Last Updated on August 22, 2024 by Kittredge Cherry
Blessed Bernardo Francisco de Hoyos y de Seña is an 18th-century Spanish priest who wrote vividly of his mystical gay marriage to Jesus. This queer saint was beatified in 2010 and his feast day is Nov. 29.
On Nov. 28, 2020, Q Spirit presented a new, never-before-published translation of one of Bernardo’s queer visions, plus a newly translated prayer calling upon him. These beautiful modern translations were done by Cody Hooks, who was a queer student at Harvard Divinity School. The translations are presented in full later in this article.
Bernardo (1711-1735) was 18 when he had a vision of marrying Jesus in a ceremony much like a human wedding. He described it this way:
Always holding my right hand, the Lord had me occupy the empty throne; then He fitted on my finger a gold ring…. “May this ring be an earnest of our love. You are Mine, and I am yours. You may call yourself and sign Bernardo de Jesus, thus, as I said to my spouse, Santa Teresa, you are Bernardo de Jesus and I am Jesus de Bernardo. My honor is yours; your honor is Mine. Consider My glory that of your Spouse; I will consider yours, that of My spouse. All Mine is yours, and all yours is Mine. What I am by nature you share by grace. You and I are one!”
(quoted from “The Visions of Bernard Francis De Hoyos, S.J.” by Henri Bechard, S.J.)
Bernardo’s vision inspired artist-priest William Hart McNichols to paint an icon of Bernardo’s wedding with Jesus. It is surprising to see that the sacred heart of Jesus is burning in Bernardo’s own chest.
“I was so taken with this profoundly beautiful account of Jesus’ mystical marriage with Bernardo, including all the symbols of a human wedding,” McNichols wrote.
Bernardo de Hoyos sculpture (Wikimedia Commons)
Bernardo’s experiences fit into a long tradition of “mystical marriage” comparing the soul’s union with God to a human wedding. It is also called nuptial mysticism or bridal mysticism. Other men who were honored by the church and experienced the queer “bridal mysticism” of a same-sex “mystical marriage” to Jesus include Bernard of Clairvaux, John of the Cross, and John of La Verna.
Bernardo de Hoyos was inspired by queer visions
Official Roman Catholic accounts emphasize how Bernardo went on to become “the first apostle of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Spain,” but the church downplays the queer vision that inspired him. Bernardo’s marriage with Christ can justifiably be interpreted as a “gay Jesus” story.
Bernardo lived during the so-called Golden Age of Spanish mysticism, when famous saints such as John of the Cross, Teresa of Avila and Ignatius of Loyola renewed the church by describing their intimacy with Christ.
Bernardo spent nine years in the Jesuit formation process and was ordained in January 1735. His pastoral ministry was cut short later that same year when he died of typhus on Nov. 29, 1735. Some call him a “boy saint” because he only lived to be 24. His dying words indicate that he felt the presence of his Spouse Jesus at the end. Bernardo’s last words were, “Oh, how good it is to dwell in the Heart of Jesus!”
After his death, Bernardo’s superiors preserved and circulated the journals and letters where he wrote about his spiritual life. His reputation for holiness continued to grow, but church politics slowed his path to sainthood until the 21st century. His beatification ceremony was held in April 2010 in the northwestern Spanish province of Valladolid, where Bernardo spent his entire life.
While the Catholic church refuses to bless same-sex marriages, the lives and visions of its own saints tell a far different story — in which Christ the Bridegroom gladly joins himself in marriage with a man.
Translated vision: “Bernardo, I Want You as Mine”
A newly translated portion of Bernardo’s visions is posted here for the first time online. The modern translation was done by Cody Hooks, a queer writer, editor, and gardener with roots in the South and Southwest. He is a student at Harvard Divinity School focusing on spiritual caregiving.
“This translation takes up a particular task: to excavate and elevate the queer nature of the unspeakable, mysterious love that existed between the Divine and male mystics like Bernardo,” Hooks explained. “To that end, I have chosen to translate the words ‘bride’ and ‘wife’ as ‘companion.’ I think the phrase ‘bride of Christ’ (especially as it is used for the collective of all professed Christians) is, firstly, so common as to be clichéd, and secondly, too narrow for my project of making the version of holy love in Bernard’s mystical union more available to queer spiritual seekers today.”
