen, after having finished his humanities, he entered the Cistercian Abbey of Huerta, Spain, where he received the religious habit
Religious habit
A religious habit is a distinctive set of garments worn by members of a religious order. Traditionally some plain garb recognisable as a religious habit has also been worn by those leading the religious eremitic and anachoritic life, although in their case without conformity to a particular uniform...
, and in 1612 was admitted to profession. He was then sent by his superiors to different monasteries of the order, where he studied successively philosophy and theology under the most eminent professors. During his studies he manifested a marked aptitude and taste for historical research; while yet a student, he published his first work, the "History of the Monastery of Meyra".
Having completed his studies, he returned to Huerta. During this time his parents had left Spain to take up their residence at the court of the Archduke Albert
Albert VII, Archduke of Austria
Archduke Albert VII of Austria was, jointly with his wife, the Infanta Isabella Clara Eugenia, sovereign of the Habsburg Netherlands between 1598 and 1621, ruling the Habsburg territories in the southern Low Countries and the north of modern France...
, Habsburg Governor of Flanders (i.e. the Spanish Netherlands) and at their request this prince wrote to the general superior of the Cistercian Congregation of Spain to ask that Henríquez be sent to the Low Countries
Low Countries
The Low Countries are the historical lands around the low-lying delta of the Rhine, Scheldt, and Meuse rivers, including the modern countries of Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and parts of northern France and western Germany....
. The general acceded to this petition and Henríquez left Spain, never to see it again.
He now received from his superiors the command to write the history of the Cistercian Order. With this end in view, he visited the various Belgian monasteries, especially those of Aulne
Aulne Abbey
Aulne Abbey was a Cistercian monastery between Thuin and Landelies on the Sambre in the Bishopric of Liège in Belgium.-History:Originally it was a Benedictine monastery, founded by Saint Landelinus about 637. Before 974 the Benedictines were replaced by secular clerics leading a common life, who,...
, Villers
Villers Abbey
Villers Abbey is an ancient Cistercian abbey located near the town of Villers-la-Ville in the Brabant province of Wallonia , one piece of the Wallonia's Major Heritage. Founded in 1146, the abbey was abandoned in 1796...
and Dunes Abbey — then the most flourishing in all Europe — consulting their libraries, studying their archives and seeking all the information obtainable for the realization of his great project; everywhere he received cordial co-operation, his amiable character having won the sympathy and goodwill of all.
He died on 23 December 1632, at Louvain
Leuven
Leuven is the capital of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region, Belgium...
, which still has the major Catholic university in the Low Countries. He was considered an exemplary religious from every point of view, his knowledge was only equaled by his humility and his submission to his superiors unqualified, while his agreeable demeanor gained for him the affection of all. His superiors were lavish in bestowing on him marks of esteem and honourable titles. He was appointed successively historian of the Spanish Congregation of the Cistercian Order, afterwards vicar-general of the same congregation and finally Grand Prior
Prior
Prior is an ecclesiastical title, derived from the Latin adjective for 'earlier, first', with several notable uses.-Monastic superiors:A Prior is a monastic superior, usually lower in rank than an Abbot. In the Rule of St...
of the Military Order of Calatrava.
Works
(incomplete list)From 1619 until 1632 he published upwards of forty separate works in Latin, Spanish and Dutch, chief among them being
- "Thesaurus Evangelicus vel Relatio Illustrium Virorum Ordinis Cisterciensis in Hibernia", about famous Irish Cistercians, which was among his earliest works
- "Sol Cisterciensis in Belgio", or "History of men remarkable for their virtues and miracles of the Abbey of Villers, so fruitful in saints"
- "Fasciculus SS. O. C.", where he recounts the lives of the patriarchPatriarchOriginally a patriarch was a man who exercised autocratic authority as a pater familias over an extended family. The system of such rule of families by senior males is called patriarchy. This is a Greek word, a compound of πατριά , "lineage, descent", esp...
s, prelatePrelateA prelate is a high-ranking member of the clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin prælatus, the past participle of præferre, which means "carry before", "be set above or over" or "prefer"; hence, a prelate is one set over others.-Related...
s, abbotAbbotThe word abbot, meaning father, is a title given to the head of a monastery in various traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not actually the head of a monastery...
s, defenders of the Faith and martyrMartyrA martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for refusing to renounce, or accept, a belief or cause, usually religious.-Meaning:...
s of the order, and also speaks of the origin of the military orders - "Coronae Sacrae O. C." 'Sacred Crowns', in which he gives the lives of queens and princesses who had renounced the world in order to be clothed with the Cistercian habit.
- In his "Bernardus Immaculatus" he explains and justifies the opinion of St. BernardBernard of ClairvauxBernard of Clairvaux, O.Cist was a French abbot and the primary builder of the reforming Cistercian order.After the death of his mother, Bernard sought admission into the Cistercian order. Three years later, he was sent to found a new abbey at an isolated clearing in a glen known as the Val...
concerning the Immaculate ConceptionImmaculate ConceptionThe Immaculate Conception of Mary is a dogma of the Roman Catholic Church, according to which the Virgin Mary was conceived without any stain of original sin. It is one of the four dogmata in Roman Catholic Mariology...
, the sanctification of St. John the Baptist and the beatitude of the elect before the general resurrection. - In "Phoenix Reviviscens" 'Resurging Phoenix' he gives interesting notices of ancient Cistercian authors in England and modern ones of Spain. In this work he also gives a short autobiographical sketch.
His "Menologium
Menologium
Menologion , also written menology and menologe, is a service-book used in the Eastern Orthodox Church and those Eastern Catholic Churches which follow the Rite of Constantinople.From its derivation, menologium means "month-set"; in other words, a book arranged according to the months...
Cisterciense" (in folio) was his principal work; in the first volume he gives the lives of Cistercians notable for their sanctity, while the second volume contains the rule, the constitutions and privileges of the order, with a history of the founding of the military orders thereunto attached. It was through him, too, that portraits were engraved of very many of the beatified and other illustrious members of the Cistercian Order, for the honour and glory of which he never ceased to labour during his brief life.
All his works are written in a style at once elegant and concise, and manifest a profound erudition. Nevertheless, they are not wholly without fault: Claude Chalemot, Cistercian Abbot of La Colombe abbey (France), an esteemed historian, reproaches him omitting many saints of the order and inserting persons in his menology who have no right to be there, either because they did not merit it or because they were never clothed with the Cistercian habit. Another fault is that he does not always give the dates with exactitude.