The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1886-07-24
SAVONAROLA.
By REV. L. j. DINsMORE.
Columbus, Wis.,


and the many. The nobility, small
class, would rule the masses, not in
justice and brotherly love, but in tyr
amy and pride. Lorenzo the Magnif-
icent had built up a great tyranny,
brilliant but cruel, adorned with art
and song, but hideous with moral de-
pravity. Against such a social state
the whole being of Savonarola revolted.
He was for the people, and for real
righteousness. He would reform, not
as Wycliffe and Huss, by changing the
doctrine, but by infusing into the church
real holiness. "What he wanted,''
the historian says, twas moral regen-
Grafton of the church, hand in hand
with political regeneration of Italy,
especially of Florence" And thus be-
gan his work. In 1892, he exclaimed to
the people, "Your sins make me
prophet" He was of the stuff out of
which ancient prophets were made, and
like them was stern, sad and powerful.
His whole being blazed with the fires of
strong spiritual fervor. Like Huss, he
was unsparing in his denunciation of
the sins of the priests, and with bold
ness only less wonderful than that of
his divine Master, he assailed the crimes
of the rulers Of his city. 81 am like
hail." he cried, (which falls on those
who have no shelter"
He devoted the whole of the Lenten
season of 1894, to detailed description
of Noah's ark. He announced a new
CYRUS about to come from the North,
and prophesied vast woes to burst upon
the earth. AT last he reached the story
of the deluge, and as he read in deeply
thrilling voice, "Behold, 1, even /, do
send flood of waters upon the earth, "a
shudder went through that vast assem-
bly,; for news had just reached the city
that the king of France had crossed the
Alps with vast army, and descended
into Italy, with resistless might.
In these two years, Savonarola had
established prophets reputation. Men
had come to believe in him with implicit
confidence, and the first result of the
French invasion was the establishment
of republic with Savonarola as its real
ruler. Still his heart was sad. He saw
the general corruption of Italy, the de-
pravity of the church, the vileness of
the Pope, and the frivolity of the people.
And so his words grew more eloquent
and convincing than ever. In Florence
he had wrought moral revolution.
Old wrongs were righted, sinful habits
abandoned, and the entire city occupied
itself with religious things to such an
extent, that contemporary writer was
moved to record his opinion that 1.-The
people of Florence had become fools
from mere love of Christ" But the
forces of destruction were gathering
shape, and unknown to the friar, were
moving to his downfall. The aristoc-
racy hated him for his democratic ten
dencies, and the wicked were moved
against him because of his more than
Puritanic spirit. They called his fol-
lowers, 'cry- babies, ,""sycophants, "and
"pater-noster chewers."
1t was the idea of SavonarOla to
make Florence the base for the moral
conquest of Italy. Accordingly in 1895,
he publicly assailed the monster known
as Alexander VI, Pope of Rome. That
ruler was afraid of the simple monk,
and sought to purchase his silence by
the gift of the position of archbishop or
cardinal. Then he changed tone and
summoned the reformer to Rome, and
after that forbade him to preach. But
in vain. The preachers words grew
wilder, and his soul began to reel from
the delirium of its own exaltatiOn. 1t
was impossible moreover that a light
and tickle people, with no deep seated
moral consciousness, could long abide
the spiritual fever he had excited. 1t
was inevitable, that having beer moved
by such unnatural excitement, they
should the more readily fall back into
their old ways. And so the reaction
began. Famine and the plague were
both turned against him. The banished
Medicis were recalled and restored to
power. Henceforth his enemies were
all powerful. He was communicated
by the pope, forbidden to preach, and
the multitude turned against him.
Then came that last sad evidence of
the power of his self-delusiOn, the at
tempt to work a miracle passing
through fire to prove the correctness
of his doctrine. 1t must be that the
great mind of the reformer had given
way under the stress and strain of these
terrible years, else he never would have
had undertaken such task. The fail
ure of the experiment precipitated his
ruin. He was at once arrested, thrown
into prison, cruelty tortured, and on the
23d of May, 1923, burned to death as a
hereto.
Scarcely was he dead, however. than
halo of glory enveloped him. The
story of his last days was passed from
one to another as the story of the expe-
rienees of a martyr. His heart was cast
up all undestroyed from the depths of