diff options
| -rw-r--r-- | .gitattributes | 3 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | 45479-0.txt | 928 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | 45479-h/45479-h.htm | 1073 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | 45479-h/images/0003.jpg | bin | 0 -> 621428 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 45479-h/images/0042.jpg | bin | 0 -> 105794 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 45479-h/images/cover.jpg | bin | 0 -> 621428 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | LICENSE.txt | 11 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | README.md | 2 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/45479-8.txt | 1317 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/45479-8.zip | bin | 0 -> 28465 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/45479-h.zip | bin | 0 -> 1346675 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/45479-h/45479-h.htm | 1483 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/45479-h/images/0003.jpg | bin | 0 -> 621428 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/45479-h/images/0042.jpg | bin | 0 -> 105794 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/45479-h/images/cover.jpg | bin | 0 -> 621428 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/45479.txt | 1317 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/45479.zip | bin | 0 -> 28446 bytes |
17 files changed, 6134 insertions, 0 deletions
diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6833f05 --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,3 @@ +* text=auto +*.txt text +*.md text diff --git a/45479-0.txt b/45479-0.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..087f8f9 --- /dev/null +++ b/45479-0.txt @@ -0,0 +1,928 @@ +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 45479 *** + +THE STORY OF JOAN OF ARC THE WITCH--SAINT + +By M. M. Mangasarian + +Lecturer Of The Independent Religious Society + +From "The Rationalist," October, 1913 + + +[Illustration: 0003] + + +PAST NUMBERS OF THE RATIONALIST. + +No. 1. St. Francis, the Second Christ. + +No. 2. Marcus Aurelius. + +No. 3. Ships that Sink in the Night; or, God and the Titanic. + +No. 4. What has Christ Done for the World? + +No. 5. Lyman Abbott on Immortality. + +No 6. Voltaire in Hades. + +No. 7. The Gospel of Sport--What Shall I Do to Be Saved? Play! + +No. 8. A Poet's Philosophy of Happiness--Omar Khayyam. + +No. 9. A Rationalist in Home. (A Lecture in Three Parts.) Part 1 + +No. 10. A Rationalist in Rome. (A Lecture in Three Parts.) Part 2 + +No. 11. A Rationalist in Rome. (A Lecture in Three Parts,) Part 3 + +No. 12. Jew and Christian According to Shakespeare. + +No. 13 and 14. Christian Science and Common Sense. + +No. 15. A Message From Abroad. + +No. 16. The First Modern Man. + +No. 17. The Monk and The Woman in The Garden of Allah. + +No. 18. The High Cost of Living and the Higher Cost of Superstition + +No. 19. The Debate between Three Clergymen and a Rationalist. + +No. 20. Rationalism and Crime. + +No. 21. Women and Crime. + +No. 22. Was Jesus a Socialist? + +No. 23. The Catholic Church and the Socialist Party. + +No. 24. What is the Trouble with the World? + +The above 24 lectures will be sent to any address upon receipt of $2 + + +Volume 2 + +No. 1. Who Made the Gods? + +No. 2. Marriage and Divorce, According to Rationalism. + +No. 3. The American Girl. + +No. 4. The Catholic Church in Politics. + +No. 5. Christian and Turk. + +No. 6. The Gospel According to Bernard Shaw. + +No. 7 and 8. Morality Without God. + +No. 9. A Letter to My Flock. + +No. 10. A Missionary's Convert. + +No. 11. The Ex-Priest in Paris. + +The Rationalist + +Is published by the Independent Religious Society semi-monthly. Each +number is to consist of a lecture by M. M. Mangasarian. Price of +subscription, per annum, $2.00. Orders should be sent to +The Independent Religious Society, 922 Lakeside Place, Chicago + + + + +JOAN OF ARC + +This lecture on Joan of Arc, delivered some time ago, provoked a great +deal of criticism in Chicago. The people who protested against it and +wanted to punish its author were, naturally enough, the Roman Catholics. +What interests me in Joan of Arc is not the fact that the story of her +martyrdom and subsequent canonization could be used as a weapon +against the Church of Rome, but because the story in itself is so very +compelling. It is quite true that the story also illustrates how far +from infallible the Catholic Church has been in its dealings with the +Maid of Orleans--first, burning her at the stake as a witch, and, five +hundred years later, beatifying her as a saint. The statement in my +lecture which caused the greatest displeasure was to the effect that the +same church which had burnt Joan of Arc as a witch in fourteen hundred +thirty-one had sainted her in nineteen hundred and nine. The Catholics +deny that they were at all responsible for the terrible death of +the deliverer of France. This lecture will throw some light on that +question. + +As related in a former lecture, it was at her shrine, in the Church of +the Sacred Heart, in Paris, last summer, that I promised myself the +task of presenting to the American people the truth about Joan of Arc. +I shall speak very plainly in this lecture, but, I am sure, without +any trace of bitterness in my heart toward anyone. I shall speak with +feeling, of course, for it is impossible not to be moved to the depths +by the events which brought a girl of nineteen to the stake--but my +passion is free from anger or prejudice. I can weep for this young woman +without gnashing my teeth on her fanatical persecutors. I am sure I can +tell the truth without lying about the Catholic Church. + +But I do not wish to be sentimental, either. I have not forgiven the +unrepentant destroyers of the innocent. To convert a heretic into +a saint by trying to prove that she was not a heretic at all is not +repentance; it is sophistry. To deny that Joan suffered death at the +hands of, and by the authority of, the Vicar of Christ on earth is not +a sign of regret for the past, but a defiance of history. When +the Catholics shall admit that, through ignorance, and urged on by +circumstances they could not control, they committed the act which they +have since atoned for by offering her a heavenly crown--when, I say, the +Catholics shall shed over her body tears as genuine as those which black +Othello shed over the woman he had smothered--then we will forgive them. + +But the Catholic Church will have to choose between securing our +forgiveness and retaining her infallibility. If she should repent of a +single act ever committed by her officially, she would lose her claim +to infallibility--for how can the infallible err? If, on the other hand, +she should hold to her infallibility, how can she be sorry for anything +she has ever done? If I had any influence with the Catholics I would +advise them to sacrifice infallibility for the respect of humanity. +It is much more divine to say, "I am sorry," than to say, "I am +infallible." But the Catholic Church will not take my advice. + +The shrine of Joan in the Paris church is almost as eloquent as her +stake in Rouen. I have seen them both--that is to say, I have seen the +spot on which she was consumed, marked by a white slab; and I have seen +the marble figure of Joan, as a girl, in the attitude of prayer, now +in the Church of the Sacred Heart in Paris. As I stood at her shrine in +this great white church it seemed to me that, even though Joan of Arc +has, at last been made a saint, there was still a prejudice against her +on the part of the people, as well as of the priests. This is only an +impression, and I hope I am mistaken. But let me present the evidence +on which I base my misgivings: In the first place, Joan is not given +the preference in the shrine set apart for her. St. Michael, whoever he +might be, occupies the whole front of the altar, and only on the windows +and the side walls do we find any mention of Joan and the events of her +heroic career. There is also, at one end of the enclosure, as intimated +before, a small marble figure of Joan on her knees. Why does St. Michael +usurp the place of honor over the altar? Who is he? What has he done for +France? In the second place, there was not a single lighted candle at +her shrine. St. Mary's altar, a little distance off, was ablaze. St. +Joseph's, too, was honored by lighted candles. But no one was on her +knees and no flame twinkled before the sainted Joan of Arc. They say +that it is almost impossible to outlive the charge of heresy. In former +times, quite frequently, even heretics who repented of their heresies +were put to death, nevertheless. To have ever been accused, even, or +suspected of heresy, is an unpardonable crime. Joan was suspected, at +least, of rebellion against Rome, and it seemed to me, as I reflected +upon what I observed in the church, that the Catholics had canonized +this village maid reluctantly, and only under pressure, and after five +hundred years of dillydallying. + +But before I left the Church of the Sacred Heart there was a lighted +candle upon her altar. I lighted it. Approaching one of the candle +tables, of which there are half a dozen in the building, I purchased a +long, tapering candle, white as the lily, and I touched it with fire--I +kindled it and set it in one of the sockets to burn before the kneeling +Joan. I left my flaming candle in the Church of the Sacred Heart! I, +a non-Catholic, offered my fire to Joan, not because she had been +canonized--for I never wait for the consent or the approval of the Pope +before paying homage to anybody--but because her sweet, sad story is one +of the most moving of modern times, and her vindication one of the most +stupendous conquests of modern thought. + +The Church of the Sacred Heart is one of the most beautiful in Paris. It +is built on the highest point in the city and commands a wonderful +view. As I have told you before, I have two friends who dwell on this +summit--really, a superb location. It is approached by a long flight of +stairs, or by a cog-wheel train. Before it, and all around it, sweeps +the Paris of to-day, as did the Paris of Clovis and Charlemagne, nearly +fifteen hundred years ago; the Paris of Julian, Emperor of Rome, older +still; the Catholic Paris, when kings and parlements bowed low to kiss +the great toe of the Italian Christ, or his vicar; the Paris of the +Medici--red and bloody; the Paris of the Huguenots, of Henry of Navarre, +of Conde and Colligny--sad, desolate, and in the throes of a new faith; +and the Paris of the philosophers, whose smile softened its barbarities, +lit up its darkness, and made it a city of light--_La ville Lumiere!_ +There, on that splendid elevation, live my two young friends. They are +both at the age of nineteen. One of them a lad, the other a maid. The +girl is housed; the boy is exposed. Joan of Arc lives in the church--the +cathedral is her home. The Chevalier de La Barre stands on the edge of +the hill, with sun and shower falling upon his head. The Catholic Church +burnt them both at the stake--the boy and the girl; the one because +he did not tip his hat to the priest at a street procession, the other +because she believed in herself! But modern thought has vindicated +both of these outcasts. Joan now dwells in a white church, perfumed and +lighted; and the Chevalier crowns the brow of the hill with his youthful +figure and appealing gesture. The chain which tied these children to the +stake in a dark age has flowered! Is not that wonderful? I believe in +the forces, the ideas, the movement--the thought that can cause a chain +to flower! + +I am not going to speak this morning of the Chevalier de La Barre, to +commemorate whose memory the nationalists of France have erected this +monument, close to the Church of the Sacred Heart. He will be my theme +on another occasion. In this lecture I shall confine myself to the story +of Joan of Arc. And a strange story it is! A young girl of seventeen +marches at the head of a dilapidated and demoralized army, and leads it +on to victory against the best fighters of the world, the English, who, +in the fifteenth century, were trying to annex France to England; she +is captured by traitors, sold to the enemy for ten thousand pounds; and +then she is handed over to the church to be tried for heresy. She is +tried, convicted, and sentenced to be burned alive. This sentence, the +most revolting on record, is carried out in all its literalness, and in +broad daylight, and under the shadow of the Christian cross, and at +the very doors of a great cathedral. All this transpired in the city of +Rouen, on the thirtieth day of May, fourteen hundred thirty-one. + +In order that I may enter into the spirit of the thrilling events of +which Rouen was the stage, I repaired to that city, and reverently +visited the scenes of the trial and the martyrdom of this latest saint +of the Catholic world. Words cannot convey to you the emotions which, +like a storm, burst upon me suddenly as the conductor on my train called +out, "Rouen!" It was then about a half hour to midnight, and, jumping +into a carriage, I was quickly driven to my hotel. What thoughts, and +how they crowded in upon me, as soon as I laid my head upon my pillow. +My brain was too active to permit of sleep. I imagined I was living in +_the year fourteen hundred thirty-one_, and that I had just reached this +city on the eve of the martyrdom of Joan. "To-morrow," I whispered +to myself, "Joan of Arc will be led to the stake." Again and again I +repeated to my pillow this shuddering intelligence. "What," I exclaimed +to myself, "a young woman who saved France by her courage is going to +be committed to the flames in this very city _tomorrow!_" I could not +believe it possible. I could not believe that there was folly enough, +or hatred enough, or stupidity enough, in the world for so desperate a +deed. But, alas, it was true. With my eyes closed, I fancied I saw +the throngs marching through the streets--consisting of peasants, of +merchants, of priests, of princes--to see a girl of nineteen burned in +the fire, and in all that throng there was not one who had either a kind +word or thought for her--her who had given them a country to live in. +Abandoned, hated and spat upon, she was left to suffer the cruelest +punishment that human _inhumanity_ could devise, or the most perverse +imagination invent. A girl of nineteen burned alive! "Oh, God!" The +words escaped my lips in spite of me. Then I turned about and called +upon _Humanity_. But in the fifteenth century God and Humanity were both +hard of hearing. Then I called upon _Science_ and _Reason_. But these +were not yet born. "There is no help then," I whispered to myself, and +my heart swelled within me with indignation, and I became desperate, +realizing my helplessness. + +With my head upon my pillow during that first night I spent in Rouen, +I tried to penetrate into the motives for the persecution of Joan. This +brave girl was feared because she was superior to her age. She provoked +the jealousy of her inferiors. Her independence and originality alarmed +both the Church and the State. Her ability to take the initiative, and +her courage to disagree with her spiritual teachers was a menace to the +authority of the priest with the keys, and the king with the sword. The +English would not admit that a mere girl, a Domremy peasant, tending +her father's cows, could have the genius to whip them--the most powerful +warriors of Europe. The Catholic Church, on the other hand, would not +forgive Joan for distinguishing herself without their help. For a woman +to eclipse the Holy Church and humiliate a powerful State, was a crime +punishable by death. + +In less than two years' time Joan had saved France, after the prayers of +the Church and the armies of the nation had failed ignominiously. In the +opinion of the world of that day there was only one power, the devil's, +that could outwit the Church. It was not denied that Joan had driven +the victorious armies of the enemy out of France, and made a conquered +people free again; but it was argued that she had achieved this triumph, +not by the help of God, but by the instrumentality of the devil. In +those days, anything, however praiseworthy, if accomplished without the +permission and cooperation of the Church, was the work of the devil. +Joan had consulted her own heart, instead of the village confessor. +That was her heresy. Joan had seen visions and heard voices on her +own account. That is the independence which, if encouraged, or even +recognized, would overthrow the Catholic Church. No one is allowed to +receive revelations at first hand. Even God is not permitted to speak +except through his vicar on earth. In short, Joan was a _protestant_, +inasmuch as she not only had direct relations with heaven, but she +refused to allow the Church to be the judge as to whether her voices +were from God or from Satan. During all the agony of her long trial, +every effort was made to induce her to allow the Church to be the judge +of the nature of her visions. Joan refused the test. There was no doubt +about her heresy. She believed herself capable of judging. That was her +unpardonable sin. + +Still imagining myself in Rouen, in the year fourteen hundred +thirty-one, I said to myself, "I must arise early in the morning and go +to the old market place to catch a glimpse of the wonderful woman when +she leaves the tower for the stake." As the picture of what I would see +on the following day arose before my closed eyes, I trembled. "I will +not let them burn her," I cried passionately. But, alas, what could one +man do against king, pope, and the mob! And I tossed in my bed like one +in a cage who is conscious of his helplessness against iron bars. + +Suddenly, a thought struck me, as the lightning strikes a tree. "This +is fourteen hundred thirty-one," I repeated to myself. "I must get up at +once and repair to the palace of the Bishop of Beauvais, the priest who +holds in the hollow of his hand the fate of the bravest maid in history. +If I could only have a half hour with him," I said, "to pour into his +ears my protest, my pleadings, my scorn, my prayers; or, if I could tell +him of the time when Joan will have a shrine in a Catholic Church!--he +might relent and hearken unto reason?" With these thoughts in my mind +I jumped out of my bed, I lit the candle, I put on my clothes. Then, in +haste, I walked out into the night, seeking my way in the streets of the +strange city now deserted. By the help of the moon and the stars of +that night in May, _fourteen hundred thirty-one_, I traced my way to the +imposing Cathedral of St. Ouen, standing like a towering shadow in +the cold light of the night, and close to which lived the Bishop of +Beauvais. + +I knocked upon the Bishop's door. "Open, open," I cried, as in the dead +of night I kept pounding upon the door. "I wish to come in," I cried. "I +wish to save the Church from an indelible stain, I wish to protect the +honor of humanity." "Open, open," I cried, again and again, and in the +stillness of the night the noise of my blows reached far and wide. +Louder and louder still I cried to the Bishop to open the door. "I wish +to rescue France and England from committing an act of infamy; I wish +to save history from an unspeakable shame. Let me in, Bishop! I come +to protect you against the execration of posterity, against eternal +damnation! Open, open the door!" I shouted. I kept pounding upon the +door, long and loud, on the eve of that foul day in fourteen hundred +thirty-one. I grew impatient with waiting for the door to open, and my +voice, which a moment before swept up and down the whole gamut of hope +and despair--pleading, shouting, sobbing--now became faint and feeble. + +I could not arouse the Bishop. He was fast asleep. Then I was silent +myself. Suddenly I heard a far away whisper. It did not come from the +Episcopal palace, nor from the Cathedral close by, yet I was sure +I heard some one speaking. I listened again. I could now hear more +clearly. "I am coming, I am coming," was repeated in caressing accents. +"I am coming, to open the door, to awaken the Bishop, to usher in a more +joyous day for humanity. I will extinguish the fires of persecution, +turn executioners into teachers, disarm superstition, and make the whole +world sane. In that day Joan will triumph over her foes and make their +churches her mausoleum." It was the voice of Reason! But it took five +hundred years for that faint whisper to swell into a mighty chorus, +swinging around the globe. That prophecy has been fulfilled, the +Bishop's door opened, and the Church yielded to the clamor of +civilization, and changed Joan's stake into the shrine where I lit my +candle in her honor, in the Church of the Sacred Heart. She is no longer +a heretic, she has become a saint. Her tears have changed into pearls, +her tomb into a cathedral, where she sleeps in pomp on the bosom that +once stung her to death. + +But I was not in Rouen in fourteen hundred thirty-one; I was there five +hundred years too late. The day after I arrived in the city, I went to +the market place, but, instead of a procession with candles and torches, +with stakes and fagots, I found commerce, industry, labor, in full +possession of the great square. Prosperous looking men and women met +and greeted one another pleasantly; farmers were selling fruit and +vegetables; the women, flowers. Even the priests one came across smiled +as they saw the happy countenances of the people. What a change! Common +sense has sweetened human nature and flooded the mind with the light +that destroys superstition and makes all men brothers. The guide pointed +out to me the white marble slab marking the spot on which Joan of Arc +met her death. "Upon this place stood the stake of Joan of Arc. The +ashes of the glorious virgin were thrown into the Seine." This is the +inscription on the slab which was placed there by the municipality in +eighteen hundred ninety-one. + +Close to this same spot the citizens of Rouen have erected a fountain, +in the form of a monument, to the same heroic maiden. I stood and +watched the playful waters as they fell with a liquid plash into the +marble basin below. Presently, a woman came along with her pitcher. The +stake at which Joan of Arc was burned to death has become a fountain, +to which the people now come to slake their thirst. Walking up to the +woman, I said, "What fountain is this?" + +"Ah, monsieur," she exclaimed, "behold the fountain of Joan of Arc." + +"But she was a heretic," I remarked. I can never forget her smile. The +sun had arisen in her eyes. "We live in the twentieth century," she +replied. And, unconsciously, we both heaved a sigh of relief. I +rubbed my eyes to be sure we were not living in the middle ages, when +Rationalism was still a babe in swaddling clothes, and Theology was +lord of all. This is the twentieth century--for we are drinking at the +fountain of Joan of Arc instead of carrying fagots to her stake! One +of the sunniest spots in my memory will be my meeting with this peasant +woman, with her pitcher, at the fountain of Joan of Arc. + +But my object in this lecture is to help clear some obscure questions in +connection with the trial, martyrdom and subsequent canonization of this +girl of nineteen. I wish to bring about a more intelligent appreciation +of the story of a young shepherdess, beginning from the day she left her +home in Domremy, to the fiery scaffold; and thence to a place among the +saints in the Catholic calendar. This is the only instance in Catholic +history of a person once destroyed as a heretic who has afterwards +received the highest honors within the gift of the Church. In fourteen +hundred thirty-one an infallible body of ecclesiastics pronounced this +young woman to be "a child of perdition, a sorceress, a seducer, a +harlot and a heretic." Five hundred years after, another infallible +body of ecclesiastics belonging to the same church pronounced the same +"harlot" and "heretic" to be "angelic" and "divine." One infallible +pope allowed her to be burned in fourteen hundred thirty-one; another +infallible pope denounced her murderers as detestable criminals--which +shows how fallible is infallibility. + +A great many untruths are being circulated to help clear this +contradiction. The clergy are proclaiming from the housetops that it was +not the church that tried and condemned Joan of Arc to torture and death +in fourteen hundred thirty-one; on the contrary, it was the church, they +say, which has just vindicated her memory and beatified her with superb +ceremonies. History, however, gives a different version of the affair. +Before proceeding to describe the trial and condemnation of Joan of Arc, +let me state the attitude of the Rationalist toward Joan of Arc's claims +to inspiration. We can do justice to a woman of her description without +believing in miraculous predictions. Joan of Arc claimed to have seen +visions and to have heard voices, which assured her of her divine +mission. She was thirteen years of age, according to her testimony, when +she felt her first thrill. The visions were repeated. One day, at about +noon, in the summer time, and while working on her father's farm, close +to the whispering trees, she saw a radiance out of which came a voice +which she fancied was the voice of an angel or of a saint. It was not at +all strange that she should hear voices. All her education had prepared +her for them. She had been told how others had seen angels and heard +voices. The literature of the Church was full of the miraculous in those +days. It was the ambition of every believer to receive visits from the +other world, and to be told secrets. Joan, the little Domremy girl, +shared these ambitions. In her case the wish was father to the vision. +She heard the voices and saw the faces which her heart coveted. How do +we explain her "voices" and her "visions"? The question is a very simple +one, unless we have a leaning for theology. The voices that Joan heard +were those that came from her own heart. It was her own dreams she saw +in the sunlight. + +The young woman had mused over the acts of brigandage of the invading +army and their French allies; she had seen the smoke