FIFTH DAY
PRIME
In which there occurs a fraternal debate regarding the poverty of Jesus.
My heart racked by a thousand anxieties after the scene of the night, I woke on the morning of the fifth day when prime was already ringing, as William shook me roughly, warning me that the two legations would be meeting shortly. I looked out of the cell window and saw nothing. The fog of the previous day was now a milky1 blanket that totally covered the high plain.
When I went outside, I saw the abbey as I had never seen it before. A few of the major buildings—the church, the Aedificium,, the chapter house—could be discerned even at a distance, though still vague, shadows among shadows, while the rest of the constructions were visible only at a few paces. Shapes, of things and animals, seemed to rise suddenly from the void; people material?ized from the mist, first gray, like ghosts, then gradually though not easily recognizable.
Born in a northern clime, I was not unfamiliar4 with that element, which at another moment would have pleasantly reminded me of the plains and the castle of my birth. But that morning the condition of the air seemed painfully kin5 to the condition of my soul, and the sadness with which I had awakened6 increased as I slowly approached the chapter house.
A few feet from the building, I saw Bernard Gui taking his leave of another person, whom I did not immediately recognize. Then, as he passed me, I real?ized it was Malachi. He looked around like a man not wishing to be seen while committing some crime.
He did not recognize me and went off. Impelled11 by curiosity, I followed Bernard and saw that he was glanc?ing through some papers, which perhaps Malachi had delivered to him. At the door of the chapter house, with a gesture, he summoned the captain of the archers12, standing13 nearby, and murmured a few words to him. Then he went in. I followed him still.
It was the first time I had set foot in that place. On the outside it was of modest dimensions and sober design; I realized that it had recently been rebuilt over the remains15 of a primitive16 abbatial church, perhaps partly destroyed by fire.
Entering from the outside, you passed beneath a portal in the new fashion, with a pointed17 arch and no decorations, surmounted18 by a rose window. But inside you found yourself in a vestibule, built on the traces of an old narthex. Facing you was another doorway19, its arch in the old style, and with a half-moon tympanum wondrously20 carved. It must have been the doorway of the now vanished church.
The sculptures of the tympanum were equally beauti?ful but not so disturbing as those of the newer church. Here again, the tympànum was dominated by an enthroned Christ; but at his sides, in various poses and with various objects in their hands, were the twelve apostles, who had received from him the mission to go forth21 and preach among all peoples. Over Christ’s head, in an arc divided into twelve panels, and under Christ’s feet, in an unbroken procession of figures, the peoples of the world were portrayed22, destined23 to re?ceive the Word. From their dress I could recognize the Hebrews, the Cappadocians, the Arabs, the Indians, the Phrygians, the Byzantines, the Armenians, the Scythians, the Romans. But, along with them, in thirty round frames that made an arc above the arc of twelve panels, were the inhabitants of the unknown worlds, of whom only the Physiologus and the vague reports of travelers speak slightly. Many of them were unfamiliar to me, others I identified. For example, brutes24 with six fingers on each hand; fauns born from the worms that develop between the bark and the pulp25 of trees; sirens with scaly26 tails who seduce27 seamen28; Ethiops, their bod?ies all black, defending themselves against the fire of the sun by digging underground caverns29; ass10-centaurs, men to the navel and asses30 below; Cyclopes, each with a single eye the size of a shield; Scylla, with a girl’s head and bosom31, a she-wolf’s belly32, and a dolphin’s tail; the hairy men of India, who live in swamps and on the river Epigmarides; the cynocephali, who cannot say a word without barking; sciopods, who run swiftly on their single leg and when they want to take shelter from the sun stretch out and hold up their great foot like an umbrella; astomats from Greece, who have no mouth but breathe through their nostrils33 and live only on air; bearded women of Armenia; Pygmies; blemmyae, born headless, with mouths in their bellies34 and eyes on their shoulders; the monster women of the Red Sea, twelve feet tall, with hair to the ankles, a cow’s tail at the base of the spine35, and camel’s hoofs36; and those whose soles are reversed, so that, following them by their footprints, one arrives always at the place whence they came and never where they are going; and men with three heads, others with eyes that gleam like lamps, and monsters of the island of Circe, human bodies with heads of the most diverse animals ...
These and other wonders were carved on that doorway. But none of them caused uneasiness because they did not signify the evils of this earth or the torments37 of hell but, rather, bore witness that the Word had reached all the known world and was extending to the unknown; thus the doorway was a joyous38 promise of concord39, of unity40 achieved in the word of Christ, splendid oecumen.
