Bernardine of Feltre
Encyclopedia
The Blessed Bernardine of Feltre (sometimes Bernardinus of Feltre) was a Friar Minor and missionary, b. at Feltre
, Italy
, in 1439 and d. at Pavia
, 28 September 1494. He is remembered in connexion with the monti di pietà of which he was the reorganizer and, in a certain sense, the founder, together with the Blessed Michele Carcano
. The feast of Blessed Bernardino is kept in the Order of Friars Minor on 28 September.
, and inspired Bernardine to enter the Franciscan order. In May that year he joined the “Observantine” Franciscans, an austere branch of the Franciscan friars. He completed successfully his studies at Mantua
and was ordained priest in 1463. He was small, shy, and stammered but his superiors assigned him to preach home-missions. Cured of an impediment in his speech, Bernardine began his apostolate up and down the Italian peninsula. Every city of note and every province from Lombardy
in the north to Sardinia
and the provinces of the south became successively the scene of his missionary labours.
He was an extremely popular sermonizer because he spoke simply and powerfully against the vanity, ambition and greed rife at the time. The crowds that flocked to hear him were too large for the local churches, so he addressed them in the city squares and the fields. Like many other missioners of his century, he had made a vast outdoor bonfire called “burning the Devil's stronghold”. The crowds were asked to throw into the fire all objects of vanity and sin such as playing cards, dice, pornographic books and pictures, jewelry, wigs, superstitious charms, cosmetics, and so forth.
Bernardine was able to reconcile warring communities. He also sought civic legislation to correct public injustices such as usury, the charging of excessive interest for loans, which was especially onerous on the poor. In 1484, Bernardine established the charitable credit organization, mont-de-piétés run by a joint committee of clergy and laymen. The institution was founded as an alternative to the high interest loans of the Jewish money lenders and Lombard traveling bankers of the Middle Ages. His insistence on charging a low interest to protect the institution's permanency raised a controversy among the theologians who thought it promoted the continuance of usury. In 1515, Pope Leo
X declared the institution meritorious and it spread rapidly throughout France, Italy, and Spain.
Aided by the practical notion of establishing mont-de-piétés, he called for the explusion of Jews all over Italy and Tyrol
.
throughout Italy, which in Trent
led to accusations of blood libel
against Jewish residents after the death of Simon of Trent
, resulting in the torture and execution of seventeen Jews and the expulsion of Jews from that city which lasted 300 years.
as carrying in his hand a monti di pietà, that is, a little green hill composed of three mounds and on the top either a cross or a standard with the inscription Curam illius habe (a snippet from the Vulgate
translation of the Gospel of Luke's Parable of the Good Samaritan
).
has as often as not been ascribed to Bernardine of Feltre. The fact, however, that the Anima Christi was composed sometime before 1439 disproves any claim that he might have of being its author, though much like Ignatius of Loyola
, Bernardine made frequent use of it and recommended it to his brethren.
Feltre
Feltre is a town and comune of the province of Belluno in Veneto, northern Italy. A hill town in the southern reaches of the province, it is located on the Stizzon River, about 4 km from its junction with the Piave, and 20 km southwest from Belluno...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, in 1439 and d. at Pavia
Pavia
Pavia , the ancient Ticinum, is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy, northern Italy, 35 km south of Milan on the lower Ticino river near its confluence with the Po. It is the capital of the province of Pavia. It has a population of c. 71,000...
, 28 September 1494. He is remembered in connexion with the monti di pietà of which he was the reorganizer and, in a certain sense, the founder, together with the Blessed Michele Carcano
Michele Carcano
Michele Carcano was an Italian Franciscan preacher. He is known for his part in founding the montes pietatis banking system, with Bernardine of Feltre, and for the marked anti-Semitism of his attacks on usury.His sermons were later printed as Sermones quadragesimales fratris Michaelis de...
. The feast of Blessed Bernardino is kept in the Order of Friars Minor on 28 September.
Life
Born Martin Tomitani, he belonged to the noble family of Tomitano and was the eldest of nine children. In 1456 St. James of the Marches preached the Lenten course at PaduaPadua
Padua is a city and comune in the Veneto, northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Padua and the economic and communications hub of the area. Padua's population is 212,500 . The city is sometimes included, with Venice and Treviso, in the Padua-Treviso-Venice Metropolitan Area, having...
, and inspired Bernardine to enter the Franciscan order. In May that year he joined the “Observantine” Franciscans, an austere branch of the Franciscan friars. He completed successfully his studies at Mantua
Mantua
Mantua is a city and comune in Lombardy, Italy and capital of the province of the same name. Mantua's historic power and influence under the Gonzaga family, made it one of the main artistic, cultural and notably musical hubs of Northern Italy and the country as a whole...
and was ordained priest in 1463. He was small, shy, and stammered but his superiors assigned him to preach home-missions. Cured of an impediment in his speech, Bernardine began his apostolate up and down the Italian peninsula. Every city of note and every province from Lombardy
Lombardy
Lombardy is one of the 20 regions of Italy. The capital is Milan. One-sixth of Italy's population lives in Lombardy and about one fifth of Italy's GDP is produced in this region, making it the most populous and richest region in the country and one of the richest in the whole of Europe...
in the north to Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
and the provinces of the south became successively the scene of his missionary labours.
