CHAPTER XII.

DEFENCE.

Apathy of the Signory.-Controversial papers-Savonarola's reply to the Pope-New Signory-The brothers of San Marco and citizens intercede-Savonarola again preaches in 1498-And writes several letters to the Pope, all in a strain of indignant remonstrance.

THE eight years, predicted by Savonarola, during which he should continue to preach, were now expired; and the faithful ox that had trodden out the corn was muzzled: thus bound, he was delivered up into the hands of the butcher. Such character, and none other, belonged to Alexander VI. He is suspected of having superintended the ministration of some slow and subtle, but mortal, substance to the already mentioned Sultan's brother Zizim, before setting him at liberty, according to his contract with Charles VIII., thus keeping the word of promise to the ear, and murderously breaking it to the hope,' or, like a 'juggling fiend, paltering with men in a double sense,' and 'damning those that trusted him.' By means of his son, Cæsar Borgia, who, commencing life as a churchman, threw off the habit in 1498, and took the field as Duke Valentino; he contrived to

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BAD CUSTOMS REVIVED.

B. III.

annihilate the barons of Italy-that Cæsar Borgia, who subsequently murdered his brother and brotherin-law-who, as a virtuoso in lust, and blood, and death, nightly filled the streets of Rome with the corpses of the assassinated, and poisoned by craft those he could not slay by force. But it was

written in heaven, that both Alexander VI. and his slaughterous son should themselves suffer in like kind. Purposing to take off by poison the rich Cardinal Corneto, the latter succeeded by bribes, promises, and entreaties, in gaining over the Pope's chief cook, and thus both died of the draught intended for their guest. At the period, however, of which we are writing, both were living; and these facts are only mentioned to show the kind of enemy with whom Savonarola had to deal.

The higher classes in Rome felt assured that the excommunication of Savonarola would be certainly acted on, and his few friends there were consequently afraid to plead in his favour. Gasconades, satirical verses, and scandalous epistles were circulated by his enemies; and night and day the monks of San Marco were disturbed and insulted. Savonarola himself did not publicly appear; and the Signory showed that sort of apathy in the business which gave encouragement to the adversary. The sittings in the Duomo were broken; and, as if from insult, in a few days all the bad customs returned, which had been prohibited by law. The Franciscan and Augustine monks, moreover, refused to take part in the next procession to the honour of St. John, if the brothers of San Marco were permitted to join. Accordingly, all share in the same was forbidden to these, as well as the brothers of San Domenico at Fièsole.

Meanwhile, as already stated, learned and ingenious men were engaged in the defence of Savona

CH. XII. PICO'S APOLOGY FOR SAVONAROLA.

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rola's doctrine and conduct, for truth is never without her witnesses. Savonarola likewise defended himself, and was, in fact, his own best and ablest vindicator. Giovanni Francesco Pico della Mirandola, to whom we are so much indebted for his earliest and fullest biography, also took up the pen in his behalf. 'There is,' says Pico, in his Apologia pro Savonarola, but one unerring and infallible judge, Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God. Now he has even given to his Church an office of judging, foreseeing with how many contrary opinions and private and open enmity she would have to contend: but she is unerring only in so far as she appeals to Him in all matters which concern the substance, the essence of faith. That the Church may then judge, she must be thankful to the intercession of our high priest but in all other things, even the universal Church may err, as Innocent III. himself maintains, 'The justice of God grounds itself on truth, which neither deceives nor can be deceived; the judgment of the Church founds itself often on human opinion, which both often deceives and is deceived.' But if the universal Church is not pronounced freed from the liability of error, how much less popes and councils. It remains, then, that every human judgment is deceptive, so that Cebes the Theban is not far from the truth, when he opines that the Apate (deception) hangs about all mortal things. From this it follows, undeniably, that the power of judgement may be in many ways abused; for as Gregory the Great says, 'it is often the case, that when the judge speaks, his life nowise agrees with his office; so that he either condemns the innocent, or even, when bound, sets free the guilty, or generally binds and looses according to the suggestion of his own will; and so the very power of binding and loosing robs itself in that he sentences the souls to die, which yet should not

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MANY SHEPHERDS, WOLVES.

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die, and adjudges them to life, which yet should not live. We are, consequently, to consider all censures and excommunications invalid and powerless which emanate from such a judge, who is himself captive in mortal sin and heresy, or which proceed after a legal appeal, or without previous examination, or which forbear an intolerable error in himself; as for the papal right in other respects, it has a crowd of authorities. It is certainly true, that every magistrate is ordained of God, and that not alone for punishment, but for the willing submission of conscience, (Rom. xiii. 15; Tit. iii. 1.) but even so undeniably, that God must be more obeyed than man (Acts v. 29). And throughout we find the commandment of obedience towards superiors accompanied with the usual maxim, Sententia Pastoris, sive justa, sive injusta fuerit, timenda est,' as its natural and necessary limitation. For we may not obey what anywhere runs counter to a Divine law, and we must take particular care not to interpret the commission of our superiors in such latitude as to respect even their open crimes and sins. If a servant, says Jerome, in his Commentary on Ephesians vi. 5, receives such commands from his lord as would supplant his obedience to God's word, then must he obey the Lord of his spirit, and not him who is only lord of his person. No one, as Thomas Aquinas said, can be bound further to obey another than in those points wherein he is subject to him. Over the pro

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cesses of the will and the functions of the body no law can extend; the soldier obeys his general in all things that concern the war, the servant his lord in all things that belong to his service. But it is thought that it is not to be presumed or feared that a shepherd would command us any thing against the being and Word of God;-then it is well to remark, that many who are called shepherds are but wolves; for

CH. XII. FORCE MAY BE repelled WITH FORCE. 305

a true shepherd will not destroy sheep, or abandon them to the wild beasts. Therefore no one is bound by an unjust excommunication; neither before God, nor before the Church, dare he acknowledge or fear it. And this rightly: for, if even according to civic law, not every disherison of a son need be feared, but only that which has a legal ground; how much less need we to fear for ourselves, when by the unjust decision of a man we lose either the heavenly inheritance, or may be expelled from the bosom of the Church, which is yet a witness and bearer of righteousness? One,' says Pope Gelasius, is the earthly chair, another the heavenly justicehall; from the nether tribunal we receive the sentence, from the higher the crown.' In the same manner Augustine decided, that if one who has a just cause is condemned unjustly, compensation ought to be given to him. With especial stringency and emphasis, however, the excellently learned Gerson delivers himself on this subject, in his book, De excommunicationibus et irregularitatibus. 'In many cases,' says he, it is no contempt of a decree if one even disobeys the commands of the Pope, presuming that he is using his power, in a shameful and scandalous manner, for destruction, and not for edification, seeing that the Apostle says, that power is given to us to repair, and not to destroy. Who doubts that one must withstand the Pope in all such cases as come under observation, and say to him, what doest thou? Also, it is nowise to show contempt for the decree, to challenge worldly help against an unjust excommunication, for that is not right, but force; and, according to the natural law, we repel force with force, that is a right every man possesses. general, opposition against every uncivil demand of the kind is only to be praised, if one carefully avoid every scandal which can be given to the less in

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