A good augury41, I said to myself, for the meeting to take place beyond this threshold, where men who have become one another’s enemy through conflicting inter42?pretations of the Gospel will perhaps succeed today in settling their disputes. And I reproached myself, that I was a weak sinner to bewail my personal problems when such important events for the history of Christian43?ity were about to take place. I measured the smallness of my sufferings against the great promise of peace and serenity44 confirmed in the stone of the tympanum. I asked God’s forgiveness for my frailty45, and I crossed the threshold with new serenity.
The moment I entered I saw the members of both legations, complete, facing one another on a series of benches arranged in a hemicycle, the two sides separated by a table where the abbot and Cardinal46 Bertrand were sitting.
William, whom I followed in order to take notes, placed me among the Minorites, where Michael sat with his followers48 and other Franciscans of the court of Avignon, for the meeting was not meant to seem a duel49 between Italians and French, but a debate between supporters of the Franciscan Rule and their critics, all united by sound, Catholic loyalty50 to the papal court.
With Michael of Cesena were Brother Arnold of Aquitaine, Brother Hugh of Newcastle, and Brother William Alnwick, who had taken part in the Perugia chapter, and also the Bishop51 of Kaffa and Berengar Talloni, Bonagratia of Bergamo, and other Minorites from the Avignon court. On the opposite side sat Lawrence Decoin, bachelor of Avignon, the Bishop of Padua, and Jean d’Anneaux, doctor of theology in Paris. Next to Bernard Gui, silent and pensive52, there was the Dominican Jean de Baune, in Italy called Giovanni Dalbena. Years before, William told me, he had been inquisitor at Narbonne, where he had tried many Beghards; but when he found heresy53 in a propo?sition concerning the poverty of Christ, Berengar Talloni, reader in the convent of that city, rose against him and appealed to the Pope. At that time John was still uncertain about this question, so he summoned both men to his court, where they argued without arriving at any conclusion. Thus a short time later the Franciscans took their stand, which I have described, at the Perugia chapter. Finally, there were still others on the side of the Avignonese, including the Bishop of Alborea.
The session was opened by Abo, who deemed it opportune54 to sum up recent events. He recalled how in the year of our Lord 1322 the general chapter of the Friars Minor47, gathered at Perugia under the leadership of Michael of Cesena, had established with mature and diligent55 deliberation that, to set an example of the perfect life, Christ and, following his teaching, the apostles had never owned anything in common, wheth?er as property or feud56, and this truth was a matter of Catholic faith and doctrine57, deduced from various pas?sages58 in the canonical59 books. Wherefore renunciation of ownership of all things was meritorious60 and holy, and the early fathers of the church militant61 had followed this holy rule. The Council of Vienne in 1312 had also subscribed62 to this truth, and Pope John himself, in 1317, in the constitution regarding the condition of the Friars Minor which begins “Quorundam exigit,” had referred to the deliberations of that council as devoutly64 composed, lucid65, sound, and mature. Whence the Perugian chapter, considering that what the apostolic see had always approved as sound doctrine should always be held as accepted, nor should it be strayed from in any way, had merely confirmed that council’s decision, with the signature of such masters of sacred theology as Brother William of England, Brother Henry of Germany, Brother Arnold of Aquitaine, provin?cials and ministers, and also with the seal of Brother Nicholas, minister of France; Brother William Bloc66, bachelor; the minister general and the four ministers provincial67; Brother Thomas of Bologna; Brother Peter of the province of Saint Francis; Brother Ferdinand of Castello; and Brother Simon of Touraine. However, Abo added, the following year the Pope, issued the decretal Ad conditorem canonum, against which Brother Bonagratia of Bergamo appealed, considering it con2?trary to the interests of his order. The Pope then took down that decretal from the doors of the church of Avignon where it had been exposed, and revised it in several places. But he actually made it harsher, as was proved the fact that, as an immediate8 consequence, Brother Bonagratia was held in prison for a year. Nor could there be any doubts as to the Pontiffs severity, because that same year he issued the now very well known Cum inter nonnullos, in which the theses of the Perugia chapter were definitively68 condemned69.
Politely interrupting Abo at this point, Cardinal Bertrand spoke70 up, saying we should recall how, to complicate71 matters and to irritate the Pontiff, in 1324 Louis the Bavarian had intervened with the Declaration of Sachsenhausen, in which for no good reason he confirmed the theses of Perugia (nor was it comprehen?sible, Bertrand remarked, with a thin smile, that the Emperor should acclaim72 so enthusiastically a poverty he did not practice in the least), setting himself against the lord Pope, calling him inimicus pacis and saying he was bent73 on fomenting74 scandal and discord75, and finally calling him a heretic, indeed a heresiarch.
“Not exactly,” Abo ventured, trying to mediate9.
