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Apostolic poverty is a Christian
doctrine Doctrine (from la, doctrina, meaning "teaching, instruction") is a codification of beliefs or a body of teachings or instructions, taught principles or positions, as the essence of teachings in a given branch of knowledge or in a belief syste ...
professed in the thirteenth century by the newly formed religious
orders Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of ...
, known as the mendicant orders, in direct response to calls for reform in the
Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
. In this, these orders attempted to live their lives without ownership of lands or accumulation of money, following the precepts given to the seventy disciples in the
Gospel of Luke The Gospel of Luke), or simply Luke (which is also its most common form of abbreviation). tells of the origins, Nativity of Jesus, birth, Ministry of Jesus, ministry, Crucifixion of Jesus, death, Resurrection of Jesus, resurrection, and Ascensi ...
(10:1-24), and succeeding to varying degrees. The ascetic Pope Paschal II's solution of the
Investiture Controversy The Investiture Controversy, also called Investiture Contest (German: ''Investiturstreit''; ), was a conflict between the Church and the state in medieval Europe over the ability to choose and install bishops ( investiture) and abbots of mona ...
in his radical Concordat of 1111 with the Emperor, repudiated by the cardinals, was that the ecclesiastics of Germany should surrender to the imperial crown their
fief A fief (; la, feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form ...
s and secular offices. Paschal proved to be the last of the Gregorianist popes. The provocative doctrine was a challenge to the wealth of the church and the concerns about ensuing corruption it brought: rejected by the hierarchy of the Church, it found sympathetic audiences among the disaffected poor of the 12th, 13th, and 14th centuries. The doctrine of apostolic poverty was condemned as
heresy Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, in particular the accepted beliefs of a church or religious organization. The term is usually used in reference to violations of important relig ...
in 1323, but it continued to be a source of debate.


History


Humiliati

One group which was a major proponent of apostolic poverty was the Humiliati, the "Humble Ones". Founded by a wool merchant, they established communities scattered around Italy and France, organized on the principle of a simple way of life for the laity, who shared their goods while remaining in family units. They remained primarily a
lay Lay may refer to: Places *Lay Range, a subrange of mountains in British Columbia, Canada *Lay, Loire, a French commune * Lay (river), France *Lay, Iran, a village * Lay, Kansas, United States, an unincorporated community People * Lay (surname) ...
movement, and came to reject the authority of the
hierarchy A hierarchy (from Greek: , from , 'president of sacred rites') is an arrangement of items (objects, names, values, categories, etc.) that are represented as being "above", "below", or "at the same level as" one another. Hierarchy is an important ...
and the
clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...
. For this and other reasons, they were later to be declared heretical by the Catholic Church. It is often assumed that Saint
Francis of Assisi Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone, better known as Saint Francis of Assisi ( it, Francesco d'Assisi; – 3 October 1226), was a mystic Italian Catholic friar, founder of the Franciscans, and one of the most venerated figures in Christianit ...
was inspired to form the
Franciscan , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...
s by their movement, in an effort to emulate the poverty of
Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and relig ...
and to bring his message through a simple life and example, while strictly adhering to the beliefs of the Catholic Church.
Saint Dominic Saint Dominic ( es, Santo Domingo; 8 August 1170 – 6 August 1221), also known as Dominic de Guzmán (), was a Castilian Catholic priest, mystic, the founder of the Dominican Order and is the patron saint of astronomers and natural scienti ...
founded a similar order, the
Order of Preachers The Order of Preachers ( la, Ordo Praedicatorum) abbreviated OP, also known as the Dominicans, is a Catholic mendicant order of Pontifical Right for men founded in Toulouse, France, by the Spanish priest, saint and Mysticism, mystic Saint ...
, better known as the Dominicans.


Waldenses

Sometime during the 1170's, a wealthy cloth merchant known as Waldes or Peter Waldo experienced a religious conversion, which has been attributed to him hearing a minstrel retell the story of St. Alexis. After hearing this recital, Waldes visited a master theologian in order to determine the surest way to salvation, to which the theologian replied he should follow the scripture; specifically Matthew 19:21: 'If you wish to go the whole way, then go and sell everything you have, and give to the poor'. Waldes then, after providing for his family, gave away all his possessions and followed a life of apostolic poverty. He had the Gospel translated and began openly preaching, gaining many followers who too embraced lives of apostolic poverty; these men and women became known as the Waldensians. Walter Map, though critical of the Waldensians lack of education and therefore their inability to preach, conceded that they did truly live in a state of poverty comparable to the apostles, describing them as having 'no permanent homes...possessing nothing and having everything in common like the Apostles, naked, following a naked Christ'.


