The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1906-09-22
B q o K S
BY w. p. K.
NOVEL1ST'S REMARKABLE PLEA
FOR A REVIViEIED ROMAN cAItpcL

- . /. +.
a NovELlsT's REMARKABLE PLEA
FOR A REVIviFIED ROMAN CHURCH,.
Antonio Fogazzaro, the leading nov-
elist OF Italy and devout lay
man OF the Roman church, in his
latest novel, The Saint makes IA
direct appeal to the powers of the Roman
church to preach righteousness-the
supremacy Of conduct over ritual-love
as the test and goal Of life,'' to eradicate
four great evils the spirit of falsehood,"
the spirit of avarice, ., s.the spirit Of
clerical domino ton" and s"the spirit Of
immobility, Y and Ito become "a simpIe
NEUROLOGICAL church,
The story of the book is the story Of
a man who almost from the moment Of
his conversion under dramatic circum-
stances lives and breaches such an an
peal as that outlined. This man is Pero
Maironi, "a man of the world, cultivated
far beyond his kind says William Ros-
| coe Thayer in an introduction to the
novel. who, after having had vehe-l
| ment love-affair, Is stricken with re-
| morse, experiences religion becomes
penitent, is filled with strange zeal
an ineffable comfort-and devotesE
himself body. heart and soul to.
| the worship Of God and the succor of his
fellow man. He preached right
eousness-the supremacy of conduct over
| ritual-love as the test and goal Of life;
but always with full acknowledgment Of
the mother church as the way of saliva
ton" In short he stands for truth in
conduct thought and feeling as the only
worthy aim in life, and he fears not to
preach his belief either to pope or to
peasant. Turnout the story the influence
of his love- affair is seen, tho the woman
herself seldom comes into the foreground.
When she is seen, however, the union Of
the double interest In the story, that Of
! the woman who sinned and that of the
man who has become in the eyes of the
people a saint, gives an intensity of in
| terest such as is seldom found in these
| days in a novel. ug.s. s.
The author shows himself a master in
/ the handling of both phases Of the story.
One follows the life of the saint with an
eagerness equal to that called forth by
an intense drama and interest in the
fortunes of the woman is no less. The
Saint talks to the peasantry on hillside
and the reader feels that he is listening
again to the sermon on the mount, adapt
| ed to new conditions. He appeals to the
pope to adopt his views, and it is like
the call of prophet to duty. He is
tempted by subtle Influences connected
with his past, or he is weakened by
asceticism and ones sympathy goes out to
| him. He is not weak character in any
sense: neither does he talk or act like a
fanatic. The reader is held by the heroic
| courage of the man. He stands out very
real and very vital. The woman and her
moral and mental struggles and suffering
are hardly less wildly or delicately
drawn. &c.. ~
It is no slight task to picture a saint,
but to tell the story of a saint in a way
| to lay fast hold upon the emotions and
keep reader in suspense as tho he We're
reading biography-the real story of a
real man Of force with message for his
fellows-is vastly more difficult. But that
is what Signor Fogazzaro has done, and
done with a simplicity, directness and
vigor seldom SEEN Perhaps the fact that
the author spent something like five years
in the writing of the book may help to
account for his success. ...-.......". .:-.
! = It is not surprising, In view of its crit
ical, tho kindly, tone, that the novel has
| been placed on the Index Llbrorum Pro
hibitorum Of the Vatican. But such a
ranking by the Vatican will not destroy
the influence of the work. The character
that Signor Fogazzaro has created Is a
character of great vitality and Will exert
| an influence almost as great as tho the
Saint had actually lived In the flesh. He
is the personifcation of an idea that has
taken root in. the church,. both Catholic
and Protestant, and, 1t seems to US, must
survive if the Christian church is to hold
its place in the world. He lives and
speaks the lesson Of living the Christian
life as against merely protesting It, OF
service in deeds and thought and heart
as against mere lip-service, vain display
and empty Journalism
| A book with such message is "The
Saint" r,.av
| - r. a. p putnan1's Sons New York. e..