Mind of the Church

The mind of the Church, faithfully rendered into English

Library / Commentaries and Disputations on Genesis, Volume I

Front matter

TO HENRY CAETANI, CARDINAL OF THE HOLY ROMAN CHURCH AND MOST EMINENT CHAMBERLAIN, BENEDICT PERERIUS OF THE SOCIETY OF JESUS SENDS GREETING

LatineEnglish

TO HENRY CAETANI, CARDINAL OF THE HOLY ROMAN CHURCH AND MOST EMINENT CHAMBERLAIN, BENEDICT PERERIUS OF THE SOCIETY OF JESUS SENDS GREETING.1

HENRICO CAETANO S. R. E. CARDINALI ET CAMERARIO AMPLISSIMO, BENEDICTVS PERERIVS E SOCIETATE IESV S. D.

Quid causae sit, Henrice Caetane Cardinalis amplissime, cur sacrarum litterarum doctrina tam paucos hodie amatores et sectatores habeat, cùm sit ipsa vel maximè amabilis maximéque Christianis hominibus expetenda, saepe cogitanti mihi et admiranti varia solent occurrere: sed unum in primis, quo praeter caetera plerique, non satis prudentes rerum aestimatores, ab hoc praeclaro et divino studio arceri videntur. Sunt enim multi, qui magno opinionis errore, studium huius disciplinae vel inglorium sibi fore, vel infructuosum, vel etiam humanae voluptatis et iucunditatis inane existimantes, ab eo refugiunt, unde nullum se aut perexiguum operae suae pretium laborísque praemium laturos con-
As I often ponder and wonder, most eminent Cardinal Henry Caetani, what the reason may be why the doctrine of Sacred Letters has today so few lovers and followers -- though it is in the highest degree lovable and most to be sought after by Christian men -- various answers are wont to occur to me; but one above the rest, by which most people (not sufficiently prudent appraisers of things) seem to be kept away from this noble and divine study. For there are many who, by a great error of judgment -- reckoning that the study of this discipline will be for them either inglorious, or unfruitful, or even devoid of human pleasure and delight -- flee from it, since they are confident they will carry off from it no reward for their labor, or a very small one.2
fidunt. Etenim omnium studiorum tres sunt velut illecebrae, Honor, Vtilitas, et Voluptas: his nempe ad bonas artes et disciplinas capessendas allicimur. Et ubi quidem nihil horum extat et apparet, eo nullus, aut perpauci animum et studium applicant: ubi verò magna haec et specie eximia cernuntur, illuc plurimi flagrantissimo studio, et acerrima corporis atque animi contentione feruntur. Nimirum, quae his quasi dotibus ornantur et commendantur artes, expetuntur et coluntur à plurimis: quae carent, tanquam indotatae incomptaéque deseruntur atque contemnuntur. Verùm, honor et utilitas acriora et valentiora sunt ad attrahendos hominum animos, quàm voluptas, si ab illis dissociata et seiuncta sit. Quotum enim quemque invenias, qui, posthabitis utilioribus et honoratioribus studiis, sola veri noscendi et contemplandi dulcedine captus, velit in eo studio aetatem omnem conterere, vitámque consumere? Vides, opinor, Henrice clarissime, unde tam perniciosus et tam latè patens error Sacra studia negligentium caput sustulerit. Quem errorem argumentis refellere, cuivis non inerudito facillimum est: at penitus eum ex animis hominum evellere, eósque ad coelestium scriptorum amorem cultúmque traducere, non tam meae aut cuiusquam Theologorum facultatis quàm magnorum Ecclesiae principum sapientiae, benignitatis, ac munificentiae opus est. Non enim eorum qui in Republica praestant auctoritate tantùm et imperio, sed multò magis exemplo ac beneficio moventur et reguntur caeteri: eorum spectant illi iudicia sensúsque, et in haec vel illa voluntatum propensiones: quid illi potissimum laudent et ament, quid
are confident. For of all studies there are, as it were, three enticements: Honor, Profit, and Pleasure; by these indeed we are drawn to take up the good arts and disciplines. And where none of these is present and apparent, thither no one, or very few, apply mind and effort; but where these are seen to be great and of remarkable appearance, thither very many are borne with the most ardent zeal and the keenest exertion of body and mind. Doubtless the arts that are adorned and commended by these as by endowments are sought after and cultivated by very many; those that lack them are, as undowered and unadorned, abandoned and despised. But honor and profit are sharper and stronger to attract men's minds than pleasure, if it be dissociated and separated from them. For how few would you find who, having set aside more profitable and more honorable studies, captivated by the sweetness of knowing and contemplating truth alone, would be willing to wear away his whole age and consume his life in that study? You see, I think, most illustrious Henry, whence so pernicious and so widespread an error, among those who neglect Sacred studies, has raised its head. To refute this error by arguments is very easy for anyone not unlearned; but to pluck it out utterly from men's minds, and to lead them over to the love and cultivation of the heavenly writers, is a work not so much of my ability, or of any theologian's, as of the wisdom, kindness, and munificence of the great princes of the Church. For the rest are moved and governed not so much by the authority and command of those who are eminent in the commonwealth, as much more by their example and beneficence: they regard the judgments and sentiments of those men, and the inclinations of their wills toward this or that -- what they most praise and love, what3
