Paul the Venetian’s Hollywood Hit Piece: Why The History of the Council of Trent Isn’t Really a History

James Knight Jordan Nelson Utah State University Utah State University Sarpi’s Argument The Vatican’s Rebuttal

Nadir Tekarli Treyson Sperry In The History of the Council of Trent, The Catholic Church was outraged by Utah State University Utah State University Sarpi criticized the operations of the The History of the Council of Trent and Curia, the administrative arm of the its criticism of the Church. In 1657, the Catholic Church. The Curia was Sarpi’s Vatican opened its archives to Cardinal main target as he detailed specific Sforza Pallavicino in order to write a transactions and showed their lack of three-volume rebuttal to the book. In biblical correlation. Given the shrewd the rebuttal, Pallavicino accuses Sarpi of Setting the Stage statesman that he was, Sarpi also used spreading Protestant beliefs and claims the book to influence Protestants to ally that Sarpi’s sources were unreliable or with Venice against Rome and Spain. The non-existent. The History of the Council of Trent was Church viewed him as crypto-Protestant written by Paolo Sarpi, a Venetian and enemy to the state due to the way In 1949, another history of the Council statesman and theologian. The origins of the book impassioned Europe’s of Trent was authorized to be written by the book revolve around the Venetian Protestants. historian Hubert Jedin. Interdict of 1606-1607, a Papal response to Cover page of the English-version book Venice limiting the power of the Papacy within its borders. Sarpi, a consultor to the Venetian government with a possible “Esto Perpetua” personal vendetta against the church, Conclusion came to Venice’s defense. During his days as a friar, Sarpi was nominated twice for (“may she Paolo Sarpi had many intentions for The Bishopric of Caorle, but was rejected both History of the Council of Trent, among times by the Vatican. Sarpi's efforts were [the republic] them to criticize the Roman Catholic wildly successful, raising concerns of both Church and the Curia’s undue overreach religious moderates and opponents of the live forever”) into Venetian sovereignty and send a Vatican across Europe. Perhaps the biggest message to Protestant nations in Europe to event that led to the creation of the book ally with Venice. Although a rebuttal was was an assassination attempt on Sarpi in written, ultimately the work helped Venice 1607 by the Pope, in which he was stabbed politically and Protestants rejoiced in fifteen times and left for dead in the street. reading it.

References: Paolo Sarpi Pope Paul V (Camillo Borghese) Yates, Frances A. "Paolo Sarpi's "History of the Council of Trent"." Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes 7 (1944): 123-43. doi:10.2307/750385. Knebel, Sven K. "Pietro Sforza Pallavicino's Quest for Principles of Induction." The Monist 84, no. 4 (2001): 502-19. http://www.jstor.org/stable/27903746. Oakley, Francis. "Complexities of Context: Gerson, Bellarmine, Sarpi, Richer, and the Venetian Interdict of 1606-1607." The Catholic Historical Review 82, no. 3 (1996): 369-96. http://www.jstor.org/stable/25024739. The History of the Council of Trent (translated into English), 1676. (HATCH 26/4/14). Utah State University. Special Collections and Archives Department.