“In substance, yes,” Bertrand said sharply. And he added that it was precisely76 the Emperor’s inopportune meddling77 that had obliged the lord Pope to issue the decretal Quia quorundam, and that eventually he had sternly bidden Michael of Cesena to appear before him. Michael had sent letters of excuse, declaring himself ill—something no one doubted—and had sent in his stead Brother John Fidanza and Brother Umile Custodio from Perugia. But it so happened, the cardinal went on, that the Guelphs of Perugia had informed the Pope that, far from being ill, Brother Michael was in commu?nication with Louis of Bavaria. In any case, what was past was past, and now Brother Michael looked well and serene78, and so was expected in Avignon. However, it was better, the cardinal admitted, to consider beforehand, as prudent79 men from both sides were now doing, what Michael would finally say to the Pope, since everyone’s aim was still not to exacerbate80 but, rather, to settle fraternally a dispute that had no reason to exist be?tween a loving father and his devoted81 sons, and which until then had been kept ablaze82 only by the interfer?ence of secular83 men, whether emperors or viceroys, who had nothing to do with the questions of Holy Mother Church.
Abo then spoke up and said that, though he was a man of the church and abbot of an order to which the church owed much (a murmur14 of respect and defer84?ence was heard from both sides of the hemicycle), he still did not feel the Emperor should remain aloof85 from such questions, for the many reasons that Brother William of Baskerville would expound86 in due course. But, Abo went on, it was nevertheless proper that the first part of the debate should take place between the papal envoys87 and the representatives of those sons of Saint Francis who, by their very participation88 in this meeting, showed themselves to be the most devoted sons of the Pope. And then he asked that Brother Michael or his nominee89 indicate the position he meant to uphold in Avignon.
Michael said that, to his great and joyous emotion, there was in their midst that morning Ubertino of Casale, from whom the Pope himself, in 1322, had asked for a thorough report on the question of poverty. And Ubertino could best sum up, with that lucidity90, erudition, and devout63 faith that all recognized in him, the capital points of those ideas which now, unswervingly, were those of the Franciscan order.
Ubertino rose, and as soon as he began to speak, I understood why he had aroused so much enthusiasm, both as a preacher and as a courtier. Impassioned in his gesticulation, his voice persuasive91, his smile fascinating, his reasoning clear and consequential92, he held his listeners fast for all the time he spoke. He began a very learned disquisition on the reasons that supported the Perugia theses. He said that, first of all, it had to be recognized that Christ and the apostles were in a double condition, because they were prelates of the church of the New Testament93, and in this respect they possessed94, as re?gards the authority of dispensation and distribution, to give to the poor and to the ministers of the church, as is written in the fourth chapter of the Acts of the Apostles, and this point nobody disputes. But secondarily, Christ and the apostles must be considered as individual persons, the base of every religious perfection, and perfect despisers of the world. And on this score two ways of having are posited95, one of which is civil and worldly, which the imperial laws define with the words “in bonis nostris,” because we call ours those goods of which we have the defense96 and which, if taken from us, we have the right to claim. Whereby it is one thing to defend in a civil and worldly sense one’s own possession against him who would take it, appealing to the imperial judge (to affirm that Christ and the apostles owned things in this sense is heretical, because, as Matthew says in chapter 5, if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also; nor does Luke say any differently in chapter 6, where Christ dismisses from himself all power and lordship and imposes the same on his apostles; and consider further Matthew chapter 19, in which Peter says to the Lord that to follow him they have left everything); but in the other way temporal things can yet be held, for the purpose of common fraternal charity, and in this way Christ and his disciples97 possessed some goods by natu?ral right, which right by some is called ius poli, that is to say the law of heaven, to sustain nature, which without human intervention98 is consonant99 with proper reason, whereas ius fori is power that derives100 from human covenant101. Before the first division of things, as far as ownership was concerned, they were like those things today which are not among anyone’s possessions and are granted to him who takes them; things were in a certain sense common to all men, whereas it was only after original sin that our progenitors102 began to divide up ownership of things, and thus began worldly domin?ion as we now know it. But Christ and the apostles held things in the first way, and so they had clothing and the bread and fishes, and as Paul says in I Timothy: Hav?ing food and raiment let us be therewith content. Wherefore Christ and his disciples did not hold these things in possession but in use, their absolute poverty remaining intact. Which had already been recognized by Pope Nicholas II in the decretal Exiit qui seminat.