quid in pretio et honore, quid in oblectamentis et deliciis habeant: et quo inclinant illi, eodem ipsi propendent: denique ad eorum existimationem et voluntatem sua omnia consilia studiáque dirigere et accommodare student. Quantum igitur putamus futurum omni tempore divinae Scripturae studiosorum atque eruditorum hominum proventum, si, quorum ex gratia et beneficentia pendent caeteri, et per quos sua illi vota expleri posse sperant, singulare quoddam in his emineret coelestis huius doctrinae studium et observantia, praecipuáque erga eos benevolentia et liberalitas, qui in ea doctrina egregie tractanda scriptísque illustranda sua cum laude ac multorum utilitate versarentur? Quo magis ego tui, Caetane ornatissime, demiror ingenii praestantiam et eximium naturae ad optima quaeque propensissimae bonitatem. Nam cum vix adolescentiam egressus, maiorum tuorum voluntate, simúlque exemplo nobilissimorum hominum qui sola iuris Ciuilis scientia subnixi magnos in hac urbe honores magnásque res gesserunt, te totum ad pernoscendam iuris disciplinam dedidisses, tantum in eam studii atque operae conferre voluisti, tantúmque profecisti, quantum scilicet adiumento et ornamento esse posset primariae nobilitatis viro, et splendidissima Reipublicae Christianae munera gloriosè tractaturo. Atque haec fuit causa, cur tibi ad studium iurisprudentiae primùm addiscendae, postea maximis in negotiis et publicorum munerum perfunctionibus exercendae, toto pectore incumbenti, nec Theologiae, nec Sacrarum litterarum doctrinam capessere licuit. Verùm, quanta cupiditate ardoréque animi ea stu-
they hold in esteem and honor, what in delights and pleasures; and whither those men incline, thither the rest lean; finally, they strive to direct and accommodate all their counsels and pursuits to the esteem and will of those men. How great, then, do we think would be, at all times, the yield of men zealous for and learned in divine Scripture, if in those on whose favor and beneficence the rest depend, and through whom they hope their own wishes can be fulfilled, there stood out some singular zeal and regard for this heavenly doctrine, and an especial goodwill and liberality toward those who occupy themselves in handling it excellently and illustrating it by their writings, to their own praise and the benefit of many? Wherefore I the more admire, most distinguished Caetani, the excellence of your talent, and the remarkable goodness of a nature most inclined to all that is best. For when, scarcely past your youth, by the will of your elders and at the same time by the example of the most noble men who, resting on the knowledge of the Civil law alone, attained great honors and did great things in this city, you had given yourself wholly to the mastering of the discipline of law, you chose to devote to it so much study and effort, and made such progress, as could be of help and ornament to a man of the first nobility, destined to handle gloriously the most splendid offices of the Christian commonwealth. And this was the reason why, since you were bending your whole heart first to learning jurisprudence, and afterward to exercising it in the greatest affairs and in the discharge of public offices, it was not permitted you to take up the doctrine of Theology or of Sacred Letters. But with what desire and ardor of mind [you would have embraced] those stu-4
dia (si res tuae priuatae aut publicae ita tulissent) amplexaturus fueris, vel unum illud est nec leue, nec obscurum argumentum, quòd claros in his litteris et excellentes viros eximiè colis ac diligis, eorúmque luculenta ingenii opera planiori ore laudare, et ut potiorem tuae suppellectilis partem, in rebus tibi carissimis ac pretiosissimis numerare soles. Quin me quoque, in quo tu disciplinae huius non expressam quidem effigiem, sed umbram tamen aliquam et speciem cernebas, tanta benevolentia et gratia dignatus es, ut nullam de me bene merendi occasionem praeterfluere sinas. Cum igitur hoc tempore priorem partem meorum Commentariorum in librum Mosis, qui Genesis inscribitur, editurus essem, non fuit mihi diu cunctandum ambigua deliberatione, cui potissimum Principi munus hoc, qualecumque est, offerendum esset: tibi enim merito tuo debebatur. Scilicet, cui ego deberem plurimum, tum meo nomine, tum Societatis nostrae, quam tu tanto studio complexus es, ut eam non tantùm, ut multi, iudicio et inductione animi diligas, verùm etiam naturae quadam propensione atque impetu amare videaris. Extabunt multa (credo equidem) tui nominis rerúmque tuarum monumenta praeclara, atque mansura. Celebrabitur enim multorum sermone fortunae tuae felicitas, te natum inclyta familia, summíque Pontificatus, octo Cardinalium, et quatuor Patriarcharum splendore clarissima, multísque primae nobilitatis et potentiae propinquitatibus et amicitiis florentem, in ipso aetatis flore, à sapientissimo Pontifice supremum in Ecclesiae senatum, ingenti hominum gaudio, esse cooptatum: móxque orna-
those studies (had your private or public affairs so allowed), there is that one argument, neither slight nor obscure: that you cherish and love exceedingly the men famous and excellent in these letters, and are wont to praise the brilliant works of their genius with generous speech, and to count them, as the choicer part of your furnishings, among the things dearest and most precious to you. Nay, me too -- in whom you discerned not indeed an express image of this discipline, but yet some shadow and semblance of it -- you have deemed worthy of such goodwill and favor that you let no occasion of deserving well of me slip by. Since therefore at this time I was about to publish the first part of my Commentaries on the book of Moses which is entitled Genesis, I did not have to hesitate long in doubtful deliberation to which prince above all this gift, such as it is, should be offered: for it was owed to you by your own merit. To you, namely, to whom I owe the most, both in my own name and in that of our Society, which you have embraced with such zeal that you seem to love it not only, as many do, by the judgment and prompting of the mind, but even by a certain natural propensity and impulse. There will survive (I truly believe) many illustrious and lasting monuments of your name and your deeds. For the felicity of your fortune will be celebrated in the speech of many -- that you were born of an illustrious family, most renowned by the splendor of a supreme Pontificate, of eight Cardinals, and of four Patriarchs, and flourishing in many kinships and friendships of the first nobility and power; and that, in the very flower of your age, you were co-opted by a most wise Pontiff into the supreme senate of the Church, to the immense joy of men; and soon after [were adorned]5
