La legge della salvezza: Bernardo di Clairvaux e il diritto monastico

Starting from the analysis of Bernard’s of Clairvaux work De praecepto et dispensatione,the article focuses on the ancient and medieval regulae vivendiin order to demonstrate that they represent a specific form of normativity, absolutely different from the classical roman jusand the medieval canon law. I analyze the peculiar way in which Bernard tried to describe the particular normative logic of the Rule of Benedict from the point of view of a western legal history of longue durée.In comparison with the civil law and the ecclesiastical legislation, a “rule of life” (regula vitae) is a special form of law which extends to the complete life of the individual, not a single moment. The juridical institution of the vow has an important place in this special normative logic.