A
new impulse had been given to the enterprise on which the Catholics of
Languedoc had embarked: with the apostolic life came a daily increase of the
apostolic spirit. It was a very different thing to set about evangelizing a
country encumbered with the pomp of a feudal retinue, and to traverse the same
country on foot with "neither purse
nor scrip," as Diego was wont to send out his companions daily into
the neighbouring towns and villages to preach the faith. For after the
conference at Montpellier they all set out together towards Toulouse, stopping
at different places on the road to preach and hold disputations with the
heretics, as they were moved by the Spirit of God. We are assured that they
made this journey barefooted, and trusting to God's providence alone for their
daily wants ; and the effect of this new way of proceeding was soon evident in
the success which at tended their labours. At Carmain, a town near Toulouse,
the residence of two of the principal Albigensian leaders, Baldwin and Thierry,
the people received the missionaries so warmly that they were only prevented
from expelling the Albigenses from their territory by the authority of the lord
of the place, and accompanied the legates out of the town on their departure
with every sign of respect. They proceeded in this way to Beziers, Carcassona,
and other places in the surrounding country, confirming the faith of the
Catholics, and in many instances reconciling great numbers of the heretics to
the Church.
Hitherto
Dominic's part in these transactions has seemed to be a secondary one: he has
appeared before us rather as the follower and companion of the bishop of Osma,
than as the man whose name was to be for ever remembered in future histories as
the chief leader in this struggle of the faith. Few probably of those who
witnessed these first openings of the campaign against the Albigenses would
have believed that the award of a deathless fame was to fall, not to the
bishop, whose prompt and commanding spirit had been so readily recognized by those
who had unanimously chosen him to be their chief, but to one who followed in
his train, known only as Brother Dominic; for he had laid aside even the title
of sub-prior, and took on him nothing but the inferior part of the subject and
attendant of another. As soon, however, as the disputes with the heretics began
to be held of which we have spoken, his power and value were felt. Perhaps they
were best evidenced by the bitter hatred which the heretics conceived against
him. The same sentiments had been so unequivocally evinced towards the legate
Peter de Castelnau, that the others had persuaded him to withdraw for a while
from the enterprise, in order not to exasperate those whom it was their object
to conciliate. The masterly arguments and captivating eloquence of Dominic,
which time after time silenced his adversaries, and conquered the obstinacy of
vast numbers who returned to the obedience of the Church after many of these
conferences, excited a no less vindictive feeling against him in the minds of those
who might be confounded, but would never yield. They spoke of him as their most
dangerous enemy, and did not even conceal their resolve to take his life,
whenever chance should give them the opportunity. He behaved on this occasion
with a surprising indifference: the service of God was the only thing that he
saw before him; and as his days were spent in public disputations, his nights
were consumed in interviews with those who secretly sought his counsel, or more
frequently in those prayers, and tears, and strong intercessions with God for
the souls of his people, which were more powerful arms in fighting the battle
of the faith than were the wisdom and eloquence of his words.
Among
the conferences held at this time, that of Fanjeaux was the most important,
both from the preparations made by both sides, and the extraordinary nature of
its termination. It would seem that the heretics had appealed to some final
arbitration of their differences, and that the Catholic leaders had not only
responded to the challenge, but even accepted as judges in the controversy
three persons whose sentiments were commonly known as favourable to the
Albigenses themselves. Each side had put together in writing the strongest
defence of their cause; that of the Catholics was the work of Dominic. The
three arbitrators having heard both parties, and read the written apologies,
absolutely refused to pronounce any decision on the case; and in this
perplexity the heretics loudly demanded a different mode of trial, and proposed
that both books should be committed to the flames, that God might declare by
his own interposition which cause He favoured. "Accordingly a
great fire was lighted" (says Blessed Jordan), "and the two
volumes were cast therein ; that of the heretics was immediately consumed to
ashes; the other, which had been written by the blessed man of God, Dominic,
not only remained unhurt, but was borne far away by the flames in presence of
the whole assembly. Again a second and a third time they threw it into the
fire, and each time the same result clearly manifested which was the true
faith, and the holiness of him who had written the book.” This miracle is
given by every contemporaneous writer. It is mentioned in the lessons for the
Divine office, composed by Constantine Medici, bishop of Orvieto, in 1254; and
in the following century Charles le Bel, King of France, purchased the house
where the event took place, and erected it into a chapel under the invocation
of the saint. A large beam of wood on which the paper fell when tossed away by
the flames, was still preserved when Castiglio wrote his history; and there
does not even seem to have been any attempt on the part of the heretics
themselves to deny the fact. Yet in spite of this, there is a melancholy
significance in the expression of the historian. "A few of the
heretics were converted to the truth of our holy faith, but as to the rest, it
produced no effect; this being the just reward of their great sins."
(1) It would seem as if every age and every heresy were to act over again
the scenes of Christ's ministry in Judea: signs and miracles were thrown away
on those who had Moses and the prophets, and would not believe.
