Chapter VII: Part 7

After his return home, he was ill for many months, and his thoughts constantly turned from this world to God. Upon his recovery, he met a beggar in filthy rags, who asked him for alms. St. Francis recognised him as a former noble, who had commanded the expedition against Perugia, and exchanged his own rich apparel with him who was now a mendicant, putting on the other’s tattered garments. Going into a church that was falling into ruin, to pray, he heard in his soul a voice saying, “Francis, repair my church, which falleth into ruin.” Taking these words literally, he sold merchandise of his father’s, and brought the money to the priests of the church. This put his father in a rage, and thinking him mad, he first locked him up in his chamber, but as he still persisted in his ideas, he took him before the bishop. Here Francis tore off his garments and flung them to his father, saying, “Henceforth I recognise no father but him who is in heaven.” The bishop, touched and weeping with admiration, took a coarse cloak from a beggar who stood by and gave it to him. Francis received it gladly, as the first fruit of that poverty to which he had given himself. He was now twenty-five years old, and from this time forth he went about preaching charity, humility, and self-abnegation, existing only on alms.

It was a period in the history of the world of great mental and moral excitement. St. Francis was the living expression of an awakening emotion in the minds and hearts of the people, and his example was imitated with passionate enthusiasm by an immense number of followers. He made the first condition of their joining him absolute poverty. Hence the allusion to his marriage with the Lady Poverty.

He went to Rome to obtain the pope’s sanction for his order, and was at first repulsed as a visionary enthusiast. But the pope in a dream that night beheld the walls of the Lateran tottering and about to fall, then he saw the weight of the whole Church borne and sustained on the shoulders of him who had approached him in the morning. Greatly impressed by this, he sent for Francis, confirmed the rule of his order, and gave him power to preach. Returning then to his cell called the _Porzioncula_, Francis gathered his followers about him, gave to his order the name of _Frati Minori_, and established his Rule with its three vows of Poverty, Chastity, and Obedience.

Previous to this, at mass one day he heard the text from St. Luke (ix., 3): “Take nothing for your journey, neither staves nor scrip, neither bread, neither money, neither have two coats apiece”; and looking upon this as an ordinance it became the rule of his life. He was already barefoot and wretchedly clad, begging his food wherever he happened to be. There was nothing he could do without, except his leathern girdle. This he threw away, substituting one of hempen cord, which was adopted by his followers. These have thence been called the _Cordeliers_.

St. Francis’s life was one of continual prayer and self-inflicted penance. So gentle and tender and compassionate was he that “when he found worms or insects in his road he was careful not to tread upon them.” He loved all animals and was accustomed to call all living things his brothers and sisters. He interpreted literally the text “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature,” and Giotto has painted St. Francis preaching to the birds.

Photo. Alinari

ST. CLARA.—SIMONE MARTINI

(Church of S. Francesco, Assisi.)]

We are told that he suffered from sickness, pain, and weakness and wept so much that he nearly became blind. It is also related that, having fasted in his cell on Mt. Alverna for forty days, passing the time in prayer and ecstatic contemplation, he beheld in a vision a seraph with six shining wings, and between his wings he bore the form of a man crucified. When the vision disappeared and he awoke, St. Francis found that he had received the _stigmata_, and ever after it was seen that he carried in his hands, his feet, and his side the wounds of our Saviour. He died in 1226 and was canonised by Pope Gregory IX. in 1228.

St. Francis is more frequently represented in art than any other saint, and is nearly always unmistakable. He may be distinguished by his habit, which is grey or dark brown, girded by a hempen cord. He bears the stigmata in his hands and feet and is often portrayed in the act of opening his tunic to display the wound in his side. The stigmata distinguishes him from all other saints wearing the same habit. Sometimes he has the crucifix and the skull. The lamb and the lily are also given him as symbols of meekness and purity. When St. Francis and St. Dominick are pictured together the crucifix is given to the former and the lily to St. Dominick.

=St. Clara.= _Ital._ Santa Chiara. _Fr._ Sainte Claire.

St. Clara was born in Assisi of noble parents, who desired her to marry; but, inspired by the example of St. Francis, she fled to him for counsel, and he advised her to renounce the world. She took refuge in the convent of San Paolo, whither her kinsmen pursued her, and in vain tried to drag her away. Soon after, her younger sister, Agnes, and other ladies of high rank joined her, and finally her mother, and thus was formed the Order of “Poor Clares,” Franciscan nuns, who followed the Rule of St. Francis, in all its austerity. A lifelong friendship existed between St. Clara and St. Francis, and he invariably turned to her for consolation in those periods of despondency which afflicted his soul.

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ST. ANTHONY OF PADUA.—SCHOOL OF GIOTTO

(Basilica of S. Antonio, Padua.)]

At one time, when the Saracens attacked the convent of San Damiano, and the nuns were filled with terror and despair, St. Clara, who had been bed-ridden, arose, took from the altar the pyx containing the Host, placed it on the threshold, and kneeling began to sing, “Thou hast rebuked the heathen,” etc., whereupon the barbarians, panic-stricken, fled. The fame of this miracle spread, so that people came from far and wide to obtain the prayers and intercession of Clara. The pope himself visited her, and solemnly confirmed the Rule of her order. At the age of sixty, she expired in a kind of trance in which she heard angels’ voices calling her. She was canonised in 1256.

When she carries the palm it is not as martyr, but is the palm of victory over suffering. She bears the lily, and is distinguished from other saints with the same emblem by her grey habit and the cord of St. Francis. In devotional pictures she is young and beautiful. She wears the habit of her order—the grey tunic, the knotted girdle, and the black veil. Her peculiar attribute is the pyx, containing the Host, in allusion to the miraculous deliverance from the Saracens.

=St. Anthony of Padua.= _Lat._ Sanctus Antonius Thaumaturgus. _Spa._ San Antonio de Padua. _Ital._ Sant’ Antonio di Padova, Il Santo.

St. Anthony was completely imbued with the spirit of St. Francis, and his popularity in religious art is nearly as great. He was a Portuguese by birth, and having entered the Franciscan Order, went to Morocco as a missionary, but became very ill there, and was obliged to return to Europe. Contrary winds drove him to the coast of Italy, and he came to Assisi when St. Francis was holding the first General Chapter of his Order.

