Saint Robert Bellarmine, S.J. (Italian: Roberto - The next pope, Clement VIII, set great store by him. He sco Romolo Bellarmino; 4 October 1542 – 17 September was made rector of the Roman College in 1592, examiner 1621) was an Italian Jesuit and a Cardinal of the Catholic of bishops in 1598, and cardinal in 1599. Immediately Church. He was one of the most important figures in after his appointment as Cardinal, Pope Clement made the Counter-Reformation. He was canonized in 1930 and him a Cardinal Inquisitor, in which capacity he served named a Doctor of the Church. Bellarmine is also widely as one of the judges at the trial of Giordano Bruno, and remembered for his role in the Galileo affair. concurred in the decision which condemned Bruno to be burned at the stake as a heretic.[5] In 1602 he was made archbishop of Capua. He had writ- 1 Early life ten against pluralism and non-residence of bishops within their dioceses. As bishop he put into effect the reforming Bellarmine was born at Montepulciano, the son of no- decrees of the Council of Trent. He received some votes ble, albeit impoverished, parents, Vincenzo Bellarmino in the 1605 conclaves which elected Pope Leo XI, Pope and his wife Cinzia Cervini, who was the sister of Pope Paul V, and in 1621 when Pope Gregory XV was elected, Marcellus II.[1] As a boy he knew Virgil by heart and com- but only in the second conclave of 1605 was he papabile. posed a number of poems in Italian and Latin. One of his hymns, on Mary Magdalene, is included in the Breviary. 2.2 The Galileo case He entered the Roman novitiate in 1560, remaining in Rome three years. He then went to a Jesuit house at In 1616, on the orders of Paul V, Bellarmine summoned Mondovì, in Piedmont, where he learned Greek. While at Galileo, notified him of a forthcoming decree of the Mondovì, he came to the attention of Francesco Adorno, Congregation of the Index condemning the Copernican the local Jesuit Provincial Superior, who sent him to the doctrine of the mobility of the Earth and the immobil- [2] University of Padua. ity of the Sun, and ordered him to abandon it.[6] Galileo agreed to do so.[7] When Galileo later complained of rumors to the effect 2 Career that he had been forced to abjure and do penance, Bel- larmine wrote out a certificate denying the rumors, stat- Bellarmine’s systematic study of theology began at Padua ing that Galileo had merely been notified of the decree in 1567 and 1568, where his teachers were adherents of and informed that, as a consequence of it, the Coperni- Thomism. In 1569 he was sent to finish it at the University can doctrine could not be “defended or held”.[8] Cardinal of Leuven in Flanders. There he was ordained, and ob- Bellarmine believed such a demonstration could not be tained a reputation both as a professor and a preacher. found because it would contradict the unanimous consent He was the first Jesuit to teach at the university, where of the Fathers' scriptural exegesis, to which the Council the subject of his course was the Summa Theologica of of Trent, in 1546,[9] defined all Catholics must adhere.[10] Thomas Aquinas. His residence in Leuven lasted seven Bellarmine wrote to heliocentrist Paolo Antonio Fos- years. In poor health, in 1576 he made a journey to Italy. carini:[10] Here he remained, commissioned by Pope Gregory XIII to lecture on polemical theology in the new Roman Col- lege, now known as the Pontifical Gregorian University. the Council [of Trent] prohibits interpret- ing Scripture against the common consensus of the Holy Fathers; and if Your Paternity 2.1 New duties after 1589 wants to read not only the Holy Fathers, but also the modern commentaries on Genesis, the Until 1589, Bellarmine was occupied as professor of the- Psalms, Ecclesiastes, and Joshua, you will find ology. After the murder in that year of Henry III of all agreeing in the literal interpretation that the France, sent Enrico Caetani as legate to sun is in heaven and turns around the earth with Paris[3] to negotiate with the of France, great speed, and that the earth is very far from and chose Bellarmine to accompany him as theologian.[4] heaven and sits motionless at the center of the He was in the city during its siege by Henry of Navarre. world.