tum nobilissima legatione Bononiensi: tantísque breui, aliis super alios honoribus et beneficiis auctum, ut his amplius, vix à patruo tuo Nicolao Cardinali, si eo fastigio fuisset, expectare potueris. Illud quoque, ingenti virtutis tuae gloria, praedicabitur, te Bononiensem legationem, egregio severitatis et comitatis, gratiaéque ac iustitiae temperamento, sic administrasse; ut incertum sit, plus ne attuleris gaudii prudentissimo Pontifici, magnam in te ad id muneris deligendo iudicii et prudentiae laudem consecuto: an tibi gloriae, qui provinciam ad luxum et delicias lubricam, celebri continentiae atque integritatis fama tenuisti: an denique Bononiensibus laetitiae et admirationis, suo nimirum bono gaudentibus, simúlque mirantibus, te gravitatem summae potestatis ita retinuisse, ut invidiam omnem et arrogantiam effugeres: nec tibi (quod rarae prudentiae ac virtutis est) aut facilitas auctoritatem, aut severitas amorem diminueret: cúmque nihil gratiae causa faceres, omnia tamen essent grata quae faceres. Quo factum est, ut acerrimus explorandis aestimandísque praeclaris hominum artibus et virtutibus Sixtus Quintus Pontifex Maximus, tantam animi tui virtutem, in dies, scilicet, publicis rebus gerendis clariorem, et quantocumque muneri ac dignitati parem, diu Bononiensibus circumscriptam esse cancellis non sit passus: sed tibi Romam (non minori Bononiensium moerore, quàm Vrbis gratulatione) revocato, gravissimum imposuerit Camerariatus officium, ut summae in Romana curia auctoritatis atque potestatis, ita singularem innocentiam, moderationémque animi et prudentiam desiderans: nec ferè nisi cum Principe, aut pro-
with the most noble legation of Bologna; and in a short time increased with so many honors and benefices, one upon another, that you could scarcely have expected more even from your uncle Cardinal Nicholas, had he been at that height. This too will be proclaimed, to the immense glory of your virtue: that you administered the legation of Bologna with so excellent a tempering of severity and affability, of graciousness and justice, that it is uncertain whether you brought more joy to the most prudent Pontiff -- who won great praise for judgment and prudence in choosing you for that office -- or more glory to yourself, who held a province slippery toward luxury and pleasure with a celebrated reputation for continence and integrity; or, finally, more joy and admiration to the people of Bologna, rejoicing in their own good and at the same time marveling that you so maintained the gravity of supreme power as to escape all envy and arrogance: nor did (what belongs to rare prudence and virtue) either your affability diminish your authority, or your severity your being loved; and though you did nothing for the sake of favor, yet all that you did was pleasing. Whence it came about that Sixtus V, Supreme Pontiff -- a most keen searcher-out and appraiser of the excellent arts and virtues of men -- did not suffer so great a virtue of your soul (daily, that is, growing more distinguished in the conduct of public affairs, and equal to any office and dignity however great) to be long confined by the boundaries of Bologna: but, recalling you to Rome (to the grief of the Bolognese no less than the congratulation of the City), imposed on you the most weighty office of the Chamberlainship, requiring, together with the highest authority and power in the Roman curia, a singular innocence and moderation of mind and prudence; and one scarcely [to be entrusted] except to a Prince, or by reason of [kinship]6
propinquitate, aut certè benevolentia fidéque coniunctissimis credi solitum. Tua verò illa in religiosissimis templis, iam vetustate deformatis ac propè collapsis, non ad famam gloriámque aucupandam, sed ad priscam sacrorum locorum conservandam religionem, splendidè reficiendis ordinandísque sumptuosa et magnifica pietas, meritis hominum praeconiis nullo tempore carebit. De illis (ut dixi) atque aliis tuis laudibus, et hoc saeculo dicent multi, scribéntque, nec posteritas, tua tibi fama superstite, atque omni aevo clara, conticescet. Mihi nec diserto laudatori, nec ferè aliarum rerum, praeter mea studia curioso, satis fuerit, his lucubrationibus amplissimo nomini tuo dicandis, testatum apud omnes facere, quantum nobis et nostris (id est, Sacrarum literarum) studiis, benevolentiae, gratiae, ac dignitatis impartire soleas: et vicissim ipsi, quantum amoris, reverentiae, ac venerationis debere nos tibi sentiamus, libentérque praedicemus. AVCTOR.
usually entrusted to those most closely joined by kinship, or at least by goodwill and fidelity. But that magnificent and costly piety of yours toward the most holy churches -- now disfigured by age and nearly collapsed -- shown not to court fame and glory, but to preserve the ancient religion of sacred places by splendidly restoring and setting them in order, will at no time lack the praises men owe it. Of these (as I have said) and your other titles to praise, many in this age will speak and write, nor, while your fame survives and is bright for every age, will posterity be silent. For me -- no eloquent panegyrist, and scarcely curious about matters other than my own studies -- it will be enough, by dedicating these lucubrations to your most ample name, to make known to all how much you are wont to impart to us and to our studies (that is, to Sacred Letters) of goodwill, favor, and dignity; and in turn, how much of love, reverence, and veneration we feel we owe to you, and gladly proclaim. THE AUTHOR.7

