Anthony goes to Bologna
Bologna was big and rich. Within the surrounding walls one could count two hundred and fifty defensive towers. The narrow streets, paved by bricks, shaded by balconies and terraces, lead to the numerous Churches. Along the streets flowed in crowds the richly clothed passer-bys. They gaited with a footstep full of dignity the professors with golden chains hung on their neck, dressed with long clothes hemmed of precious furs. Humble poor students followed them carrying big tomes bound in skin. The bachelors passed in groups dressed with dark clothes and happy students that sowed confusion with their behaviour. Between the professors and the students there were foreigners, in the crowd, in fact, there was foreign talk, at time incomprehensible. In the crowd looked white the candid habits and the black cloaks of the Friars of the order of the preachers. The multicoloured clothes of the citizens were only in two models: the ones had blue coats and yellow trousers with black strips, the others had red-yellow coats and two-coloured trousers: a red, and the other with black and red squared. Those dressed in the same manner kept close to one another and observed with hostility those dressed in different way… When they were meeting they would menacingly sound their swords.
Anthony wandered between the crowd trying to find the house of the Friars minor.
He was shoved and pushed. None of the people that he questioned was able to give him indications. Finally, however, he met two Friars minor. For a moment he wasn`t certain to be in front of disciples of Francis. Those, to say the truth, were wearing grey cowls with a hood, but despite the colour they were not habits sewn with rough and ordinary material, and they were not dirty, neither creased. Their belt was candid and they had sandals on their feet of the right size.
He questioned them:
"Praised be Jesus Christ. Allow me, Friars, to ask you one thing."
The stopped and answered courteously:
"Please do, Friar. We can see that you a foreigner."
"Yes. I have just arrived and I am looking for the house of the Friars minor. Are you also part of the order?"
"Certainly. But we do not know which house you are looking for. In Bologna there are only two…"
"I am looking for the house in which there is Friar Stacia."
They looked at him with a glance almost incredulous.
"If you have something to tell friar Peter, come with us. We are going there."
"I thank you Friars."
"The house in which is the Minister Friar Stacia is ours. It is a house of science. There we study" they were telling him
"And you Friar. Where do you come from?"
"Rimini"
"Do you belong to that house?"
"I have sojourned in Rimini for some time by wish of the venerable Friar Elijah…"
They looked at him always more surprised.
"Can you tell us Friar of the extraordinary events that people are talking about about Rimini? Of the fact that the city was in hand to the Cathari, and suddenly in the course of a sole day everything has changed, and thanks to the extraordinary gift of preaching of one of our Friars, the heretics have been defeated and the population of the city has returned to listed to the word of God. Is it true?"
"It is true. The heretics have been defeated. But it was the grace of God who did this and not the preaching. It was God who made those hearts, which were enveloped by sadness and desperation, joyful and hopeful."
"We have understood that right away that it had to be some kind of miracle" said one of the Friars.
"Similar conversions could have been brought only a miracle of God. God has reduced in ashes the relentless heretics. It is really strange that he has not destroyed them with its lightening."
"In Rimini, according to what they have told us," affirmed the other Friar "there was not a Friar with such a great gift of preaching."
“You are right, Friar. Only God could have been able to achieve such a sudden change of hearts.
They walked a little bit in silence. They crossed again a large group of foreign students who were talking on the top of their voices in a foreign language.
"As I can see, in Bologna there are lots of foreigners" said Anthony.
"They are very numerous. Those that we just have met are Polish."
"What kind of people are they?"
"They live somewhere in the North, yet more further than the Bohemians. They are
combative people. Here, in Bologna resides their Bishop, Ivo of the regal city of Cracovia, alongo with a group of Priests. Some of them have entered the order of preachers. But there are some that liked our order and express their wish to enter our order and be part of our Friars. Their country confines with the pagan world, so that they have need of missionaries.
They continued to walk, till they found themselves in front of an imposing building.
"Here we are" declared the first of the Friars. "Look Friar, what a beautiful house we have. Our law teacher, Accursio gave it to us, so that we could study. Here in this city there is another house of our Friars close to door Galliera. Friar Bernard of Quintavalle founded it, when he used to teach in Bologna. But that house is small and poor. In that house there live those Friars who don’t study. Here, instead are given the lessons to the Friars. We have illustrious teachers. We also own a wonderful library, in which there are about fifty manuscripts splendidly written. We don’t know if Friar Stacia will keep you here or if he will send you in the other house..."
"I must present myself to Friar Stacia, and it will him who will decide."
"Then, come in. Allow me" said the second of the Friars "to give you a good advice. Your habit is old and crumpled. Ask to Friar Peter to give you something better. Here in the city, where there are so many educated people foreigners, it is desirable that our Friars would distinguish themselves in their neater appearance…"
He listened to the advice without replying, with a lowered head.