1 2 4 WORKS

and 4.1 Dogmatics

I say that if there were a true demonstration Main article: Disputationes that the sun is at the center of the world and the earth in the third heaven, and that the sun From his research grew his Disputationes de controver- does not circle the earth but the earth circles siis christianae fidei (also called Disputationes), first pub- the sun, then one would have to proceed with lished at Ingolstadt in 1581–1593. This major work great care in explaining the Scriptures that ap- was the earliest attempt to systematize the various re- pear contrary, and say rather that we do not un- ligious controversies of the time. Bellarmine devoted derstand them than that what is demonstrated eleven years to it while at the Roman College. The is false. But I will not believe that there is such first volume of the Disputationes treats of the Word of a demonstration, until it is shown me. Nor is God, of Christ, and of the Pope; the second of the it the same to demonstrate that by assuming authority of ecumenical councils, and of the Church, the sun to be at the center and the earth in whether militant, expectant, or triumphant; the third of heaven one can save the appearances, and to the sacraments; and the fourth of Divine grace, free will, demonstrate that in truth the sun is at the cen- justification, and good works. ter and the earth in heaven; for I believe the first demonstration may be available, but I have very great doubts about the second, and in case 4.2 Venetian Interdict of doubt one must not abandon the Holy Scrip- ture as interpreted by the Holy Fathers. Main article: Venetian Interdict

In 1633, nearly twelve years after Bellarmine’s death, Galileo was again called before the Inquisition in this mat- Under Pope Paul V (reigned 1605–1621), a major con- ter. flict arose between Venice and the Papacy. Paolo Sarpi, as spokesman for the Republic of Venice, protested Modern physicist Pierre Duhem “suggests that in one against the papal interdict, and reasserted the principles respect, at least, Bellarmine had shown himself a bet- of the Council of Constance and of the Council of Basel, ter scientist than Galileo by disallowing the possibility denying the pope’s authority in secular matters. Bel- of a 'strict proof of the earth’s motion,' on the grounds larmine wrote three rejoinders to the Venetian theolo- that an astronomical theory merely 'saves the appear- gians, and may have warned Sarpi of an impending mur- ances' without necessarily revealing what 'really happens.' derous attack. extquotedbl[11]

4.3 Allegiance oath controversy and papal 3 Death authority

In his old age he was bishop of Montepulciano for four For more details on this topic, see Oath of Allegiance of years, after which he retired to the Jesuit college of St. James I of England. Andrew in Rome, where he died on 17 September 1621, aged 78. Bellarmine also became involved in controversy with King James I of England. From a point of principle for English Catholics, this debate drew in figures from much 4 Works of Western Europe.[13] It raised the profile of both pro- tagonists, King James as a champion of his own restricted Bellarmine’s books bear the stamp of their period; the Calvinist Protestantism, and Bellarmine for Tridentine effort for literary elegance (so-called “maraviglia”) had Catholicism. given place to a desire to pile up as much material as possible, to embrace the whole field of human knowl- edge, and incorporate it into theology. His controversial 4.4 Devotional works works provoked many replies, and were studied for some decades after his death.[12] At Leuven he made extensive During his retirement, he wrote several short books in- studies in the Church Fathers and scholastic theologians, tended to help ordinary people in their spiritual life: De which gave him the material for his book De scriptoribus ascensione mentis in Deum per scalas rerum creatorum ecclesiasticis (Rome, 1613). It was later revised and en- opusculum (The Mind’s Ascent to God) (1614) which was larged by Sirmond, Labbeus, and Casimir Oudin. Bel- translated into English as Jacob’s Ladder (1638) without larmine wrote the preface to the new Sixto-Clementine acknowledgement by Henry Isaacson,[14] The Art of Dy- Vulgate. ing Well (1619) (in Latin, English translation under this 3 title by Edward Coffin),[15] and The Seven Words on the [2] Rule, William Harris (1853). “A Jesuit cardinal: Robert Cross. Bellarmine”. Celebrated Jesuits 2. London: John Mason. p. 20.