of the burning +villages and had heard the wail of her peasant neighbors. The distress +of her people had often melted her into tears and wrung many a sigh from +her lips. She imagined the whole country summoning her to the rescue. +So earnest was she that her thoughts assumed form and shape, and became +vocal. Thus, out of the substance of her own soul she fashioned the +visions which she beheld. She felt herself set apart to be the saviour +of France. The brilliance of that thought darkened every other object in +life--home, parents, money, marriage! + +To those who will not be satisfied with this explanation, I beg to say +that if the voices were really supernatural, then they should be held +responsible for the cruel death to which they led or drove the young +woman. Why did her voices, if they were divine, desert her when she +needed their help most? Why did they not save her from prison and the +stake? And which of us would like to be guided to the chambers of the +inquisition, and the flames of the stake by "heavenly voices"? Moreover, +if these voices came from God, why did they not speak to the English +king, or to the Roman pope, in behalf of Joan, when she called on them +for help? Why did they not assume the responsibility for the acts for +which she was destroyed? Voices and visions which induce a young girl to +go to the help of a perishing country only to use her victories for the +benefit of a depraved and imbecile prince like Charles VII, and desert +the young woman herself to be "done" to death! Defend us against them! + +Returning to the question of the responsibility of the Catholic Church +for the fate of Joan, there are these points to be touched upon. Being +a matter of history that on the last day of May, fourteen hundred +thirty-one, this young woman was publicly burned in the City of Rouen, +in the square of the cathedral, the question arises: Who put her to +death? Another important question is: Why was she put to death? And when +we have answered these questions we will be in a position to discuss the +much more important question of: Why Joan of Arc was recently translated +into a saint by the pope. + +Twenty-five years after the burning of Joan, when the city of Rouen was +restored to the French king, and the English were finally driven across +the Channel, it was decided to review the evidence upon which the Maid +had been convicted and put to death. This was done; and with the result +that she was acquitted of all the charges of heresy, insubordination to +the Church, adultery, witchcraft, etc. What do you think was the motive +of this revision? The French king had begun to realize the disgrace to +which he had been exposed by the condemnation of the Maid as a witch. +Being exceedingly pious--piety and crime were united in him as in many +others of that day--he was tormented by the thought that the young woman +who had assisted him in his war against the English, and had been the +means of securing for him the crown of France, and had also officiated +at his coronation in the cathedral of Rheims, was condemned as an agent +of satan by the Church; which, if true, it would make him not only the +target for the ridicule and derision of the whole Christian world, but, +also, an illicit king of the French, who might refuse their allegiance +to him because he was made king by a witch and not by an apostle of +God. It is no wonder that a superstitious man like Charles VII, in a +superstitious age, trembled, not only for his crown, but, also, for +his life. Therefore, in order to make his succession legitimate it was +necessary to prove that Joan was not a witch, but a true messenger of +God. For if Joan was a witch, Charles VII was not king "by the grace of +God," but by a trick of the devil. In self-defense the king of France +was not only compelled to reopen the case against Joan, now that he was +free from English dictation, but he also indicated in advance to the +ecclesiastics the conclusion they would have to arrive at. The +king could not have allowed, and he would not have allowed, the +ecclesiastical council, convened at his request, to arrive at any other +verdict than the one which would prove to France and Christendom that +he was made king at Rheims, not by a witch who was excommunicated by the +Church and flung into the fire, but by a real and inspired apostle of +God. + +Of course, it is a matter of history that it was by the help of Joan +that Charles VII became King of France. + +As already intimated, at the coronation ceremony Joan was not only +present, but she assisted the Archbishop when the latter placed the +crown upon the king's head. The inauguration was practically the work +of Joan. It was the fulfillment of a prediction she had repeatedly made, +that she would conquer the English and crown the French king in the City +of Rheims. If she was a witch the coronation was invalid. The ceremony +of the anointing of a king is one of the most solemn in the Catholic +Church. The condemnation of Joan as a witch had not only stripped this +ceremony of its sacredness, but it had also made it null and void, nay, +more, a blasphemy. How could a king, anointed by the help of a witch, +be the king of a Christian nation? To appreciate this argument we +must remember how bigoted the people were in the Middle Ages. In +self-defense, therefore, Charles VII was compelled to prove to the +French, and to the whole world, that the woman to whom he owed his +elevation to the throne was not a heretic. + +Let us recapitulate. The King of France ordered the Church to make out a +new certificate for Joan. The Church obeyed the French king, even as the +same Church twenty-five years earlier had obeyed the King of England and +condemned Joan to death. When the English were masters of France, the +Catholic Church pleased them by delivering up the conqueror of England +to be burned alive; when the English were driven out of the country and +the French were again in control this sentence was reversed and Joan was +proven to have been a dutiful child of the Church. Thus it will be seen +that the Church swung with the English when the English ruled the land, +and she swung with the French when the French had driven the English +out of the country. The Church was with England at one time, and she was +with France at another--but never with Joan. I am milder in my criticism +than the facts warrant. I am making strenuous efforts to speak with +immoderation of an "infallible institution." + +But why was it to the interest of the English to have Joan declared a +witch? Their motives were as personal as those of the French king. The +English felt humiliated to think that a mere woman had whipped them, +and therefore they were determined to prove that she was more than a +woman--an agent of the devil. There was no secret about this. Their +motive was very plain. It was to their interest to show that Joan was +the personification of satan, and that consequently the English should +not be blamed for running away from her presence, because who could +withstand the devil? The English army did not go down before a girl, but +before a sorceress. Even as the King of France did not wish it said that +he owed his victory over the English to a witch, or that he was made +king by an apostate, the English did not wish it said that they were +conquered by a saint, for that would make God the enemy of the English. +One king wanted Joan damned, and the Church accommodated him by damning +her; another wanted Joan beatified, and the Church beatified her. + +It is admitted that the English could not have burned Joan as a witch +without the consent of the Church. They could have burned her as a +prisoner, but that would not have answered their purpose--she must be +declared a witch in order to vindicate the amour propre of the English +people. It is the exclusive prerogative of the Church to decide +questions of orthodoxy or heresy. No king has the right to admit or +exclude any one from the communion of the Church. Whether or not Joan +was a witch was a theological question and could only be decided by the +ecclesiastical court. Neither could the King of France declare Joan of +Arc innocent of heresy without the consent of the Church. It follows +then that the principal actor in the trial, the condemnation and +the death of the young woman under the English, and her subsequent +vindication and beatification, was the Church of Rome, since without its +consent the English could not have made a heretic of her, nor the French +a saviour and a saint. A secular government may declare who shall be its +military heroes, or who shall be court-martialed and disgraced, but only +the Church enjoys the right to damn or to canonize. This point is so +clinching that even the most zealous papist must admit that at one time, +when all Europe was Catholic--England as much so as France--and the pope +was as supreme in one country as in the other, a girl of nineteen, who +had rendered heroic services to her oppressed country, could not +have been declared a heretic and cast into the fire at the door of +a cathedral, in the presence of bishops, priests, a cardinal and a +representative of the holy Inquisition, without the knowledge and +consent of the Holy Roman Catholic Church. + +An attempt has been made to throw the entire blame of the proceedings +against Joan of Arc upon the English. There is no doubt about the +anxiety of the English to punish the Maid who had robbed them of the +spoils of their victory over the French and brought dishonor upon their +arms. But a mere military punishment, as already intimated, would +not have been sufficient to satisfy the English--she had to be +excommunicated from Christendom as one possessed of the devil. That was +the only way to save the English of the disgrace of having been beaten +by a woman, and the records show that the Church, instead of reluctantly +carrying out the wishes of the English, was more than pleased to +bring Joan to the stake. Letters were written from the office of the +Inquisition to the English king, complaining against his lukewarmness +in the matter of prosecuting the young woman. The Catholic University +of Paris, also, sent a special communication to King Henry of England +to remind him of his duty to help the Church to put down heresy. The +English were urged to hand Joan over to the bishop and the Inquisition, +that the ecclesiastics might proceed with her trial without delay. And +when finally Joan faced her judges, forty in number, every one of them +was an ecclesiastic, and out of the forty, thirty-eight were Frenchmen. + +Moreover, the Archbishop of Rheims, who was also Chancellor of France, +wrote a letter which is still in existence, in which he congratulated +the French upon the capture of Joan of Arc, whom he denounces as a +heretic--"a proud and rebellious child who refuses to submit to the +Church." Being the superior of the Bishop of Beauvais, who was in charge +of the trial, the Archbishop could have stopped the prosecution if +he had the least sympathy or pity for the Maid. But to try to save +a heretic would be the worst kind of heresy. That explains the utter +desertion of Joan by all France--people, priest and king. + +In this connection a comparison should be made between the zeal of +the clergy to bring Joan to trial for heresy and the slowness and +indifference with which the Church proceeded to obey the summons of +the King of France twenty-five years after to reinstate her into the +fellowship of Catholic Christendom. The records show that it required +considerable urging and manoeuvring on the part of the French government +to bring about a revision of the ecclesiastical sentence against the +Maid. As long as Nicholas V was pope nothing was accomplished. The case +was reopened under Pope Calixtus. Not until it was realized that further +delay in the matter would greatly irritate, not only the French king, +but also the populace, now freed from English dominion and seeking to +live down the evil reputation of having harbored an apostate in their +midst, did Rome stir itself in the matter. It will be seen that it was +not the pope nor the Church that took the initiative in behalf of Joan +of Arc. The Church only yielded to the pressure from the State, that had +now become powerful. Had the English remained in control of France the +Maid of Orleans would never have been remembered by the Catholic Church, +much less restored to honor and immortality. + +"We do not deny," answer the defenders of the Church, "that _some_ +bishops and even cardinals persecuted Joan of Arc to death. But is +it just to hold the whole Church responsible for the crime of an +insignificant minority?" This is the main defense of the Catholics +against the arguments of the Rationalists and the facts of history. Be +it noted that I am not trying to abuse the Catholics; I am only sorry +that they should be unwilling, even at this date, to say, "We are +sorry." To commit mistakes is human. But why should the Church move +heaven and earth to prove that it has never committed a mistake? The +attempt is also made to prove that the ecclesiastics who are responsible +for the death of Joan were wicked men and have been repudiated by the +Church. To this is added the further defense that it was the gold of the +English which corrupted these priests. But such a defense, I regret to +say, does not reflect credit upon the intelligence or the honor of the +Church of Rome. In this day of general information it is impossible for +anyone to wrap up the facts of history in a napkin, as it were, and put +them away where no one may have access to them. The judges of Joan +were all ordained ministers of the Church. The presiding priest was +a bishop--the bishop of Beauvais. He was assisted by a cardinal, a +vice-president of the Inquisition, and a number of other ecclesiastics +who were connected with the University of Paris. Is it reasonable to +suppose that the Inquisition and the Catholic University of Paris, and +all the clergy of England and France represented only a discredited +section of the Church? + +It is the pride of the Catholics that their church has never been +divided or schismatic, and that it has been one and indivisible "always +and everywhere." How is this claim to be reconciled with the excuse that +a considerable portion of the Catholic Church in the fifteenth century +openly ignored the authority of the pope and did as they pleased without +incurring the displeasure of the Hierarchy for their insubordination? +Furthermore, if only a part of the church persecuted the young woman, +what did the rest of the church do to save her? We would like the names +of the priests who interceded in her behalf. It does not give me a bit +of pleasure to prove the Catholic Church responsible for this as for +many other burnings at the stake, but it gives me pleasure to be able to +show that any institution claiming infallibility, to defend that +claim must persecute. And why do I take pleasure in proving this to be +inevitable? It might open the eyes of the religious world to the danger +of supernaturalism. If the Christians no longer burn people they do not +like, it is not because their Bibles have been altered, but because they +no longer believe in them as they used to. It is good news to report +that supernaturalism is waning, for it means the progress of science and +sanity. + +There is still another point to be touched upon: When all Europe +heard of the fate that had befallen a girl of nineteen through the +machinations, let us say, of a few naughty Catholic priests--what +did Rome do to these same priests who had so disgraced their "holy" +profession, as well as brought lasting shame upon civilization? Is not +this a pertinent question? Joan's trial lasted for four months. Not only +France and England, but all Christendom was interested in the outcome. +During all this time not only was there not a word of protest from Rome, +but what is more significant, shortly after the trial and condemnation +of Joan, the pope rewarded her accusers and persucutors with +ecclesiastical promotion. Again, I must hasten to explain that I am +not interested in embarrassing the Catholics; my point is to strike at +_dogma_--which turns hearts into stone, and makes of the intellect a +juggler's instrument. Joan was sacrificed, nay,--the honor of France, of +Europe, of civilization, of humanity--was flung into the fire with Joan, +to save--what? Dogma! + +Not only did the church fail to punish a single one of the forty +ecclesiastics who tried Joan, not to mention hundreds of others who +cooperated with them to bring about her destruction, but, as intended, +gifts were conferred upon the principal actors in this awful drama. +Roussel, one of the ecclesiastics who figured prominently in the +proceedings, was given the archepiscopacy of the city of Rouen--the very +city in which a girl not yet twenty, and who had served France on the +battlefield, and brought victory to her flag, was beaten and burnt to +death. Pasquier, an ordinary priest when he was serving as one of the +judges, was made a bishop after the execution of Joan. Two others, +Gilles and Le Fevre, were also advanced to upper ranks in the church. +Thomas Courcelles, one of the most merciless judges of Joan--who voted +in favor of subjecting the prisoner to physical torture to compel her +to admit she was a witch--this priest with the unenviable reputation was +also promoted to a lucrative post in the famous church of Notre Dame, in +Paris. Finally, the man who engineered the trial, who presided over +the sessions, and to whom Joan said, "You are the cause of my +misfortunes"--the Bishop of Beauvais, the man whom all Catholics justly +execrate today--even he was rewarded by the "Holy Father"; he was given +the episcopal seat of Lisieux. Does it look as though the crime against +Joan were the work of a discredited minority in the Catholic Church? I +repeat, it was dogma, it was revelation, it was infallibility, it +was supernaturalism, and not this or that priest--that should be held +guilty. + +To meet these arguments the Catholic apologists call attention to the +fact that the church "has a horror of blood," and that it has never +put anyone to death for any cause whatever. But this is true only in +a Pickwickian sense. It is like the head saying to the hands, "I have +never committed the least violence against anyone." The hands, it is +evident, commit the acts, but whose hands are they? The hands only +obey the head, and for the head to blame the hands for carrying out its +orders, realizing its thoughts and wishes, would not even be amusing, +much less convincing. It is the judge, or the court, that takes the +life of the culprit, for instance, and not the executioner. The Catholic +Church demands the death of the heretic. Is this denied? Read Thomas +Aquinas, the most honored saint and theologian of Catholicism; read the +decrees of the general councils of the church and the encyclicals of +St. Peter's successors, and a thousand, thousand proofs will be found +in them to substantiate the statement. It is the Bible that commands the +death of the heretic. No church founded on the Bible can afford to be +tolerant. The theory of Christianity as well as of Mohammedanism is that +the sword which the king carries has been blessed and put in his hands +that he may put down the heretics. The civil authorities then, in +bringing Joan of Arc to the fire were carrying out the instructions of +the forty ecclesiastical judges who condemned her to death. Had these +judges found her innocent, the state could not have destroyed her life; +it was the will of the priestly court that she should die, and the +secular authorities fulfilled its wish. + +But was Joan a heretic? Strenuous efforts are made to show that she was +not. This point is a vital one. The church, in self-defense, is bound to +produce arguments to prove that Joan of Arc was an orthodox, obedient, +and submissive child of the church. If she was not orthodox, then the +church has sainted a heretic in the person of Joan of Arc. One of the +questions they asked her at the trial was whether she would be willing +to submit the question of her "visions" to the church; that is to say, +would she consent to the findings of an ecclesiastical court concerning +herself and her mission? To this the answer was that she held herself +responsible only to God. This was considered a rebellious answer, and it +was--from the church's point of view. According to Catholic theology +the church is divided into two branches,--the church militant, which +is composed of the pope, the priests and their flock; and the church +triumphant, which is presided over by God and the saints in glory. Joan +said she was prepared to submit to the church triumphant--the church +on high, that is to say, to God, but to nobody else. This also was a +heresy. Her clerical judges insisted that to be a good Catholic she +must bow to the will of the church on earth--the pope and his +representatives. Her heresy then was both real and serious. She appealed +from the pope to God. She placed her own conscience above the authority +of the church. She believed in private judgment, the exercise of which +is forbidden by the church. In refusing to let the pope act as the +middleman between God and herself she was threatening the very existence +of the papacy. There is then no doubt that both by her independent +conduct and by her original answers Joan attacked the very fundamentals +of Catholicism. It follows, then, that the pope a few years ago made a +saint out of a heretic. + +Although Joan was an uncultivated girl, able neither to read nor write, +she was gifted with good common sense. She saw at a glance that if she +were to submit to the church she would thereby be casting doubts upon +the genuineness of her "visions." She preferred to go to the stake +rather than do that. She was really between two fires: the priests +threatened her body; God in her conscience threatened her soul. She +decided to obey the voice within. The decision cost her her life. + +Some of the questions put to her and the answers which Joan made are +really remarkable. They show the craft of her judges, on the one hand, +and the courage and common sense of the victim, on the other. + +"Will you not submit to our holy father, the Pope?" they asked her. +"Bring me before the Pope, and I will answer," she replied. In other +words, they were trying to have her admit that she had no right to think +for herself or to exercise any independence at all. But she was too +serious and earnest a person to subscribe to any such doctrine. She had +never understood that to be a Catholic meant to be a bondswoman. "Take +care," she said, turning her fiery glance upon her inquisitors, "take +care that you do not put yourselves in the place of God." By such an +answer, the young woman, still in her teens, had shot the Catholic +Church in the heart. + +The nature of the charges against Joan as formulated by her judges also +goes to prove that she was considered a heretic and condemned to death +for that offense. The eleventh charge against her reads: "She has adored +her saints without taking clerical advice." Charge twelfth reads: "She +refuses to submit her conduct and revelation to the church." When asked +if she would obey the church, her reply was, "God first being served." +Luther said no more than that--and the Catholic church was split in +two. Everything goes to show that the Domremy peasant girl was a private +thinker, that is to say, a heretic. Listen to this: "I will believe that +our Holy Father, the pope of Rome and the bishops and other churchmen +are for the guarding of the Christian faith and the punishment of +heretics, _but as for me and my facts, I will only submit to the church +of heaven_." To be sure that is insubordination; it is placing herself +not only on an equality with the pope, but even above him. Of course, +Joan was not a Rationalist--far from it--but she was an independent +Catholic--that is to say--not subject to the church--and that is heresy. +Is it any wonder that her sentence read: "Therefore we pronounce you +a rotten limb, and as such to be lopped off from the church." And the +reason this sentence gave satisfaction to the Catholics all over +the world was because such initiative and self-respect as Joan had +manifested, if tolerated, would bring about the collapse of the +infallible authority of the church. The University of Paris wrote to the +pope, to the king of England and the bishops, lauding the priests who +had purged the church of this dangerous girl with her "I think so," or +"I believe so,"--with the emphasis on the "I." In this same letter the +Bishop of Beauvais, the evil genius of Joan, to whom she said, when she +saw the stake awaiting her, "Bishop, I die through you!" is commended +for "his great gravity and holy way of proceeding, which ought to be +most satisfactory to all." + +It took five hundred years for the Catholic Church to discover that the +young woman burnt as a heretic was really a saint. But the church did +not make this discovery until modern thought, benign and brave, had +taken the outcast girl under its protection. The French nation had +already made a national heroine of her, when the Vatican decided +to enroll her name among the hallowed ones in its calendar. The +beatification of Joan was brought about ostensibly by the report that +certain sufferers from cancer, and other incurable maladies, had been +completely cured by praying to Joan of Arc for help. The Maid had become +a miracle worker, and hence worthy to receive a medal, as it were, from +the pope. Joan is now a new income as well as a saint. + +Joan owes her Vindication to the Rationalists of France. The man in +recent years whose books, position and influence did more than anything +else to bring about a new attitude toward Joan of Arc, was Marcelin +Berthelot, who now sleeps in the Pantheon as one of the glories of +his country. A few years ago, I received an invitation to visit him at +Bellevue near Paris. To give you an idea of the great man who did so +much to rejuvenate Europe and throw its whole weight on the side of +justice to the Martyr--woman of France. I shall reproduce in this +connection what I said about him after my interview with him: + +"Who