Translator’s notes

  1. The dedicatory epistle. The dedicatee is Enrico Caetani (Henry Caetani, 1550-1599), Cardinal of the Holy Roman Church and Camerlengo (Chamberlain, 'Camerarius'). Abbreviations: 'S. R. E.' = Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae ('of the Holy Roman Church'); 'S. D.' = Salutem Dicit ('sends greeting'). ↩
  2. Opening of the dedication (the ornamental initial is 'Q'): Pererius laments that few pursue the study of Scripture, deterred by the false notion that it brings neither glory, profit, nor pleasure. Continues on the next page (catchword 'fidunt'). ↩
  3. Pererius names the three 'enticements' of study -- Honor, Profit, Pleasure -- and argues that Scripture-study is neglected because it seems to offer none. To reverse this needs not argument but the patronage and example of the Church's great princes, whom others imitate. Continues on the next page (catchword 'quid'). ↩
  4. Rulers set the fashion that others follow; so the Church's patronage would multiply Scripture-scholars. Pererius praises Caetani's early devotion to the Civil law (which left him no leisure for theology), undertaken by the will of his elders and the example of nobles who rose through legal learning. Continues on the next page (catchword 'dia'). ↩
  5. A further proof of Caetani's love of learning is his esteem for scholars -- and his kindness to Pererius himself. Hence Pererius dedicates this first volume of his Genesis commentary to him as most deserving, and as a patron of the Society of Jesus. He recounts Caetani's illustrious house (a Pope, eight Cardinals, four Patriarchs) and his early elevation to the College of Cardinals. Continues on the next page (catchword 'tum'). ↩
  6. Caetani's cursus honorum: the legation of Bologna (governed with a praised balance of severity and mildness), rapid promotions rivaling his uncle Cardinal Nicholas Caetani, and his recall to Rome by Pope Sixtus V to the great office of Camerlengo (Chamberlain of the Holy Roman Church). Continues on the next page (catchword 'pro'). ↩
  7. Praise of Caetani's costly restoration of ancient churches; the dedication closes with Pererius professing the reverence he and the cause of Sacred Letters owe their patron. Signed 'AVCTOR' (The Author). End of the dedicatory epistle. ↩