This
was not the only occasion when a miracle of this kind was wrought. A similar
prodigy took place at Montreal, in the diocese of Carcassona, under different
circumstances. Dominic had, in the course of one of his public disputations,
written down on a sheet of paper various quotations from the Holy Scriptures,
which he had cited in the course of his argument, and these he gave to one of
the heretics, praying him to consider them well, and not to resist the
conclusion to which they might bring him. The same evening, as this man sat
over the fire with some of his companions, discussing the subjects of dispute,
he drew out the paper, and proposed submitting it to the flames, as a test of
the truth of its contents. They consented, and thrusting it into the fire, kept
it there for some time, and then drew it out unscorched. Again and again they
repeated the experiment, and always with the same result. And a second time
what do we find to be the effect on the witnesses of this new miracle? "Then the
heretics were filled with great wonder, and, instead of keeping the promise
they had made of believing the truths preached by the Catholics, agreed to keep
the prodigy a close secret, lest it should reach the ears of the Catholics, who
would be certain to claim it as a sign of victory." (2) One, however,
more noble-minded than the rest, was converted by what he saw, and published it
to the world, and from his testimony it was inserted by Peter de Vaulx Cernay,
in his history of the Albigenses. It is to be regretted that more particulars
have not been preserved of those memorable conferences, but we are only told in
general that great success everywhere followed the footsteps of the
missionaries, and that the numbers of the Catholics daily increased, which
reduced the heretics to the necessity of using frauds and the most incredible
ingenuity to preserve their ground against the power of their adversaries
It
will be observed that we have made no attempt in those pages to give any
account of the nature of that celebrated heresy, the name of which will be for
ever inseparably united with that of S. Dominic; neither is it our intention to
do so. An ample account of its doctrines may be gathered from so many works
within the reach of the Catholic reader, that we feel it is wholly unnecessary
to devote any space here to the task of unveiling its true character. Indeed,
whilst alluding to its connection with this period of S. Dominic's life, we
cannot but feel that this connection has been greatly overrated by many, who
have made his biography little more than a history of political and
ecclesiastical affairs, with which he had personally but little to do. In this
way his own personal life and character have often been lost sight of, and
confused with the troubles of the times, and the portrait of the Saint has been
hidden by the shadow which rests, in some degree, on the Count de Montfort's
crusade. With all this we have nothing to do; nor shall we allude to the
political history of the time, except in so far as is necessary to explain and
illustrate the details preserved to us of the life of Dominic. There is little
doubt that the Albigensian heresy, besides its corruptions of the faith and its
frightful immorality, had a directly political character, and was mixed up with
a spirit of revolution and sedition, which goes far to explain the bitterness
of those civil wars of which it was the immediate cause; and, like all
revolutionary movements it had a disorganizing effect on all social ties, so
that the south of France was plunged by it into a state of civil anarchy, which
was doubtless the chief reason which moved the civil arm against its followers
with such peculiar severity. One of the consequences of these political
commotions was the impoverishing of many noble families engaged in them, and
this often led to their concealing their faith through the pressure of
necessity, and suffering their children to be educated by the heretics, who
eagerly made use of the worldly temptations which were in their power to offer,
in order to get the children of Catholics into their hands. This evil was very
soon perceived by the quick eye of Dominic, and so deplorably did he feel the
cruelty which exposed these souls to the certain ruin of their religious
principles, that he determined on a very strenuous effort to oppose it, and to
provide some means for the education of the daughters of Catholics in the true
faith.
For
this purpose he resolved to found a monastery, where, within the protection of
strict enclosure, and under the charge of a few holy women whom he gathered
together out of the suffering provinces, these children might be nurtured under
the Church's shadow. The spot chosen for the purpose was Prouille, a name
illustrious in the Dominican annals, for there, unconsciously probably to its
founder, rose the mother-house of an institute which 'was to cover the world.
It was a small village near Montreal, at the foot of the Pyrenees; and a church
dedicated to our Lady, under the familiar title of Notre Dame de Prouille, was
the object of considerable veneration among the people. There, with the warm
sanction and co-operation of Fulk, bishop of Toulouse, Dominic founded his
monastery. The church we have spoken of was granted to the new foundation, and
it seemed as if the plan had no sooner been proposed than every one saw its
fitness for the necessities of the times, and vied one with another in forwarding
and contributing to it. Peter of Castelnau, stretched on a bed of sickness,
gave thanks to God with clasped hands for what he deemed so signal a mercy.
Berenger, archbishop of Narbonne, immediately granted it considerable lands and
revenues; and all the Catholic nobles, with the Count de Montfort at their
head, gave* their prompt and liberal aid to a scheme from which they themselves
were sure to derive such lasting advantage.
The
little community consisted at first of nine members, all of them converted from
the Albigensian heresy by the preaching and miracles of Dominic. They were
joined by two noble ladies of Catholic families, one of whom, Guillemette de
Fanjeaux, though the last to receive the habit, was chosen by Dominic as their
Superior. She continued in that office until the year 1225; but he himself
governed the monastery, and thenceforth received the title of Prior of
Prouille, residing in a house outside the enclosure, when his apostolic labours
did not call him elsewhere. The community took possession of their new retreat
on the 27th of December, 1206. Their habit was white with a tawny mantle; of
the rule given them by their founder we know nothing, save that it bound them,
besides attending to the education of children, to devote certain hours to
manual labour, such as spinning. Prouille, afterwards associated to the Order
of Preachers, became in time a flourishing monastery, never numbering less than
a hundred religious; it was the mother-house of no less than twelve other
foundations, and reckoned among its prioresses several of the royal house of
Bourbon.
Notes:
(1) Castiglio, part i. cap. Viii
(2) Polidori, cap. vi
Source:
Alemany, Most Reverend J. S., D. D. Life of St. Dominic and a Sketch of the Dominican
Order. New York: P. O'Shea Publisher, 1867
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