Bernard of Auvergne
French Dominican theologian and bishop-elect of Clermont
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Bernard of Auvergne was a French Dominican theologian and philosopher who was the bishop-elect of Clermont from 1304 to 1307. He is known for his defence of Thomism. [citation needed]
Life
Bernard was a native of Gannat. He entered the Dominican Order at Clermont.[1][2]
As a Bachelor of Theology,[3] Bernard lectured on Peter Lombard's Sentences at the University of Paris at an unknown date.[4] It is unknown, however, he ever became a regent master. In 1302 or 1303, he became the prior of the convent of Saint-Jacques in Paris.[5] In 1303, he led the convent in opposing Pope Boniface VIII's bull Unam sanctam.[1][3] In 1304, he was elected to succeed Peter of Auvergne as bishop of Clermont. His election was disputed and ultimately quashed by Pope Clement V in 1307.[5]
Works
Bernard was a Thomist and a staunch defender of Thomas Aquinas against his critics, for which he earned the nickname Malleus (hammer).[1] His commentary on the Sentences is partially extant in a Prague manuscript copy covering only the first book.[6][7] It was printed at Lyon in 1519. Among his other works are five questions he answered in a public disputation and four sermons he preached between 1301 and 1305.[1] In addition, an anonymous impugnatio (attack) against Giles of Rome is often but not universally attributed to him.[6]
Bernard's most important writings are his three reprobationes, also called impugnationes or improbationes.[5] These were "hostile reviews" or "impugnments" responding to some of the quodlibetal answers of Godfrey of Fontaines, James of Viterbo and Henry of Ghent.[8] They were composed in that order. The reprobatio to Godfrey was written between 1298 and 1304 and that to Henry was finished by 1315.[6] The reprobationes were widely read, being cited by John Capreolus, Peter of Palude, Henry of Herford, James of Metz, Hervaeus Natalis, Durand of Saint-Pourçain, John Baconthorpe, Michael of Massa and Giovanni Pico della Mirandola. Two full and four fragmentary manuscript copies of the reprobatio to Godfrey are known; five copies of the reprobatio to James; and nine of that of Henry.[9]
Against Godfrey and Henry, Bernard defends Aquinas' metaphysical notion of the composition of essence and existence.[10] With Godfrey, he critiques James of Viterbo's notion of divine ideas whereby they have a separate existence from God himself while not actual existence until created.[11] On economic questions, Bernard rejects Henry of Ghent's defence of money-changing (campsoria) as too involved. The ethical money-changer (campsor) is justly compensated for his services and there is no more that needs to be said. He also rejects Henry's early view of rents, arguing that a rental contract created a transferrable "right to receive money" (ius percipiendi pecuniam). Henry himself eventual yielded to this view.[12]