Then he followed the Friars through the ample hallway which had walls covered with horns. He proceeded by a long corridor full of doors that lead to the Friars` cells.
He had almost the sensation of having returned to Coimbra, so much that convent reminded him of the house of the canonicals. The door at the bottom of the corridor was open. He saw an ample and bright inside, with the walls covered with shelves on which there were volumes bound in skin and wood. Some had been transported from the shelves on the revolving reading desks which were tied with chains. Close to a lectern there was a Friar. He was reading and was taking notes. The Friars said to Anthony to wait there, so that they could go and announce him to the Minister.
Anthony stopped close to a reading desk and touched with the point of his fingers the volume that was up there. He didn’t hold one of them for at least two years. The old nostalgia and predilections had revived in him. How many hours a long time ago he was capable of staying next to a reading desk, eating the words written! How many ideas were awakening in him! From that life he had moved away of his own will, but in the subconscious he continued to feel the lack of it. And now he had to turn back, even though he had done nothing so that would happen…
The door opened. A religious of low stature entered and with fast footsteps went towards Anthony. The two Friars followed him at a brief distance.
"Welcome Friar" the minister opened wide his arms and embraces Anthony in a friendly embrace.
"Welcome in our house, that from this moment it will be yours. Since I have received the letter of the Friar Vicar General, I have been waiting impatiently your arrival. I wanted to see the great teacher of the word, that with only one sermon defeats the heretics…"
Anthony stupefied returned the embrace. Friar Peter, likewise to the other Friars that had accompanied Anthony there was dressed with care. His appearance was in contrast with that of Anthony, who had a ragged cowl, which was held by a simple rope.
The Minister of the house of Bologna turned to the Friars that were behind him:
"Meet your excellent friar. Here is Friar Anthony of Portugal, great theologian and magnificent preacher. It was him with his gifts to defeat the heretics. We are proud that the Friar Vicar General sent him to us, so that he will become our educator.
"Come Friar" said while embracing him with affection "I will show you your cell. Now you have to rest, to wash and to change your habit. Then we will invite you for lunch, so that I can introduce you to all the people of this house…"
The Friars that accompanied Anthony had remained with shelled eyes. They would never have guessed that the Friar that they had accompanied to their Superior was actually the extraordinary preacher talked about in all Romagna. The very one that with the eloquence of his sermons defeated the heretics and induced the people of Rimini to follow his path. And it had seemed that not only the people of Rimini listened to him but also the fish…
Chapter 23
Chapter 23
Bologna was big and rich. Within the surrounding walls one could count two hundred and fifty defensive towers. The narrow streets, paved by bricks, shaded by balconies and terraces, lead to the numerous Churches. Along the streets flowed in crowds the richly clothed passer-bys. They gaited with a footstep full of dignity the professors with golden chains hung on their neck, dressed with long clothes hemmed of precious furs. Humble poor students followed them carrying big tomes bound in skin. The bachelors passed in groups dressed with dark clothes and happy students that sowed confusion with their behaviour. Between the professors and the students there were foreigners, in the crowd, in fact, there was foreign talk, at time incomprehensible. In the crowd looked white the candid habits and the black cloaks of the Friars of the order of the preachers. The multicoloured clothes of the citizens were only in two models: the ones had blue coats and yellow trousers with black strips, the others had red-yellow coats and two-coloured trousers: a red, and the other with black and red squared. Those dressed in the same manner kept close to one another and observed with hostility those dressed in different way… When they were meeting they would menacingly sound their swords.
Anthony wandered between the crowd trying to find the house of the Friars minor.
He was shoved and pushed. None of the people that he questioned was able to give him indications. Finally, however, he met two Friars minor. For a moment he wasn`t certain to be in front of disciples of Francis. Those, to say the truth, were wearing grey cowls with a hood, but despite the colour they were not habits sewn with rough and ordinary material, and they were not dirty, neither creased. Their belt was candid and they had sandals on their feet of the right size.
He questioned them:
"Praised be Jesus Christ. Allow me, Friars, to ask you one thing."
The stopped and answered courteously:
"Please do, Friar. We can see that you a foreigner."
"Yes. I have just arrived and I am looking for the house of the Friars minor. Are you also part of the order?"
"Certainly. But we do not know which house you are looking for. In Bologna there are only two…"
"I am looking for the house in which there is Friar Stacia."
They looked at him with a glance almost incredulous.
"If you have something to tell friar Peter, come with us. We are going there."
"I thank you Friars."
"The house in which is the Minister Friar Stacia is ours. It is a house of science. There we study" they were telling him
"And you Friar. Where do you come from?"
"Rimini"
"Do you belong to that house?"
"I have sojourned in Rimini for some time by wish of the venerable Friar Elijah…"
They looked at him always more surprised.
