Crisóstomo Henríquez

At the age of 13, 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 monastic profession.

He was then sent by his superiors to various monasteries of the Order, where he studied successively philosophy and theology under the most eminent professors.

With this end in view, he visited the various Belgian monasteries, especially those of Aulne, Villers, and Our Lady of the Dunes Abbey – all 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.

His knowledge was only equaled by his humility and his submission to his superiors unqualified, while his agreeable demeanor won him the affection of all.

Historian Claude Chalemot, Cistercian Abbot of La Colombe abbey, disapproves of his choices of persons to include in and exclude from his Menology.