Here is the translation:
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For this heavenly betrothal, Jesus the Lord was readying Bernardo, his beloved servant, for the mystical union. Jesus gave him particular gifts; the first wedding favor was speaking luxuriously to Bernardo in the interior of his spirit and, like this, asking his very soul for consent to be married. The Lord said to him in the divine language and love:
“Handpicked soul of mine, I want you for my companion. I am the Son of the Eternal Father, equal and the same as Him, and from whom I come by generative creation. I am the second face of the Blessed Trinity, having the same essence as the Father and the Holy Spirit. Equal is my power, my grandeur, my immensity, my kindness, my distinctions and my perfections with the Father and the Divine Spirit. Really consider whether you want to have me for your husband, because I want you as mine.
I am God and Man, thus blessed as a Man in all the dowries corresponding to my heavenly dignity. I am the most beautiful of Men. The scriptures are full of my grandeurs. Authority over all of creation has been handed to me, being King of all that is. This beautiful machine of the Universe, with all its perfections, has grabbed hold of me like the Maker, as God and as the heir to the reign of Judah. The supreme Angels kneel before me and they adore me, knowing the dignity that I have and the infinite distance that there is between them and myself.
Vintage holy medal of Bernardo de Hoyos (Photo by Andrew Robson)
Consider, beloved soul, if it would suit you to take me as your husband, because I — who only have love for you — want to marry myself with you. Consider it well, and desire it with the desires owed, because much time is still to pass; meanwhile, I will go on preparing you and giving you lavish gifts, that will be a certain pledge. These are my favors and the first is this vision, which I have made to burn in your heart,” said Jesus to his beloved, Bernardo.
And Bernardo answered his Beloved, “The words were clear as day and deep inside me, and my soul was listening to these sweet nothings with sweet fright. Oh who has the tongue of angels to say some pretty little thing about how much happened in my soul in this moment! Now see for yourself how pleasant and full of love these recited words are. But such was the love with which he told this to me that, if his Majesty does not treasure and keep my life, it would be impossible to live.”
The Lord was waiting for the answer, but Bernardo’s confused soul, submerged in the abyss of its miseries and its own nothingness, did not know what to do, seeing with a clear light what had been communicated to him and how unworthy he was of this sovereign favor. He seemed undone and annihilated. Stunned and surprised by excessive admiration, Bernardo could not speak, as if embraced in living flames of love. And babbling, without forming a word, he was speaking in riddles and could only say: “Ecce Ancilla Domini fiat mihi secundum Verbum tuum” — “Here is the servant of the Lord, let it be done to me according to your Word.”
It is not easy to explain other such virtuous acts, to explain how, with this singular fondness, Bernardo only loved, admired, praised, magnified, thanked, adored, venerated and exalted the grandeurs of his Beloved. He was confused, annihilated and looked unworthy of such great favor.
“The effects of this proposal have been divine,” Bernardo said. “And now I had better be silent, since I am pining from love and I cannot go on.”
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The section translated here comes from Book 1, Chapter 10 of the biography written by Padre Juan de Loyola S.J., Bernardo’s spiritual director.
Translated prayer: “O Bernardo, young and kindest angel, pray for us”
Cody Hooks also translated a 19th-century Spanish prayer calling on the energies of Bernardo. It was written by Father José Eugenio de Uriarte around 1896.
“This is a prayer for centering yourself in love. To work with this prayer in the tradition of a Roman Catholic novena, as it was originally written, pray it every day for nine days. Hold in your heart a specific intention, such as the healing of someone who is sick, the wellbeing of your community, or the needs of a friend or your family. You can also pray for the needs and longings in your own heart. (The spot for making these “petitions” is marked in the prayer with a set of asterisks),” Hooks explained.
“Bernardo de Hoyos: Villagarcia novitiate, 1776-1778,” source unknown
To begin, Hooks suggests settling into a comfortable position and looking at an image of Bernardo or the Sacred Heart. Then pray:
“Holy and eternal are the divine gifts of the cosmos, and blessed is the miraculous unfolding of every form of life, made with perfection in the first instant of their creation. May it be so.”
This is followed by silent meditation and optional movement such as a bow, making the sign of the cross, or another bodily gesture that feels holy. When ready, move on to the main prayer:
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Oh Beloved Bernardo, you are the embodiment of spiritual seekers. You are the most precious jewel of your ancestors, child of perfect divinity, and my most loving protector. Open and trusting, I come to you. I come to you for your powerful, spiritual guidance. Oh Bernardo, Beloved of Jesus and Friend of the Sacred Heart of Universal Love, I contemplate the grit on your brow and the radiant crown of your soul. With all the energy with which you loved this holy and infinite presence, please bless the body, mind and soul of **my beloved** with the blessings of perfect wellness.
