Today, 21 July, the Catholic Church celebrates the Memorial of St Lawrence of Brindisi.
Newsdesk (21/07/2021 21:17, Gaudium Press) Before commenting on the life of St. Lawrence of Brindisi, it is worthwhile to have a sense of what a Capuchin friar was in the sixteenth century, that we might better evaluate the projection of the figure of this Saint in the world of that time.
We know the classic Capuchin costume: the light-brown habit, a Rosary around the waist, the rows of beads joined by the figure of a skull. They wear sandals but no stockings, have a large beard, and their hair is trimmed close to their heads.
The Capuchin of the sixteenth century was thus in stark contrast to the way men of the time dressed and presented themselves in public. The Renaissance period was ending, and, moving into the Baroque and Rococo periods, men’s fashions were reaching a peak of refinement, elegance, finesse, and sometimes even effeminacy, rarely seen in history.
Men dressed in silk, in damask, wearing buttons and other ornaments made of precious stones. They wore rings, silk stockings, lacquer shoes (with red heels, when they were nobles) with gold or silver buckles and precious stones. They perfumed themselves. When they wore a beard, it was trimmed in the so-called “pear” shape, very well-groomed, and the moustaches were fine and silky – not the “kaiser” moustache, with the tip turned upwards. On top of the natural hair, or the shaved head, they would put wigs, extravagantly prepared in special establishments. This is without even mentioning the presentation of the lady, for if the man’s was like this, the feminine aspect was yet more refined.
Within the wise balances of Christian Civilization, the Capuchin represented the opposite tone of such luxury and good taste.
Harmony based on contrasts
I shall not be the one to blame Christian Civilization for creating the most magnificent costumes, though I would certainly have some restrictions regarding some aspects of these costumes in the 16th century. But, in general, the idea of accentuating the dignity of man through the use of magnificent costumes seems very good to me and is intended to highlight the wisdom of God’s plan, which, in the service of the King of Creation – who is man – has provided materials capable of appropriately confirming this royalty. Especially so, since this king is at the same time a member of the Mystical Body of Our Lord Jesus Christ, and therefore has a dignity greater than human dignity itself.
But it is proper to the genius and talent of the Catholic Church to establish harmony based on contrasts. Contradiction is one thing; harmonious contrasts are another. The latter are always contrasts between two perfections – not between a defect and perfection, and still less between two defects – which, being very different from each other and because they are very different from each other, seem to balance each other.
Such splendour in dress, such magnificence in courtly life, required that man should be reminded at the same time of the opposite values of austerity and sobriety; sobriety towards earthly things, of the one deep value of supernatural things, etc. Only in this way could humanity arrive with impunity at such refinements of luxury.
Just as, in the opposite sense, exists the magnificent – I would almost say brutal – affirmation of death, poverty, and everything that leads man to suffer in life. To renounce and to struggle could only be a general value for society, frequent and present in all aspects of social life, if, in the opposite sense, the splendour of earthly life also appeared. This is an example of harmonious opposites.
It is these harmonic opposites that are the balancing factors of the human soul. It is very beautiful to see, in pictures of times past, scenes of court life.
Imagine a room with a king and a queen, beautiful crowns on their heads. The whole Court is standing: dignitaries, cardinals dressed in purple, warriors, ministers, etc., forming a great semicircle awaiting the courtly action. At a short distance from the king or the queen stands the figure of a Capuchin: swarthy, huge, strong, with a colossal beard, dressed in his rough clothing. Yet, he fits naturally into this environment, comfortably within his poverty among the wealthiest and most important, with those surrounded by respect and delicacy.
This was the symbolic role of the Capuchins in those days: they represented all that was austere in life, and constituted the harmonious counterpart of the magnificence in life expressed by the civilization of that time.
A living protest
Which brings us to Saint Lawrence of Brindisi, who was called to fulfill this mission, to symbolize this value of harmonious counterparts in that society.
The world of that time was impacted by the presence of two terrible adversaries which nearly destroyed Europe. One was the First Revolution, Protestantism, against which St. Lawrence of Brindisi successfully fought. This First Revolution, as Plinio Correa de Oliveira shows in his book, Revolution and Counter-Revolution, was marked by an explosion of pride and sensuality.