are the Rationalists?" is one of the questions frequently asked. +Well, they are the intellectual leaders of the world, as what I learned +about Berthelot clearly shows. He was the man upon whom two European +sovereigns had conferred the highest decorations in their power for +services rendered to human progress,--whom his own countrymen had +honored by making him a senator for life; who twice had been appointed +minister of foreign affairs; who had been elected an honorary member +of all the scientific associations of the world; upon whom the Royal +Scientific Society of London has bestowed its most coveted honors; who +is the perpetual secretary of the Academy of Science of Paris; a member +of the Academy Française, and, therefore, one of the immortals; and +whose volumes, inventions, discoveries and contributions have placed +modern civilization under inexpressible obligations to him. With all +these dignities and titles, richly deserved, M. Berthelot is as gracious +in his manners, as unassuming, as childlike and modest, as one could +desire. He displays all the charms of the real man of worth--the man of +genius. + +Though in his seventy-sixth year, the sage and diplomat still possessed +the vigor of a man of fifty, pursuing his studies and interesting +himself in the politics of his time, with the ardor and fervor of youth. +The accumulation of his years and his indefatigable labors had by no +means impaired the faculties of his mind, being still regarded by his +countrymen as one of the most fertile brains and sanest intellects of +modern Europe. + +Two years previously all France, one might say, had met in Paris to +celebrate at the Sorbonne the completion of Berthelot's fifty years of +intellectual labor. It was on this occasion that the foreign potentates +sent their delegates and decorations to him. Every civilized country +was represented at the festivities by its foremost men of letters +and diplomats, while all the senators of France, the president of the +republic, the members of his cabinet, and all the heads of the colleges +were assembled to applaud the _master_ whose half a century of study and +service had so greatly augmented the horizon of man and increased the +light of the world. + +When this distinguished scientist was admitted into the French Academy, +Jules Lemaitre, in his address of welcome, declared that Berthelot was +the real creator of the modern industrial era, which had multiplied the +resources of man a hundredfold. He called Berthelot the discoverer of +modern chemistry, which has in so short a time transformed the face of +the earth, and which holds the secret of the solution of the social and +economic problems of the day. "'Chemistry" declares Berthelot, "'is a +new gospel, which brings tidings of great power to mankind.'" "It +will put an end to the cruel struggle of classes, and make of warlike +politics, now one of the scourges of nations, a lost art. It will do +this by placing within the reach of all an inexhaustible wealth of food +and raiment, thereby curing man forever of the disease of discontent." + +"There are only two things worth living for," said M. Berthelot, in an +address at the Palais de Trocadero before six thousand Frenchmen--"the +love of truth and the love of one's fellows." + +That _love of truth_ opened for Joan the doors of the Catholic Church, +shut against her five hundred years ago and it opened to Berthelot the +doors of the Pantheon--the Temple of the Immortals! + +A final word. I have as much compassion and sympathy for the Catholics +as I have for the martyred girl--indeed more, since they need more. Joan +has been vindicated by the broader and more benign thought of this! age. +The same serene and sweet power will transform the Catholic Church +and make it one of the most progressive forces of our America. I have +delivered this lecture to hasten that lovely day! + +[Illustration: 0042] + + + + + + + +End of Project Gutenberg's The Story of Joan of Arc, by M. M. Mangasarian + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 45479 *** diff --git a/45479-h/45479-h.htm b/45479-h/45479-h.htm new file mode 100644 index 0000000..58bb34f --- /dev/null +++ b/45479-h/45479-h.htm @@ -0,0 +1,1073 @@ +<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?> + +<!DOCTYPE html + PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" + "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd" > + +<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" lang="en"> + <head> + <title> + The Story of Joan Of Arc the Witch--saint, by M. M. Mangasarian + </title> + <link rel="coverpage" href="images/cover.jpg" /> + <style type="text/css" xml:space="preserve"> + + body { margin:5%; background:#faebd0; text-align:justify} + P { text-indent: 1em; margin-top: .25em; margin-bottom: .25em; } + H1,H2,H3,H4,H5,H6 { text-align: center; margin-left: 15%; margin-right: 15%; } + hr { width: 50%; text-align: center;} + .foot { margin-left: 20%; margin-right: 20%; text-align: justify; text-indent: -3em; font-size: 90%; } + blockquote {font-size: 97%; font-style: italic; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%;} + .mynote {background-color: #DDE; color: #000; padding: .5em; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 95%;} + .toc { margin-left: 10%; margin-bottom: .75em;} + .toc2 { margin-left: 20%;} + .indent5 { margin-left: 5%;} + .indent10 { margin-left: 10%;} + .indent15 { margin-left: 15%;} + .indent20 { margin-left: 20%;} + div.fig { display:block; margin:0 auto; text-align:center; } + div.middle { margin-left: 20%; margin-right: 20%; text-align: justify; } + .figleft {float: left; margin-left: 0%; margin-right: 1%;} + .figright {float: right; margin-right: 0%; margin-left: 1%;} + .pagenum {display:inline; font-size: 100%; font-style:normal; + margin: 0; padding: 0; position: absolute; right: 1%; + text-align: right;} + .side { float: left; font-size: 75%; width: 25%; padding-left: 0.8em; + border-left: dashed thin; text-align: left; + text-indent: 0; font-weight: bold; font-style: italic; + font-weight: bold; color: black; background: #eeeeee; border: solid 1px;} + p.pfirst, p.noindent {text-indent: 0} + span.dropcap { float: left; margin: 0 0.1em 0 0; line-height: 1 } + pre { font-style: italic; font-size: 90%; margin-left: 10%;} + +</style> + </head> + <body> +<div>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 45479 ***</div> + + <div style="height: 8em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h1> + THE STORY OF JOAN OF ARC <br /> <br /> THE WITCH—SAINT + </h1> + <h2> + By M. M. Mangasarian + </h2> + <h4> + Lecturer Of The Independent Religious Society <br /> From "The + Rationalist," October, 1913 + </h4> + <p> + <br /><br /><a name="linkimage-0001" id="linkimage-0001"> </a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:65%;"> + <img src="images/0003.jpg" alt="0003 " width="100%" /><br /> + </div> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <h3> + PAST NUMBERS OF THE RATIONALIST. + </h3> + <p> + No. 1. St. Francis, the Second Christ. + </p> + <p> + No. 2. Marcus Aurelius. + </p> + <p> + No. 3. Ships that Sink in the Night; or, God and the Titanic. + </p> + <p> + No. 4. What has Christ Done for the World? + </p> + <p> + No. 5. Lyman Abbott on Immortality. + </p> + <p> + No 6. Voltaire in Hades. + </p> + <p> + No. 7. The Gospel of Sport—What Shall I Do to Be Saved? Play! + </p> + <p> + No. 8. A Poet's Philosophy of Happiness—Omar Khayyam. + </p> + <p> + No. 9. A Rationalist in Home. (A Lecture in Three Parts.) Part 1 + </p> + <p> + No. 10. A Rationalist in Rome. (A Lecture in Three Parts.) Part 2 + </p> + <p> + No. 11. A Rationalist in Rome. (A Lecture in Three Parts,) Part 3 + </p> + <p> + No. 12. Jew and Christian According to Shakespeare. + </p> + <p> + No. 13 and 14. Christian Science and Common Sense. + </p> + <p> + No. 15. A Message From Abroad. + </p> + <p> + No. 16. The First Modern Man. + </p> + <p> + No. 17. The Monk and The Woman in The Garden of Allah. + </p> + <p> + No. 18. The High Cost of Living and the Higher Cost of Superstition + </p> + <p> + No. 19. The Debate between Three Clergymen and a Rationalist. + </p> + <p> + No. 20. Rationalism and Crime. + </p> + <p> + No. 21. Women and Crime. + </p> + <p> + No. 22. Was Jesus a Socialist? + </p> + <p> + No. 23. The Catholic Church and the Socialist Party. + </p> + <p> + No. 24. What is the Trouble with the World? + </p> + <p> + The above 24 lectures will be sent to any address upon receipt of $2 + </p> + <p> + Volume 2 + </p> + <p> + No. 1. Who Made the Gods? + </p> + <p> + No. 2. Marriage and Divorce, According to Rationalism. + </p> + <p> + No. 3. The American Girl. + </p> + <p> + No. 4. The Catholic Church in Politics. + </p> + <p> + No. 5. Christian and Turk. + </p> + <p> + No. 6. The Gospel According to Bernard Shaw. + </p> + <p> + No. 7 and 8. Morality Without God. + </p> + <p> + No. 9. A Letter to My Flock. + </p> + <p> + No. 10. A Missionary's Convert. + </p> + <p> + No. 11. The Ex-Priest in Paris. + </p> + <p> + The Rationalist + </p> + <p> + Is published by the Independent Religious Society semi-monthly. Each + number is to consist of a lecture by M. M. Mangasarian. Price of + subscription, per annum, $2.00. Orders should be sent to The Independent + Religious Society, 922 Lakeside Place, Chicago + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0001" id="link2H_4_0001"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + JOAN OF ARC + </h2> + <p class="pfirst"> + <span class="dropcap" style="font-size: 4.00em">T</span>his lecture on + Joan of Arc, delivered some time ago, provoked a great deal of criticism + in Chicago. The people who protested against it and wanted to punish its + author were, naturally enough, the Roman Catholics. What interests me in + Joan of Arc is not the fact that the story of her martyrdom and subsequent + canonization could be used as a weapon against the Church of Rome, but + because the story in itself is so very compelling. It is quite true that + the story also illustrates how far from infallible the Catholic Church has + been in its dealings with the Maid of Orleans—first, burning her at + the stake as a witch, and, five hundred years later, beatifying her as a + saint. The statement in my lecture which caused the greatest displeasure + was to the effect that the same church which had burnt Joan of Arc as a + witch in fourteen hundred thirty-one had sainted her in nineteen hundred + and nine. The Catholics deny that they were at all responsible for the + terrible death of the deliverer of France. This lecture will throw some + light on that question. + </p> + <p> + As related in a former lecture, it was at her shrine, in the Church of the + Sacred Heart, in Paris, last summer, that I promised myself the task of + presenting to the American people the truth about Joan of Arc. I shall + speak very plainly in this lecture, but, I am sure, without any trace of + bitterness in my heart toward anyone. I shall speak with feeling, of + course, for it is impossible not to be moved to the depths by the events + which brought a girl of nineteen to the stake—but my passion is free + from anger or prejudice. I can weep for this young woman without gnashing + my teeth on her fanatical persecutors. I am sure I can tell the truth + without lying about the Catholic Church. + </p> + <p> + But I do not wish to be sentimental, either. I have not forgiven the + unrepentant destroyers of the innocent. To convert a heretic into a saint + by trying to prove that she was not a heretic at all is not repentance; it + is sophistry. To deny that Joan suffered death at the hands of, and by the + authority of, the Vicar of Christ on earth is not a sign of regret for the + past, but a defiance of history. When the Catholics shall admit that, + through ignorance, and urged on by circumstances they could not control, + they committed the act which they have since atoned for by offering her a + heavenly crown—when, I say, the Catholics shall shed over her body + tears as genuine as those which black Othello shed over the woman he had + smothered—then we will forgive them. + </p> + <p> + But the Catholic Church will have to choose between securing our + forgiveness and retaining her infallibility. If she should repent of a + single act ever committed by her officially, she would lose her claim to + infallibility—for how can the infallible err? If, on the other hand, + she should hold to her infallibility, how can she be sorry for anything + she has ever done? If I had any influence with the Catholics I would + advise them to sacrifice infallibility for the respect of humanity. It is + much more divine to say, "I am sorry," than to say, "I am infallible." But + the Catholic Church will not take my advice. + </p> + <p> + The shrine of Joan in the Paris church is almost as eloquent as her stake + in Rouen. I have seen them both—that is to say, I have seen the spot + on which she was consumed, marked by a white slab; and I have seen the + marble figure of Joan, as a girl, in the attitude of prayer, now in the + Church of the Sacred Heart in Paris. As I stood at her shrine in this + great white church it seemed to me that, even though Joan of Arc has, at + last been made a saint, there was still a prejudice against her on the + part of the people, as well as of the priests. This is only an impression, + and I hope I am mistaken. But let me present the evidence on which I base + my misgivings: In the first place, Joan is not given the preference in the + shrine set apart for her. St. Michael, whoever he might be, occupies the + whole front of the altar, and only on the windows and the side walls do we + find any mention of Joan and the events of her heroic career. There is + also, at one end of the enclosure, as intimated before, a small marble + figure of Joan on her knees. Why does St. Michael usurp the place of honor + over the altar? Who is he? What has he done for France? In the second + place, there was not a single lighted candle at her shrine. St. Mary's + altar, a little distance off, was ablaze. St. Joseph's, too, was honored + by lighted candles. But no one was on her knees and no flame twinkled + before the sainted Joan of Arc. They say that it is almost impossible to + outlive the charge of heresy. In former times, quite frequently, even + heretics who repented of their heresies were put to death, nevertheless. + To have ever been accused, even, or suspected of heresy, is an + unpardonable crime. Joan was suspected, at least, of rebellion against + Rome, and it seemed to me, as I reflected upon what I observed in the + church, that the Catholics had canonized this village maid reluctantly, + and only under pressure, and after five hundred years of dillydallying. + </p> + <p> + But before I left the Church of the Sacred Heart there was a lighted + candle upon her altar. I lighted it. Approaching one of the candle tables, + of which there are half a dozen in the building, I purchased a long, + tapering candle, white as the lily, and I touched it with fire—I + kindled it and set it in one of the sockets to burn before the kneeling + Joan. I left my flaming candle in the Church of the Sacred Heart! I, a + non-Catholic, offered my fire to Joan, not because she had been canonized—for + I never wait for the consent or the approval of the Pope before paying + homage to anybody—but because her sweet, sad story is one of the + most moving of modern times, and her vindication one of the most + stupendous conquests of modern thought. + </p> + <p> + The Church of the Sacred Heart is one of the most beautiful in Paris. It + is built on the highest point in the city and commands a wonderful view. + As I have told you before, I have two friends who dwell on this summit—really, + a superb location. It is approached by a long flight of stairs, or by a + cog-wheel train. Before it, and all around it, sweeps the Paris of to-day, + as did the Paris of Clovis and Charlemagne, nearly fifteen hundred years + ago; the Paris of Julian, Emperor of Rome, older still; the Catholic + Paris, when kings and parlements bowed low to kiss the great toe of the + Italian Christ, or his vicar; the Paris of the Medici—red and + bloody; the Paris of the Huguenots, of Henry of Navarre, of Conde and + Colligny—sad, desolate, and in the throes of a new faith; and the + Paris of the philosophers, whose smile softened its barbarities, lit up + its darkness, and made it a city of light—<i>La ville Lumiere!</i> + There, on that splendid elevation, live my two young friends. They are + both at the age of nineteen. One of them a lad, the other a maid. The girl + is housed; the boy is exposed. Joan of Arc lives in the church—the + cathedral is her home. The Chevalier de La Barre stands on the edge of the + hill, with sun and shower falling upon his head. The Catholic Church burnt + them both at the stake—the boy and the girl; the one because he did + not tip his hat to the priest at a street procession, the other because + she believed in herself! But modern thought has vindicated both of these + outcasts. Joan now dwells in a white church, perfumed and lighted; and the + Chevalier crowns the brow of the hill with his youthful figure and + appealing gesture. The chain which tied these children to the stake in a + dark age has flowered! Is not that wonderful? I believe in the forces, the + ideas, the movement—the thought that can cause a chain to flower! + </p> + <p> + I am not going to speak this morning of the Chevalier de La Barre, to + commemorate whose memory the nationalists of France have erected this + monument, close to the Church of the Sacred Heart. He will be my theme on + another occasion. In this lecture I shall confine myself to the story of + Joan of Arc. And a strange story it is! A young girl of seventeen marches + at the head of a dilapidated and demoralized army, and leads it on to + victory against the best fighters of the world, the English, who, in the + fifteenth century, were trying to annex France to England; she is captured + by traitors, sold to the enemy for ten thousand pounds; and then she is + handed over to the church to be tried for heresy. She is tried, convicted, + and sentenced to be burned alive. This sentence, the most revolting on + record, is carried out in all its literalness, and in broad daylight, and + under the shadow of the Christian cross, and at the very doors of a great + cathedral. All this transpired in the city of Rouen, on the thirtieth day + of May, fourteen hundred thirty-one. + </p> + <p> + In order that I may enter into the spirit of the thrilling events of which + Rouen was the stage, I repaired to that city, and reverently visited the + scenes of the trial and the martyrdom of this latest saint of the Catholic + world. Words cannot convey to you the emotions which, like a storm, burst + upon me suddenly as the conductor on my train called out, "Rouen!" It was + then about a half hour to midnight, and, jumping into a carriage, I was + quickly driven to my hotel. What thoughts, and how they crowded in upon + me, as soon as I laid my head upon my pillow. My brain was too active to + permit of sleep. I imagined I was living in <i>the year fourteen hundred + thirty-one</i>, and that I had just reached this city on the eve of the + martyrdom of Joan. "To-morrow," I whispered to myself, "Joan of Arc will + be led to the stake." Again and again I repeated to my pillow this + shuddering intelligence. "What," I exclaimed to myself, "a young woman who + saved France by her courage is going to be committed to the flames in this + very city <i>tomorrow!</i>" I could not believe it possible. I could not + believe that there was folly enough, or hatred enough, or stupidity + enough, in the world for so desperate a deed. But, alas, it was true. With + my eyes closed, I fancied I saw the throngs marching through the streets—consisting + of peasants, of merchants, of priests, of princes—to see a girl of + nineteen burned in the fire, and in all that throng there was not one who + had either a kind word or thought for her—her who had given them a + country to live in. Abandoned, hated and spat upon, she was left to suffer + the cruelest punishment that human <i>inhumanity</i> could devise, or the + most perverse imagination invent. A girl of nineteen burned alive! "Oh, + God!" The words escaped my lips in spite of me. Then I turned about and + called upon <i>Humanity</i>. But in the fifteenth century God and Humanity + were both hard of hearing. Then I called upon <i>Science</i> and <i>Reason</i>. + But these were not yet born. "There is no help then," I whispered to + myself, and my heart swelled within me with indignation, and I became + desperate, realizing my helplessness. + </p> + <p> + With my head upon my pillow during that first night I spent in Rouen, I + tried to penetrate into the motives for the persecution of Joan. This + brave girl was feared because she was superior to her age. She provoked + the jealousy of her inferiors. Her independence and originality alarmed + both the Church and the State. Her ability to take the initiative, and her + courage to disagree with her spiritual teachers was a menace to the + authority of the priest with the keys, and the king with the sword. The + English would not admit that a mere girl, a Domremy peasant, tending her + father's cows, could have the genius to whip them—the most powerful + warriors of Europe. The Catholic Church, on the other hand, would not + forgive Joan for distinguishing herself without their help. For a woman to + eclipse the Holy Church and humiliate a powerful State, was a crime + punishable by death. + </p> + <p> + In less than two years' time Joan had saved France, after the prayers of + the Church and the armies of the nation had failed ignominiously. In the + opinion of the world of that day there was only one power, the devil's, + that could outwit the Church. It was not denied that Joan had driven the + victorious armies of the enemy out of France, and made a conquered people + free again; but it was argued that she had achieved this triumph, not by + the help of God, but by the instrumentality of the devil. In those days, + anything, however praiseworthy, if accomplished without the permission and + cooperation of the Church, was the work of the devil. Joan had consulted + her own heart, instead of the village confessor. That was her heresy. Joan + had seen visions and heard voices on her own account. That is the + independence which, if encouraged, or even recognized, would overthrow the + Catholic Church. No one is allowed to receive revelations at first hand. + Even God is not permitted to speak except through his vicar on earth. In + short, Joan was a <i>protestant</i>, inasmuch as she not only had direct + relations with heaven, but she refused to allow the Church to be the judge + as to whether her voices were from God or from Satan. During all the agony + of her long trial, every effort was made to induce her to allow the Church + to be the judge of the nature of her visions. Joan refused the test. There + was no doubt about her heresy. She believed herself capable of judging. + That was her unpardonable sin. + </p> + <p> + Still imagining myself in Rouen, in the year fourteen hundred thirty-one, + I said to myself, "I must arise early in the morning and go to the old + market place to catch a glimpse of the wonderful woman when she leaves the + tower for the stake." As the picture of what I would see on the following + day arose before my closed eyes, I trembled. "I will not let them burn + her," I cried passionately. But, alas, what could one man do against king, + pope, and the mob! And I tossed in my bed like one in a cage who is + conscious of his helplessness against iron bars. + </p> + <p> + Suddenly, a thought struck me, as the lightning strikes a tree. "This is + fourteen hundred thirty-one," I repeated to myself. "I must get up at once + and repair to the palace of the Bishop of Beauvais, the priest who holds + in the hollow of his hand the fate of the bravest maid in history. If I + could only have a half hour with him," I said, "to pour into his ears my + protest, my pleadings, my scorn, my prayers; or, if I could tell him of + the time when Joan will have a shrine in a Catholic Church!