St. Anthony’s learning and ability made him of great value to St. Francis as a coadjutor, and for some time he taught divinity in the universities of Paris, Toulouse, Bologna, and Padua, but finally gave up teaching altogether to become a preacher to the people. Owing to his persuasive eloquence and skill in argument, crowds came to hear him wherever he went, and his followers have ascribed many miracles to him, before and after his death. He died in his thirty-sixth year, and the next year was canonised by Pope Gregory IX., and the magnificent church at Padua was begun in his honour.

In art he is a young man with a mild, melancholy countenance, without beard, and wearing the habit and cord of St. Francis. His usual attributes are the lily and the crucifix—the lily sometimes twined around the crucifix. In pictures of the Siena school he holds in his hand a flame of fire, symbol of his ardent piety. He is often pictured as caressing the Infant Christ, who is seen standing on his book, or he holds Him in his arms. It is related that at one time as he was explaining to his hearers the mystery of the Incarnation the form of the Infant Christ descended and stood upon his book. This is called the “Vision of St. Anthony of Padua,” and is often represented in art.

The legend of the mule is one of the most popular miracles of St. Anthony and is a frequent subject for pictures painted for the Franciscan churches. Bovadilla, a heretic, doubting the real presence in the sacrament, demanded of St. Anthony a miracle in proof of this favourite dogma of the Church. St. Anthony saw Bovadilla’s mule, and commanded it to fall on its knees as he carried the Host in procession. The mule obeyed instantly, and in spite of its master’s efforts to tempt it aside by a sieve full of oats, remained kneeling until the Sacred Host had passed.

=St. Bonaventura=, called the _Seraphic Doctor_, is regarded as one of the greatest lights of the Roman Catholic Church. He was born in Tuscany, and was so ill when an infant that his life was despaired of. His mother took him to St. Francis and begged him to intercede with his prayers for the life of her child. When St. Francis saw him he exclaimed, _O buona ventura!_ and the mother, in gratitude for his recovery, dedicated him to God by the name of Bonaventura.

He entered the Franciscan Order and completed his theological studies in Paris. There he was greatly honoured by Louis IX. (Saint Louis) and in a few years became known as one of the greatest writers and teachers in the Church. He faithfully practised all the precepts of his order and his humility was such that he hardly dared present himself to receive the sacrament, feeling himself unworthy; so, in the legends, angels are represented bringing it to him.

Photo. Alinari

ST. BONAVENTURA.—A. BRONZINO

(Academy, Florence.)]

In 1256 he was made General of the Franciscan Order and restored the harmony which had previously been threatened by factional dissensions. He declined the archbishopric of York, but later Gregory X. made him Cardinal and Bishop of Albano. When the two nuncios of the pope brought him the cardinal’s hat they found him in the garden of a little Franciscan convent near Florence, washing the plate from which he had just dined. He told them to hang the hat on the bough of a tree until he could take it in his hands. Hence in pictures of this saint the cardinal’s hat is often seen hanging on a branch of a tree. He died at the age of fifty-three and was buried in the Franciscan Church at Lyons, and was canonised by Sixtus IV. in 1462. During the wars of the League, the Huguenots broke into his shrine and threw his ashes into the river Saône.

According to a Spanish legend, having left his _Life of St. Francis_ unfinished when he died, he returned to earth for three days and completed it.

In devotional pictures, sometimes he wears the cope over the grey habit of his order, with the mitre on his head, as Bishop of Albano, and the cardinal’s hat at his feet, or on the branch of a tree. Sometimes he wears only the Franciscan habit, and carries the sacramental cup in his hand, or it is borne by an angel. Occasionally he is attired in the crimson robes and hat of a cardinal, with a book in his hand, the symbol of his great learning.

=St. Louis of France.= _Lat._ Sanctus Ludovicus Rex. _Ital._ San Luigi, Rè di Francia.

Louis IX. was born at Poissy in 1215. He was the son of Louis VIII. and Blanche of Castile—the Louis and Blanche who figure in Shakespeare’s _King John_. Gibbon says of St. Louis that he united the virtues of a king, a hero, and a man. Voltaire said of him, _Il n’est guère donné a l’homme de pousser la vertu plus loin._ He had the most intense veneration for relics, and when Baldwin II. approached him for aid, he at once granted him “succors in men and money” in exchange for the “holy crown of thorns.” Louis, barefoot and bareheaded, brought this precious relic himself from Sens to Paris; and having obtained also a small piece of the true cross, he built for these treasures the chapel since called _La Sainte Chapelle_ (Paris).

In 1247, after a dangerous illness, he sent for the Archbishop of Paris and asked for the cross of a crusader, and, in spite of the grief and remonstrances of friends, as soon as his health permitted he sailed for Egypt with an army of fifty thousand men, including the flower of the French nobility. Most of his followers perished, and Louis was taken prisoner. His belief in the goodness of his cause never wavered, however. When ransomed he spent three years in Palestine, and then returned to France, where he reigned sixteen years and then, never having laid aside the cross, he started on a second crusade, landing in Africa. His troops, affected by the climate, perished miserably; and Louis died in his tent, lying upon ashes, and wearing the garb of a penitent. He was canonised by Boniface VIII. in 1297, twenty-seven years after his death. Part of his body was carried by Charles of Anjou to Palermo, and placed in the church of Monreale; the rest was placed in a shrine at St. Denis, which was destroyed in the first French revolution.

Pictures of St. Louis are found in Franciscan churches, the Franciscans claiming that he put on the habit of the “Third Order of Penitence” before starting on his first crusade, and that he died in the habit and cord of St. Francis.

The proper attribute of St. Louis is the crown of thorns, which he holds in one hand, his sword in the other, and the royal crown and sceptre at his feet. When painted in the grey habit and cord of the Franciscans, he wears the crown of royalty.

=St. Louis of Toulouse.= _Ital._ San Ludovico Vescovo.

