Session 20

Preaching the Truth

1. The friars

2. The dream of conversion

3. A new Christianity
1. The friars
the friars

new orders, created in the 13th century, mendicant orders

– the Franciscans

order created by Francis of Assisi (circa 1181-1226)

– the Dominicans

order created by Dominic of Guzmán (circa 1170-1221)

the friars

the new orders had an very important success, in Western

Europe and Christian Iberia

– they founded many houses (convents) in many cities and towns of

Christian Iberia

in Barcelona: the Franciscan convents of Sant Francesc (men) and Santa

Clara (women), the Dominican convent of Santa Caterina (men)
the friars

the history of the new orders is important

– new attitudes of Christians

– new attitudes of Christians towards the other

2. The dream of conversion
the dream of conversion

the new orders preached a new Christian order (christianitas)

– they preached the Christians

• they preached those who were considered vicious and sinful

– they preached the (religious) others (unbelievers)

• Muslims

• Jews
Francis preaching in
the court of the
sultan of Babylonia,
al-Malik al-Kamil
Nasir al-Din

a fresco of the
Italian painter
Giotto
the dream of conversion

the dream of conversion

– the preaching

– the missions

Iberia and North Africa

– the schools

• Tunis, Valencia, Murcia, Játiva, Mallorca, Seville

• Ramon Llull (Franciscan), Ramon de Penyafort (Dominican)

3. A new Christianity
a new Christianity

the dream of conversion, transformed

– heterogeneous society

– homogeneous society

• a society based on faith

• a good, pure and true Christianity

• a society which is the only possible

a society with one law, in which law and life are congruent
a new Christianity

absolute religious uniqueness implies

– the rejection of the religious other:

the other is the evil (vilification), the error (falsification), the impure
(contamination)

– the exclusion of the religious other

the other is not part, can not be part of a true, good and pure society
true false
good evil
pure impure

a new model of society

a new Christianity

exclusion

– is exclusion of jodios and moros

– but also exclusion of other human groups

heretics, sodomites, lepers, witches

a new Christianity

exclusion opens gates

– the other is not part of society

– the other is not part of humanity

the other can become something sub-human, non-human

For debate
for debate

defining society in religious terms

making differences, constructing boundaries, excluding the other

– is dangerous

– is absurd
for debate

that absurdity was already recognized in the 14th century by a

Florentine novelist: Giovanni Boccaccio

the story of the three rings and its lesson: the sons will never know
the true ring, only the father knows; all three are heirs, equal,
equal in everything, even in ignorance
for debate

we will never know, we can not know the truth (we do not know
if God is on our side), unless God comes and tells us,
therefore

– engaging polemic is useless

– pretending uniqueness is senseless

for debate

the non-perfect solution: belief what you want and let others in
peace

– faith is something private, it cannot be public

– faith is to be expelled from community

– no nations blessed by God, no wars in the name of God, no Crusade

against the Forces of Evil…