Paradiso: Canto XXVII -- Denunciation of Papal Corruption
Dante may have predestined Boniface VIII to the 3rd bolgia of the 8th circle of hell, but nothing Pope Nicholas III foresaw could have prepared us for St. Peter's indignation as he announces that Boniface VIII is a usurper and that the seat stands vacant even with his presence in it, for he "has made a sewer of [St. Peter's] sepulchre, a flow/ of blood and stink at which the treacherous one/ who fell from [heaven] may chuckle there below" (24-6). Kschroeder may tell us more about these bad popes about whom St. Peter then speaks, but it is hard for the rest of us to imagine since we've lived for so long under the good popes of the 20th and 21st centuries. After denouncing greed, factionalism, papal warring against Christians, and simony, St. Peter legitimizes Dante's rhyme by commanding him to repeat it on earth without holding back what St. Peter has not held back, and we get a sense that a lot of those people floundering in hell are there because of bad shepherding by their spiritual leaders. Each person, of course, is, as Aristotle teaches, responsible for his or her own vice, and woe be unto those who corrupt others or in their capacity allow others to be corrupted through them; likewise, those who are good, as St. Adalbert of Prague can attest, might find themselves outcast by believer and pagan alike.
As earth is the feeder ground for heaven and hell, it makes sense that St. Peter would be so upset, which is a point we've explored before now, but St. Peter has a perspective on earth that we haven't yet seen, and it takes Beatrice to explain it to us that time's running out for humankind to reconcile itself with God. Dante glances this aspect of time in the instant it takes him to look down on Earth and see it as a "little threshing floor" (85) blotted out by the sun. When he returns his eyes to Beatrice, he discovers that they have entered the final sphere, the Primum Mobile, where she explains the essence of time as derived from heaven's unfactored (because it is the unity of all things) motion so that those souls that emanate from it are pulled back into it as ripples that move inward are displaced by those that follow, and the intervals between these tugs, not in space, but in states of being, constitute the time we perceive as a mariner does a tide.
S.
As earth is the feeder ground for heaven and hell, it makes sense that St. Peter would be so upset, which is a point we've explored before now, but St. Peter has a perspective on earth that we haven't yet seen, and it takes Beatrice to explain it to us that time's running out for humankind to reconcile itself with God. Dante glances this aspect of time in the instant it takes him to look down on Earth and see it as a "little threshing floor" (85) blotted out by the sun. When he returns his eyes to Beatrice, he discovers that they have entered the final sphere, the Primum Mobile, where she explains the essence of time as derived from heaven's unfactored (because it is the unity of all things) motion so that those souls that emanate from it are pulled back into it as ripples that move inward are displaced by those that follow, and the intervals between these tugs, not in space, but in states of being, constitute the time we perceive as a mariner does a tide.
S.
posted by Sebastian Mahfood at 6:14 PM
10 Comments:
Dante vents his justified fury at corrupt popes, not only in Inferno, but even in this Paradiso Canto, through the words of Peter. But it all sounds a bit curious in our age which has been blessed with marvelous pontiffs. Some might find limitations with a few, such as Pius IX, but for the past two centuries we have been blessed with holy, compassionate, intelligent popes of which we are justly proud. If Dante wrote in our age what would he say of the papacy?
I'd like to think that Dante wouldn't have anything negative at all to say about today's papacy, in spite of the sketchiness surrounding Pius XI's presiding over the rise of Italian and German fascism. Dante was, of course, a monarchist who believed in the separation of Church and State, and he might have lauded Pius XI's efforts in distancing himself from national politics, though he would have raised an eyebrow at the Church's acquiring the wealth that it did in compensation for the loss of its papal states and its investing that wealth in the stock market and real estate. I think, though, that that problem would have paled in comparison to Vatican II's changes, though as one person is said to have responded when another questioned the foundation of Church belief now that so many changes have taken place . . . "Well, we believe in one God, . . ."
S.
First off I love the Liturgical Dancing, in the Activities link.
Two things about this canto, first lines 130 to 133 to me are quite striking. The fact that Dante distinguishes between devouring food in Lent, and even on fasting days is mind boggling. As Catholics today many find it inconvenient to fast merely during the Lent in season, let alone some other fasting day’s set-aside. I have to admit that I find it hard for myself even to remember to fast or abstain from meat on Fridays. I always tell myself that I will offer up something else as a penance, but often times neglect to do so. I believe people my age because of the changes that occurred during the late sixties and early seventies have you responsibly neglected many of the church teachings in regards to this practice. Many people are truly missing out of the many blessings which come from fasting and abstaining.
I all most forgot, secondly on the page of Notes it points out that in line 58 it states that, "Clement V John XXII both filled the Papal Court with greedy favorites from their native lands. And both, of course, were guilty of the further sin of being French in Italy." I wonder what Dante would have to say about the fact that the present Pope along with John Paul II or both foreigners to Italy. I'm sure Dante would have had a heart attack if he was to know that we've had a Pope from Germany and even worse probably for Dante from Poland.
I don't think Dante would consider Poland or Germany as particularly bad -- remember, he courted the Holy Roman Emperor, Henry VII, and even placed him in one of the best seats in heaven. The French were distasteful to Dante for probably more than one reason -- Philip IV was a bad king and avariciously destroyed the Templars and subdued the Pope through the Babylonian Captivity for his own ends. The greater picture, though, is that Dante would welcome a good Pope regardless of his nationality, and a good Pope would have been one who recognized the distinction between temporal and ecclesiastical affairs and redressed the problems articulated by Dante throughout the Comedy. I think JPII would have been his kind of Pope, but I might be biased since I'm still riding high on the post-JPII euphoria that's been happening around us this past month.
S.
I wondered at Peter's indignation at the papal corruption. He became quite wrathful with judgment. It is, however, easy to see why he had such anger towards the papacy of the time. What he and his more immediate successors gave of their lives had become tainted by corruption and was turning the Church and many of Her members in a sour direction. The highest office in the Church was being abused and many were led to the torments of hell because of it. I agree with Sebastian's comments that Dante would be quite pleased with the popes of the last 150 years as they allowed themselves to be more guided by the Holy Spirit than by selfish political and monetary gains.
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