Louis of Anjou was the nephew of St. Louis, King of France, and son of Charles of Anjou, King of Naples and Sicily. When Louis was fourteen, his father was taken prisoner by the King of Aragon, and was obliged to deliver up his three sons as hostages. Louis spent several years in captivity, and the hardships he endured broke his gentle spirit, and, on regaining his freedom in 1294, he resigned all his rights to the kingdom of Naples to his brother Robert, and entered the Order of St. Francis. Soon afterwards he was made Bishop of Toulouse and set out for his new office barefooted, and dressed as a friar. Although his life there was short, he endeared himself to his people by his gentleness and charity. Two years later he died, in his twenty-fourth year, in his father’s castle in Provence, where he had gone on a charitable mission. He was canonised in 1317 by Pope John XXII., and his remains are enshrined at Valencia.

In art he is represented as young, beardless, and of gentle face, wearing the episcopal robes over the Franciscan habit. The fleur-de-lys is embroidered on his cope, or on some part of his dress. The crown he resigned is at his feet. He wears the mitre as bishop, or carries it in his hand, or it is borne by an angel.

=St. Bernardino of Siena.= This saint was born of a noble Sienese family, and from his youth upward was distinguished for his personal beauty and grace, united to such intelligence and purity of character, that his presence alone sufficed to restrain and hush the most vulgar of tongue. At seventeen, he entered a confraternity that cared for the poor and the sick, and when a pestilence broke out in Siena, he and twelve other young men took entire charge of the plague hospital for four months. He escaped the contagion, but his health was never strong afterwards.

He entered the Franciscan Order at twenty-three, and became one of their most celebrated preachers. His influence for good was unbounded, and his hearers, even the hardest sinners, were melted to tears. Thieves made restitution; gamblers threw away their cards; enemies became reconciled, and women cast their jewels at his feet. Wherever he went he preached peace, and when preaching he held in his hand a tablet on which was the name of Jesus in a circle of golden rays.[10] A manufacturer of cards and dice complained to Bernardino that since his preaching his business had been ruined. The saint advised him to make these tablets instead, and sell them to the people; which he did, and the desire for them became so general that he realised a fortune. St. Bernardino is said to have founded the _Monte-di-Pietà_, for lending money on small pledges to the very poor. These institutions are still called in France _Monts-de-Piété_. He was founder of a reformed Order of Franciscans, called in Italy _Osservanti_ because they _observed_ the Rule of St. Francis, went barefoot, and professed absolute poverty. He refused three bishoprics, and died at Aquila in the Abruzzi, where his remains are enshrined in the church of San Francesco. He was canonised by Pope Nicholas V. in 1450, and is venerated throughout all of Italy.

In devotional figures his peculiar attribute is the tablet, with I. H. S. encircled with rays, which he holds in his hand. Another attribute is the _Monte-di-Pietà_, a little green hill of three mounds, and on the top a cross or standard, on which is the figure of the dead Saviour—usually called in Italy a _Pietà_. Sometimes three mitres, in allusion to the three bishoprics, he refused.

=St. Dominick.= _Lat._ Sanctus Dominicus. _Ital._ San Domenico. _Spa._ San Domingo. _Fr._ Saint Dominique.

This saint was the founder of the Order of Dominicans or Preaching Friars, and was a Castilian of an illustrious family. Before he was born his mother dreamed that she had given birth to a black and white dog holding a lighted torch in its mouth. At his baptism a star descended from heaven and settled on his brow. These were interpreted as signs that he would be a light to the world and he early showed his ascetic and saintly nature.

He studied theology at Valencia and became a canon of St. Augustine while still very young. When about thirty, he went to France on a political mission with the Bishop of Osma, and passed through the land of the Albigenses. Their heresies were so shocking to Dominick that he felt that his vocation lay in forming an order of preachers for the conversion of heretics. He went to Rome in 1207 and obtained permission from the pope to preach in the Vaudois to the Albigenses. Here miracles aided him. A writing of Dominick’s, defending the Catholic faith, thrice cast into the fire, is said to have thrice leaped out uninjured, while a writing of the heretics was instantly consumed. This converted many.

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ST. DOMINICK. DETAIL FROM THE CRUCIFIXION.—FRA ANGELICO

(San Marco, Florence.)]

A fierce religious war broke out about this time against the Albigenses. How far Dominick took part in this is hotly disputed. For several centuries public opinion considered him the founder of the Inquisition, and it was believed that he directed the persecutions from the beginning. His defenders, however, assert that he was filled with horror at the barbarities committed in the name of Christ. St. Dominick instituted the rosary, which was received with enthusiasm and made more converts than all his orthodoxy. He founded many convents in the principal cities of Europe, preaching wherever he went. Bologna became the chief Dominican centre, and here St. Dominick died in 1221, worn out by his labours. He was canonised in 1233 by Gregory IX.

The devotional figures of St. Dominick represent him in his habit—the white tunic, white scapulary, and long black cloak with a hood. In one hand a book, in the other a lily. A star is on his forehead, or just above his head. The dog with a flaming torch in its mouth is his peculiar attribute, but in pictures is often omitted.

=St. Peter Martyr.= St. Peter the Dominican. _Fr._ Saint Pierre le Dominican, Martyr. _Ital._ San Pietro or San Pier Martire.

He was born at Verona in 1205. His parents belonged to the heretical sect of the _Cathari_, but sent Peter to a Catholic school, and St. Dominick persuaded him to take the Dominican habit at the age of fifteen. He became an eminent preacher and was noted for his intolerance and cruelty to the heretics with whom he had formerly been associated. Pope Honorius III. made him Inquisitor General. He was not loved in his lifetime even by his own brotherhood, and his harsh persecutions made him universally detested. Finally two noblemen, who had suffered at his hands, hired assassins to waylay him in a wood through which he and a lay brother must pass on their way from Como to Milan. Peter was struck down by a blow from an axe. Then the ruffians pursued his attendant, and stabbed him. Returning, they found that Peter had risen to his knees and was reciting the Apostles’ Creed; or, as others say, was writing it on the ground with his blood. He had just finished the word _Credo_ when they rushed on him, and pierced him through with a sword. He was canonised in 1253 and is one of the most popular saints in Italy.

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ST. PETER MARTYR.—FRA ANGELICO

(San Marco, Florence.)]

In devotional art, he wears the Dominican habit, carries the crucifix as preacher, and the palm as martyr, which, if not in his hand, is at his feet. His peculiar attribute is the gash in his head, with blood trickling from it, or the axe or sabre stuck into his head.