But on the opposite side Jean d’Anneaux rose to say that Ubertino’s positions seemed to him contrary both to proper reason and to the proper interpretation103 of Scripture104. Whereas with goods perishable105 with use, such as bread and foods, a simple right of use cannot be considered, nor can de-facto use be posited, but only abuse; everything the believers held in common in the primitive church, as is deduced from Acts 2 and 3, they held on the basis of the same type of ownership they had had before their conversion106; the apostles, after the descent of the Holy Spirit, possessed farms in Judaea; the vow107 of living without property does not extend to what man needs in order to live, and when Peter said he had left everything he did not mean he had renounced108 property; Adam had ownership and property of things; the servant who receives money from his master certainly does not just make use or abuse of it; the words of the Exiit qui seminat to which the Minorites are always referring and which establish that the Friars Minor have only the use of what serves them, without having control and ownership,, must be referring only to goods that are not consumed with use; and in fact if the Exiit included perishable goods it would sustain the impossible; de-facto use cannot be distinguished109 from juridical control; every human right, on the basis of which material goods are owned, is contained in the laws of kings; Christ as a mortal man, from the mo?ment of his conception, was owner of all earthly goods, and as God he received from the Father universal control over everything; he was owner of clothing, food, money for tribute, and offerings of the faithful; and if he was poor, it was not because he had no property, but because he did not receive its fruits; for simple juridical control, separated from the collection of interest, does not enrich the possessor; and finally, even if the Exiit had said otherwise, the Roman Pontiff, in everything concerning faith and morals, can revoke110 the decisions of his predecessors111 and can even make contrary assertions.
It was at this point that Brother Jerome, Bishop of Kaffa, rose vehemently112, his beard shaking with wrath113 even though he tried to make his words sound concilia?tory. He began an argumentation that to me seemed fairly confused. “What I will say to the Holy Father, and myself who will say it, I submit to his correction, because I truly believe John is the vicar of Christ, and for this confession114 I was seized by the Saracens. And I will refer first to an event recorded by a great doctor, in the dispute that arose one day among monks115 as to who was the father of Melchizedek. Then the abbot Copes, questioned about this, shook his head and declared: Woe117 to you, Copes, for you seek only those things that God does not command you to seek and neglect those He does command. There, as is readily deduced from my example, it is so clear that Christ and the Blessed Virgin118 and the apostles held nothing, indi?vidually or in common, that it would be less clear to recognize that Jesus was man and God at the same time, and yet it seems clear to me that anyone denying the evidence of the former must then deny the latter!”
He spoke triumphantly119, and I saw William raise his eyes to heaven. I suspect he considered Jerome’s syllo?gism quite defective120, and I cannot say he was wrong, but even more defective, it seemed to me, was the infuriated and contrary argumentation of Jean de Baune, who said that he who affirms something about the poverty of Christ affirms what is seen (or not seen) with the eye, whereas to define his simultaneous humanity and divinity, faith intervenes, so that the two proposi?tions cannot be compared.
In reply, Jerome was more acute than his opponent: “Oh, no, dear brother,” he said, “I think exactly the opposite is true, because all the Gospels declare Christ was a man and ate and drank, and as his most evident miracles demonstrate, he was also God, and all this is immediately obvious!”
“Magicians and soothsayers also work miracles,” de Baune said smugly.
“True,” Jerome replied, “but through magic art. Would you compare Christ’s miracles to magic art?” The assem?bly murmured indignantly that they would not consid?er such a thing. “And finally,” Jerome went on, feeling he was now close to victory, “would his lordship the Cardinal del Poggetto want to consider heretical the be?lief in Christ’s poverty, when this proposition is the basis of the Rule of an order such as the Franciscan, whose sons have gone to every realm to preach and shed their blood, from Morocco to India?”
“Holy spirit of Peter of Spain,” William muttered, “protect us.”
“Most beloved brother,” de Baune then cried, taking a step forward, “speak if you will of the blood of your monks, but do not forget, that same tribute has also been paid by religious of other orders. ...”
“With all due respect to my lord cardinal,” Jerome shouted, “no Dominican ever died among the infidels, whereas in my own time alone, nine Minorites have been martyred!”
The Dominican Bishop of Alborea, red in the face, now stood up. “I can prove that before any Minorites were in Tartary, Pope Innocent sent three Dominicans there!”
“He did?” Jerome said, snickering. “Well, I know that the Minorites have been in Tartary for eighty years, and they have forty churches throughout the country, where?as the Dominicans have only five churches, all along the coast, and perhaps fifteen monks in all. And that settles the question!”
“It does not settle any question at all,” the Bishop of Alborea shouted, “because these Minorites, who pro7?duce heretics as bitches produce puppies, claim every?thing for themselves, boast of martyrs121, but have fine churches, sumptuous122 vestments, and buy and sell like all the other religious!”
“No, my lord, no,” Jerome interrupted, “they do not buy and sell on their own, but through the procurators of the apostolic see, and the procurators have possession, while the Minorites have only the use!”
“Is that so?” the bishop sneered123. “And how many times, then, have you sold without procurators? I know the story of some farms that—”
“If I did so, I was wrong,” Jerome hastily interrupted, “not to turn that over to the order may have been a weakness on my part!”
“Venerable brothers,” Abo then intervened, “our prob?lem is not whether the Minorites are poor, but whether our Lord was poor. ...”
