The Versified Life of Saint Francis : FA:ED, vol. 1, p. 480

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FA:ED, vol. 1, 480The Versified Life of Saint Francis

The Versified Life of Saint Francis - 480

Need a good preacher to teach them the faith—the populace,
I speak of, not of the nobles. Just one error made the Parthian

¹⁵⁵Slip; not one but every error made Italy slip.
The Parthian preserves a schism taken up from of old;^a
The Italian rebuffs the precepts of faith he embraced.
To one foundling heresy the Parthian is guardian;^b
The Italian is founding father of thirty-two!^c

¹⁶⁰And this gives the latter more license to sin.
While freedom belongs to Italians, Syrians are slaves;
It was not they that owed God the first fruits or the tithe^d
Prescribed in the law: they sin, but without an avenger.^e
For should the Holy Father excommunicate them

¹⁶⁵Or an irate Emperor threaten war on them,
They couldn't care less, as for neither have they any respect;
They've already consigned them to the yoke and the tax!
Out there there are countless millions of people
And there a knight is the same as a boor:

¹⁷⁰The knight for his muscle, the boor for his hatred of lords.
But enough! Certain things may be true but can't always be told.
Yet the holy simplicity of Francis sustains to the last,^{1 Cor 13:7}
And has no eyes for sins or for faults.
Meet he the crafty, he will take them for wise citizens

¹⁷⁵Of Italy; nor will he believe they need a schoolmaster.^f
And so, he embarks, with his heart in converting the Syrians.
There rises a contrary wind;^{Mk 6:48} the level sea is turning

This assertion fits the Greeks better than the Saracens, since the latter were never united with Christians. The poet here relies on a popular notion of the time that Muhamed was once a Christian (Nestorian). Cf. Emicho Prefect of Mainz (about 1040), Historia de Mahumete c. 1-16, which is found falsely attributed to Hildebert, a Celtic bishop (died 1133) in Pl 171, 1343-66. (This history in verse is obviously fictitious.) Cf. also Guibertus Abbot of Novigneti (died 1124), Gesta Dei per Francos I, 3-4 (PL 156, 689-95); it is he who ineptly wrote: "The Kingdome of the Parthians, whom we by linguistic corruption call Turks."
Cf. Saint John Damascene, De Haeresibus 101 (PG 94, 763-74); Peter Alfonsus, Dialogus 5 (PL 157, 597-606). See Guibertus, cited above, note 21 and Peter Venerable (died 1156), Adversus sectam Saracenorum II (PL 189, 661-720); Alan of the Lille, De fide Catholica contra haereticos sui temporis haereticorum I, IV: Contra paganos seu Mohometanos (PL 210, 421-30).
This number (as those in VIII, 23 and 59) appears to be arbitrary. Even according to Rainerus Sacconi, once, as he says, a heresiarch, now a Dominican, Summa de catharis (sive patarenis) about 1230: "the total of Cathar churches," within and outside Italy, was 16, among which "the church of Tuscany and the Valley of Spoleto (had) about 100" adherents.
Decretum II, c. 16, qu. 1; c. 55-7, 65-8; Decretales III, c. 1-34.
Ovid, Heroides VIII, 7; Metamorphoses I, 93.
The real reason that moved Francis to travel in v. 176 can be found in 1C 55.

Legenda Sancti Francisci VersificataFontes,

Legenda Sancti Francisci Versificata, Fontes Franciscani, p.

Plus Italus quam Parthus eget: de plebe loquendo,

¹⁵⁵Non dico de nobilibus. Fallacia Parthum.
Unica seducit, Italum non una sed omnis;
Parthus ab antiquo susceptum schisma tuetur,
Italus admissae fidei praecepta repellit;
Unius haereseos inventae tutor habetur

¹⁶⁰Parthus, adinventor Italus triginta duarum;
Estque quid hos faciat peccare licentius illis:
Servi sunt Syrii, libertas est Italorum;
Non ipsi vel primitias in lege statutas
Vel decimas debere Deo; sine vindice peccant.

¹⁶⁵Nam si sanctus eos Pater excommunicet, aut si
Iracundus eis Augustus bella minetur,
Inde nihil curant, neutrum reverentur, utrumque
Addixere iugo, praescripseruntque tributum.
Plebis enim tot ibi sunt millia, quot numerare

¹⁷⁰Nemo queat; miles quivis et rusticus idem;
Vim quia miles habet, dominos quia rusticus odit.
Sed taceo; quaedam narrari vera verentur.
Sed pia simplicitas Francisci sustinet omnes,
Nullius vitii, nullius conscia culpae,

¹⁷⁵Astutosque videns, credi

475 476 477 478 479 480 481 482 483 484 485 Contents

Francis of Assisi: Early Documents, vol. 1, p. 480

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