[3] http://www2.fiu.edu/~{}mirandas/bios1585-ii.htm# 5 Canonization and final resting Caetani place [4] http://www2.fiu.edu/~{}mirandas/bios1599#Bellarmino

Bellarmine was canonized by Pope Pius XI in 1930; the [5] Blackwell (1991, pp. 47–48). following year he was declared a Doctor of the Church. His remains, in a cardinal’s red robes, are displayed be- [6] Blackwell (1991, p. 126). hind glass under a side altar in the Church of Saint Ig- The Vatican archives contain an unsigned copy of a more natius, the chapel of the Roman College, next to the strongly worded formal injunction purporting to have body of his student, St. Aloysius Gonzaga, as he him- been served on Galileo shortly after Bellarmine’s admo- nition, ordering him “not to hold, teach, or defend” the self had wished. In the General Roman Calendar Saint condemned doctrine “in any way whatever, either orally Robert Bellarmine’s feast day is on 17 September, the or in writing”, and threatening him with imprisonment if day of his death; but some continue to use pre-1969 cal- he refused to obey. endars, in which for 37 years his feast day was on 13 However, whether this injunction was ever properly May. The rank assigned to his feast has been “double” served on Galileo is a subject of much scholarly (1932–1959), “third-class feast” (1960–1968), and since disagreement.(Blackwell, 1991, p. 127–128) the 1969 revision extquotedblmemorial extquotedbl. [7] Fantoli (2005, p.119). Some scholars have suggested that Galileo’s agreement was only obtained after some initial resistance. Otherwise, the formal injunction purporting 6 Legacy to have been served on him during his meeting with Bel- larmine (see earlier footnote) would have been contrary to Bellarmine University in Louisville, Kentucky is named the Pope’s instructions (Fantoli. 2005, pp.121, 124). after him, as are Bellarmine College Preparatory in San Jose, California and Bellarmine Preparatory School in [8] Blackwell (1991, p.127). Unlike the previously men- tioned formal injunction (see earlier footnote), this milder Tacoma, Washington. Fairfield University has a Bel- restriction would have allowed Galileo to continue using larmine Hall dedicated to the saint. and teaching the mathematical content of Copernicus’s St. Robert Bellarmine, a church in the New Orleans sub- theory as a purely theoretical device for predicting the ap- urb of Arabi, Louisiana, was destroyed shortly after its parent motions of the planets. Maurice Finocchiaro’s En- completion by Hurricane Betsy in 1965. The church was glish translations of the purported formal injunction, the put completely underwater in 2005 by Hurricane Katrina decree of the Congregation of the Index and Cardinal Bel- larmine’s certificate are available on-line. and took on more water from Hurricane Rita less than a month later. The parish was permanently dissolved by [9] “Fourth Session of the Council of Trent”. 1546-04-08. the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans imme- Check date values in: |date= (help) diately after Rita, and its territory was absorbed by Our Lady of Prompt Succor in neighboring Chalmette. [10] Bellarmine’s 12 April 1615 letter to Galileo, translated in The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago has both a Galilei, Galileo; Maurice A Finocchiaro (2008). The es- sential Galileo. Indianapolis, Ind.: Hackett Pub. Co. pp. local territorial parish and a parochial school named in 146–148. Retrieved 2013-10-25. honor of Robert Bellarmine. The parish is located on the Northwest side of Chicago in the Jefferson Park neigh- [11] McMullin (2008) borhood at 4646. N. Austin Ave. Chicago, IL 60630 St. Robert Bellarmine Parish was founded in 1930. For [12] On Laymen or Secular People; On the Temporal Power more information about the parish, please visit: http: of the Pope. Against William Barclay; and On the Pri- //srb-chicago.org mary Duty of the Supreme Pontiff, are included in Bel- larmine, On Temporal and Spiritual Authority, Stefania The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia has Tutino, trans., Indianapolis, IN: Liberty Fund, 2012 a St. Robert Bellarmine Parish based in Warring- ton Pa.. The parishes was founded in 1968. http:// [13] W. B. Patterson, James VI and I and the Reunion of Chris- saintrobertwarrington.org tendom (1997), pp. 76-77.