This pride, affirmed by the denial of the ecclesiastical hierarchy and by the non-conformity, in the ecclesiastical sphere, of all subjects with authority. The Bishop not wanting to tolerate Popes; the priests not wanting to tolerate Bishops; the laity not wanting to tolerate priests. It was truly a communist revolution within the ecclesiastical structure of that time.
On the other hand, sensuality – affirmed by the rupture with the principle of the indissolubility of the conjugal bond – that is to say, by the establishment of divorce in all the Protestant sects. On the other hand, witnessed by the abolition of ecclesiastical celibacy and the religious state with celibacy.
In this world marked by the perpetual dissatisfaction of everyone, the Capuchin represented a living protest. He was voluntarily poor most of the time, a man who had possessed goods on earth, greater or lesser, and yet had chosen to be poor. He was a man who had renounced any earthly career; who occupied neither high offices nor high situations; who lived in the humility of the vow of obedience by which he renounced his own will to live under the rule of the will of another; and who maintained perfect chastity.
He represented, then, a living contrast to all the unruliness of the time, and moved through that revolutionary society like a tank forging ahead amidst adverse battalions of infantry. With serenity, sobriety, and action of presence… he was annihilating.
Preparing the soul for great battles since childhood
Let us now study the life of this Saint in this light. We shall read extracts from his biography: he was born in Brindisi in 1559 and his parents were from the noblest families of that city. He was only four years old when he asked his parents to enter the convent of the Friars Minor. His parents agreed. Lawrence was hard-working, loved to listen to sermons, understood them easily, and repeated them exactly. Sometimes he was asked to preach at the Chapter, so that all could hear.
What a delight it was to have a little Capuchin with the voice of a child, but already with the catechism of an athlete for Christ, giving sermons which he heard and repeated! This was forming him for the great battles he was about to fight, with the resourcefulness that is one of the forms of Capuchin greatness.
The Archbishop, to whom the news of Lawrence had spread, also wished to hear him, so he requested that Lawrence preach in the cathedral before a large audience, a sermon from which the Archbishop profited greatly.
In the small towns in Italy in those days, without radio, television or cinema, any oddity aroused curiosity. So the Cathedral was packed to hear the sermon of an extraordinary little boy. The people, as they were then, became talkative and exuberant, making comments before the child arrived. Suddenly, the child arose and began to make his voice heard, and thus silence gradually reigned. When it was over, the organ played, a Hail Mary was sung, and the crowd slowly drifted away after receiving the Bishop’s blessing.
The boy left the cathedral and returned to the convent, hearing none of the repercussions of his preaching. He went to sleep and the next morning was found mopping the floor.
Pressured by his mother, Saint Lawrence flees
Since his father had died, Lawrence’s mother wanted her son to return home to keep her company. But the young man evaded her demands and fled to Venice where one of his uncles, a priest and the rector of San Marco College, resided.
Picture Venice in the early morning, with its palaces, its magnificent water panorama, and a thousand marvelous plays of light. The little friar who had escaped and traveled all night entered the city quietly; he traveled by gondola and then, standing and looking at the palaces, thought of how the Kingdom of Heaven is greater than the Kingdom of Earth. He arrived at his uncle’s house where he desired to study, and his uncle, being a servant of God, took him in. His mother then surrendered her authority over him.
When Lawrence finished his studies in philosophy, his uncle sent him to the Faculty of Canon Law. At the age of 17, he requested the Capuchin habit, which the Provincial was happy to grant him. On 24 March 1576, he made his solemn profession.
Marvelous Conversions
At the age of 36, Lawrence was appointed Minister General for the whole Order. When Clement VIII sent the Capuchins to Germany, the Saint was one of those in charge. The Emperor [of the Holy Empire] took great satisfaction in this choice and granted him ample permission to found monasteries. He founded them in Bohemia, Austria, Moravia, and Silesia.