—he might + relent and hearken unto reason?" With these thoughts in my mind I jumped + out of my bed, I lit the candle, I put on my clothes. Then, in haste, I + walked out into the night, seeking my way in the streets of the strange + city now deserted. By the help of the moon and the stars of that night in + May, <i>fourteen hundred thirty-one</i>, I traced my way to the imposing + Cathedral of St. Ouen, standing like a towering shadow in the cold light + of the night, and close to which lived the Bishop of Beauvais. + </p> + <p> + I knocked upon the Bishop's door. "Open, open," I cried, as in the dead of + night I kept pounding upon the door. "I wish to come in," I cried. "I wish + to save the Church from an indelible stain, I wish to protect the honor of + humanity." "Open, open," I cried, again and again, and in the stillness of + the night the noise of my blows reached far and wide. Louder and louder + still I cried to the Bishop to open the door. "I wish to rescue France and + England from committing an act of infamy; I wish to save history from an + unspeakable shame. Let me in, Bishop! I come to protect you against the + execration of posterity, against eternal damnation! Open, open the door!" + I shouted. I kept pounding upon the door, long and loud, on the eve of + that foul day in fourteen hundred thirty-one. I grew impatient with + waiting for the door to open, and my voice, which a moment before swept up + and down the whole gamut of hope and despair—pleading, shouting, + sobbing—now became faint and feeble. + </p> + <p> + I could not arouse the Bishop. He was fast asleep. Then I was silent + myself. Suddenly I heard a far away whisper. It did not come from the + Episcopal palace, nor from the Cathedral close by, yet I was sure I heard + some one speaking. I listened again. I could now hear more clearly. "I am + coming, I am coming," was repeated in caressing accents. "I am coming, to + open the door, to awaken the Bishop, to usher in a more joyous day for + humanity. I will extinguish the fires of persecution, turn executioners + into teachers, disarm superstition, and make the whole world sane. In that + day Joan will triumph over her foes and make their churches her + mausoleum." It was the voice of Reason! But it took five hundred years for + that faint whisper to swell into a mighty chorus, swinging around the + globe. That prophecy has been fulfilled, the Bishop's door opened, and the + Church yielded to the clamor of civilization, and changed Joan's stake + into the shrine where I lit my candle in her honor, in the Church of the + Sacred Heart. She is no longer a heretic, she has become a saint. Her + tears have changed into pearls, her tomb into a cathedral, where she + sleeps in pomp on the bosom that once stung her to death. + </p> + <p> + But I was not in Rouen in fourteen hundred thirty-one; I was there five + hundred years too late. The day after I arrived in the city, I went to the + market place, but, instead of a procession with candles and torches, with + stakes and fagots, I found commerce, industry, labor, in full possession + of the great square. Prosperous looking men and women met and greeted one + another pleasantly; farmers were selling fruit and vegetables; the women, + flowers. Even the priests one came across smiled as they saw the happy + countenances of the people. What a change! Common sense has sweetened + human nature and flooded the mind with the light that destroys + superstition and makes all men brothers. The guide pointed out to me the + white marble slab marking the spot on which Joan of Arc met her death. + "Upon this place stood the stake of Joan of Arc. The ashes of the glorious + virgin were thrown into the Seine." This is the inscription on the slab + which was placed there by the municipality in eighteen hundred ninety-one. + </p> + <p> + Close to this same spot the citizens of Rouen have erected a fountain, in + the form of a monument, to the same heroic maiden. I stood and watched the + playful waters as they fell with a liquid plash into the marble basin + below. Presently, a woman came along with her pitcher. The stake at which + Joan of Arc was burned to death has become a fountain, to which the people + now come to slake their thirst. Walking up to the woman, I said, "What + fountain is this?" + </p> + <p> + "Ah, monsieur," she exclaimed, "behold the fountain of Joan of Arc." + </p> + <p> + "But she was a heretic," I remarked. I can never forget her smile. The sun + had arisen in her eyes. "We live in the twentieth century," she replied. + And, unconsciously, we both heaved a sigh of relief. I rubbed my eyes to + be sure we were not living in the middle ages, when Rationalism was still + a babe in swaddling clothes, and Theology was lord of all. This is the + twentieth century—for we are drinking at the fountain of Joan of Arc + instead of carrying fagots to her stake! One of the sunniest spots in my + memory will be my meeting with this peasant woman, with her pitcher, at + the fountain of Joan of Arc. + </p> + <p> + But my object in this lecture is to help clear some obscure questions in + connection with the trial, martyrdom and subsequent canonization of this + girl of nineteen. I wish to bring about a more intelligent appreciation of + the story of a young shepherdess, beginning from the day she left her home + in Domremy, to the fiery scaffold; and thence to a place among the saints + in the Catholic calendar. This is the only instance in Catholic history of + a person once destroyed as a heretic who has afterwards received the + highest honors within the gift of the Church. In fourteen hundred + thirty-one an infallible body of ecclesiastics pronounced this young woman + to be "a child of perdition, a sorceress, a seducer, a harlot and a + heretic." Five hundred years after, another infallible body of + ecclesiastics belonging to the same church pronounced the same "harlot" + and "heretic" to be "angelic" and "divine." One infallible pope allowed + her to be burned in fourteen hundred thirty-one; another infallible pope + denounced her murderers as detestable criminals—which shows how + fallible is infallibility. + </p> + <p> + A great many untruths are being circulated to help clear this + contradiction. The clergy are proclaiming from the housetops that it was + not the church that tried and condemned Joan of Arc to torture and death + in fourteen hundred thirty-one; on the contrary, it was the church, they + say, which has just vindicated her memory and beatified her with superb + ceremonies. History, however, gives a different version of the affair. + Before proceeding to describe the trial and condemnation of Joan of Arc, + let me state the attitude of the Rationalist toward Joan of Arc's claims + to inspiration. We can do justice to a woman of her description without + believing in miraculous predictions. Joan of Arc claimed to have seen + visions and to have heard voices, which assured her of her divine mission. + She was thirteen years of age, according to her testimony, when she felt + her first thrill. The visions were repeated. One day, at about noon, in + the summer time, and while working on her father's farm, close to the + whispering trees, she saw a radiance out of which came a voice which she + fancied was the voice of an angel or of a saint. It was not at all strange + that she should hear voices. All her education had prepared her for them. + She had been told how others had seen angels and heard voices. The + literature of the Church was full of the miraculous in those days. It was + the ambition of every believer to receive visits from the other world, and + to be told secrets. Joan, the little Domremy girl, shared these ambitions. + In her case the wish was father to the vision. She heard the voices and + saw the faces which her heart coveted. How do we explain her "voices" and + her "visions"? The question is a very simple one, unless we have a leaning + for theology. The voices that Joan heard were those that came from her own + heart. It was her own dreams she saw in the sunlight. + </p> + <p> + The young woman had mused over the acts of brigandage of the invading army + and their French allies; she had seen the smoke of the burning villages + and had heard the wail of her peasant neighbors. The distress of her + people had often melted her into tears and wrung many a sigh from her + lips. She imagined the whole country summoning her to the rescue. So + earnest was she that her thoughts assumed form and shape, and became + vocal. Thus, out of the substance of her own soul she fashioned the + visions which she beheld. She felt herself set apart to be the saviour of + France. The brilliance of that thought darkened every other object in life—home, + parents, money, marriage! + </p> + <p> + To those who will not be satisfied with this explanation, I beg to say + that if the voices were really supernatural, then they should be held + responsible for the cruel death to which they led or drove the young + woman. Why did her voices, if they were divine, desert her when she needed + their help most? Why did they not save her from prison and the stake? And + which of us would like to be guided to the chambers of the inquisition, + and the flames of the stake by "heavenly voices"? Moreover, if these + voices came from God, why did they not speak to the English king, or to + the Roman pope, in behalf of Joan, when she called on them for help? Why + did they not assume the responsibility for the acts for which she was + destroyed? Voices and visions which induce a young girl to go to the help + of a perishing country only to use her victories for the benefit of a + depraved and imbecile prince like Charles VII, and desert the young woman + herself to be "done" to death! Defend us against them! + </p> + <p> + Returning to the question of the responsibility of the Catholic Church for + the fate of Joan, there are these points to be touched upon. Being a + matter of history that on the last day of May, fourteen hundred + thirty-one, this young woman was publicly burned in the City of Rouen, in + the square of the cathedral, the question arises: Who put her to death? + Another important question is: Why was she put to death? And when we have + answered these questions we will be in a position to discuss the much more + important question of: Why Joan of Arc was recently translated into a + saint by the pope. + </p> + <p> + Twenty-five years after the burning of Joan, when the city of Rouen was + restored to the French king, and the English were finally driven across + the Channel, it was decided to review the evidence upon which the Maid had + been convicted and put to death. This was done; and with the result that + she was acquitted of all the charges of heresy, insubordination to the + Church, adultery, witchcraft, etc. What do you think was the motive of + this revision? The French king had begun to realize the disgrace to which + he had been exposed by the condemnation of the Maid as a witch. Being + exceedingly pious—piety and crime were united in him as in many + others of that day—he was tormented by the thought that the young + woman who had assisted him in his war against the English, and had been + the means of securing for him the crown of France, and had also officiated + at his coronation in the cathedral of Rheims, was condemned as an agent of + satan by the Church; which, if true, it would make him not only the target + for the ridicule and derision of the whole Christian world, but, also, an + illicit king of the French, who might refuse their allegiance to him + because he was made king by a witch and not by an apostle of God. It is no + wonder that a superstitious man like Charles VII, in a superstitious age, + trembled, not only for his crown, but, also, for his life. Therefore, in + order to make his succession legitimate it was necessary to prove that + Joan was not a witch, but a true messenger of God. For if Joan was a + witch, Charles VII was not king "by the grace of God," but by a trick of + the devil. In self-defense the king of France was not only compelled to + reopen the case against Joan, now that he was free from English dictation, + but he also indicated in advance to the ecclesiastics the conclusion they + would have to arrive at. The king could not have allowed, and he would not + have allowed, the ecclesiastical council, convened at his request, to + arrive at any other verdict than the one which would prove to France and + Christendom that he was made king at Rheims, not by a witch who was + excommunicated by the Church and flung into the fire, but by a real and + inspired apostle of God. + </p> + <p> + Of course, it is a matter of history that it was by the help of Joan that + Charles VII became King of France. + </p> + <p> + As already intimated, at the coronation ceremony Joan was not only + present, but she assisted the Archbishop when the latter placed the crown + upon the king's head. The inauguration was practically the work of Joan. + It was the fulfillment of a prediction she had repeatedly made, that she + would conquer the English and crown the French king in the City of Rheims. + If she was a witch the coronation was invalid. The ceremony of the + anointing of a king is one of the most solemn in the Catholic Church. The + condemnation of Joan as a witch had not only stripped this ceremony of its + sacredness, but it had also made it null and void, nay, more, a blasphemy. + How could a king, anointed by the help of a witch, be the king of a + Christian nation? To appreciate this argument we must remember how bigoted + the people were in the Middle Ages. In self-defense, therefore, Charles + VII was compelled to prove to the French, and to the whole world, that the + woman to whom he owed his elevation to the throne was not a heretic. + </p> + <p> + Let us recapitulate. The King of France ordered the Church to make out a + new certificate for Joan. The Church obeyed the French king, even as the + same Church twenty-five years earlier had obeyed the King of England and + condemned Joan to death. When the English were masters of France, the + Catholic Church pleased them by delivering up the conqueror of England to + be burned alive; when the English were driven out of the country and the + French were again in control this sentence was reversed and Joan was + proven to have been a dutiful child of the Church. Thus it will be seen + that the Church swung with the English when the English ruled the land, + and she swung with the French when the French had driven the English out + of the country. The Church was with England at one time, and she was with + France at another—but never with Joan. I am milder in my criticism + than the facts warrant. I am making strenuous efforts to speak with + immoderation of an "infallible institution." + </p> + <p> + But why was it to the interest of the English to have Joan declared a + witch? Their motives were as personal as those of the French king. The + English felt humiliated to think that a mere woman had whipped them, and + therefore they were determined to prove that she was more than a woman—an + agent of the devil. There was no secret about this. Their motive was very + plain. It was to their interest to show that Joan was the personification + of satan, and that consequently the English should not be blamed for + running away from her presence, because who could withstand the devil? The + English army did not go down before a girl, but before a sorceress. Even + as the King of France did not wish it said that he owed his victory over + the English to a witch, or that he was made king by an apostate, the + English did not wish it said that they were conquered by a saint, for that + would make God the enemy of the English. One king wanted Joan damned, and + the Church accommodated him by damning her; another wanted Joan beatified, + and the Church beatified her. + </p> + <p> + It is admitted that the English could not have burned Joan as a witch + without the consent of the Church. They could have burned her as a + prisoner, but that would not have answered their purpose—she must be + declared a witch in order to vindicate the amour propre of the English + people. It is the exclusive prerogative of the Church to decide questions + of orthodoxy or heresy. No king has the right to admit or exclude any one + from the communion of the Church. Whether or not Joan was a witch was a + theological question and could only be decided by the ecclesiastical + court. Neither could the King of France declare Joan of Arc innocent of + heresy without the consent of the Church. It follows then that the + principal actor in the trial, the condemnation and the death of the young + woman under the English, and her subsequent vindication and beatification, + was the Church of Rome, since without its consent the English could not + have made a heretic of her, nor the French a saviour and a saint. A + secular government may declare who shall be its military heroes, or who + shall be court-martialed and disgraced, but only the Church enjoys the + right to damn or to canonize. This point is so clinching that even the + most zealous papist must admit that at one time, when all Europe was + Catholic—England as much so as France—and the pope was as + supreme in one country as in the other, a girl of nineteen, who had + rendered heroic services to her oppressed country, could not have been + declared a heretic and cast into the fire at the door of a cathedral, in + the presence of bishops, priests, a cardinal and a representative of the + holy Inquisition, without the knowledge and consent of the Holy Roman + Catholic Church. + </p> + <p> + An attempt has been made to throw the entire blame of the proceedings + against Joan of Arc upon the English. There is no doubt about the anxiety + of the English to punish the Maid who had robbed them of the spoils of + their victory over the French and brought dishonor upon their arms. But a + mere military punishment, as already intimated, would not have been + sufficient to satisfy the English—she had to be excommunicated from + Christendom as one possessed of the devil. That was the only way to save + the English of the disgrace of having been beaten by a woman, and the + records show that the Church, instead of reluctantly carrying out the + wishes of the English, was more than pleased to bring Joan to the stake. + Letters were written from the office of the Inquisition to the English + king, complaining against his lukewarmness in the matter of prosecuting + the young woman. The Catholic University of Paris, also, sent a special + communication to King Henry of England to remind him of his duty to help + the Church to put down heresy. The English were urged to hand Joan over to + the bishop and the Inquisition, that the ecclesiastics might proceed with + her trial without delay. And when finally Joan faced her judges, forty in + number, every one of them was an ecclesiastic, and out of the forty, + thirty-eight were Frenchmen. + </p> + <p> + Moreover, the Archbishop of Rheims, who was also Chancellor of France, + wrote a letter which is still in existence, in which he congratulated the + French upon the capture of Joan of Arc, whom he denounces as a heretic—"a + proud and rebellious child who refuses to submit to the Church." Being the + superior of the Bishop of Beauvais, who was in charge of the trial, the + Archbishop could have stopped the prosecution if he had the least sympathy + or pity for the Maid. But to try to save a heretic would be the worst kind + of heresy. That explains the utter desertion of Joan by all France—people, + priest and king. + </p> + <p> + In this connection a comparison should be made between the zeal of the + clergy to bring Joan to trial for heresy and the slowness and indifference + with which the Church proceeded to obey the summons of the King of France + twenty-five years after to reinstate her into the fellowship of Catholic + Christendom. The records show that it required considerable urging and + manoeuvring on the part of the French government to bring about a revision + of the ecclesiastical sentence against the Maid. As long as Nicholas V was + pope nothing was accomplished. The case was reopened under Pope Calixtus. + Not until it was realized that further delay in the matter would greatly + irritate, not only the French king, but also the populace, now freed from + English dominion and seeking to live down the evil reputation of having + harbored an apostate in their midst, did Rome stir itself in the matter. + It will be seen that it was not the pope nor the Church that took the + initiative in behalf of Joan of Arc. The Church only yielded to the + pressure from the State, that had now become powerful. Had the English + remained in control of France the Maid of Orleans would never have been + remembered by the Catholic Church, much less restored to honor and + immortality. + </p> + <p> + "We do not deny," answer the defenders of the Church, "that <i>some</i> + bishops and even cardinals persecuted Joan of Arc to death. But is it just + to hold the whole Church responsible for the crime of an insignificant + minority?" This is the main defense of the Catholics against the arguments + of the Rationalists and the facts of history. Be it noted that I am not + trying to abuse the Catholics; I am only sorry that they should be + unwilling, even at this date, to say, "We are sorry." To commit mistakes + is human. But why should the Church move heaven and earth to prove that it + has never committed a mistake? The attempt is also made to prove that the + ecclesiastics who are responsible for the death of Joan were wicked men + and have been repudiated by the Church. To this is added the further + defense that it was the gold of the English which corrupted these priests. + But such a defense, I regret to say, does not reflect credit upon the + intelligence or the honor of the Church of Rome. In this day of general + information it is impossible for anyone to wrap up the facts of history in + a napkin, as it were, and put them away where no one may have access to + them. The judges of Joan were all ordained ministers of the Church. The + presiding priest was a bishop—the bishop of Beauvais. He was + assisted by a cardinal, a vice-president of the Inquisition, and a number + of other ecclesiastics who were connected with the University of Paris. Is + it reasonable to suppose that the Inquisition and the Catholic University + of Paris, and all the clergy of England and France represented only a + discredited section of the Church? + </p> + <p> + It is the pride of the Catholics that their church has never been divided + or schismatic, and that it has been one and indivisible "always and + everywhere." How is this claim to be reconciled with the excuse that a + considerable portion of the Catholic Church in the fifteenth century + openly ignored the authority of the pope and did as they pleased without + incurring the displeasure of the Hierarchy for their insubordination? + Furthermore, if only a part of the church persecuted the young woman, what + did the rest of the church do to save her? We would like the names of the + priests who interceded in her behalf. It does not give me a bit of + pleasure to prove the Catholic Church responsible for this as for many + other burnings at the stake, but it gives me pleasure to be able to show + that any institution claiming infallibility, to defend that claim must + persecute. And why do I take pleasure in proving this to be inevitable? It + might open the eyes of the religious world to the danger of + supernaturalism. If the Christians no longer burn people they do not like, + it is not because their Bibles have been altered, but because they no + longer believe in them as they used to. It is good news to report that + supernaturalism is waning, for it means the progress of science and + sanity. + </p> + <p> + There is still another point to be touched upon: When all Europe heard of + the fate that had befallen a girl of nineteen through the machinations, + let us say, of a few naughty Catholic priests—what did Rome do to + these same priests who had so disgraced their "holy" profession, as well + as brought lasting shame upon civilization? Is not this a pertinent + question? Joan's trial lasted for four months. Not only France and + England, but all Christendom was interested in the outcome. During all + this time not only was there not a word of protest from Rome, but what is + more significant, shortly after the trial and condemnation of Joan, the + pope rewarded her accusers and persucutors with ecclesiastical promotion. + Again, I must hasten to explain that I am not interested in embarrassing + the Catholics; my point is to strike at <i>dogma</i>—which turns + hearts into stone, and makes of the intellect a juggler's instrument. Joan + was sacrificed, nay,—the honor of France, of Europe, of + civilization, of humanity—was flung into the fire with Joan, to save—what? + Dogma! + </p> + <p> + Not only did the church fail to punish a single one of the forty + ecclesiastics who tried Joan, not to mention hundreds of others who + cooperated with them to bring about her destruction, but, as intended, + gifts were conferred upon the principal actors in this awful drama. + Roussel, one of the ecclesiastics who figured prominently in the + proceedings, was given the archepiscopacy of the city of Rouen—the + very city in which a girl not yet twenty, and who had served France on the + battlefield, and brought victory to her flag, was beaten and burnt to + death. Pasquier, an ordinary priest when he was serving as one of the + judges, was made a bishop after the execution of Joan. Two others, Gilles + and Le Fevre, were also advanced to upper ranks in the church. Thomas + Courcelles, one of the most merciless judges of Joan—who voted in + favor of subjecting the prisoner to physical torture to compel her to + admit she was a witch—this priest with the unenviable reputation was + also promoted to a lucrative post in the famous church of Notre Dame, in + Paris. Finally, the man who engineered the trial, who presided over the + sessions, and to whom Joan said, "You are the cause of my misfortunes"—the + Bishop of Beauvais, the man whom all Catholics justly execrate today—even + he was rewarded by the "Holy Father"; he was given the episcopal seat of + Lisieux. Does it look as though the crime against Joan were the work of a + discredited minority in the Catholic Church? I repeat, it was dogma, it + was revelation, it was infallibility, it was supernaturalism, and not this + or that priest—that should be held guilty. + </p> + <p> + To meet these arguments the Catholic apologists call attention to the fact + that the church "has a horror of blood," and that it has never put anyone + to death for any cause whatever. But this is true only in a Pickwickian + sense. It is like the head saying to the hands, "I have never committed + the least violence against anyone." The hands, it is evident, commit the + acts, but whose hands are they? The hands only obey the head, and for the + head to blame the hands for carrying out its orders, realizing its + thoughts and wishes, would not even be amusing, much less convincing. It + is the judge, or the court, that takes the life of the culprit, for + instance, and not the executioner. The Catholic Church demands the death + of the heretic. Is this denied? Read Thomas Aquinas, the most honored + saint and theologian of Catholicism; read the decrees of the general + councils of the church and the encyclicals of St. Peter's successors, and + a thousand, thousand proofs will be found in them to substantiate the + statement. It is the Bible that commands the death of the heretic. No + church founded on the Bible can afford to be tolerant. The theory of + Christianity as well as of Mohammedanism is that the sword which the king + carries has been blessed and put in his hands that he may put down the + heretics. The civil authorities then, in bringing Joan of Arc to the fire + were carrying out the instructions of the forty ecclesiastical judges who + condemned her to death. Had these judges found her innocent, the state + could not have destroyed her life; it was the will of the priestly court + that she should die, and the secular authorities fulfilled its wish. + </p> + <p> + But was Joan a heretic? Strenuous