“Well, then”—at this point Jerome raised his voice again—“on that question I have an argument that cuts like a sword. ...”
“Saint Francis, protect thy sons ...” William said, with?out much confidence.
“The argument,” Jerome continued, “is that the Ori?entals and the Greeks, far more familiar than we with the doctrine of the holy fathers, are convinced of the poverty of Christ. And if those heretics and schismatics so clearly uphold such a clear truth, do we want to be more heretical and schismatical than they, by denying it? These Orientals, if they heard some of our number preaching against this truth, would stone them!”
“What are you saying?” the Bishop of Alborea quipped. “Why, then, do they not stone the Dominicans, who preach precisely against this?”
“Dominicans? Why, no one has ever seen them down there!”
Alborea, his face purple, observed that this monk116 Jerome had been in Greece perhaps fifteen years, whereas he had been there since his boyhood. Jerome replied that the Dominican Alborea might perhaps have been in Greece, but living a sybaritic life in fine bishops’ aces3, whereas he, a Franciscan, had been there not fifteen years, but twenty-two, and had preached before the Emperor in Constantinople. Then Alborea, run?ning short on arguments, started to cross the space that separated him from the Minorites, indicating in a loud voice and with words I dare not repeat his firm inten?tion to pull off the beard of the Bishop of Kaffa, whose masculinity he called into question, and whom he planned to punish, by the logic124 of an eye for an eye, shoving that beard in a certain place.
The other Minorites rushed to form a barrier and defend their brother; the Avignonese thought it useful to lend the Dominican a hand, and (Lord, have mercy on the best among thy sons!) a brawl125 ensued, which the abbot and the cardinal tried to quell126. In the tumult127 that followed, Minorites and Dominicans said grave things to one another, as if each were a Christian fighting the Saracens. The only ones who remained in their seats were William, on one side, and Bernard Gui, on the other. William seemed sad, and Bernard happy, if you can call happiness the faint smile that curled the inquisitor’s lip.
“Are there no better arguments,” I asked my master, as Alborea tugged128 at the beard of the Bishop of Kaffa, “to prove or refute the poverty of Christ?”
“Why, you can affirm both positions, my good Adso,” William said, “and you will never be able to establish on the basis of the Gospels whether, and to what extent, Christ considered as his property the tunic129 he wore, which he then perhaps threw away when it was worn out. And, if you like, the doctrine of Thomas Aquinas on property is bolder than that of us Minorites. We say: We own nothing and have everything in use. He said: Consider yourselves also owners, provided that, if any?one lacks what you possess, you grant him its use, and out of obligation, not charity. But the question is not whether Christ was poor: it is whether the church must be poor. And ‘poor’ does not so much mean owning a palace or not; it means, rather, keeping or renouncing130 the right to legislate131 on earthly matters.”
“Then this,” I said, “is why the Emperor is so interest?ed in what the Minorites say about poverty.”
“Exactly. The Minorites are playing the Emperor’s game against the Pope. But Marsilius and I consider it a two-sided game, and we would like the empire to support our view and serve our idea of human rule.”
“And will you say this when you are called on to speak?”
“If I say it I fulfill132 my mission, which was to expound the opinions of the imperial theologians. But if I say it my mission fails, because I ought to be facilitating a second meeting in Avignon, and I don’t believe John would agree to my going there to say these things.”
“And so—?”
“And so I am trapped between two opposing forces, like an ass who does not know which of two sacks of hay to eat. The time is not ripe. Marsilius raves133 of an impossible transformation134, immediately; but Louis is no better than his predecessors, even if for the present he remains the only bulwark135 against a wretch136 like John. Perhaps I shall have to speak, unless they end up killing137 one another first. In any case, Adso, write it all down: let at least some trace remain of what is happening today.”
As we were speaking—and truly I do not know how we managed to hear each other—the dispute reached its climax138. The archers intervened, at a sign from Bernard Gui, to keep the two factions139 apart. But like besiegers and besieged140, on both sides of the walls of a fortress141, they hurled142 insults and rebuttals at one another, which I record here at random143, unable to attribute them to specific speakers, and with the premise144 that the phrases were not uttered in turn, as would happen in a dispute in my country, but in Mediterranean145 fashion, one overlapping146 another, like the waves of an angry sea.
“The Gospel says Christ had a purse!”
“Shut up! You people paint that purse even on crucifixes! What do you say, then, of the fact that our Lord, when he entered Jerusalem, went back every night to Bethany?”
“If our Lord chose to go and sleep in Bethany, who are you to question his decision?”
“No, you old ass, our Lord returned to Bethany because he had no money to pay for an inn in Jerusalem!”
“Bonagratia, you’re the ass here! What did our Lord eat in Jerusalem?”
