| Saint Alberic | |
|---|---|
The Virgin Mary, patroness of the Order, gives St. Alberic the white Cistercian Cuculla |
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| Founder of the Cistercian Order | |
| Born | Cîteaux |
| Died | 26 January 1109 |
| Honored in | Roman Catholicism |
| Feast | 26 January |
| Patronage | Cistercian Order |
Saint Albéric of Cîteaux (died January 26, 1108), sometimes known as Aubrey of Cîteaux, was a Christian saint and abbot, one of the founders of the Cistercian Order.
Albéric was a hermit in the forest of Collan in France who, along with five other hermits, invited Saint Robert of Molesme to begin a new monastery with them that would operate under the Rule of St. Benedict. Robert led these hermits to the forest of Molesme and established a religious settlement there in 1075, Molesme Abbey. Robert served as the first abbot, and Albéric as the prior. However, as the settlement's fame grew, gifts came in, and this new wealth attracted new monks who were eager to change the Rule and to be lax. The Molesmes community was divided, and the monks opposed Robert and Albéric. Robert twice left the monastery to live as a hermit, and twice the pope ordered him back to his community. During one absence of Robert, the brothers imprisoned Albéric so that they might have their way.
In 1093, Robert left again, and Albéric and Stephen Harding left with him. The Bishop of Langres commanded Albéric back to Molesme. He returned, but he made no headway with the corrupt brothers. In 1098, twenty-one more monks left Molesme to join Robert, Albéric, and Stephen Harding, and Robert now obtained permission to found a new monastery. He was given an inaccessible piece of land at Cîteaux and founded the new monastery, Cîteaux Abbey.
Initially, as at Molesme, Robert was the abbot of Cîteaux, with Albéric as the prior. However, the monks of Molesme petitioned Robert to return to them and vowed obedience to the Rule of St. Benedict. In 1100, Robert left Cîteaux, and Albéric became the new abbot. Under Albéric, the Rule of St. Benedict was made even more austere. He introduced the use of a white cowl to the monks, and, in iconographic art, the white cowl is his emblem.
His feast day in the Roman Catholic Church is January 26.