=St. Thomas Aquinas.= _Ital._ San Tomaso di Aquino, Dottore Angelico.

St. Thomas Aquinas, called the “Angelic Doctor,” ranks with the Four Great Doctors of the Western Church. He was born at Belcastro in 1226. He was of noble lineage, his father being Count of Aquino, and connected both by descent and marriage with several of the royal families of Europe. Thomas was sent to the Benedictines at Mt. Cassino, where he showed himself so precocious that when ten years of age his masters declared they could teach him no more. The splendour of his father’s home filled him with humility, rather than pride. He was gentle, thoughtful, and silent, and from childhood was remarkable for the sweetness of his temper.

After a few years, he was sent to the new University of Naples, where he was noted for his devotion to study and the singular purity of his life. At seventeen he received the habit of the Dominican Order. His relatives were violently opposed to this, and seized and imprisoned him in a tower of his father’s castle, allowing no one to see him but his two sisters. After many months, aided by one of his sisters, whom he had converted, he made his escape and returned to the convent, where he took his final vows. The modesty with which he concealed his profound learning gave him the nickname of _Bos_, the ox. Later he studied in Cologne and his master exclaimed one day, when his brilliant answers had astonished them all, “This dumb ox shall give such a bellow in learning as all the world shall hear.” His reputation steadily increased until he was acknowledged the greatest theological writer and teacher of his age. His works are still held as authority and of great value. He died in his fiftieth year and was canonised in 1323.

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ST. THOMAS AQUINAS.—FRA ANGELICO

(San Marco, Florence.)]

He is represented in the Dominican habit, often writing, with the dove, emblem of inspiration, hovering about him. His attributes are a book, or books; the pen, or ink-horn; the sacramental cup, on account of his having composed the Office of the Sacrament, still in use; on his breast a sun, and sometimes a human eye within it to express his far-seeing wisdom.

=St. Catherine of Siena.= _Lat._ Sancta Catherina Senese. _Ital._ Santa Caterina di Siena.

Volumes have been filled in chronicling the deeds and visions of this remarkable saint, known at Siena as “la Santa.” She was born in Siena in 1347. Her father, Giovanni Benincasa, was a dyer by trade. Catherine was the youngest and most beloved of all the children and was fair and gay and graceful, but (unlike other children), visionary, solitary, and strange. She had heard of Catherine of Alexandria and prayed that she also might become the bride of Christ, and at eight years of age she took secret vows of perpetual chastity.

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ST. CATHERINE OF SIENA.—VANNI

(Church of San Domenico, Siena.)]

As she grew up her vigils and penances and love of solitude seemed nonsensical to her parents, who desired her to marry. Angered by her refusal, they treated her harshly, putting all sorts of menial duties upon her, until her father, entering her chamber one day, found her kneeling in prayer, and resting on her head was a snow-white dove. He now saw that she was protected by the Holy Spirit, and believing in her vocation he allowed her to go her own way. She was received in the convent of St. Dominick as a penitent of the Third Order, but never became a professed nun. She vowed herself to silence for three years, practised all sorts of self-denials, going to the convent church every day, where she had wonderful visions. Her charity to the poor was boundless. She nursed the sick, no matter how repulsive the disease, and converted by her eloquence so many wicked persons and unbelievers that her fame spread through all of Italy.

When the Florentines were excommunicated by Pope Gregory VI. they chose Catherine of Siena for their ambassador and mediator. She went to Avignon, where the pope then resided, and displayed such discretion and wisdom that the pope left it to her to decide the terms of peace. It was by her influence and persuasions that the pope was induced to return to Rome, and once more make the seat of government in the Lateran. After the death of Gregory, in the Great Schism that followed, she took the part of Urban VI., who appointed her his ambassador to the court of Joanna II. of Naples. But in the midst of this her health failed, and she died at thirty-three, worn out with fasting, labour, and suffering.

It is related that while praying before a crucifix at Pisa she fell into a trance and received the stigmata, which miracle she tried to conceal, but it was known by many. Others assert it was not impressed visibly on her body, but on her soul.

She would often pray for a new heart, and once, it is related, our Saviour appeared to her in a vision, took her heart from her bosom and replaced it with His own, and there remained a wound or scar on her left side from that time. Her letters and writings are principally upon devotional subjects, written in very pure Italian.

In art St. Catherine is distinguished by the Dominican habit and the stigmata. She usually bears the lily. A book in her hand alludes to her writings.

FOOTNOTES:

[9] “Dæmonology in all its multiplied forms was now an established part of the Christian creed.” Milman’s _History of Christianity_, vol. iii., p. 299.

[10] See Appendix.

XX.—THE MONASTIC ORDERS

Mrs. Jameson says: “There is a Latin distich which well expressed the different localities and sites affected by the chief Monastic Orders:

Bernardus valles, colles Benedictus, amabat,
Oppida Franciscus, magnas Ignatius urbes;

(Bernard loved valleys, Benedict the hills,
Francis, towns; Ignatius, great cities);

and we shall find almost uniformly the chief foundations of the Benedictines on hills or mountains, those of the Cistercians in fertile valleys by running streams, those of the Franciscans in provincial towns, and those of the Jesuits in capital cities” (_Legends of the Monastic Orders_).

The =Benedictines=, founded by St. Benedict and distinguished by a habit entirely black. This order embraces the following branches of reformed Benedictines:

The _Camaldolesi_, founded by St. Romualdo; habit, black.

The _Vallombrosans_, founded by St. John Gualberto; habit, pale ash colour, or light grey.

The _Carthusians_, founded by St. Bruno; habit, white, sandalled feet, and shaven heads.

The _Cistercians_, white habit, a long loose robe with very wide sleeves, and a hood or cowl.

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A VALLOMBROSAN MONK.—PERUGINO

(Academy, Florence.)]

The _Olivetani_, founded by St. Bernard dei Tolomei; habit, white.

The _Oratorians_, founded by St. Philip Neri; habit, black.

The word Abbey (_Ital._ Badia, Abbazia, _Fr._ Abbaye) belongs especially to the foundations of this order.