“Would you say, then, that a horse who receives oats from his master to keep alive is the owner of the oats?”
“You see? You compare Christ to a horse. ...”
“No, you are the one who compares Christ to a simoniacal prelate of your court, vessel147 of dung!”
“Really? And how many lawsuits148 has the holy see had to undertake to protect your property?”
“The property of the church, not ours! We had it in use!”
“In use to spend, to build beautiful churches with gold statues, you hypocrites, whited sepulchers149, sinks of iniquity150! You know well that charity, not poverty, is the principle of the perfect life!”
“That is what your glutton151 Thomas said!”
“Mind your words, villain152! The man you call ‘glutton’ is a saint of the holy Roman church!”
“Saint, my foot! Canonized by John to spite the Franciscans! Your Pope can’t create saints, because he’s a heretic! No, a heresiarch!”
“We’ve heard that one before! Words spoken by that Bavarian puppet at Sachsenhausen, rehearsed by your Ubertino!”
“Mind how you speak, pig, son of the whore of Babylon and other strumpets as well! You know Ubertino wasn’t with the Emperor that year: he was right there in Avignon, in the service of Cardinal Orsini, and the Pope was sending him as a messenger to Aragon!”
“I know, I know, he took his vow of poverty at the cardinal’s table, as he now lives in the richest abbey of the peninsula! Ubertino, if you weren’t there, who prompted Louis to use your writings?”
“Is it my fault if Louis reads my writings? Surely he cannot read yours, you illiterate153!”
“I? Illiterate? Was your Francis a literate154, he who spoke with geese?”
“You blaspheme!”
“You’re the blasphemer; you know the keg ritual!”
“I have never seen such a thing, and you know it!”
“Yes, you did, you and your little friars, when you slipped into the bed of Clare of Montefalco!”
“May God strike you! I was inquisitor at that time, and Clare had already died in the odor of sanctity!”
“Clare gave off the odor of sanctity, but you were sniffing155 another odor when you sang matins to the nuns156!”
“Go on, go on, the wrath of God will reach you, as it will reach your master, who has given welcome to two heretics like that Ostrogoth Eckhart and that English necromancer157 you call Branucerton!”
“Venerable brothers, venerable brothers!” Cardinal Bertrand and the abbot shouted.
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milky
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con
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| n.反对的观点，反对者，反对票，肺病；vt.精读，学习，默记；adv.反对地，从反面；adj.欺诈的 | |
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aces
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| abbr.adjustable convertible-rate equity security (units) 可调节的股本证券兑换率；aircraft ejection seat 飞机弹射座椅；automatic control evaluation simulator 自动控制评估模拟器n.擅长…的人( ace的名词复数 )；精于…的人；（ 网球 ）（对手接不到发球的）发球得分；爱司球 | |
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unfamiliar
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kin
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awakened
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pro
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immediate
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| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
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mediate
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| vi.调解，斡旋；vt.经调解解决；经斡旋促成 | |
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ass
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| n.驴；傻瓜，蠢笨的人 | |
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impelled
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| v.推动、推进或敦促某人做某事( impel的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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archers
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| n.弓箭手，射箭运动员( archer的名词复数 ) | |
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standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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murmur
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| n.低语，低声的怨言；v.低语，低声而言 | |
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15
remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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16
primitive
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| adj.原始的；简单的；n.原(始)人，原始事物 | |
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17
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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18
surmounted
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| 战胜( surmount的过去式和过去分词 )； 克服（困难）； 居于…之上； 在…顶上 | |
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19
doorway
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| n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径 | |
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20
wondrously
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| adv.惊奇地，非常，极其 | |
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21
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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22
portrayed
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| v.画像( portray的过去式和过去分词 )；描述；描绘；描画 | |
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23
destined
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| adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的 | |
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24
brutes
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| 兽( brute的名词复数 )； 畜生； 残酷无情的人； 兽性 | |
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25
pulp
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| n.果肉，纸浆；v.化成纸浆，除去...果肉，制成纸浆 | |
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26
scaly
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| adj.鱼鳞状的；干燥粗糙的 | |
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27
seduce
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| vt.勾引，诱奸，诱惑，引诱 | |
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28
seamen
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| n.海员 | |
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29
caverns
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| 大山洞，大洞穴( cavern的名词复数 ) | |
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30
asses
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| n. 驴，愚蠢的人，臀部 adv. (常用作后置)用于贬损或骂人 | |
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31
bosom
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| n.胸，胸部；胸怀；内心；adj.亲密的 | |
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32
belly
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| n.肚子，腹部；(像肚子一样)鼓起的部分，膛 | |
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33
nostrils
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| 鼻孔( nostril的名词复数 ) | |
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34
bellies
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| n.肚子( belly的名词复数 )；腹部；（物体的）圆形或凸起部份；腹部…形的 | |
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35
spine
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| n.脊柱，脊椎；(动植物的)刺；书脊 | |
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36
hoofs
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| n.（兽的）蹄，马蹄( hoof的名词复数 )v.（兽的）蹄，马蹄( hoof的第三人称单数 ) | |
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37
torments
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| （肉体或精神上的）折磨，痛苦( torment的名词复数 )； 造成痛苦的事物[人] | |
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38
joyous
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| adj.充满快乐的；令人高兴的 | |
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39
concord
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| n.和谐；协调 | |
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40
unity
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| n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调 | |
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41
augury
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| n.预言，征兆，占卦 | |
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42
inter
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| v.埋葬 | |
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43
Christian
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| adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒 | |
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44
serenity