Franciscans

The Franciscans were authorized by
Pope Gregory IX Pope Gregory IX ( la, Gregorius IX; born Ugolino di Conti; c. 1145 or before 1170 – 22 August 1241) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 March 1227 until his death in 1241. He is known for issuing the '' Decre ...
to have non-members who would look after their material needs, while the friars themselves would own nothing and would only make use according to the vow of poverty of what was given to them. From the beginning, two tendencies developed. Some friars, referred to as the Zelanti, living more isolated and simpler lives, strictly observed the poverty enjoined by the testament of Saint Francis. Others lived in convents in the towns, tending the attached churches with the necessary liturgical furnishings and devoting themselves also to study and preaching, which required the use of books. They observed the Franciscan Rule in accordance with interpretations officially made by the Popes. Already Gregory IX had indicated that the testament of St Francis did not oblige the friars in conscience. Pope Innocent IV gave the Franciscans permission to appoint "procurators" to buy, sell and administer goods given to them.
Bonaventure Bonaventure ( ; it, Bonaventura ; la, Bonaventura de Balneoregio; 1221 – 15 July 1274), born Giovanni di Fidanza, was an Italian Catholic Franciscan, bishop, cardinal, scholastic theologian and philosopher. The seventh Minister G ...
, who become minister general in 1257, tried to reconcile the two tendencies and is sometimes called the second founder of the Order, to which he gave its first General Constitutions. Conflicts with the secular clergy and with lay teachers in the universities led to accusations of hypocrisy with regard to the profession of poverty from outsiders, as well as from those members of the order formerly known as the Zelanti, but who then began to be referred to as the Spirituals, because of their association with the Age of the Spirit that the apocalyptic writer Joachim of Fiore had foretold would begin in 1260. In the early years of the 14th century, the conflict between the Spirituals and the
Conventual Franciscans The Order of Friars Minor Conventual (OFM Conv) is a male religious fraternity in the Roman Catholic Church that is a branch of the Franciscans. The friars in OFM CONV are also known as Conventual Franciscans, or Minorites. Dating back to ...
came to a head. The Spirituals, who in the 13th century were led by the Joachimist Peter Olivi, adopted more extreme positions that discredited the notion of apostolic poverty in some eyes and led to condemnation by
Pope John XXII Pope John XXII ( la, Ioannes PP. XXII; 1244 – 4 December 1334), born Jacques Duèze (or d'Euse), was head of the Catholic Church from 7 August 1316 to his death in December 1334. He was the second and longest-reigning Avignon Pope, elected b ...
. In his 14 August 1279 bull ''Exiit qui seminat'',
Pope Nicholas III Pope Nicholas III ( la, Nicolaus III; c. 1225 – 22 August 1280), born Giovanni Gaetano Orsini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 25 November 1277 to his death on 22 August 1280. He was a Roman nobleman who ...
had confirmed the arrangement already established by Pope Gregory IX, by which all property given to the Franciscans was vested in the
Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...
, which granted the friars the mere use of it. The bull declared that renunciation of ownership of all things "both individually but also in common, for God's sake, is meritorious and holy; Christ, also, showing the way of perfection, taught it by word and confirmed it by example, and the first founders of the Church militant, as they had drawn it from the fountainhead itself, distributed it through the channels of their teaching and life to those wishing to live perfectly".Schatz, ''Papal Primacy''
(Liturgical Press, Collegeville, Minnesota 1996 ) pp. 117-118
Pope Clement V Pope Clement V ( la, Clemens Quintus; c. 1264 – 20 April 1314), born Raymond Bertrand de Got (also occasionally spelled ''de Guoth'' and ''de Goth''), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 5 June 1305 to his de ...
's bull ''Exivi de Paradiso'' of 20 November 1312 failed to effect a compromise between the two factions. Clement V's successor,
Pope John XXII Pope John XXII ( la, Ioannes PP. XXII; 1244 – 4 December 1334), born Jacques Duèze (or d'Euse), was head of the Catholic Church from 7 August 1316 to his death in December 1334. He was the second and longest-reigning Avignon Pope, elected b ...