To found monasteries requires finding vocations for them, finding money to build them, and superiors to direct them. It is a difficult task to find anyone who wants to lead the austere life of a Capuchin, and yet he formed monasteries in all these regions.
The Supreme Pontiffs entrusted to him the most delicate missions; several times he was sent as an ambassador to the courts of various princes. These honoured him for his character as ambassador. Thus he attended the courts of the princes of Germany and even the Diet of the Empire. His zeal held back the Lutheran heresy in that country.
We can imagine scenes from Cortes: the herald announces that the Ambassador of the Holy Father, considered the dean of diplomats in all Catholic countries, is about to enter the hall: then the Capuchin friar enters in his simple attire. Exhibiting great reverence for the King, he then proceeds along the carpets of luxury and splendour, but serene and indifferent, without revolt or admiration; his eyes fixed on Heaven and preaching the sometimes terrible and difficult truth.
Imprudent on the human level, prudent on the supernatural
The Emperor desired that some Capuchins go as chaplains to the army of Hungary. Saint Lawrence departed to lead the mission. The general was the Archduke, Matthias, brother of the Emperor, who, encouraged by Lawrence’s promises from God to win victory over his enemies, decided to attack them near Alba Real.
The Archduke, an excellent general, considered it imprudent to attack the Mohammedans, who were coming through the Balkans to attack Hungary and then Austria, from behind, while the Habsburgs faced the attack of the Protestants from Germany and the French political opposition.
The situation was critical for the House of Austria. The Archduke Matthias, a relative of the Emperor, the general of the troops of the Roman-German Empire, facing the Turks, was in doubt as to whether or not to attack. We can imagine him in a magnificent tent, gathered with his men of war, looking at maps on an emergency table, discussing whether or not to advance, with data obtained by spies. According to the rules of military technique, the battle is considered reckless. Then the sentry enters and says: “Friar Lawrence wishes to speak”. The Archduke, Matthias acquiesced and the Capuchin entered, announcing God’s revelation: “You may proceed with the attack, for you will win.
Then there is a moment of excitement when, after hearing the advice of the religious – who does not give technical reasons, but only those heard from Heaven – the generals see the Archduke hesitate. Someone who is somewhat incredulous says: “Your Highness, do not go forward with this fight. It will be the end of the armies and the end of the Arch Family.”
“No,” repeated Brother Lawrence, “The glory of the Arch Family is in the battle. Its paths pass through the paths of God. Forward! He orders the attack.”
In those days there was still faith; men believed. The Archduke decided to go into battle because Friar Lawrence had promised him victory. An imprudent battle in human terms, but a prudent one in supernatural terms, which was going to be blessed by God. The Christians, although outnumbered, attacked with such force that they stormed the trenches with swords in hand, achieving a complete victory and the conquest of Alba Real. The Turks retreated. This success, which cost the Christians only 30 men, was thought to be due to the prayers of Lawrence who, mounted on a horse throughout the entire battle, encouraged the soldiers to fight for the Faith.
What a magnificent scene! The Capuchin on horseback, holding the reins with one hand and the cross with the other. And all the time riding through the ranks and encouraging them to fight, promising Heaven to whoever died.
And those big men, with part of their armour made of metal, having to face cannon-shots, projectiles with stones, and the countercharge of the Mohammedans, still going forward, hearing him so inflamed that they went forth with force, causing the Mohammedans to buckle and flee. We can only imagine what the last of the afternoon was like over Alba Real after having been conquered by the Catholics: the joy of the Catholic troops at the obvious miracle! Perhaps the Archduke was in the house of the Mohammedan governor of Alba Real; all resting after the battle. The bells were ringing, Friar Lawrence was calling for prayer, the church was full. The soldiers enter, he stands by the altar and sings a magnificent Te Deum. This is truly living!
By Monsignor João S. Clá Dias, E.P.
Compiled by Sandra Chisholm
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Read More: Spirituality, Monsignor João S. Clá Dias, PLINIO CORRÊA DE OLIVEIRA, Revolution and Counterrevolution, Saint of the Day, Saint of the Day July 21, Saint Lawrence of Brindisi, Gaudium Press