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| n.宁静，沉着，晴朗 | |
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45
frailty
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| n.脆弱；意志薄弱 | |
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46
cardinal
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| n.(天主教的)红衣主教；adj.首要的，基本的 | |
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47
minor
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| adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修 | |
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48
followers
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| 追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件 | |
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49
duel
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| n./v.决斗；(双方的)斗争 | |
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50
loyalty
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| n.忠诚，忠心 | |
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51
bishop
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| n.主教，（国际象棋）象 | |
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52
pensive
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| a.沉思的,哀思的,忧沉的 | |
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53
heresy
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| n.异端邪说；异教 | |
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54
opportune
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| adj.合适的，适当的 | |
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55
diligent
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| adj.勤勉的，勤奋的 | |
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56
feud
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| n.长期不和；世仇；v.长期争斗；世代结仇 | |
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57
doctrine
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| n.教义；主义；学说 | |
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58
sages
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| n.圣人( sage的名词复数 )；智者；哲人；鼠尾草（可用作调料） | |
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59
canonical
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| n.权威的；典型的 | |
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60
meritorious
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| adj.值得赞赏的 | |
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61
militant
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| adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士 | |
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62
subscribed
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| v.捐助( subscribe的过去式和过去分词 )；签署，题词；订阅；同意 | |
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63
devout
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| adj.虔诚的，虔敬的，衷心的 (n.devoutness) | |
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64
devoutly
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| adv.虔诚地，虔敬地，衷心地 | |
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65
lucid
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| adj.明白易懂的，清晰的，头脑清楚的 | |
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66
bloc
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| n.集团；联盟 | |
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67
provincial
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| adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人 | |
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68
definitively
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| adv.决定性地，最后地 | |
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69
condemned
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| adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词 | |
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70
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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71
complicate
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| vt.使复杂化，使混乱，使难懂 | |
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72
acclaim
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| v.向…欢呼，公认；n.欢呼，喝彩，称赞 | |
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73
bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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74
fomenting
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| v.激起，煽动（麻烦等）( foment的现在分词 ) | |
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75
discord
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| n.不和，意见不合，争论，（音乐）不和谐 | |
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76
precisely
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| adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地 | |
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77
meddling
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| v.干涉，干预（他人事务）( meddle的现在分词 ) | |
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78
serene
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| adj. 安详的，宁静的，平静的 | |
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79
prudent
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| adj.谨慎的，有远见的，精打细算的 | |
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80
exacerbate
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| v.恶化，增剧，激怒，使加剧 | |
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81
devoted
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| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
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82
ablaze
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| adj.着火的，燃烧的；闪耀的，灯火辉煌的 | |
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83
secular
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| n.牧师，凡人；adj.世俗的，现世的，不朽的 | |
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84
defer
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| vt.推迟，拖延；vi.(to)遵从，听从，服从 | |
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85
aloof
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| adj.远离的；冷淡的，漠不关心的 | |
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86
expound
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| v.详述；解释；阐述 | |
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87
envoys
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| 使节( envoy的名词复数 )； 公使； 谈判代表； 使节身份 | |
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88
participation
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| n.参与，参加，分享 | |
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89
nominee
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| n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者 | |
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90
lucidity
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| n.明朗，清晰，透明 | |
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91
persuasive
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| adj.有说服力的，能说得使人相信的 | |
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92
consequential
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| adj.作为结果的，间接的；重要的 | |
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93
testament
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| n.遗嘱；证明 | |
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94
possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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95
posited
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| v.假定，设想，假设( posit的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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96
defense
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| n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩 | |
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97
disciples
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| n.信徒( disciple的名词复数 )；门徒；耶稣的信徒；（尤指）耶稣十二门徒之一 | |
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98
intervention
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| n.介入，干涉，干预 | |
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99
consonant
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| n.辅音；adj.[音]符合的 | |
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100
derives
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| v.得到( derive的第三人称单数 )；（从…中）得到获得；源于；（从…中）提取 | |
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101
covenant
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| n.盟约，契约；v.订盟约 | |
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102