efforts are made to show that she was + not. This point is a vital one. The church, in self-defense, is bound to + produce arguments to prove that Joan of Arc was an orthodox, obedient, and + submissive child of the church. If she was not orthodox, then the church + has sainted a heretic in the person of Joan of Arc. One of the questions + they asked her at the trial was whether she would be willing to submit the + question of her "visions" to the church; that is to say, would she consent + to the findings of an ecclesiastical court concerning herself and her + mission? To this the answer was that she held herself responsible only to + God. This was considered a rebellious answer, and it was—from the + church's point of view. According to Catholic theology the church is + divided into two branches,—the church militant, which is composed of + the pope, the priests and their flock; and the church triumphant, which is + presided over by God and the saints in glory. Joan said she was prepared + to submit to the church triumphant—the church on high, that is to + say, to God, but to nobody else. This also was a heresy. Her clerical + judges insisted that to be a good Catholic she must bow to the will of the + church on earth—the pope and his representatives. Her heresy then + was both real and serious. She appealed from the pope to God. She placed + her own conscience above the authority of the church. She believed in + private judgment, the exercise of which is forbidden by the church. In + refusing to let the pope act as the middleman between God and herself she + was threatening the very existence of the papacy. There is then no doubt + that both by her independent conduct and by her original answers Joan + attacked the very fundamentals of Catholicism. It follows, then, that the + pope a few years ago made a saint out of a heretic. + </p> + <p> + Although Joan was an uncultivated girl, able neither to read nor write, + she was gifted with good common sense. She saw at a glance that if she + were to submit to the church she would thereby be casting doubts upon the + genuineness of her "visions." She preferred to go to the stake rather than + do that. She was really between two fires: the priests threatened her + body; God in her conscience threatened her soul. She decided to obey the + voice within. The decision cost her her life. + </p> + <p> + Some of the questions put to her and the answers which Joan made are + really remarkable. They show the craft of her judges, on the one hand, and + the courage and common sense of the victim, on the other. + </p> + <p> + "Will you not submit to our holy father, the Pope?" they asked her. "Bring + me before the Pope, and I will answer," she replied. In other words, they + were trying to have her admit that she had no right to think for herself + or to exercise any independence at all. But she was too serious and + earnest a person to subscribe to any such doctrine. She had never + understood that to be a Catholic meant to be a bondswoman. "Take care," + she said, turning her fiery glance upon her inquisitors, "take care that + you do not put yourselves in the place of God." By such an answer, the + young woman, still in her teens, had shot the Catholic Church in the + heart. + </p> + <p> + The nature of the charges against Joan as formulated by her judges also + goes to prove that she was considered a heretic and condemned to death for + that offense. The eleventh charge against her reads: "She has adored her + saints without taking clerical advice." Charge twelfth reads: "She refuses + to submit her conduct and revelation to the church." When asked if she + would obey the church, her reply was, "God first being served." Luther + said no more than that—and the Catholic church was split in two. + Everything goes to show that the Domremy peasant girl was a private + thinker, that is to say, a heretic. Listen to this: "I will believe that + our Holy Father, the pope of Rome and the bishops and other churchmen are + for the guarding of the Christian faith and the punishment of heretics, <i>but + as for me and my facts, I will only submit to the church of heaven</i>." + To be sure that is insubordination; it is placing herself not only on an + equality with the pope, but even above him. Of course, Joan was not a + Rationalist—far from it—but she was an independent Catholic—that + is to say—not subject to the church—and that is heresy. Is it + any wonder that her sentence read: "Therefore we pronounce you a rotten + limb, and as such to be lopped off from the church." And the reason this + sentence gave satisfaction to the Catholics all over the world was because + such initiative and self-respect as Joan had manifested, if tolerated, + would bring about the collapse of the infallible authority of the church. + The University of Paris wrote to the pope, to the king of England and the + bishops, lauding the priests who had purged the church of this dangerous + girl with her "I think so," or "I believe so,"—with the emphasis on + the "I." In this same letter the Bishop of Beauvais, the evil genius of + Joan, to whom she said, when she saw the stake awaiting her, "Bishop, I + die through you!" is commended for "his great gravity and holy way of + proceeding, which ought to be most satisfactory to all." + </p> + <p> + It took five hundred years for the Catholic Church to discover that the + young woman burnt as a heretic was really a saint. But the church did not + make this discovery until modern thought, benign and brave, had taken the + outcast girl under its protection. The French nation had already made a + national heroine of her, when the Vatican decided to enroll her name among + the hallowed ones in its calendar. The beatification of Joan was brought + about ostensibly by the report that certain sufferers from cancer, and + other incurable maladies, had been completely cured by praying to Joan of + Arc for help. The Maid had become a miracle worker, and hence worthy to + receive a medal, as it were, from the pope. Joan is now a new income as + well as a saint. + </p> + <p> + Joan owes her Vindication to the Rationalists of France. The man in recent + years whose books, position and influence did more than anything else to + bring about a new attitude toward Joan of Arc, was Marcelin Berthelot, who + now sleeps in the Pantheon as one of the glories of his country. A few + years ago, I received an invitation to visit him at Bellevue near Paris. + To give you an idea of the great man who did so much to rejuvenate Europe + and throw its whole weight on the side of justice to the Martyr—woman + of France. I shall reproduce in this connection what I said about him + after my interview with him: + </p> + <p> + "Who are the Rationalists?" is one of the questions frequently asked. + Well, they are the intellectual leaders of the world, as what I learned + about Berthelot clearly shows. He was the man upon whom two European + sovereigns had conferred the highest decorations in their power for + services rendered to human progress,—whom his own countrymen had + honored by making him a senator for life; who twice had been appointed + minister of foreign affairs; who had been elected an honorary member of + all the scientific associations of the world; upon whom the Royal + Scientific Society of London has bestowed its most coveted honors; who is + the perpetual secretary of the Academy of Science of Paris; a member of + the Academy Française, and, therefore, one of the immortals; and whose + volumes, inventions, discoveries and contributions have placed modern + civilization under inexpressible obligations to him. With all these + dignities and titles, richly deserved, M. Berthelot is as gracious in his + manners, as unassuming, as childlike and modest, as one could desire. He + displays all the charms of the real man of worth—the man of genius. + </p> + <p> + Though in his seventy-sixth year, the sage and diplomat still possessed + the vigor of a man of fifty, pursuing his studies and interesting himself + in the politics of his time, with the ardor and fervor of youth. The + accumulation of his years and his indefatigable labors had by no means + impaired the faculties of his mind, being still regarded by his countrymen + as one of the most fertile brains and sanest intellects of modern Europe. + </p> + <p> + Two years previously all France, one might say, had met in Paris to + celebrate at the Sorbonne the completion of Berthelot's fifty years of + intellectual labor. It was on this occasion that the foreign potentates + sent their delegates and decorations to him. Every civilized country was + represented at the festivities by its foremost men of letters and + diplomats, while all the senators of France, the president of the + republic, the members of his cabinet, and all the heads of the colleges + were assembled to applaud the <i>master</i> whose half a century of study + and service had so greatly augmented the horizon of man and increased the + light of the world. + </p> + <p> + When this distinguished scientist was admitted into the French Academy, + Jules Lemaitre, in his address of welcome, declared that Berthelot was the + real creator of the modern industrial era, which had multiplied the + resources of man a hundredfold. He called Berthelot the discoverer of + modern chemistry, which has in so short a time transformed the face of the + earth, and which holds the secret of the solution of the social and + economic problems of the day. "'Chemistry" declares Berthelot, "'is a new + gospel, which brings tidings of great power to mankind.'" "It will put an + end to the cruel struggle of classes, and make of warlike politics, now + one of the scourges of nations, a lost art. It will do this by placing + within the reach of all an inexhaustible wealth of food and raiment, + thereby curing man forever of the disease of discontent." + </p> + <p> + "There are only two things worth living for," said M. Berthelot, in an + address at the Palais de Trocadero before six thousand Frenchmen—"the + love of truth and the love of one's fellows." + </p> + <p> + That <i>love of truth</i> opened for Joan the doors of the Catholic + Church, shut against her five hundred years ago and it opened to Berthelot + the doors of the Pantheon—the Temple of the Immortals! + </p> + <p> + A final word. I have as much compassion and sympathy for the Catholics as + I have for the martyred girl—indeed more, since they need more. Joan + has been vindicated by the broader and more benign thought of this! age. + The same serene and sweet power will transform the Catholic Church and + make it one of the most progressive forces of our America. I have + delivered this lecture to hasten that lovely day! + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0002" id="linkimage-0002"> </a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:65%;"> + <img src="images/0042.jpg" alt="0042 " width="100%" /><br /> + </div> + <div style="height: 6em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + +<div>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 45479 ***</div> + </body> +</html> diff --git a/45479-h/images/0003.jpg b/45479-h/images/0003.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..ab20b18 --- /dev/null +++ b/45479-h/images/0003.jpg diff --git a/45479-h/images/0042.jpg b/45479-h/images/0042.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..a1dd60f --- /dev/null +++ b/45479-h/images/0042.jpg diff --git a/45479-h/images/cover.jpg b/45479-h/images/cover.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..ab20b18 --- /dev/null +++ b/45479-h/images/cover.jpg diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..a33ae7a --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #45479 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/45479) diff --git a/old/45479-8.txt b/old/45479-8.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..bf3afb9 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/45479-8.txt @@ -0,0 +1,1317 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Story of Joan of Arc, by M. M. Mangasarian + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: The Story of Joan of Arc + The Witch--Saint + +Author: M. M. Mangasarian + +Release Date: April 24, 2014 [EBook #45479] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE STORY OF JOAN OF ARC *** + + + + +Produced by David Widger from page images generously +provided by the Internet Archive + + + + + + + + + +THE STORY OF JOAN OF ARC THE WITCH--SAINT + +By M. M. Mangasarian + +Lecturer Of The Independent Religious Society + +From "The Rationalist," October, 1913 + + +[Illustration: 0003] + + +PAST NUMBERS OF THE RATIONALIST. + +No. 1. St. Francis, the Second Christ. + +No. 2. Marcus Aurelius. + +No. 3. Ships that Sink in the Night; or, God and the Titanic. + +No. 4. What has Christ Done for the World? + +No. 5. Lyman Abbott on Immortality. + +No 6. Voltaire in Hades. + +No. 7. The Gospel of Sport--What Shall I Do to Be Saved? Play! + +No. 8. A Poet's Philosophy of Happiness--Omar Khayyam. + +No. 9. A Rationalist in Home. (A Lecture in Three Parts.) Part 1 + +No. 10. A Rationalist in Rome. (A Lecture in Three Parts.) Part 2 + +No. 11. A Rationalist in Rome. (A Lecture in Three Parts,) Part 3 + +No. 12. Jew and Christian According to Shakespeare. + +No. 13 and 14. Christian Science and Common Sense. + +No. 15. A Message From Abroad. + +No. 16. The First Modern Man. + +No. 17. The Monk and The Woman in The Garden of Allah. + +No. 18. The High Cost of Living and the Higher Cost of Superstition + +No. 19. The Debate between Three Clergymen and a Rationalist. + +No. 20. Rationalism and Crime. + +No. 21. Women and Crime. + +No. 22. Was Jesus a Socialist? + +No. 23. The Catholic Church and the Socialist Party. + +No. 24. What is the Trouble with the World? + +The above 24 lectures will be sent to any address upon receipt of $2 + + +Volume 2 + +No. 1. Who Made the Gods? + +No. 2. Marriage and Divorce, According to Rationalism. + +No. 3. The American Girl. + +No. 4. The Catholic Church in Politics. + +No. 5. Christian and Turk. + +No. 6. The Gospel According to Bernard Shaw. + +No. 7 and 8. Morality Without God. + +No. 9. A Letter to My Flock. + +No. 10. A Missionary's Convert. + +No. 11. The Ex-Priest in Paris. + +The Rationalist + +Is published by the Independent Religious Society semi-monthly. Each +number is to consist of a lecture by M. M. Mangasarian. Price of +subscription, per annum, $2.00. Orders should be sent to +The Independent Religious Society, 922 Lakeside Place, Chicago + + + + +JOAN OF ARC + +This lecture on Joan of Arc, delivered some time ago, provoked a great +deal of criticism in Chicago. The people who protested against it and +wanted to punish its author were, naturally enough, the Roman Catholics. +What interests me in Joan of Arc is not the fact that the story of her +martyrdom and subsequent canonization could be used as a weapon +against the Church of Rome, but because the story in itself is so very +compelling. It is quite true that the story also illustrates how far +from infallible the Catholic Church has been in its dealings with the +Maid of Orleans--first, burning her at the stake as a witch, and, five +hundred years later, beatifying her as a saint. The statement in my +lecture which caused the greatest displeasure was to the effect that the +same church which had burnt Joan of Arc as a witch in fourteen hundred +thirty-one had sainted her in nineteen hundred and nine. The Catholics +deny that they were at all responsible for the terrible death of +the deliverer of France. This lecture will throw some light on that +question. + +As related in a former lecture, it was at her shrine, in the Church of +the Sacred Heart, in Paris, last summer, that I promised myself the +task of presenting to the American people the truth about Joan of Arc. +I shall speak very plainly in this lecture, but, I am sure, without +any trace of bitterness in my heart toward anyone. I shall speak with +feeling, of course, for it is impossible not to be moved to the depths +by the events which brought a girl of nineteen to the stake--but my +passion is free from anger or prejudice. I can weep for this young woman +without gnashing my teeth on her fanatical persecutors. I am sure I can +tell the truth without lying about the Catholic Church. + +But I do not wish to be sentimental, either. I have not forgiven the +unrepentant destroyers of the innocent. To convert a heretic into +a saint by trying to prove that she was not a heretic at all is not +repentance; it is sophistry. To deny that Joan suffered death at the +hands of, and by the authority of, the Vicar of Christ on earth is not +a sign of regret for the past, but a defiance of history. When +the Catholics shall admit that, through ignorance, and urged on by +circumstances they could not control, they committed the act which they +have since atoned for by offering her a heavenly crown--when, I say, the +Catholics shall shed over her body tears as genuine as those which black +Othello shed over the woman he had smothered--then we will forgive them. + +But the Catholic Church will have to choose between securing our +forgiveness and retaining her infallibility. If she should repent of a +single act ever committed by her officially, she would lose her claim +to infallibility--for how can the infallible err? If, on the other hand, +she should hold to her infallibility, how can she be sorry for anything +she has ever done? If I had any influence with the Catholics I would +advise them to sacrifice infallibility for the respect of humanity. +It is much more divine to say, "I am sorry," than to say, "I am +infallible." But the Catholic Church will not take my advice. + +The shrine of Joan in the Paris church is almost as eloquent as her +stake in Rouen. I have seen them both--that is to say, I have seen the +spot on which she was consumed, marked by a white slab; and I have seen +the marble figure of Joan, as a girl, in the attitude of prayer, now +in the Church of the Sacred Heart in Paris. As I stood at her shrine in +this great white church it seemed to me that, even though Joan of Arc +has, at last been made a saint, there was still a prejudice against her +on the part of the people, as well as of the priests. This is only an +impression, and I hope I am mistaken. But let me present the evidence +on which I base my misgivings: In the first place, Joan is not given +the preference in the shrine set apart for her. St. Michael, whoever he +might be, occupies the whole front of the altar, and only on the windows +and the side walls do we find any mention of Joan and the events of her +heroic career. There is also, at one end of the enclosure, as intimated +before, a small marble figure of Joan on her knees. Why does St. Michael +usurp the place of honor over the altar? Who is he? What has he done for +France? In the second place, there was not a single lighted candle at +her shrine. St. Mary's altar, a little distance off, was ablaze. St. +Joseph's, too, was honored by lighted candles. But no one was on her +knees and no flame twinkled before the sainted Joan of Arc. They say +that it is almost impossible to outlive the charge of heresy. In former +times, quite frequently, even heretics who repented of their heresies +were put to death, nevertheless. To have ever been accused, even, or +suspected of heresy, is an unpardonable crime. Joan was suspected, at +least, of rebellion against Rome, and it seemed to me, as I reflected +upon what I observed in the church, that the Catholics had canonized +this village maid reluctantly, and only under pressure, and after five +hundred years of dillydallying. + +But before I left the Church of the Sacred Heart there was a lighted +candle upon her altar. I lighted it. Approaching one of the candle +tables, of which there are half a dozen in the building, I purchased a +long, tapering candle, white as the lily, and I touched it with fire--I +kindled it and set it in one of the sockets to burn before the kneeling +Joan. I left my flaming candle in the Church of the Sacred Heart! I, +a non-Catholic, offered my fire to Joan, not because she had been +canonized--for I never wait for the consent or the approval of the Pope +before paying homage to anybody--but because her sweet, sad story is one +of the most moving of modern times, and her vindication one of the most +stupendous conquests of modern thought. + +The Church of the Sacred Heart is one of the most beautiful in Paris. It +is built on the highest point in the city and commands a wonderful +view. As I have told you before, I have two friends who dwell on this +summit--really, a superb location. It is approached by a long flight of +stairs, or by a cog-wheel train. Before it, and all around it, sweeps +the Paris of to-day, as did the Paris of Clovis and Charlemagne, nearly +fifteen hundred years ago; the Paris of Julian, Emperor of Rome, older +still; the Catholic Paris, when kings and parlements bowed low to kiss +the great toe of the Italian Christ, or his vicar; the Paris of the +Medici--red and bloody; the Paris of the Huguenots, of Henry of Navarre, +of Conde and Colligny--sad, desolate, and in the throes of a new faith; +and the Paris of the philosophers, whose smile softened its barbarities, +lit up its darkness, and made it a city of light--_La ville Lumiere!_ +There, on that splendid elevation, live my two young friends. They are +both at the age of nineteen. One of them a lad, the other a maid. The +girl is housed; the boy is exposed. Joan of Arc lives in the church--the +cathedral is her home. The Chevalier de La Barre stands on the edge of +the hill, with sun and shower falling upon his head. The Catholic Church +burnt them both at the stake--the boy and the girl; the one because +he did not tip his hat to the priest at a street procession, the other +because she believed in herself! But modern thought has vindicated +both of these outcasts. Joan now dwells in a white church, perfumed and +lighted; and the Chevalier crowns the brow of the hill with his youthful +figure and appealing gesture. The chain which tied these children to the +stake in a dark age has flowered! Is not that wonderful? I believe in +the forces, the ideas, the movement--the thought that can cause a chain +to flower! + +I am not going to speak this morning of the Chevalier de La Barre, to +commemorate whose memory the nationalists of France have erected this +monument, close to the Church of the Sacred Heart. He will be my theme +on another occasion. In this lecture I shall confine myself to the story +of Joan of Arc. And a strange story it is! A young girl of seventeen +marches at the head of a dilapidated and demoralized army, and leads it +on to victory against the best fighters of the world, the English, who, +in the fifteenth century, were trying to annex France to England; she +is captured by traitors, sold to the enemy for ten thousand pounds; and +then she is handed over to the church to be tried for heresy. She is +tried, convicted, and sentenced to be burned alive. This sentence, the +most revolting on record, is carried out in all its literalness, and in +broad daylight, and under the shadow of the Christian cross, and at +the very doors of a great cathedral. All this transpired in the city of +Rouen, on the thirtieth day of May, fourteen hundred thirty-one. + +In order that I may enter into the spirit of the thrilling events of +which Rouen was the stage, I repaired to that city, and reverently +visited the scenes of the trial and the martyrdom of this latest saint +of the Catholic world. Words cannot convey to you the emotions which, +like a storm, burst upon me suddenly as the conductor on my train called +out, "Rouen!" It was then about a half hour to midnight, and, jumping +into a carriage, I was quickly driven to my hotel. What thoughts, and +how they crowded in upon me, as soon as I laid my head upon my pillow. +My brain was too active to permit of sleep. I imagined I was living in +_the year fourteen hundred thirty-one_, and that I had just reached this +city on the eve of the martyrdom of Joan. "To-morrow," I whispered +to myself, "Joan of Arc will be led to the stake." Again and again I +repeated to my pillow this shuddering intelligence. "What," I exclaimed +to myself, "a young woman who saved France by her courage is going to +be committed to the flames in this very city _tomorrow!