In pictures painted for the Benedictine Orders, the saints most frequently represented are St. Benedict and his sister St. Scholastica, and his disciples St. Maurus, St. Placidus, and St. Flavia, who all wear the black habit; except, when St. Benedict appears as patriarch of any of the Reformed orders which adopted the white habit, he then wears white. The black habit is also given to:

St. Boniface, the Apostle of Germany.
St. Bennet, Bishop of Durham.
St. Benedict of Anian.
St. Bavon of Ghent.
St. Ildefonso of Toledo.
St. Giles of Languedoc.
St. Dunstan of Canterbury.
St. Walpurgis of Eichstadt.

St. Bernard is prominent in all the Cistercian abbeys and churches. St. John Gualberto figures principally in Florentine art, or pictures painted for the Vallombrosans.

The =Augustines= claim St. Augustine, one of the Four Latin Fathers, as their founder, and wear the black habit. This order embraces:

The _Premonstratensians_, founded by St. Norbert; habit, brown or black, with a white cloak.

The _Servi_, founded by St. Philip Benozzi; habit, black.

The _Trinitarians_,[11] founded by St. John de Matha; habit, white with a blue and red cross on the breast.

The _Brigittines_, founded by St. Bridget of Sweden; habit, black.

The _Order of Mercy_, founded by St. Peter Nolasco; habit, white, and the badge of the arms of the King of Aragon on the breast.

In the churches of the Augustines, one finds St. Augustine and his mother Monica; St. Joseph, the husband of the Virgin Mary, whom the Augustines reverence as their patriarch and patron saint; Joachim and Anna; the apostles and saints of the earliest ages, and the hermits St. Anthony and St. Paul; but next to St. Augustine their great saint is St. Nicholas of Tolentino.

The =Mendicant Orders=: the =Franciscans=, the =Dominicans=, the =Carmelites=. These monks were not called _Padri_, fathers, but _Frati_, brothers of men, and so great was the humility of St. Francis that he called his community _Frati Minori_, lesser brothers.

The =Franciscan Order=, founded by St. Francis of Assisi; the habit, originally grey, was changed after the first two centuries to a dark brown. The knotted cord around the waist was used symbolically by St. Francis to represent the halter or bridle of a subdued beast, or the body in subjection to the spirit. The reformed branches of the Franciscans are:

The _Capuchins_, habit dark brown with a long, pointed hood.

The _Poor Clares_, Franciscan nuns, founded by St. Clara; grey or brown habit and cord, and black veil.

The _Observants_, founded by St. Bernardino of Siena; grey habit and cord.

The _Cordeliers_, brown habit.

The _Minimes_, founded by St. Francis de Paula; brown habit, short scapulary with rounded ends, and the cord of St. Francis.

In pictures painted for any of the Franciscan churches or convents are found, singly or in groups, their eight great saints, called in Italian _I Cardini dell’Ordine Serafico_,” “The Chiefs of the Seraphic Order.”

_St. Francis, Padre Serafico_, patriarch and founder.

_St. Clara, Madre Serafica._

_St. Bonaventura, il Dottore Serafico_, the great prelate of the order.

_St. Anthony of Padua_, second only to St. Francis as a worker of miracles.

_St. Bernardino of Siena_, their great reformer and preacher, and the three royal saints, _St. Louis of France_; _St. Louis of Toulouse_; and _St. Elizabeth of Hungary_ (wearing her crown, and with her lap full of roses).

The =Dominican Order=: founded by St. Dominick; distinguished by a white habit under a long black cloak with a hood. The Dominicans are always shod. The Franciscans are generally barefoot or wear a wooden sandal.

The four celebrated saints who figure in Dominican pictures are:

_St. Dominick_, founder and patriarch.

_St. Peter Martyr_, distinguished by the wound in his head.

_St. Thomas Aquinas_, who represents the learning of the order.

_St. Catherine of Siena_, the great female saint of the Dominican Order.

The =Carmelites= claim the prophet Elijah as patriarch and founder, with the Virgin Mary as protectress. They were first formed into an order by St. Albert of Vercelli. The habit is a dark brown, with a long scapulary and a white mantle. The reformed branch, the _Scalzi_, or barefooted Carmelites, was founded by St. Theresa.

The =Jeronymites= claim St. Jerome as founder.

The =Jesuits=, founded by St. Ignatius Loyola; habit, a straight black cassock and square black cap.

The =Order of the Visitation of St. Mary= was founded by St. Francis de Sales and Ste. Jeanne Françoise de Chantal (grandmother of Madame de Sévigné).

FOOTNOTES:

[11] See Appendix.

APPENDIX

=Angels.= The Jewish belief in good and bad angels was probably borrowed from Zoroastrianism during their exile. St. Paul speaks of Thrones, or Dominions, or Principalities, or Powers (Col. i., 16), and from this and a few other scriptural texts the imagination of the early theologians arranged the angelic host into nine choirs—or three hierarchies of three choirs each. To each of these were given fanciful and mystical powers. The first hierarchy are the Councillors; to this belong the Seraphim, Cherubim, and Thrones. The Seraphim—love—stand nearest the throne of God, next come the Cherubim—knowledge,—and then the Thrones who support the seat of the Most High. These receive their glory direct from God and transmit it to the second who in turn shed the radiance of divine light upon the third and lowest hierarchy.

The second hierarchy are governors, who reign over and control the stars and the elements.

The third are the only ones that have concern with the earth. They are the messengers of God, and the protectors and guardians of the children of men.

A fourth century Byzantine manual gives the following directions to painters according to the order laid down by Dionysius the Areopagite:

{ =Seraphim.= } Six wings covered with eyes.
{ }
{ =Cherubim.= } Head only, two wings.
1st { }
{ =Thrones.= } Fiery wheels surrounded by wings
{ } filled with eyes. The whole
{ } symbolising a royal throne.

{ =Dominations.= } These wear albs to feet, golden
{ =Virtues.= } girdles, and green stoles. Hold
2d { =Powers.= } a golden staff in right hand and
{ } seal of God in left.

{ =Principalities.= } In soldier’s garb, golden girdles,
3d { =Archangels.= } and holding lance-headed javelins
{ =Angels.= } in their hands.

The early artists followed the description of the Seraphim given in Isa. vi., 2: “Each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly.”