progenitors
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| n.祖先( progenitor的名词复数 )；先驱；前辈；原本 | |
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103
interpretation
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| n.解释，说明，描述；艺术处理 | |
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104
scripture
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| n.经文，圣书，手稿；Scripture:(常用复数)《圣经》，《圣经》中的一段 | |
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105
perishable
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| adj.（尤指食物）易腐的，易坏的 | |
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106
conversion
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| n.转化，转换，转变 | |
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107
vow
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| n.誓(言)，誓约；v.起誓，立誓 | |
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108
renounced
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| v.声明放弃( renounce的过去式和过去分词 )；宣布放弃；宣布与…决裂；宣布摒弃 | |
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109
distinguished
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| adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的 | |
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110
revoke
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| v.废除，取消，撤回 | |
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111
predecessors
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| n.前任( predecessor的名词复数 )；前辈；（被取代的）原有事物；前身 | |
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112
vehemently
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| adv. 热烈地 | |
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113
wrath
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| n.愤怒，愤慨，暴怒 | |
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114
confession
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| n.自白，供认，承认 | |
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115
monks
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| n.修道士，僧侣( monk的名词复数 ) | |
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116
monk
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| n.和尚，僧侣，修道士 | |
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117
woe
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| n.悲哀，苦痛，不幸，困难；int.用来表达悲伤或惊慌 | |
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118
virgin
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| n.处女，未婚女子；adj.未经使用的；未经开发的 | |
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119
triumphantly
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| ad.得意洋洋地；得胜地；成功地 | |
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120
defective
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| adj.有毛病的，有问题的，有瑕疵的 | |
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121
martyrs
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| n.martyr的复数形式；烈士( martyr的名词复数 )；殉道者；殉教者；乞怜者（向人诉苦以博取同情） | |
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122
sumptuous
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| adj.豪华的，奢侈的，华丽的 | |
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123
sneered
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| 讥笑，冷笑( sneer的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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124
logic
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| n.逻辑(学)；逻辑性 | |
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125
brawl
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| n.大声争吵，喧嚷；v.吵架，对骂 | |
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126
quell
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| v.压制，平息，减轻 | |
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127
tumult
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| n.喧哗；激动，混乱；吵闹 | |
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128
tugged
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| v.用力拉，使劲拉，猛扯( tug的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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129
tunic
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| n.束腰外衣 | |
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130
renouncing
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| v.声明放弃( renounce的现在分词 )；宣布放弃；宣布与…决裂；宣布摒弃 | |
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131
legislate
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| vt.制定法律；n.法规，律例；立法 | |
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132
fulfill
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| vt.履行，实现，完成；满足，使满意 | |
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133
raves
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| n.狂欢晚会( rave的名词复数 )v.胡言乱语( rave的第三人称单数 )；愤怒地说；咆哮；痴心地说 | |
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134
transformation
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| n.变化；改造；转变 | |
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135
bulwark
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| n.堡垒，保障，防御 | |
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136
wretch
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| n.可怜的人，不幸的人；卑鄙的人 | |
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137
killing
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| n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财 | |
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138
climax
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| n.顶点；高潮；v.(使)达到顶点 | |
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139
factions
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| 组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 ) | |
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140
besieged
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| 包围，围困，围攻( besiege的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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141
fortress
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| n.堡垒，防御工事 | |
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142
hurled
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| v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂 | |
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143
random
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| adj.随机的；任意的；n.偶然的(或随便的)行动 | |
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144
premise
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| n.前提；v.提论，预述 | |
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145
Mediterranean
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| adj.地中海的；地中海沿岸的 | |
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146
overlapping
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| adj./n.交迭（的） | |
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147
vessel
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| n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管 | |
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148
lawsuits
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| n.诉讼( lawsuit的名词复数 ) | |
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149
sepulchers
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| n.坟墓，墓穴( sepulcher的名词复数 )；圣物置放处v.埋葬( sepulcher的第三人称单数 ) | |
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150
iniquity
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| n.邪恶；不公正 | |
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151
glutton
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| n.贪食者，好食者 | |
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152
villain
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| n.反派演员，反面人物；恶棍；问题的起因 | |
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153
illiterate
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| adj.文盲的；无知的；n.文盲 | |
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154
literate
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| n.学者；adj.精通文学的，受过教育的 | |
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155
sniffing
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| n.探查法v.以鼻吸气，嗅，闻( sniff的现在分词 )；抽鼻子（尤指哭泣、患感冒等时出声地用鼻子吸气）；抱怨，不以为然地说 | |
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156
nuns
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| n.（通常指基督教的）修女， （佛教的）尼姑( nun的名词复数 ) | |
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157
necromancer
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| n. 巫师 | |
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