_" I could not +believe it possible. I could not believe that there was folly enough, +or hatred enough, or stupidity enough, in the world for so desperate a +deed. But, alas, it was true. With my eyes closed, I fancied I saw +the throngs marching through the streets--consisting of peasants, of +merchants, of priests, of princes--to see a girl of nineteen burned in +the fire, and in all that throng there was not one who had either a kind +word or thought for her--her who had given them a country to live in. +Abandoned, hated and spat upon, she was left to suffer the cruelest +punishment that human _inhumanity_ could devise, or the most perverse +imagination invent. A girl of nineteen burned alive! "Oh, God!" The +words escaped my lips in spite of me. Then I turned about and called +upon _Humanity_. But in the fifteenth century God and Humanity were both +hard of hearing. Then I called upon _Science_ and _Reason_. But these +were not yet born. "There is no help then," I whispered to myself, and +my heart swelled within me with indignation, and I became desperate, +realizing my helplessness. + +With my head upon my pillow during that first night I spent in Rouen, +I tried to penetrate into the motives for the persecution of Joan. This +brave girl was feared because she was superior to her age. She provoked +the jealousy of her inferiors. Her independence and originality alarmed +both the Church and the State. Her ability to take the initiative, and +her courage to disagree with her spiritual teachers was a menace to the +authority of the priest with the keys, and the king with the sword. The +English would not admit that a mere girl, a Domremy peasant, tending +her father's cows, could have the genius to whip them--the most powerful +warriors of Europe. The Catholic Church, on the other hand, would not +forgive Joan for distinguishing herself without their help. For a woman +to eclipse the Holy Church and humiliate a powerful State, was a crime +punishable by death. + +In less than two years' time Joan had saved France, after the prayers of +the Church and the armies of the nation had failed ignominiously. In the +opinion of the world of that day there was only one power, the devil's, +that could outwit the Church. It was not denied that Joan had driven +the victorious armies of the enemy out of France, and made a conquered +people free again; but it was argued that she had achieved this triumph, +not by the help of God, but by the instrumentality of the devil. In +those days, anything, however praiseworthy, if accomplished without the +permission and cooperation of the Church, was the work of the devil. +Joan had consulted her own heart, instead of the village confessor. +That was her heresy. Joan had seen visions and heard voices on her +own account. That is the independence which, if encouraged, or even +recognized, would overthrow the Catholic Church. No one is allowed to +receive revelations at first hand. Even God is not permitted to speak +except through his vicar on earth. In short, Joan was a _protestant_, +inasmuch as she not only had direct relations with heaven, but she +refused to allow the Church to be the judge as to whether her voices +were from God or from Satan. During all the agony of her long trial, +every effort was made to induce her to allow the Church to be the judge +of the nature of her visions. Joan refused the test. There was no doubt +about her heresy. She believed herself capable of judging. That was her +unpardonable sin. + +Still imagining myself in Rouen, in the year fourteen hundred +thirty-one, I said to myself, "I must arise early in the morning and go +to the old market place to catch a glimpse of the wonderful woman when +she leaves the tower for the stake." As the picture of what I would see +on the following day arose before my closed eyes, I trembled. "I will +not let them burn her," I cried passionately. But, alas, what could one +man do against king, pope, and the mob! And I tossed in my bed like one +in a cage who is conscious of his helplessness against iron bars. + +Suddenly, a thought struck me, as the lightning strikes a tree. "This +is fourteen hundred thirty-one," I repeated to myself. "I must get up at +once and repair to the palace of the Bishop of Beauvais, the priest who +holds in the hollow of his hand the fate of the bravest maid in history. +If I could only have a half hour with him," I said, "to pour into his +ears my protest, my pleadings, my scorn, my prayers; or, if I could tell +him of the time when Joan will have a shrine in a Catholic Church!--he +might relent and hearken unto reason?" With these thoughts in my mind +I jumped out of my bed, I lit the candle, I put on my clothes. Then, in +haste, I walked out into the night, seeking my way in the streets of the +strange city now deserted. By the help of the moon and the stars of +that night in May, _fourteen hundred thirty-one_, I traced my way to the +imposing Cathedral of St. Ouen, standing like a towering shadow in +the cold light of the night, and close to which lived the Bishop of +Beauvais. + +I knocked upon the Bishop's door. "Open, open," I cried, as in the dead +of night I kept pounding upon the door. "I wish to come in," I cried. "I +wish to save the Church from an indelible stain, I wish to protect the +honor of humanity." "Open, open," I cried, again and again, and in the +stillness of the night the noise of my blows reached far and wide. +Louder and louder still I cried to the Bishop to open the door. "I wish +to rescue France and England from committing an act of infamy; I wish +to save history from an unspeakable shame. Let me in, Bishop! I come +to protect you against the execration of posterity, against eternal +damnation! Open, open the door!" I shouted. I kept pounding upon the +door, long and loud, on the eve of that foul day in fourteen hundred +thirty-one. I grew impatient with waiting for the door to open, and my +voice, which a moment before swept up and down the whole gamut of hope +and despair--pleading, shouting, sobbing--now became faint and feeble. + +I could not arouse the Bishop. He was fast asleep. Then I was silent +myself. Suddenly I heard a far away whisper. It did not come from the +Episcopal palace, nor from the Cathedral close by, yet I was sure +I heard some one speaking. I listened again. I could now hear more +clearly. "I am coming, I am coming," was repeated in caressing accents. +"I am coming, to open the door, to awaken the Bishop, to usher in a more +joyous day for humanity. I will extinguish the fires of persecution, +turn executioners into teachers, disarm superstition, and make the whole +world sane. In that day Joan will triumph over her foes and make their +churches her mausoleum." It was the voice of Reason! But it took five +hundred years for that faint whisper to swell into a mighty chorus, +swinging around the globe. That prophecy has been fulfilled, the +Bishop's door opened, and the Church yielded to the clamor of +civilization, and changed Joan's stake into the shrine where I lit my +candle in her honor, in the Church of the Sacred Heart. She is no longer +a heretic, she has become a saint. Her tears have changed into pearls, +her tomb into a cathedral, where she sleeps in pomp on the bosom that +once stung her to death. + +But I was not in Rouen in fourteen hundred thirty-one; I was there five +hundred years too late. The day after I arrived in the city, I went to +the market place, but, instead of a procession with candles and torches, +with stakes and fagots, I found commerce, industry, labor, in full +possession of the great square. Prosperous looking men and women met +and greeted one another pleasantly; farmers were selling fruit and +vegetables; the women, flowers. Even the priests one came across smiled +as they saw the happy countenances of the people. What a change! Common +sense has sweetened human nature and flooded the mind with the light +that destroys superstition and makes all men brothers. The guide pointed +out to me the white marble slab marking the spot on which Joan of Arc +met her death. "Upon this place stood the stake of Joan of Arc. The +ashes of the glorious virgin were thrown into the Seine." This is the +inscription on the slab which was placed there by the municipality in +eighteen hundred ninety-one. + +Close to this same spot the citizens of Rouen have erected a fountain, +in the form of a monument, to the same heroic maiden. I stood and +watched the playful waters as they fell with a liquid plash into the +marble basin below. Presently, a woman came along with her pitcher. The +stake at which Joan of Arc was burned to death has become a fountain, +to which the people now come to slake their thirst. Walking up to the +woman, I said, "What fountain is this?" + +"Ah, monsieur," she exclaimed, "behold the fountain of Joan of Arc." + +"But she was a heretic," I remarked. I can never forget her smile. The +sun had arisen in her eyes. "We live in the twentieth century," she +replied. And, unconsciously, we both heaved a sigh of relief. I +rubbed my eyes to be sure we were not living in the middle ages, when +Rationalism was still a babe in swaddling clothes, and Theology was +lord of all. This is the twentieth century--for we are drinking at the +fountain of Joan of Arc instead of carrying fagots to her stake! One +of the sunniest spots in my memory will be my meeting with this peasant +woman, with her pitcher, at the fountain of Joan of Arc. + +But my object in this lecture is to help clear some obscure questions in +connection with the trial, martyrdom and subsequent canonization of this +girl of nineteen. I wish to bring about a more intelligent appreciation +of the story of a young shepherdess, beginning from the day she left her +home in Domremy, to the fiery scaffold; and thence to a place among the +saints in the Catholic calendar. This is the only instance in Catholic +history of a person once destroyed as a heretic who has afterwards +received the highest honors within the gift of the Church. In fourteen +hundred thirty-one an infallible body of ecclesiastics pronounced this +young woman to be "a child of perdition, a sorceress, a seducer, a +harlot and a heretic." Five hundred years after, another infallible +body of ecclesiastics belonging to the same church pronounced the same +"harlot" and "heretic" to be "angelic" and "divine." One infallible +pope allowed her to be burned in fourteen hundred thirty-one; another +infallible pope denounced her murderers as detestable criminals--which +shows how fallible is infallibility. + +A great many untruths are being circulated to help clear this +contradiction. The clergy are proclaiming from the housetops that it was +not the church that tried and condemned Joan of Arc to torture and death +in fourteen hundred thirty-one; on the contrary, it was the church, they +say, which has just vindicated her memory and beatified her with superb +ceremonies. History, however, gives a different version of the affair. +Before proceeding to describe the trial and condemnation of Joan of Arc, +let me state the attitude of the Rationalist toward Joan of Arc's claims +to inspiration. We can do justice to a woman of her description without +believing in miraculous predictions. Joan of Arc claimed to have seen +visions and to have heard voices, which assured her of her divine +mission. She was thirteen years of age, according to her testimony, when +she felt her first thrill. The visions were repeated. One day, at about +noon, in the summer time, and while working on her father's farm, close +to the whispering trees, she saw a radiance out of which came a voice +which she fancied was the voice of an angel or of a saint. It was not at +all strange that she should hear voices. All her education had prepared +her for them. She had been told how others had seen angels and heard +voices. The literature of the Church was full of the miraculous in those +days. It was the ambition of every believer to receive visits from the +other world, and to be told secrets. Joan, the little Domremy girl, +shared these ambitions. In her case the wish was father to the vision. +She heard the voices and saw the faces which her heart coveted. How do +we explain her "voices" and her "visions"? The question is a very simple +one, unless we have a leaning for theology. The voices that Joan heard +were those that came from her own heart. It was her own dreams she saw +in the sunlight. + +The young woman had mused over the acts of brigandage of the invading +army and their French allies; she had seen the smoke of the burning +villages and had heard the wail of her peasant neighbors. The distress +of her people had often melted her into tears and wrung many a sigh from +her lips. She imagined the whole country summoning her to the rescue. +So earnest was she that her thoughts assumed form and shape, and became +vocal. Thus, out of the substance of her own soul she fashioned the +visions which she beheld. She felt herself set apart to be the saviour +of France. The brilliance of that thought darkened every other object in +life--home, parents, money, marriage! + +To those who will not be satisfied with this explanation, I beg to say +that if the voices were really supernatural, then they should be held +responsible for the cruel death to which they led or drove the young +woman. Why did her voices, if they were divine, desert her when she +needed their help most? Why did they not save her from prison and the +stake? And which of us would like to be guided to the chambers of the +inquisition, and the flames of the stake by "heavenly voices"? Moreover, +if these voices came from God, why did they not speak to the English +king, or to the Roman pope, in behalf of Joan, when she called on them +for help? Why did they not assume the responsibility for the acts for +which she was destroyed? Voices and visions which induce a young girl to +go to the help of a perishing country only to use her victories for the +benefit of a depraved and imbecile prince like Charles VII, and desert +the young woman herself to be "done" to death! Defend us against them! + +Returning to the question of the responsibility of the Catholic Church +for the fate of Joan, there are these points to be touched upon. Being +a matter of history that on the last day of May, fourteen hundred +thirty-one, this young woman was publicly burned in the City of Rouen, +in the square of the cathedral, the question arises: Who put her to +death? Another important question is: Why was she put to death? And when +we have answered these questions we will be in a position to discuss the +much more important question of: Why Joan of Arc was recently translated +into a saint by the pope. + +Twenty-five years after the burning of Joan, when the city of Rouen was +restored to the French king, and the English were finally driven across +the Channel, it was decided to review the evidence upon which the Maid +had been convicted and put to death. This was done; and with the result +that she was acquitted of all the charges of heresy, insubordination to +the Church, adultery, witchcraft, etc. What do you think was the motive +of this revision? The French king had begun to realize the disgrace to +which he had been exposed by the condemnation of the Maid as a witch. +Being exceedingly pious--piety and crime were united in him as in many +others of that day--he was tormented by the thought that the young woman +who had assisted him in his war against the English, and had been the +means of securing for him the crown of France, and had also officiated +at his coronation in the cathedral of Rheims, was condemned as an agent +of satan by the Church; which, if true, it would make him not only the +target for the ridicule and derision of the whole Christian world, but, +also, an illicit king of the French, who might refuse their allegiance +to him because he was made king by a witch and not by an apostle of +God. It is no wonder that a superstitious man like Charles VII, in a +superstitious age, trembled, not only for his crown, but, also, for +his life. Therefore, in order to make his succession legitimate it was +necessary to prove that Joan was not a witch, but a true messenger of +God. For if Joan was a witch, Charles VII was not king "by the grace of +God," but by a trick of the devil. In self-defense the king of France +was not only compelled to reopen the case against Joan, now that he was +free from English dictation, but he also indicated in advance to the +ecclesiastics the conclusion they would have to arrive at. The +king could not have allowed, and he would not have allowed, the +ecclesiastical council, convened at his request, to arrive at any other +verdict than the one which would prove to France and Christendom that +he was made king at Rheims, not by a witch who was excommunicated by the +Church and flung into the fire, but by a real and inspired apostle of +God. + +Of course, it is a matter of history that it was by the help of Joan +that Charles VII became King of France. + +As already intimated, at the coronation ceremony Joan was not only +present, but she assisted the Archbishop when the latter placed the +crown upon the king's head. The inauguration was practically the work +of Joan. It was the fulfillment of a prediction she had repeatedly made, +that she would conquer the English and crown the French king in the City +of Rheims. If she was a witch the coronation was invalid. The ceremony +of the anointing of a king is one of the most solemn in the Catholic +Church. The condemnation of Joan as a witch had not only stripped this +ceremony of its sacredness, but it had also made it null and void, nay, +more, a blasphemy. How could a king, anointed by the help of a witch, +be the king of a Christian nation? To appreciate this argument we +must remember how bigoted the people were in the Middle Ages. In +self-defense, therefore, Charles VII was compelled to prove to the +French, and to the whole world, that the woman to whom he owed his +elevation to the throne was not a heretic. + +Let us recapitulate. The King of France ordered the Church to make out a +new certificate for Joan. The Church obeyed the French king, even as the +same Church twenty-five years earlier had obeyed the King of England and +condemned Joan to death. When the English were masters of France, the +Catholic Church pleased them by delivering up the conqueror of England +to be burned alive; when the English were driven out of the country and +the French were again in control this sentence was reversed and Joan was +proven to have been a dutiful child of the Church. Thus it will be seen +that the Church swung with the English when the English ruled the land, +and she swung with the French when the French had driven the English +out of the country. The Church was with England at one time, and she was +with France at another--but never with Joan. I am milder in my criticism +than the facts warrant. I am making strenuous efforts to speak with +immoderation of an "infallible institution." + +But why was it to the interest of the English to have Joan declared a +witch? Their motives were as personal as those of the French king. The +English felt humiliated to think that a mere woman had whipped them, +and therefore they were determined to prove that she was more than a +woman--an agent of the devil. There was no secret about this. Their +motive was very plain. It was to their interest to show that Joan was +the personification of satan, and that consequently the English should +not be blamed for running away from her presence, because who could +withstand the devil? The English army did not go down before a girl, but +before a sorceress. Even as the King of France did not wish it said that +he owed his victory over the English to a witch, or that he was made +king by an apostate, the English did not wish it said that they were +conquered by a saint, for that would make God the enemy of the English. +One king wanted Joan damned, and the Church accommodated him by damning +her; another wanted Joan beatified, and the Church beatified her. + +It is admitted that the English could not have burned Joan as a witch +without the consent of the Church. They could have burned her as a +prisoner, but that would not have answered their purpose--she must be +declared a witch in order to vindicate the amour propre of the English +people. It is the exclusive prerogative of the Church to decide +questions of orthodoxy or heresy. No king has the right to admit or +exclude any one from the communion of the Church. Whether or not Joan +was a witch was a theological question and could only be decided by the +ecclesiastical court. Neither could the King of France declare Joan of +Arc innocent of heresy without the consent of the Church. It follows +then that the principal actor in the trial, the condemnation and +the death of the young woman under the English, and her subsequent +vindication and beatification, was the Church of Rome, since without its +consent the English could not have made a heretic of her, nor the French +a saviour and a saint. A secular government may declare who shall be its +military heroes, or who shall be court-martialed and disgraced, but only +the Church enjoys the right to damn or to canonize. This point is so +clinching that even the most zealous papist must admit that at one time, +when all Europe was Catholic--England as much so as France--and the pope +was as supreme in one country as in the other, a girl of nineteen, who +had rendered heroic services to her oppressed country, could not +have been declared a heretic and cast into the fire at the door of +a cathedral, in the presence of bishops, priests, a cardinal and a +representative of the holy Inquisition, without the knowledge and +consent of the Holy Roman Catholic Church. + +An attempt has been made to throw the entire blame of the proceedings +against Joan of Arc upon the English. There is no doubt about the +anxiety of the English to punish the Maid who had robbed them of the +spoils of their victory over the French and brought dishonor upon their +arms. But a mere military punishment, as already intimated, would +not have been sufficient to satisfy the English--she had to be +excommunicated from Christendom as one possessed of the devil. That was +the only way to save the English of the disgrace of having been beaten +by a woman, and the records show that the Church, instead of reluctantly +carrying out the wishes of the English, was more than pleased to +bring Joan to the stake. Letters were written from the office of the +Inquisition to the English king, complaining against his lukewarmness +in the matter of prosecuting the young woman. The Catholic University +of Paris, also, sent a special communication to King Henry of England +to remind him of his duty to help the Church to put down heresy. The +English were urged to hand Joan over to the bishop and the Inquisition, +that the ecclesiastics might proceed with her trial without delay. And +when finally Joan faced her judges, forty in number, every one of them +was an ecclesiastic, and out of the forty, thirty-eight were Frenchmen. + +Moreover, the Archbishop of Rheims, who was also Chancellor of France, +wrote a letter which is still in existence, in which he congratulated +the French upon the capture of Joan of Arc, whom he denounces as a +heretic--"a proud and rebellious child who refuses to submit to the +Church." Being the superior of the Bishop of Beauvais, who was in charge +of the trial, the Archbishop could have stopped the prosecution if +he had the least sympathy or pity for the Maid. But to try to save +a heretic would be the worst kind of heresy. That explains the utter +desertion of Joan by all France--people, priest and king. + +In this connection a comparison should be made between the zeal of +the clergy to bring Joan to trial for heresy and the slowness and +indifference with which the Church proceeded to obey the summons of +the King of France twenty-five years after to reinstate her into the +fellowship of Catholic Christendom. The records show that it required +considerable urging and manoeuvring on the part of the French government +to bring about a revision of the ecclesiastical sentence against the +Maid. As long as Nicholas V was pope nothing was accomplished. The case +was reopened under Pope Calixtus. Not until it was realized that further +delay in the matter would greatly irritate, not only the French king, +but also the populace, now freed from English dominion and seeking to +live down the evil reputation of having harbored an apostate in their +midst, did Rome stir itself in the matter. It will be seen that it was +not the pope nor the Church that took the initiative in behalf of Joan +of Arc. The Church only yielded to the pressure from the State, that had +now become powerful. Had the English remained in control of France the +Maid of Orleans would never have been remembered by the Catholic Church, +much less restored to honor and immortality. + +"We do not deny," answer the defenders of the Church, "that _some_ +bishops and even cardinals persecuted Joan of Arc to death. But is +it just to hold the whole Church responsible for the crime of an +insignificant minority?" This is the main defense of the Catholics +against the arguments of the Rationalists and the facts of history. Be +it noted that I am not trying to abuse the Catholics; I am only sorry +that they should be unwilling, even at this date, to say, "We are +sorry." To commit mistakes is human. But why should the Church move +heaven and earth to prove that it has never committed a mistake? The +attempt is also made to prove that the ecclesiastics who are responsible +for the death of Joan were wicked men and have been repudiated by the +Church. To this is added the further defense that it was the gold of the +English which corrupted these priests. But such a defense, I regret to +say, does not reflect credit upon the intelligence or the honor of the +Church of Rome. In this day of general information it is impossible for +anyone to wrap up the facts of history in a napkin, as it were, and put +them away where no one may have access to them. The judges of Joan +were all ordained ministers of the Church. The presiding priest was +a bishop--the bishop of Beauvais. He was assisted by a cardinal, a +vice-president of the Inquisition, and a number of other ecclesiastics +who were connected with the University of Paris. Is it reasonable to +suppose that the Inquisition and the Catholic University of Paris, and +all the clergy of England and France represented only a discredited +section of the Church? + +It is the pride of the Catholics that their church has never been +divided or schismatic, and that it has been one and indivisible "always +and everywhere." How is this claim to be reconciled with the excuse that +a considerable portion of the Catholic Church in the fifteenth century +openly ignored the authority of the pope and did as they pleased without +incurring the displeasure of the Hierarchy for their insubordination? +Furthermore, if only a part of the church persecuted the young woman, +what did the rest of the church do to save her? We would like the names +of the priests who interceded in her behalf. It does not give me a bit +of pleasure to prove the Catholic Church responsible for this as for +many other burnings at the stake, but it gives me pleasure to be able to +show that any institution claiming infallibility, to defend that +claim must persecute. And why do I take pleasure in proving this to be +inevitable? It might open the eyes of the religious world to the danger +of supernaturalism. If the Christians no longer burn people they do not +like, it is not because their Bibles have been altered, but because they +no longer believe in them as they used to. It is good news to report +that supernaturalism is waning, for it means the progress of science and +sanity. + +There is still another point to be touched upon: When all Europe +heard of the fate that had befallen a girl of nineteen through the +machinations, let us say, of a few naughty Catholic priests--what +did Rome do to these same priests who had so disgraced their "holy" +profession, as well as brought lasting shame upon civilization? Is