In very old pictures and illuminated manuscripts, the hierarchies of angels are represented by circles. The innermost circles, the Seraphim and Cherubim, are commonly depicted with heads only, and with two, four, or six wings. The Seraphim are the colour of red—fire, meaning love. The Cherubim blue, the colour of the firmament or light, that is, knowledge. In these representations of the celestial hierarchy the Seraphim have the highest rank of all, and angels the lowest. Then follow apostles, martyrs, confessors, and virgins.

Didron says that “the hierarchy thus figured in rose windows and sculptured on vaulted roofs of cathedrals, exhibits in a palpable form ... the system of ethics and cosmogony embodied in the Hindu doctrine of emanation.”

The angels in the architectural decoration of old Christian churches have for their authority the Cherubim that adorned the temple of Solomon (1 Kings vi., 23-29).

Angels are sometimes placed on winged and fiery wheels, to typify extreme swiftness and buoyancy.

“The seven angels which stood before God” (Rev. viii., 2) are occasionally represented in pictures of the Last Judgment and of heaven, and can be recognised by their seven trumpets. These seven archangels are thus defined:

1. =Michael= (“like unto God”), captain of the host of heaven and protector of the Hebrews.

2. =Gabriel= (“whose strength is in God”), guardian of the heavenly treasury, and Joseph the patriarch’s preceptor.

3. =Raphael= (the healing of God), chief guardian angel, and the leader of Tobias.

4. =Uriel= (the light of God), who taught Esdras, explaining the prophecies.

5. =Chamuel= (the wrath of God), who wrestled with Jacob.

6. =Jophiel= (the beauty of God), guardian of the tree of knowledge and the same who drove Adam and Eve out of Paradise, and the preceptor of the sons of Noah.

7. =Zadkiel= (the righteousness of God), who stayed the hand of Abraham when about to sacrifice Isaac.

Only the names of the first four are given in the Bible, and these four are seldom represented together except in architectural decoration.

=Badge of Trinitarians.= “His Holiness [Pope Innocent, III.] did forthwith ratify the Order, and, by his command, they assumed the white habit, having on the breast a Greek cross of red and blue; the three colours signifying the Three Persons of the Most Holy Trinity; the white, the Father Eternal; the blue, which was the traverse of the cross, the Son as Redeemer, and the red, the charity of the Holy Spirit.”

=Basket.= Liberality to the poor.

=Bear.= Solitary life and self-restraint.

=Bee.= Originally a pagan symbol, the bee was adopted by the early monks as a symbol of chastity and industry. Peter of Capua alludes to the risen Saviour as _apis ætherea_. (In this connection it is interesting to note that Vishnu incarnate as Krishna is represented with a blue bee hovering about his head symbolising the ether.) Chrysostom, Isidore of Seville, Ambrose, and Bernard of Clairvaux were said to have lips flowing with honey (_mellifluus_) typifying their eloquence. The virgin queen of the hive became a favourite type of the Virgin Queen of Heaven. The bee is rarely found in art, however, but is occasionally seen carved on tombs in the catacombs as a symbol of immortality.

=Beehive.= Eloquence.

=St. Bernardino of Siena.= “So much was he affected by the mysteries of the incarnation and sufferings of the Son of God that he could never pronounce his sacred name without appearing in transports of love and adoration. Often at the end of his sermon he showed to the people the sacred name of Jesus curiously cut on a board with gold letters, inviting them to adore Christ with him on their knees, reciting a pious doxology.”[12]

=Christ= in early art was typified by Orpheus seated among beasts and birds playing on a lyre.

=Fish=, the eucharistic significance of. As the water turned into wine at the marriage of Cana was accepted by the early Church as symbolical of the Eucharist, so the fish as a symbol of Christ had also a eucharistic significance in commemoration of the miracle of the loaves and fishes. An early symbol of the Eucharist found in the catacombs is a cup containing three small loaves upon which are traced the cross. Speaking of the multitude who were fed with five loaves and two fishes, Paulinus of Nola says of Christ that “he himself is the true bread and the fish of living water”—_panis ipse verus et aquæ vivæ piscis Christus_. Eternal life and the Eucharist are inseparable ideas in the Church. “He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood hath eternal life and I will raise him up at the last day.” Prosper of Aquitane speaks of Christ as “giving himself as food to the disciples by the seashore and offering himself to the whole world as _Ichthus_.”

=Font.= According to Durandus the baptismal font in Christian churches was made octagonal because creation was complete in seven days; thus eight figured regeneration—the beginning anew.

=Hands, two.= In some paintings by the early Italian artists of the Baptism of Christ _two_ hands are seen emerging from the clouds with the dove proceeding from them (see illustration, page 79). Thus when two hands crossed at the wrists are seen on certain houses and convents in Italy it should typify the blessing and protection of the Eternal Father.

=Horns=, symbol of strength, intelligence, and power. See Moses.

The =Lion= placed at the doors of churches as guardian of the sanctuary was symbolical of spiritual vigilance, as the lion was believed never to close its eyes in sleep. The lion, however, not only typified Christ triumphing over death and hell (Rev. v., 5), but was used also to typify the devil which “as a roaring lion walketh about, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter v., 8). Thus the lions used to support pulpits in churches, as in Siena, Pisa, Lucca, and elsewhere in Italy, represent Satan vanquished and subdued by the might of Christianity. The same idea of triumphing over the powers of evil was intended to be conveyed in the sculptured figures of deceased persons reclining on tombs with their feet resting on a dragon, a lion, or a dog—the dog being regarded by the Jew as the incarnation of the evil principle. The Hebrew misconception of the character of the dog is a very curious one and persists throughout the Bible, where he is rarely referred to except in terms of contempt. The substitution of the Aryan for the Semitic point of view, however, reversed the meaning of the symbolism at a later period, when a lion at the feet of a man typified courage and manly strength, and the dog at the feet of a woman indicated fidelity and undying love.

The =Lizard= according to the _Physiologus_ when blind in old age creeps into the crevice of a wall facing east and stretches out its head to the rising sun whose beams restore its sight. Thus the lizard represented in ecclesiastical architecture is a symbol of the healing and illuminating effect of the gospel.