He was an extremely popular sermonizer because he spoke simply and powerfully against the vanity, ambition and greed rife at the time. The crowds that flocked to hear him were too large for the local churches, so he addressed them in the city squares and the fields. Like many other missioners of his century, he had made a vast outdoor bonfire called “burning the Devil's stronghold”. The crowds were asked to throw into the fire all objects of vanity and sin such as playing cards, dice, pornographic books and pictures, jewelry, wigs, superstitious charms, cosmetics, and so forth.
Bernardine was able to reconcile warring communities. He also sought civic legislation to correct public injustices such as usury, the charging of excessive interest for loans, which was especially onerous on the poor. In 1484, Bernardine established the charitable credit organization, mont-de-piétés run by a joint committee of clergy and laymen. The institution was founded as an alternative to the high interest loans of the Jewish money lenders and Lombard traveling bankers of the Middle Ages. His insistence on charging a low interest to protect the institution's permanency raised a controversy among the theologians who thought it promoted the continuance of usury. In 1515, Pope Leo
Pope Leo
Pope Leo was the name of thirteen Roman Catholic Popes:*Pope Leo I Leo the Great *Pope Leo II *Pope Leo III *Pope Leo IV *Pope Leo V *Pope Leo VI *Pope Leo VII *Pope Leo VIII...
X declared the institution meritorious and it spread rapidly throughout France, Italy, and Spain.
Aided by the practical notion of establishing mont-de-piétés, he called for the explusion of Jews all over Italy and Tyrol
County of Tyrol
The County of Tyrol, Princely County from 1504, was a State of the Holy Roman Empire, from 1814 a province of the Austrian Empire and from 1867 a Cisleithanian crown land of Austria-Hungary...
.
Anti-Judaism
During his iterant preaching he stirred up anti-JudaismAnti-Judaism
Religious antisemitism is a form of antisemitism, which is the prejudice against, or hostility toward, the Jewish people based on hostility to Judaism and to Jews as a religious group...
throughout Italy, which in Trent
Trento
Trento is an Italian city located in the Adige River valley in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol. It is the capital of Trentino...
led to accusations of blood libel
Blood libel
Blood libel is a false accusation or claim that religious minorities, usually Jews, murder children to use their blood in certain aspects of their religious rituals and holidays...
against Jewish residents after the death of Simon of Trent
Simon of Trent
Simon of Trent ; also known as Simeon; was a boy from the city of Trento, Italy whose disappearance was blamed on the leaders of the city's Jewish community based on their confessions under torture, causing a major blood libel in Europe.-Background:Shortly before Simon went missing, Bernardine of...
, resulting in the torture and execution of seventeen Jews and the expulsion of Jews from that city which lasted 300 years.
Iconography
Blessed Bernardine's is generally represented in iconographyIconography
Iconography is the branch of art history which studies the identification, description, and the interpretation of the content of images. The word iconography literally means "image writing", and comes from the Greek "image" and "to write". A secondary meaning is the painting of icons in the...
as carrying in his hand a monti di pietà, that is, a little green hill composed of three mounds and on the top either a cross or a standard with the inscription Curam illius habe (a snippet from the Vulgate
Vulgate
The Vulgate is a late 4th-century Latin translation of the Bible. It was largely the work of St. Jerome, who was commissioned by Pope Damasus I in 382 to make a revision of the old Latin translations...
translation of the Gospel of Luke's Parable of the Good Samaritan
Parable of the Good Samaritan
The parable of the Good Samaritan is a parable told by Jesus and is mentioned in only one of the Canonical gospels. According to the Gospel of Luke a traveller is beaten, robbed, and left half dead along the road. First a priest and then a Levite come by, but both avoid the man. Finally, a...
).
Works
The authorship of the well-known Anima ChristiAnima Christi
The Anima Christi is an medieval prayer to Jesus in the tradition of the Catholic Church.The sequence of sentences in Anima Christi have rich associations with Catholic concepts that relate to the Holy Eucharist , Baptism and the Passion of Jesus .Jean-Baptiste Lully composed a Motet called Anima...
has as often as not been ascribed to Bernardine of Feltre. The fact, however, that the Anima Christi was composed sometime before 1439 disproves any claim that he might have of being its author, though much like Ignatius of Loyola
Ignatius of Loyola
Ignatius of Loyola was a Spanish knight from a Basque noble family, hermit, priest since 1537, and theologian, who founded the Society of Jesus and was its first Superior General. Ignatius emerged as a religious leader during the Counter-Reformation...
, Bernardine made frequent use of it and recommended it to his brethren.