not +this a pertinent question? Joan's trial lasted for four months. Not only +France and England, but all Christendom was interested in the outcome. +During all this time not only was there not a word of protest from Rome, +but what is more significant, shortly after the trial and condemnation +of Joan, the pope rewarded her accusers and persucutors with +ecclesiastical promotion. Again, I must hasten to explain that I am +not interested in embarrassing the Catholics; my point is to strike at +_dogma_--which turns hearts into stone, and makes of the intellect a +juggler's instrument. Joan was sacrificed, nay,--the honor of France, of +Europe, of civilization, of humanity--was flung into the fire with Joan, +to save--what? Dogma! + +Not only did the church fail to punish a single one of the forty +ecclesiastics who tried Joan, not to mention hundreds of others who +cooperated with them to bring about her destruction, but, as intended, +gifts were conferred upon the principal actors in this awful drama. +Roussel, one of the ecclesiastics who figured prominently in the +proceedings, was given the archepiscopacy of the city of Rouen--the very +city in which a girl not yet twenty, and who had served France on the +battlefield, and brought victory to her flag, was beaten and burnt to +death. Pasquier, an ordinary priest when he was serving as one of the +judges, was made a bishop after the execution of Joan. Two others, +Gilles and Le Fevre, were also advanced to upper ranks in the church. +Thomas Courcelles, one of the most merciless judges of Joan--who voted +in favor of subjecting the prisoner to physical torture to compel her +to admit she was a witch--this priest with the unenviable reputation was +also promoted to a lucrative post in the famous church of Notre Dame, in +Paris. Finally, the man who engineered the trial, who presided over +the sessions, and to whom Joan said, "You are the cause of my +misfortunes"--the Bishop of Beauvais, the man whom all Catholics justly +execrate today--even he was rewarded by the "Holy Father"; he was given +the episcopal seat of Lisieux. Does it look as though the crime against +Joan were the work of a discredited minority in the Catholic Church? I +repeat, it was dogma, it was revelation, it was infallibility, it +was supernaturalism, and not this or that priest--that should be held +guilty. + +To meet these arguments the Catholic apologists call attention to the +fact that the church "has a horror of blood," and that it has never +put anyone to death for any cause whatever. But this is true only in +a Pickwickian sense. It is like the head saying to the hands, "I have +never committed the least violence against anyone." The hands, it is +evident, commit the acts, but whose hands are they? The hands only +obey the head, and for the head to blame the hands for carrying out its +orders, realizing its thoughts and wishes, would not even be amusing, +much less convincing. It is the judge, or the court, that takes the +life of the culprit, for instance, and not the executioner. The Catholic +Church demands the death of the heretic. Is this denied? Read Thomas +Aquinas, the most honored saint and theologian of Catholicism; read the +decrees of the general councils of the church and the encyclicals of +St. Peter's successors, and a thousand, thousand proofs will be found +in them to substantiate the statement. It is the Bible that commands the +death of the heretic. No church founded on the Bible can afford to be +tolerant. The theory of Christianity as well as of Mohammedanism is that +the sword which the king carries has been blessed and put in his hands +that he may put down the heretics. The civil authorities then, in +bringing Joan of Arc to the fire were carrying out the instructions of +the forty ecclesiastical judges who condemned her to death. Had these +judges found her innocent, the state could not have destroyed her life; +it was the will of the priestly court that she should die, and the +secular authorities fulfilled its wish. + +But was Joan a heretic? Strenuous efforts are made to show that she was +not. This point is a vital one. The church, in self-defense, is bound to +produce arguments to prove that Joan of Arc was an orthodox, obedient, +and submissive child of the church. If she was not orthodox, then the +church has sainted a heretic in the person of Joan of Arc. One of the +questions they asked her at the trial was whether she would be willing +to submit the question of her "visions" to the church; that is to say, +would she consent to the findings of an ecclesiastical court concerning +herself and her mission? To this the answer was that she held herself +responsible only to God. This was considered a rebellious answer, and it +was--from the church's point of view. According to Catholic theology +the church is divided into two branches,--the church militant, which +is composed of the pope, the priests and their flock; and the church +triumphant, which is presided over by God and the saints in glory. Joan +said she was prepared to submit to the church triumphant--the church +on high, that is to say, to God, but to nobody else. This also was a +heresy. Her clerical judges insisted that to be a good Catholic she +must bow to the will of the church on earth--the pope and his +representatives. Her heresy then was both real and serious. She appealed +from the pope to God. She placed her own conscience above the authority +of the church. She believed in private judgment, the exercise of which +is forbidden by the church. In refusing to let the pope act as the +middleman between God and herself she was threatening the very existence +of the papacy. There is then no doubt that both by her independent +conduct and by her original answers Joan attacked the very fundamentals +of Catholicism. It follows, then, that the pope a few years ago made a +saint out of a heretic. + +Although Joan was an uncultivated girl, able neither to read nor write, +she was gifted with good common sense. She saw at a glance that if she +were to submit to the church she would thereby be casting doubts upon +the genuineness of her "visions." She preferred to go to the stake +rather than do that. She was really between two fires: the priests +threatened her body; God in her conscience threatened her soul. She +decided to obey the voice within. The decision cost her her life. + +Some of the questions put to her and the answers which Joan made are +really remarkable. They show the craft of her judges, on the one hand, +and the courage and common sense of the victim, on the other. + +"Will you not submit to our holy father, the Pope?" they asked her. +"Bring me before the Pope, and I will answer," she replied. In other +words, they were trying to have her admit that she had no right to think +for herself or to exercise any independence at all. But she was too +serious and earnest a person to subscribe to any such doctrine. She had +never understood that to be a Catholic meant to be a bondswoman. "Take +care," she said, turning her fiery glance upon her inquisitors, "take +care that you do not put yourselves in the place of God." By such an +answer, the young woman, still in her teens, had shot the Catholic +Church in the heart. + +The nature of the charges against Joan as formulated by her judges also +goes to prove that she was considered a heretic and condemned to death +for that offense. The eleventh charge against her reads: "She has adored +her saints without taking clerical advice." Charge twelfth reads: "She +refuses to submit her conduct and revelation to the church." When asked +if she would obey the church, her reply was, "God first being served." +Luther said no more than that--and the Catholic church was split in +two. Everything goes to show that the Domremy peasant girl was a private +thinker, that is to say, a heretic. Listen to this: "I will believe that +our Holy Father, the pope of Rome and the bishops and other churchmen +are for the guarding of the Christian faith and the punishment of +heretics, _but as for me and my facts, I will only submit to the church +of heaven_." To be sure that is insubordination; it is placing herself +not only on an equality with the pope, but even above him. Of course, +Joan was not a Rationalist--far from it--but she was an independent +Catholic--that is to say--not subject to the church--and that is heresy. +Is it any wonder that her sentence read: "Therefore we pronounce you +a rotten limb, and as such to be lopped off from the church." And the +reason this sentence gave satisfaction to the Catholics all over +the world was because such initiative and self-respect as Joan had +manifested, if tolerated, would bring about the collapse of the +infallible authority of the church. The University of Paris wrote to the +pope, to the king of England and the bishops, lauding the priests who +had purged the church of this dangerous girl with her "I think so," or +"I believe so,"--with the emphasis on the "I." In this same letter the +Bishop of Beauvais, the evil genius of Joan, to whom she said, when she +saw the stake awaiting her, "Bishop, I die through you!" is commended +for "his great gravity and holy way of proceeding, which ought to be +most satisfactory to all." + +It took five hundred years for the Catholic Church to discover that the +young woman burnt as a heretic was really a saint. But the church did +not make this discovery until modern thought, benign and brave, had +taken the outcast girl under its protection. The French nation had +already made a national heroine of her, when the Vatican decided +to enroll her name among the hallowed ones in its calendar. The +beatification of Joan was brought about ostensibly by the report that +certain sufferers from cancer, and other incurable maladies, had been +completely cured by praying to Joan of Arc for help. The Maid had become +a miracle worker, and hence worthy to receive a medal, as it were, from +the pope. Joan is now a new income as well as a saint. + +Joan owes her Vindication to the Rationalists of France. The man in +recent years whose books, position and influence did more than anything +else to bring about a new attitude toward Joan of Arc, was Marcelin +Berthelot, who now sleeps in the Pantheon as one of the glories of +his country. A few years ago, I received an invitation to visit him at +Bellevue near Paris. To give you an idea of the great man who did so +much to rejuvenate Europe and throw its whole weight on the side of +justice to the Martyr--woman of France. I shall reproduce in this +connection what I said about him after my interview with him: + +"Who are the Rationalists?" is one of the questions frequently asked. +Well, they are the intellectual leaders of the world, as what I learned +about Berthelot clearly shows. He was the man upon whom two European +sovereigns had conferred the highest decorations in their power for +services rendered to human progress,--whom his own countrymen had +honored by making him a senator for life; who twice had been appointed +minister of foreign affairs; who had been elected an honorary member +of all the scientific associations of the world; upon whom the Royal +Scientific Society of London has bestowed its most coveted honors; who +is the perpetual secretary of the Academy of Science of Paris; a member +of the Academy Française, and, therefore, one of the immortals; and +whose volumes, inventions, discoveries and contributions have placed +modern civilization under inexpressible obligations to him. With all +these dignities and titles, richly deserved, M. Berthelot is as gracious +in his manners, as unassuming, as childlike and modest, as one could +desire. He displays all the charms of the real man of worth--the man of +genius. + +Though in his seventy-sixth year, the sage and diplomat still possessed +the vigor of a man of fifty, pursuing his studies and interesting +himself in the politics of his time, with the ardor and fervor of youth. +The accumulation of his years and his indefatigable labors had by no +means impaired the faculties of his mind, being still regarded by his +countrymen as one of the most fertile brains and sanest intellects of +modern Europe. + +Two years previously all France, one might say, had met in Paris to +celebrate at the Sorbonne the completion of Berthelot's fifty years of +intellectual labor. It was on this occasion that the foreign potentates +sent their delegates and decorations to him. Every civilized country +was represented at the festivities by its foremost men of letters +and diplomats, while all the senators of France, the president of the +republic, the members of his cabinet, and all the heads of the colleges +were assembled to applaud the _master_ whose half a century of study and +service had so greatly augmented the horizon of man and increased the +light of the world. + +When this distinguished scientist was admitted into the French Academy, +Jules Lemaitre, in his address of welcome, declared that Berthelot was +the real creator of the modern industrial era, which had multiplied the +resources of man a hundredfold. He called Berthelot the discoverer of +modern chemistry, which has in so short a time transformed the face of +the earth, and which holds the secret of the solution of the social and +economic problems of the day. "'Chemistry" declares Berthelot, "'is a +new gospel, which brings tidings of great power to mankind.'" "It +will put an end to the cruel struggle of classes, and make of warlike +politics, now one of the scourges of nations, a lost art. It will do +this by placing within the reach of all an inexhaustible wealth of food +and raiment, thereby curing man forever of the disease of discontent." + +"There are only two things worth living for," said M. Berthelot, in an +address at the Palais de Trocadero before six thousand Frenchmen--"the +love of truth and the love of one's fellows." + +That _love of truth_ opened for Joan the doors of the Catholic Church, +shut against her five hundred years ago and it opened to Berthelot the +doors of the Pantheon--the Temple of the Immortals! + +A final word. I have as much compassion and sympathy for the Catholics +as I have for the martyred girl--indeed more, since they need more. Joan +has been vindicated by the broader and more benign thought of this! age. +The same serene and sweet power will transform the Catholic Church +and make it one of the most progressive forces of our America. I have +delivered this lecture to hasten that lovely day! + +[Illustration: 0042] + + + + + + + +End of Project Gutenberg's The Story of Joan of Arc, by M. M. Mangasarian + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE STORY OF JOAN OF ARC *** + +***** This file should be named 45479-8.txt or 45479-8.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/4/5/4/7/45479/ + +Produced by David Widger from page images generously +provided by the Internet Archive + + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, +set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to +copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to +protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project +Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you +charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you +do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the +rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose +such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and +research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do +practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is +subject to the trademark license, especially commercial +redistribution. + + + +*** START: FULL LICENSE *** + +THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE +PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK + +To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free +distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work +(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project +Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project +Gutenberg-tm License available with this file or online at + www.gutenberg.org/license. + + +Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic works + +1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to +and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property +(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all +the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy +all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession. +If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the +terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or +entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. + +1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be +used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who +agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few +things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works +even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See +paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement +and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. See paragraph 1.E below. + +1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation" +or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the +collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an +individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are +located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from +copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative +works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg +are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project +Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by +freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of +this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with +the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by +keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project +Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others. + +1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern +what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in +a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check +the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement +before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or +creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project +Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning +the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United +States. + +1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: + +1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate +access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently +whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the +phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project +Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, +copied or distributed: + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + +1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived +from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is +posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied +and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees +or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work +with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the +work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 +through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the +Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or +1.E.9. + +1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted +with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution +must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional +terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked +to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the +permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work. + +1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this +work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. + +1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this +electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without +prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with +active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project +Gutenberg-tm License. + +1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, +compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any +word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or +distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than +"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version +posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org), +you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a +copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon +request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other +form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. + +1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, +performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works +unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. + +1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing +access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided +that + +- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from + the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method + you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is + owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he + has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the + Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments + must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you + prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax + returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and + sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the + address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to + the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation." + +- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies + you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he + does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm + License. You must require such a user to return or + destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium + and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of + Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any + money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the + electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days + of receipt of the work. + +- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free + distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set +forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from +both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael +Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the +Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. + +1.F. + +1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable +effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread +public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm +collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain +"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or +corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual +property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a +computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by +your equipment. + +1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right +of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project +Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all +liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal +fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT +LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE +PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE +TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE +LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR +INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH +DAMAGE. + +1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a +defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can +receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a +written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you +received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with +your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with +the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a +refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity +providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to +receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy +is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further +opportunities to fix the problem. + +1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth +in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO OTHER +WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO +WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. + +1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied +warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. +If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the +law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be +interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by +the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any +provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. + +1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the +trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone +providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance +with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, +promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works, +harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, +that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do +or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm +work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any +Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause. + + +Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm + +Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of +electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers +including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists +because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from +people in all walks of life. + +Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the +assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's +goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will +remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure +and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations. +To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation +and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 +and the Foundation information page at www.gutenberg.org + + +Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive +Foundation + +The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit +501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the +state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal +Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification +number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent +permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. + +The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S. +Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered +throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at 809 +North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email +contact links and up to date contact information can be found at the +Foundation's web site and official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact + +For additional contact information: + Dr. Gregory B. Newby + Chief Executive and Director + gbnewby@pglaf.org + +Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation + +Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide +spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of +increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be +freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest +array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations +($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt +status with the IRS. + +The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating +charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United +States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a +considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up +with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations +where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To +SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any +particular state visit www.gutenberg.org/donate + +While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we +have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition +against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who +approach us with offers to donate. + +International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make +any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from +outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. + +Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation +methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other +ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. +To donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate + + +Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. + +Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm +concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared +with anyone. For forty years, he produced and distributed Project +Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. + +Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed +editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S. +unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily +keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. + +Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: + + www.gutenberg.org + +This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, +including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary +Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to +subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. + diff --git a/old/45479-8.zip b/old/45479-8.