Aelred+of+Rielvaux

Brett Aelred of Rievaulx- -who- cistercian monk living in England -when- lived from 1109-1167 joined monastery at age of 24 in 1133 -significance- stands as an example of what the cistercian monks stood for. He joined during adulthood, which is when the order would recruit most of its monks, and most of his writings dealt with spirituality. One of his writings, Mirror of Charity, was written upon request by Bernard of Clairvaux. Suffering and passion, to suffer for the embrace of higher being, love 'til death implying morbidity and suffering 'til death, were core elements of the cistercian order which Aelred lived by.