Bernardo, my most beloved companion, please ask our most loving Mother, Mary, to help me open myself to the eternal flow of loving-kindness you knew so well. Because of the tender relationship that you had with Her, for which she let you glimpse the cosmic mysteries, I know with every particle of my being that you receive my intentions with care.
Oh Bernardo, kindly hear my prayers. May your burning love reach those who need it. May you have your place among the saints and on the altars, helping to guide the everyday miracles and profound transformations at work in our lives. May you especially bless the sick and troubled, and those who dwell in compassion and loving-kindness. May I do what I can with what I have, and like you, may I do it always with the infinite love of the cosmos. May it be so.
Heart of Love, bless our ancestors and the generations to come.
Heart of Love, glorify our beloved Bernardo. Please hear our prayers and grant miracles to those who need them.
Heart of Love, through Holy Mary and through every cell of creation, help us soon, and may the seeds of your divine essence now blossom.
O Bernardo, young and kindest angel, pray for us.
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This prayer comes from “Vida Del P. Bernardo Francisco de Hoyos de La Compañia De Jésus” by José Eugenio de Uriarte and Vicente Agustí, published in Barcelona in 1896 by Francisco Rosal.
Links related to Bernardo de Hoyos
This article is available in Spanish at:
Beato Bernardo de Hoyos: El matrimonio místico entre personas del mismo sexo con Jesús (Santos Queer)
This article is available in Italian at:
Il beato Bernardo de Hoyos e il suo mistico matrimonio gay con Gesù (gionata.org)
Links related to mystical marriage
Blessed John of La Verna: Kissed by Jesus
John the Evangelist: Beloved Disciple of Jesus
Saints Bernard of Clairvaux and Malachy: Honey-tongued abbot and the archbishop he loved
Patrick Cheng: Erotic Christ / Rethinking sin and grace for LGBT people
Hunter Flournoy: Teacher says we are the erotic body of Christ
Richard Stott: Gay artist paints “Intimacy with Christ” and reflects on sensual spirituality
Mystical same-sex marriage affirmed in Renaissance art and new book “Saintly Brides and Bridegrooms”
Books related to mystical marriage
“Saintly Brides and Bridegrooms: The Mystic Marriage in Northern Renaissance Art” by Carolyn D Muir
“The Sexuality of Christ in Renaissance Art and in Modern Oblivion” by Leo Steinberg. University of Chicago Press, 1996. This is the definitive work on the subject, with 300 illustrations.
“Tantric Jesus: The Erotic Heart of Early Christianity” by James Hughes Reho with a foreword by Matthew Fox. Published by Destiny Books. (2017)
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Top image credit: “The Mystical Marriage of Blessed Fr. Bernardo de Hoyos y de Sena, SJ” by William Hart McNichols ©
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This post is part of the LGBTQ Saints series by Kittredge Cherry. Traditional and alternative saints, people in the Bible, LGBTQ martyrs, authors, theologians, religious leaders, artists, deities and other figures of special interest to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people and our allies are covered.
It is also part of the Queer Christ series series by Kittredge Cherry at the Jesus in Love Blog. The series gathers together visions of the queer Christ as presented by artists, writers, theologians and others.
This article was originally published on Q Spirit in November 2016, was expanded with new material over time, and was most recently updated on Aug. 22, 2024.
Copyright © Kittredge Cherry. All rights reserved.
Qspirit.net presents the Jesus in Love Blog on LGBTQ spirituality.
Using this article’s reasoning, you’d need to claim that every nun who becomes a “bride of Christ” (the standard phrase that was traditionally used) is engaging in (heterosexual) sex or romance. It was simply the common way of phrasing an abstract spiritual union, just as Heaven was traditionally defined as the third degree of union with God. It has nothing to do with sexuality at all. This is common sense.
The article is written by a lesbian. What do you expect. To suggest that Bernardo de Hoyos was gay is beyond laughable. Pray for this post soul. Oh … and technically speaking he’s not a Saint … yet.
This is so incredibly moving and beautiful. Thank you for these translations.
Beautiful ❤️
Like Jesus, we are also spirits that put on a human body. That alone doesn’t make us a separate species. Besides, ‘species’ is the wrong word imported from physical science, derived from the Latin word meaning ‘appearance.’ If there’s one thing that characterizes a mystical union it’s that it goes way beyond forms and appearances.
Jesus was not 1st a human but put on a human body. In comparison to us, He is a different species that clothed himself in a human body.
Its a marriage between (2) different species.