The =Magi=. “In the early art of the catacombs the three children of Babylon refusing to worship the image of Nebuchadnezzar were often associated with the three Magi who refused to obey Herod. It is not improbable that the number of the Magi became fixed by this association rather than by the gifts they bore of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Previous to the fourth century they were represented as two, four, and in one case six. After that time they were invariably represented as three.”[13]

=Majesty.= A term denoting pictures of Christ seated upon a throne and surrounded by angels with the symbols of the four Evangelists and the Greek letters Α and Ω, alpha and omega, signifying that Christ is the beginning and the end of all things.

=Oran=, or =Orant=, designates the figures seen in the catacombs with hands uplifted in prayer.

The =Ox= symbolises toil and patient renunciation.

The =Phœnix= in Egyptian religion was the embodiment of Ra the Sun God. It was fabled to come out of Arabia every five hundred years to Heliopolis, where it burned itself on the high altar in the Temple of the Sun and rose again from its own ashes young and beautiful. This pagan emblem of the resurrection and of immortality was adopted by the Christians and is frequently found on early mosaics and sarcophagi and carved on church stalls, where it is often associated with the pelican.

The =Sibyls=. There are numerous Sibyls but the Cumæan Sibyl of whom Ovid and Virgil wrote is the most famous. According to a Roman legend this Sibyl appeared to one of the Tarquins and offered him nine books for sale. The king refused to buy them. She burned three and returned with six, demanding the same price. Upon his second refusal she burned three more and returning to the king again demanded the same price for the three remaining. Puzzled, and curious at last, the king paid the price and found them to contain the destinies of the Roman state. These Sibylline books were for centuries the oracles of Rome.

=Tetramorph=, a figure which combines the four heads with wings and fiery wheels described by Ezekiel (chap. x.). The same figure with six wings denotes extreme swiftness, the wheels also winged.

=Three=, the number. According to Pythagoras three was the primal perfect number and symbol of completeness. The cube of three being nine was regarded by him as the extent to which numbers would go, all others being comprehended by and revolving within it. The decade ten was called by him “Heaven” as being the boundary of nine and forming as it were a monad with which recommences a fresh series capable of infinite expansion. The number three among Greeks and Romans had a mystic import and later when the meaning was lost it was considered exceptionally lucky, as were all uneven numbers.

=Tobias.= See Tobit, Apocrypha.

=Virgin of Pity.= The Madonna as “dispenser of mercy on earth” is sometimes represented crowned, standing with outstretched arms from which depends her mantle, the corners of which are upheld by angels, while underneath its shelter kneel worshipping votaries of all ranks and conditions—the rich, the poor, the lame and halt.

FOOTNOTES:

[12] Butler’s _Lives of the Saints_, vol. v., p. 369.

[13] _Christian Art and Archæology_, by Walter Lowrie.

SYMBOLS OF CERTAIN OLD TESTAMENT CHARACTERS

THE PROPHETS

AMOS. A shepherd’s crook.

DANIEL. A lion. A ram with four horns. Sometimes naked with hands outstretched and a lion on each side.

EZEKIEL. A turreted gateway, in his hand a plan of the New Jerusalem.

ISAIAH. A saw. Clothed in a sack. St. Matthew on shoulder.

JEREMIAH. A wand in his hand.

JOEL. Lions around him.

OBADIAH. Pitcher of water and loaves.

ZECHARIAH. A temple building. A stone covered with eyes.

THE PATRIARCHS

ABRAHAM. A knife and brazier of fire.

ADAM. A spade.

DAVID. Harp. Sling of stones. Head of Goliath.

ELIJAH. Scroll and red robes. Fiery chariot. Sword.

ELISHA. Two-headed eagle on shoulder.

GIDEON. Fleece of wool.

JOSEPH. Purse.

MELCHIZEDEK. Priest and king.

MOSES. Tablets of the Law. A rod. Horns of light. Burning bush. A rock. Some modern writers claim that the horns given to Moses by artists and sculptors grew out of an error in the translation of the ancient Hebrew, the early translators describing Moses in his descent from Sinai as _facies cornuta_ (“his face was horned”) instead of “his face shone.” Other writers, however, assert that among all peoples, horns have symbolised power; that the Israelites, fresh from the land of bondage, familiar with horns upon the heads of Egyptian gods, would readily believe that Moses had miraculously received the mark of divinity and kingly power. That he really descended with solid horns upon his head was devoutly believed down to the middle ages.

NOAH. Ark. Dove with olive branch. An oar.

SAMSON. Gates of city. Jaw bone of an ass.

SETH. Three seeds of the tree of life. A thread bound thrice around thumb.

INDEX

Abbey, 277.

Abraham, 290.

Adam, 290.

Adoration of Magi, 105.

Adoration of Shepherds, 104.

Agatha, St., her legend, 229.

Agnes, St., her legend, 226.

Ambrose, St., 182.

Amos, 290.

Anachronisms, 65.

Anchor, 73.

Andrew, St., Apostle, 153.

Angels, 281.

Anna, St., Legend of Joachim and Anna, 91.

Anna, prophetess, 109.

Anthony, St., Hermit, 240.

Anthony, St., of Padua, 258.

Apostles, the twelve, 146.

Apparition of Christ to His mother, 116.

Apple, symbol of, 75.

Archangels, 81.

Arrow, 72.

Ascension, 119.

Ass and Ox, Symbol of, 103.

Assumption of the Virgin, 119.

Augustine, St., 184.

Augustines, The, 277.

Aureole, 67.

Banner, or Standard, 73.

Barbara, St., 212.

Barnabas, St., 167.

Bartholomew, St., 161.

Basket, 284.

Bear, 284.

Bee, 284.

Beehive, 284.

Bell, 75.

Benedict, St., 244.

Benedictines, The, 275.

Bernard, St., of Clairvaux, 248.

Bernardino, St., of Siena, 264, 284.

Birds, as symbols, 88.

Bonaventura, St., 260.

Book, symbol of, 75, 87.

Brandeum, Legend of, 190.

Brigittines, 278.

Camaldolesi, 275.

Cana, Marriage at, 113.

Capuchins, 278.

Carmelites, 280.

Carthusians, 275.

Catherine, St., of Alexandria, 209.

Catherine, St., of Siena, 272.

Cecilia, St., 223.