was determined to suppress what he considered to be the excesses of the Spirituals, who contended eagerly for the view that Christ and his apostles had possessed absolutely nothing, either separately or jointly, and who were citing ''Exiit qui seminat'' in support of their view. In 1317, he formally condemned the group of them known as the Fraticelli. On 26 March 1322, John removed the ban on discussion of Nicholas III's bull and commissioned experts to examine the idea of poverty based on belief that Christ and the apostles owned nothing. The experts disagreed among themselves, but the majority condemned the idea on the grounds that it would condemn the Church's right to have possessions. The Franciscan chapter held in
Perugia Perugia (, , ; lat, Perusia) is the capital city of Umbria in central Italy, crossed by the River Tiber, and of the province of Perugia. The city is located about north of Rome and southeast of Florence. It covers a high hilltop and part ...
in May 1322 declared on the contrary: "To say or assert that Christ, in showing the way of perfection, and the Apostles, in following that way and setting an example to others who wished to lead the perfect life, possessed nothing either severally or in common, either by right of ownership and ''dominium'' or by personal right, we corporately and unanimously declare to be not heretical, but true and catholic." By the bull ''Ad conditorem canonum'' of 8 December of the same year, John XXII, declaring that "it was ridiculous to pretend that every egg and piece of bread given to and eaten by the Friars Minor belonged to the pope", forced them to accept ownership by ending the arrangement according to which all property given to the Franciscans was vested in the
Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...
, which granted the friars the mere use of it. He thus demolished the fictitious structure that gave the appearance of absolute poverty to the life of the Franciscan friars, a structure that "absolved the Franciscans from the moral burden of legal ownership, and enabled them to practise apostolic poverty without the inconvenience of actual poverty". And on 12 November 1323 he issued the short bull ''Cum inter nonnullos'', which declared "erroneous and heretical" the doctrine that Christ and his apostles had no possessions whatever.Christopher Kleinhenz, ''Medieval Italy: An Encyclopedia''
(Routledge 2003 ), vol. 1, p. 373
Influential members of the order protested, including the minister general Michael of Cesena, the English provincial William of Ockham, and Bonagratia of Bergamo. In 1324, Louis the Bavarian sided with the Spirituals and accused the Pope of heresy. In reply to the argument of his opponents that Nicholas III's bull ''Exiit qui seminat'' was fixed and irrevocable, John XXII issued the bull ''Quia quorundam'' of 10 November 1324, in which he declared that it cannot be inferred from the words of the 1279 bull that Christ and the apostles had nothing, adding: "Indeed, it can be inferred rather that the Gospel life lived by Christ and the Apostles did not exclude some possessions in common, since living 'without property' does not require that those living thus should have nothing in common." In 1328 Michael of Cesena was summoned to Avignon to explain the Order's intransigence in refusing the Pope's orders and its complicity with Louis of Bavaria. Michael was imprisoned in Avignon, together with Francesco d'Ascoli, Bonagratia and William of Ockham. In January of that year Louis of Bavaria entered Rome and had himself crowned emperor. Three months later, he declared John XXII deposed and installed the Spiritual Franciscan Pietro Rainalducci as Pope. The Franciscan chapter that opened in
Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different na ...
on 28 May reelected Michael of Cesena, who two days before had escaped with his companions from Avignon. But in August Louis the Bavarian and his pope had to flee Rome before an attack by
Robert, King of Naples Robert of Anjou ( it, Roberto d'Angiò), known as Robert the Wise ( it, Roberto il Saggio; 1276 – 20 January 1343), was King of Naples, titular King of Jerusalem and Count of Provence and Forcalquier from 1309 to 1343, the central figure of ...
. Only a small part of the Franciscan Order joined the opponents of John XXII, and at a general chapter held in
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...
in 1329 the majority of all the houses declared their submission to the Pope. With the bull "Quia vir reprobus" of 16 November 1329,English translation
/ref> John XXII replied to Michael of Cesena's attacks on ''Ad conditorem canonum'', ''Cum inter'' and ''Quia quorundam''. In 1330 Antipope Nicholas V submitted, followed later by the ex-general Michael, and finally, just before his death, by Ockham.


See also

* Christian views on poverty and wealth


Notes


External links


Poverty in the Catholic Encyclopedia
{{Authority control Mendicant orders Christian ethics
Poverty Poverty is the state of having few material possessions or little income. Poverty can have diverse
Poverty Wealth