"Can you tell us Friar of the extraordinary events that people are talking about about Rimini? Of the fact that the city was in hand to the Cathari, and suddenly in the course of a sole day everything has changed, and thanks to the extraordinary gift of preaching of one of our Friars, the heretics have been defeated and the population of the city has returned to listed to the word of God. Is it true?"
"It is true. The heretics have been defeated. But it was the grace of God who did this and not the preaching. It was God who made those hearts, which were enveloped by sadness and desperation, joyful and hopeful."
"We have understood that right away that it had to be some kind of miracle" said one of the Friars.
"Similar conversions could have been brought only a miracle of God. God has reduced in ashes the relentless heretics. It is really strange that he has not destroyed them with its lightening."
"In Rimini, according to what they have told us," affirmed the other Friar "there was not a Friar with such a great gift of preaching."
“You are right, Friar. Only God could have been able to achieve such a sudden change of hearts.
They walked a little bit in silence. They crossed again a large group of foreign students who were talking on the top of their voices in a foreign language.
"As I can see, in Bologna there are lots of foreigners" said Anthony.
"They are very numerous. Those that we just have met are Polish."
"What kind of people are they?"
"They live somewhere in the North, yet more further than the Bohemians. They are
combative people. Here, in Bologna resides their Bishop, Ivo of the regal city of Cracovia, alongo with a group of Priests. Some of them have entered the order of preachers. But there are some that liked our order and express their wish to enter our order and be part of our Friars. Their country confines with the pagan world, so that they have need of missionaries.
They continued to walk, till they found themselves in front of an imposing building.
"Here we are" declared the first of the Friars. "Look Friar, what a beautiful house we have. Our law teacher, Accursio gave it to us, so that we could study. Here in this city there is another house of our Friars close to door Galliera. Friar Bernard of Quintavalle founded it, when he used to teach in Bologna. But that house is small and poor. In that house there live those Friars who don’t study. Here, instead are given the lessons to the Friars. We have illustrious teachers. We also own a wonderful library, in which there are about fifty manuscripts splendidly written. We don’t know if Friar Stacia will keep you here or if he will send you in the other house..."
"I must present myself to Friar Stacia, and it will him who will decide."
"Then, come in. Allow me" said the second of the Friars "to give you a good advice. Your habit is old and crumpled. Ask to Friar Peter to give you something better. Here in the city, where there are so many educated people foreigners, it is desirable that our Friars would distinguish themselves in their neater appearance…"
He listened to the advice without replying, with a lowered head.
Then he followed the Friars through the ample hallway which had walls covered with horns. He proceeded by a long corridor full of doors that lead to the Friars` cells.
He had almost the sensation of having returned to Coimbra, so much that convent reminded him of the house of the canonicals. The door at the bottom of the corridor was open. He saw an ample and bright inside, with the walls covered with shelves on which there were volumes bound in skin and wood. Some had been transported from the shelves on the revolving reading desks which were tied with chains. Close to a lectern there was a Friar. He was reading and was taking notes. The Friars said to Anthony to wait there, so that they could go and announce him to the Minister.
Anthony stopped close to a reading desk and touched with the point of his fingers the volume that was up there. He didn’t hold one of them for at least two years. The old nostalgia and predilections had revived in him. How many hours a long time ago he was capable of staying next to a reading desk, eating the words written! How many ideas were awakening in him! From that life he had moved away of his own will, but in the subconscious he continued to feel the lack of it. And now he had to turn back, even though he had done nothing so that would happen…
The door opened. A religious of low stature entered and with fast footsteps went towards Anthony. The two Friars followed him at a brief distance.
"Welcome Friar" the minister opened wide his arms and embraces Anthony in a friendly embrace.
"Welcome in our house, that from this moment it will be yours. Since I have received the letter of the Friar Vicar General, I have been waiting impatiently your arrival. I wanted to see the great teacher of the word, that with only one sermon defeats the heretics…"
Anthony stupefied returned the embrace. Friar Peter, likewise to the other Friars that had accompanied Anthony there was dressed with care. His appearance was in contrast with that of Anthony, who had a ragged cowl, which was held by a simple rope.
The Minister of the house of Bologna turned to the Friars that were behind him:
"Meet your excellent friar. Here is Friar Anthony of Portugal, great theologian and magnificent preacher. It was him with his gifts to defeat the heretics. We are proud that the Friar Vicar General sent him to us, so that he will become our educator.
"Come Friar" said while embracing him with affection "I will show you your cell. Now you have to rest, to wash and to change your habit. Then we will invite you for lunch, so that I can introduce you to all the people of this house…"
The Friars that accompanied Anthony had remained with shelled eyes. They would never have guessed that the Friar that they had accompanied to their Superior was actually the extraordinary preacher talked about in all Romagna. The very one that with the eloquence of his sermons defeated the heretics and induced the people of Rimini to follow his path. And it had seemed that not only the people of Rimini listened to him but also the fish…