Chalice, as emblem, 74.

Chamuel, 283.

Christ, Symbols of, 78, 285.

Christopher, St., 196.

Cistercians, 276.

Clara, St., 256.

Colours, Significance of, 76.

Cordeliers, 278.

Coronation of the Virgin, 121, 123.

Cosmo and Damian, Sts., 200.

Creed, Apostles’, 146.

Cross, Different forms of, 69.

Crown, as symbol, 71.

Crucifix, 76, 125-126.

Crucifixion, 114.

Daniel, 290.

David, 290.

Deposition, 116.

Descent from Cross, 115.

Devotional representations of the Virgin, 122.

Dispute in Temple, 111.

Doctors, Four, of the Church, 177.

Dominicans, 279.

Dominick, St., 266.

Dove, as emblem, 74, 88.

Dragon, symbol of, 70.

Dress, of Virgin, 76, 89.

Elijah, 290.

Elisha, 290.

Elizabeth, St., 100.

Entombment, 116.

Evangelists, Four, 137.

Ezekiel, 290.

Fathers, Four Latin, 177.

Fire and flames, 73.

Fish, emblem of Christ, 68, 285.

Flaming heart, 75.

Flight into Egypt, 109.

Flowers and fruit, 75.

Font, 285.

Francis, St., of Assisi, 252.

Franciscans, 278.

Gabriel, St., the Archangel, 84.

George, St., of Cappadocia, 191.

Gideon, 290.

Globe, 87.

Glory, 67.

God, the Father, Symbols of, 78.

Gregory, St., the Great, Legends of, 187.

Hands, two, 285.

Hart, 71.

Hind, 71.

Historical and devotional subjects, 64.

Holy Family, 112.

Holy Ghost, Symbols of, 78.

Horns, 286.

Immaculate Conception, 126.

Isaiah, 290.

James, St., the Great, 156.

James Minor, St., 163.

Jeremiah, 290.

Jerome, St., 177.

Jeronymites, 280.

Jesuits, 280.

Joachim, St., Legend of, 91.

Joel, 290.

John the Baptist, St., 134.

John the Evangelist, St., 142.

Jophiel, 283.

Joseph, 291.

Joseph, St., Marriage of, 94;
Death of, 113.

Judas Iscariot, 165.

Jude, St., 164.

Lamb, 70.

Lamp, 73.

Lance, 72.

Lantern, 73.

Last Supper, 175.

Latin Fathers, Four, 177.

Laurence, St., 235.

Lily, symbol of, 74.

Lion, as emblem, 70, 286.

Lizard, 287.

Louis, St., of France, 262.

Louis, St., of Toulouse, 263.

Lucy, St., 231.

Luke, St., the Evangelist, 141.

Madonna, Legends of, 91-121;
Symbols of, 86-88.

Magi, Adoration of, 105, 287.

Majesty, 287.

Margaret, St., 220.

Mark, St., the Evangelist, 140.

Marriage of Virgin, 94.

Mary Magdalene, St., 169.

Mater Amabilis, 132.

Mater Dolorosa, 125.

Matthew, St., 138.

Matthias, St., 165.

Melchizedek, 291.

Mendicant Orders, 278.

Michael, St., the Archangel, 81.

Minimes, 279.

Monastic Orders, 275.

Moses, 291.

Mysteries, Fifteen, of the rosary, 89.

Nativity, of the Virgin, 92;
of Christ, 102.

Nicholas, St., of Myra, 205.

Nimbus, 67.

Noah, 291.

Obadiah, 290.

Observants, 278.

Olive, as symbol, 74.

Olivetani, 276.

Oran or Orant, 287.

Oratorians, 276.

Order of Mercy, 278.

Orders, religious, 275.

Ox. _See_ Ass, symbol of, 287.

Palm, as emblem, 73.

Passion of our Lord, 114.

Paul, St., Apostle, 152.

Paul, St., Hermit, 241.

Peacock, 71.

Pelican, 70.

Peter, St., 148.

Peter Martyr, St., 268.

Philip, St., 159.

Phœnix, 287.

Pietà, 126.

Pomegranate, as emblem, 75, 88.

Poor Clares, 278.

Preaching Friars. _See_ Dominicans.

Precious stones, symbols of, in sacred art, 76.

Premonstratensians, 277.

Presentation of the Virgin, 92.

Procession to Calvary, 114.

Purification of the Virgin, 108.

Raphael, St., the Archangel, 84.

Repose of Holy Family, 110.

Roch, St., 202.

Rosary, Institution of. _See_ St. Dominick, 268.

Rosary. _See_ Mysteries.

Rose, symbol of Virgin, 87.

Saints frequently found in art, Legends of, 234.

Saints and Symbols, 30-63.

Samson, 291.

Scourge, as symbol, 74.

Sebastian, St., 194.

Serpent, 70, 88.

Servi, 277.

Seth, 291.

Seven joys. _See_ Sorrows.

Shell, 75.

Ship, emblem of, 73.

Sibyl, Tiburtina, Prophecy of, 102.

Sibyls, 288.

Simeon, Prophecy of, 108.

Simon Zelotes, St., 164.

Skull, 75.

Sorrows, Seven, of the Virgin, 89.

Spasimo, lo, 114.

Sposalizio, 94.

Square, 68.

Star, symbol of Virgin, 86.

Stephen, St., 234.

Sudarium, 62.

Sun, 86.

Sword, as emblem, 72.

Symbols, general, 67-75;
of saints, 1-29;
of the Virgin, 86-88.

Tetramorph, 288.

Thomas, St., 161.

Thomas Aquinas, St., 270.

Three, 288.

Triangle, emblem of, 68.

Trinitarians, 277;
badge of, 284.

Trinity, Holy, Symbols of, 80.

Unicorn, 75.

Uriel, 283.

Ursula, St., 214.

Vallombrosans, 275.

Vincent, St., 237.

Virgin Martyrs, Four, of the Latin Church, 223.

Virgin Mary, Legends of, 91-121;
Symbols of, 86-88.

Virgin Patronesses, 208.

Visitation, 100.

Visitation of St. Mary, Order of, 280.

Votive Pictures, 65, 130.

Zacharias, 134.

Zadkiel, 283.

Zechariah, 290.