[14] http://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/eebo/A08025.0001.001? 7 Footnotes view=toc [15] extquotedblEdward Coffin extquotedbl. Catholic Ency- [1] Smith,(2009). clopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. 1913. 4 9 EXTERNAL LINKS

8 References

• Bellarmine, Robert, Spiritual Writings, New York: Paulist Press, 1989. eds., Roland J. Teske and John Patrick Donnelly ISBN 0-8091-0389-3.

• Blackwell, Richard J. (1991). Galileo, Bellarmine, and the Bible. Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press. ISBN 0-268-01024-2.

• Fantoli, Annibale (2005). The Disputed Injunction and its Role in Galileo’s Trial. In McMullin (2005, pp.117–149). • McMullin, Ernan, ed. (2005). The Church and Galileo. Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press. ISBN 0-268-03483-4.

• McMullin, Ernan (2008). “Robert Bellarmine”. In Gillispie, Charles. Dictionary of Scientific Biogra- phy. Scribner & American Council of Learned So- cieties.

• Smith, Sydney (2009) [1907], “St. Robert Fran- cis Romulus Bellarmine”, in Knight, Kevin, Catholic Encyclopedia (online ed.), retrieved November 4, 2012

9 External links

• Bellarmine’s Letters at Historical Archives of the Pontifical Gregorian University

• St. Robert Bellarmine from Fr. Alban Butler's Lives of the Saints • extquotedblSt. Robert Francis Romulus Bellarmine extquotedbl. Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. 1913.

• CERL page • Episodes from his life at Catholic forum web-site.

• De Laicis (treatise on civil government) in English translation

• The Seven Words on the Cross • The Eternal Happiness of the Saints

• The Art of Dying Well (archive.org) • The Art of Dying Well (text PDF)

• The Writings of St. Robert Bellarmine as a Source for the Declaration of Independence

• Saint Robert Bellarmine: A Moderate in a Disputa- tious Age 5

10 Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

10.1 Text

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10.2 Images

• File:046CupolaSPietro.jpg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5a/046CupolaSPietro.jpg License: CC-BY-SA- 3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: MarkusMark • File:Coat_of_arms_of_the_Holy_See.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/31/Coat_of_arms_Holy_See.svg License: Public domain Contributors: • Bruno Bernhard Heim, Heraldry in the : Its Origin, Customs and Laws (Van Duren 1978 ISBN 9780391008731), p. 54; Original artist: F l a n k e r • File:Commons-logo.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg License: ? Contributors: ? Original artist: ? • File:Edit-clear.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/f2/Edit-clear.svg License: ? Contributors: The Tango! Desktop Project. Original artist: The people from the Tango! project. And according to the meta-data in the file, specifically: “Andreas Nilsson, and Jakub Steiner (although minimally).” • File:Gloriole_blur.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/48/Gloriole_blur.svg License: Public domain Contrib- utors: Own work Original artist: Eubulides • File:JHS-IHS-Monogram-Name-Jesus.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d1/ JHS-IHS-Monogram-Name-Jesus.svg License: Public domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: user:AnonMoos • File:Kirchenfenster_Böckweiler.jpg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/02/Kirchenfenster_B%C3% B6ckweiler.jpg License: CC-BY-SA-2.0 Contributors: http://www.flickr.com/photos/11596438@N00/2435169073/sizes/o/in/ photostream/ Original artist: tiegeltuf • File:Kruis_san_damiano.gif Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/31/Kruis_san_damiano.gif License: Public do- main Contributors: http://www.hyvinkaanseurakunta.fi/filebank/376-Risti_6_B.jpg Original artist: Unknown • File:Saint_Robert_Bellarmine.png Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/20/Saint_Robert_Bellarmine.png Li- cense: Public domain Contributors: istitutoaveta.it Original artist: anonymous, Italian School • File:Thomas_Aquinas_in_Stained_Glass.jpg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/35/Thomas_Aquinas_in_ Stained_Glass.jpg License: CC-BY-SA-2.0 Contributors: Flickr Original artist: e3000

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