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..5f48ed8 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/45479-8.zip diff --git a/old/45479-h.zip b/old/45479-h.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..f73d299 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/45479-h.zip diff --git a/old/45479-h/45479-h.htm b/old/45479-h/45479-h.htm new file mode 100644 index 0000000..8909e94 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/45479-h/45479-h.htm @@ -0,0 +1,1483 @@ +<?xml version="1.0" encoding="iso-8859-1"?> + +<!DOCTYPE html + PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" + "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd" > + +<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" lang="en"> + <head> + <title> + The Story of Joan Of Arc the Witch--saint, by M. M. Mangasarian + </title> + <link rel="coverpage" href="images/cover.jpg" /> + <style type="text/css" xml:space="preserve"> + + body { margin:5%; background:#faebd0; text-align:justify} + P { text-indent: 1em; margin-top: .25em; margin-bottom: .25em; } + H1,H2,H3,H4,H5,H6 { text-align: center; margin-left: 15%; margin-right: 15%; } + hr { width: 50%; text-align: center;} + .foot { margin-left: 20%; margin-right: 20%; text-align: justify; text-indent: -3em; font-size: 90%; } + blockquote {font-size: 97%; font-style: italic; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%;} + .mynote {background-color: #DDE; color: #000; padding: .5em; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 95%;} + .toc { margin-left: 10%; margin-bottom: .75em;} + .toc2 { margin-left: 20%;} + .indent5 { margin-left: 5%;} + .indent10 { margin-left: 10%;} + .indent15 { margin-left: 15%;} + .indent20 { margin-left: 20%;} + div.fig { display:block; margin:0 auto; text-align:center; } + div.middle { margin-left: 20%; margin-right: 20%; text-align: justify; } + .figleft {float: left; margin-left: 0%; margin-right: 1%;} + .figright {float: right; margin-right: 0%; margin-left: 1%;} + .pagenum {display:inline; font-size: 100%; font-style:normal; + margin: 0; padding: 0; position: absolute; right: 1%; + text-align: right;} + .side { float: left; font-size: 75%; width: 25%; padding-left: 0.8em; + border-left: dashed thin; text-align: left; + text-indent: 0; font-weight: bold; font-style: italic; + font-weight: bold; color: black; background: #eeeeee; border: solid 1px;} + p.pfirst, p.noindent {text-indent: 0} + span.dropcap { float: left; margin: 0 0.1em 0 0; line-height: 1 } + pre { font-style: italic; font-size: 90%; margin-left: 10%;} + +</style> + </head> + <body> + + +<pre> + +The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Story of Joan of Arc, by M. M. Mangasarian + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: The Story of Joan of Arc + The Witch--Saint + +Author: M. M. Mangasarian + +Release Date: April 24, 2014 [EBook #45479] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE STORY OF JOAN OF ARC *** + + + + +Produced by David Widger from page images generously +provided by the Internet Archive + + + + + + +</pre> + + <div style="height: 8em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h1> + THE STORY OF JOAN OF ARC <br /> <br /> THE WITCH—SAINT + </h1> + <h2> + By M. M. Mangasarian + </h2> + <h4> + Lecturer Of The Independent Religious Society <br /> From "The + Rationalist," October, 1913 + </h4> + <p> + <br /><br /><a name="linkimage-0001" id="linkimage-0001"> </a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:65%;"> + <img src="images/0003.jpg" alt="0003 " width="100%" /><br /> + </div> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <h3> + PAST NUMBERS OF THE RATIONALIST. + </h3> + <p> + No. 1. St. Francis, the Second Christ. + </p> + <p> + No. 2. Marcus Aurelius. + </p> + <p> + No. 3. Ships that Sink in the Night; or, God and the Titanic. + </p> + <p> + No. 4. What has Christ Done for the World? + </p> + <p> + No. 5. Lyman Abbott on Immortality. + </p> + <p> + No 6. Voltaire in Hades. + </p> + <p> + No. 7. The Gospel of Sport—What Shall I Do to Be Saved? Play! + </p> + <p> + No. 8. A Poet's Philosophy of Happiness—Omar Khayyam. + </p> + <p> + No. 9. A Rationalist in Home. (A Lecture in Three Parts.) Part 1 + </p> + <p> + No. 10. A Rationalist in Rome. (A Lecture in Three Parts.) Part 2 + </p> + <p> + No. 11. A Rationalist in Rome. (A Lecture in Three Parts,) Part 3 + </p> + <p> + No. 12. Jew and Christian According to Shakespeare. + </p> + <p> + No. 13 and 14. Christian Science and Common Sense. + </p> + <p> + No. 15. A Message From Abroad. + </p> + <p> + No. 16. The First Modern Man. + </p> + <p> + No. 17. The Monk and The Woman in The Garden of Allah. + </p> + <p> + No. 18. The High Cost of Living and the Higher Cost of Superstition + </p> + <p> + No. 19. The Debate between Three Clergymen and a Rationalist. + </p> + <p> + No. 20. Rationalism and Crime. + </p> + <p> + No. 21. Women and Crime. + </p> + <p> + No. 22. Was Jesus a Socialist? + </p> + <p> + No. 23. The Catholic Church and the Socialist Party. + </p> + <p> + No. 24. What is the Trouble with the World? + </p> + <p> + The above 24 lectures will be sent to any address upon receipt of $2 + </p> + <p> + Volume 2 + </p> + <p> + No. 1. Who Made the Gods? + </p> + <p> + No. 2. Marriage and Divorce, According to Rationalism. + </p> + <p> + No. 3. The American Girl. + </p> + <p> + No. 4. The Catholic Church in Politics. + </p> + <p> + No. 5. Christian and Turk. + </p> + <p> + No. 6. The Gospel According to Bernard Shaw. + </p> + <p> + No. 7 and 8. Morality Without God. + </p> + <p> + No. 9. A Letter to My Flock. + </p> + <p> + No. 10. A Missionary's Convert. + </p> + <p> + No. 11. The Ex-Priest in Paris. + </p> + <p> + The Rationalist + </p> + <p> + Is published by the Independent Religious Society semi-monthly. Each + number is to consist of a lecture by M. M. Mangasarian. Price of + subscription, per annum, $2.00. Orders should be sent to The Independent + Religious Society, 922 Lakeside Place, Chicago + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0001" id="link2H_4_0001"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + JOAN OF ARC + </h2> + <p class="pfirst"> + <span class="dropcap" style="font-size: 4.00em">T</span>his lecture on + Joan of Arc, delivered some time ago, provoked a great deal of criticism + in Chicago. The people who protested against it and wanted to punish its + author were, naturally enough, the Roman Catholics. What interests me in + Joan of Arc is not the fact that the story of her martyrdom and subsequent + canonization could be used as a weapon against the Church of Rome, but + because the story in itself is so very compelling. It is quite true that + the story also illustrates how far from infallible the Catholic Church has + been in its dealings with the Maid of Orleans—first, burning her at + the stake as a witch, and, five hundred years later, beatifying her as a + saint. The statement in my lecture which caused the greatest displeasure + was to the effect that the same church which had burnt Joan of Arc as a + witch in fourteen hundred thirty-one had sainted her in nineteen hundred + and nine. The Catholics deny that they were at all responsible for the + terrible death of the deliverer of France. This lecture will throw some + light on that question. + </p> + <p> + As related in a former lecture, it was at her shrine, in the Church of the + Sacred Heart, in Paris, last summer, that I promised myself the task of + presenting to the American people the truth about Joan of Arc. I shall + speak very plainly in this lecture, but, I am sure, without any trace of + bitterness in my heart toward anyone. I shall speak with feeling, of + course, for it is impossible not to be moved to the depths by the events + which brought a girl of nineteen to the stake—but my passion is free + from anger or prejudice. I can weep for this young woman without gnashing + my teeth on her fanatical persecutors. I am sure I can tell the truth + without lying about the Catholic Church. + </p> + <p> + But I do not wish to be sentimental, either. I have not forgiven the + unrepentant destroyers of the innocent. To convert a heretic into a saint + by trying to prove that she was not a heretic at all is not repentance; it + is sophistry. To deny that Joan suffered death at the hands of, and by the + authority of, the Vicar of Christ on earth is not a sign of regret for the + past, but a defiance of history. When the Catholics shall admit that, + through ignorance, and urged on by circumstances they could not control, + they committed the act which they have since atoned for by offering her a + heavenly crown—when, I say, the Catholics shall shed over her body + tears as genuine as those which black Othello shed over the woman he had + smothered—then we will forgive them. + </p> + <p> + But the Catholic Church will have to choose between securing our + forgiveness and retaining her infallibility. If she should repent of a + single act ever committed by her officially, she would lose her claim to + infallibility—for how can the infallible err? If, on the other hand, + she should hold to her infallibility, how can she be sorry for anything + she has ever done? If I had any influence with the Catholics I would + advise them to sacrifice infallibility for the respect of humanity. It is + much more divine to say, "I am sorry," than to say, "I am infallible." But + the Catholic Church will not take my advice. + </p> + <p> + The shrine of Joan in the Paris church is almost as eloquent as her stake + in Rouen. I have seen them both—that is to say, I have seen the spot + on which she was consumed, marked by a white slab; and I have seen the + marble figure of Joan, as a girl, in the attitude of prayer, now in the + Church of the Sacred Heart in Paris. As I stood at her shrine in this + great white church it seemed to me that, even though Joan of Arc has, at + last been made a saint, there was still a prejudice against her on the + part of the people, as well as of the priests. This is only an impression, + and I hope I am mistaken. But let me present the evidence on which I base + my misgivings: In the first place, Joan is not given the preference in the + shrine set apart for her. St. Michael, whoever he might be, occupies the + whole front of the altar, and only on the windows and the side walls do we + find any mention of Joan and the events of her heroic career. There is + also, at one end of the enclosure, as intimated before, a small marble + figure of Joan on her knees. Why does St. Michael usurp the place of honor + over the altar? Who is he? What has he done for France? In the second + place, there was not a single lighted candle at her shrine. St. Mary's + altar, a little distance off, was ablaze. St. Joseph's, too, was honored + by lighted candles. But no one was on her knees and no flame twinkled + before the sainted Joan of Arc. They say that it is almost impossible to + outlive the charge of heresy. In former times, quite frequently, even + heretics who repented of their heresies were put to death, nevertheless. + To have ever been accused, even, or suspected of heresy, is an + unpardonable crime. Joan was suspected, at least, of rebellion against + Rome, and it seemed to me, as I reflected upon what I observed in the + church, that the Catholics had canonized this village maid reluctantly, + and only under pressure, and after five hundred years of dillydallying. + </p> + <p> + But before I left the Church of the Sacred Heart there was a lighted + candle upon her altar. I lighted it. Approaching one of the candle tables, + of which there are half a dozen in the building, I purchased a long, + tapering candle, white as the lily, and I touched it with fire—I + kindled it and set it in one of the sockets to burn before the kneeling + Joan. I left my flaming candle in the Church of the Sacred Heart! I, a + non-Catholic, offered my fire to Joan, not because she had been canonized—for + I never wait for the consent or the approval of the Pope before paying + homage to anybody—but because her sweet, sad story is one of the + most moving of modern times, and her vindication one of the most + stupendous conquests of modern thought. + </p> + <p> + The Church of the Sacred Heart is one of the most beautiful in Paris. It + is built on the highest point in the city and commands a wonderful view. + As I have told you before, I have two friends who dwell on this summit—really, + a superb location. It is approached by a long flight of stairs, or by a + cog-wheel train. Before it, and all around it, sweeps the Paris of to-day, + as did the Paris of Clovis and Charlemagne, nearly fifteen hundred years + ago; the Paris of Julian, Emperor of Rome, older still; the Catholic + Paris, when kings and parlements bowed low to kiss the great toe of the + Italian Christ, or his vicar; the Paris of the Medici—red and + bloody; the Paris of the Huguenots, of Henry of Navarre, of Conde and + Colligny—sad, desolate, and in the throes of a new faith; and the + Paris of the philosophers, whose smile softened its barbarities, lit up + its darkness, and made it a city of light—<i>La ville Lumiere!</i> + There, on that splendid elevation, live my two young friends. They are + both at the age of nineteen. One of them a lad, the other a maid. The girl + is housed; the boy is exposed. Joan of Arc lives in the church—the + cathedral is her home. The Chevalier de La Barre stands on the edge of the + hill, with sun and shower falling upon his head. The Catholic Church burnt + them both at the stake—the boy and the girl; the one because he did + not tip his hat to the priest at a street procession, the other because + she believed in herself! But modern thought has vindicated both of these + outcasts. Joan now dwells in a white church, perfumed and lighted; and the + Chevalier crowns the brow of the hill with his youthful figure and + appealing gesture. The chain which tied these children to the stake in a + dark age has flowered! Is not that wonderful? I believe in the forces, the + ideas, the movement—the thought that can cause a chain to flower! + </p> + <p> + I am not going to speak this morning of the Chevalier de La Barre, to + commemorate whose memory the nationalists of France have erected this + monument, close to the Church of the Sacred Heart. He will be my theme on + another occasion. In this lecture I shall confine myself to the story of + Joan of Arc. And a strange story it is! A young girl of seventeen marches + at the head of a dilapidated and demoralized army, and leads it on to + victory against the best fighters of the world, the English, who, in the + fifteenth century, were trying to annex France to England; she is captured + by traitors, sold to the enemy for ten thousand pounds; and then she is + handed over to the church to be tried for heresy. She is tried, convicted, + and sentenced to be burned alive. This sentence, the most revolting on + record, is carried out in all its literalness, and in broad daylight, and + under the shadow of the Christian cross, and at the very doors of a great + cathedral. All this transpired in the city of Rouen, on the thirtieth day + of May, fourteen hundred thirty-one. + </p> + <p> + In order that I may enter into the spirit of the thrilling events of which + Rouen was the stage, I repaired to that city, and reverently visited the + scenes of the trial and the martyrdom of this latest saint of the Catholic + world. Words cannot convey to you the emotions which, like a storm, burst + upon me suddenly as the conductor on my train called out, "Rouen!" It was + then about a half hour to midnight, and, jumping into a carriage, I was + quickly driven to my hotel. What thoughts, and how they crowded in upon + me, as soon as I laid my head upon my pillow. My brain was too active to + permit of sleep. I imagined I was living in <i>the year fourteen hundred + thirty-one</i>, and that I had just reached this city on the eve of the + martyrdom of Joan. "To-morrow," I whispered to myself, "Joan of Arc will + be led to the stake." Again and again I repeated to my pillow this + shuddering intelligence. "What," I exclaimed to myself, "a young woman who + saved France by her courage is going to be committed to the flames in this + very city <i>tomorrow!</i>" I could not believe it possible. I could not + believe that there was folly enough, or hatred enough, or stupidity + enough, in the world for so desperate a deed. But, alas, it was true. With + my eyes closed, I fancied I saw the throngs marching through the streets—consisting + of peasants, of merchants, of priests, of princes—to see a girl of + nineteen burned in the fire, and in all that throng there was not one who + had either a kind word or thought for her—her who had given them a + country to live in. Abandoned, hated and spat upon, she was left to suffer + the cruelest punishment that human <i>inhumanity</i> could devise, or the + most perverse imagination invent. A girl of nineteen burned alive! "Oh, + God!" The words escaped my lips in spite of me. Then I turned about and + called upon <i>Humanity</i>. But in the fifteenth century God and Humanity + were both hard of hearing. Then I called upon <i>Science</i> and <i>Reason</i>. + But these were not yet born. "There is no help then," I whispered to + myself, and my heart swelled within me with indignation, and I became + desperate, realizing my helplessness. + </p> + <p> + With my head upon my pillow during that first night I spent in Rouen, I + tried to penetrate into the motives for the persecution of Joan. This + brave girl was feared because she was superior to her age. She provoked + the jealousy of her inferiors. Her independence and originality alarmed + both the Church and the State. Her ability to take the initiative, and her + courage to disagree with her spiritual teachers was a menace to the + authority of the priest with the keys, and the king with the sword. The + English would not admit that a mere girl, a Domremy peasant, tending her + father's cows, could have the genius to whip them—the most powerful + warriors of Europe. The Catholic Church, on the other hand, would not + forgive Joan for distinguishing herself without their help. For a woman to + eclipse the Holy Church and humiliate a powerful State, was a crime + punishable by death. + </p> + <p> + In less than two years' time Joan had saved France, after the prayers of + the Church and the armies of the nation had failed ignominiously. In the + opinion of the world of that day there was only one power, the devil's, + that could outwit the Church. It was not denied that Joan had driven the + victorious armies of the enemy out of France, and made a conquered people + free again; but it was argued that she had achieved this triumph, not by + the help of God, but by the instrumentality of the devil. In those days, + anything, however praiseworthy, if accomplished without the permission and + cooperation of the Church, was the work of the devil. Joan had consulted + her own heart, instead of the village confessor. That was her heresy. Joan + had seen visions and heard voices on her own account. That is the + independence which, if encouraged, or even recognized, would overthrow the + Catholic Church. No one is allowed to receive revelations at first hand. + Even God is not permitted to speak except through his vicar on earth. In + short, Joan was a <i>protestant</i>, inasmuch as she not only had direct + relations with heaven, but she refused to allow the Church to be the judge + as to whether her voices were from God or from Satan. During all the agony + of her long trial, every effort was made to induce her to allow the Church + to be the judge of the nature of her visions. Joan refused the test. There + was no doubt about her heresy. She believed herself capable of judging. + That was her unpardonable sin. + </p> + <p> + Still imagining myself in Rouen, in the year fourteen hundred thirty-one, + I said to myself, "I must arise early in the morning and go to the old + market place to catch a glimpse of the wonderful woman when she leaves the + tower for the stake." As the picture of what I would see on the following + day arose before my closed eyes, I trembled. "I will not let them burn + her," I cried passionately. But, alas, what could one man do against king, + pope, and the mob! And I tossed in my bed like one in a cage who is + conscious of his helplessness against iron bars. + </p> + <p> + Suddenly, a thought struck me, as the lightning strikes a tree. "This is + fourteen hundred thirty-one," I repeated to myself. "I must get up at once + and repair to the palace of the Bishop of Beauvais, the priest who holds + in the hollow of his hand the fate of the bravest maid in history. If I + could only have a half hour with him," I said, "to pour into his ears my + protest, my pleadings, my scorn, my prayers; or, if I could tell him of + the time when Joan will have a shrine in a Catholic Church!—he might + relent and hearken unto reason?" With these thoughts in my mind I jumped + out of my bed, I lit the candle, I put on my clothes. Then, in haste, I + walked out into the night, seeking my way in the streets of the strange + city now deserted. By the help of the moon and the stars of that night in + May, <i>fourteen hundred thirty-one</i>, I traced my way to the imposing + Cathedral of St. Ouen, standing like a towering shadow in the cold light + of the night, and close to which lived the Bishop of Beauvais. + </p> + <p> + I knocked upon the Bishop's door. "Open, open," I cried, as in the dead of + night I kept pounding upon the door. "I wish to come in," I cried. "I wish + to save the Church from an indelible stain, I wish to protect the honor of + humanity." "Open, open," I cried, again and again, and in the stillness of + the night the noise of my blows reached far and wide. Louder and louder + still I cried to the Bishop to open the door. "I wish to rescue France and + England from committing an act of infamy; I wish to save history from an + unspeakable shame. Let me in, Bishop! I come to protect you against the + execration of posterity, against eternal damnation! Open, open the door!" + I shouted. I kept pounding upon the door, long and loud, on the eve of + that foul day in fourteen hundred thirty-one. I grew impatient with + waiting for the door to open, and my voice, which a moment before swept up + and down the whole gamut of hope and despair—pleading, shouting, + sobbing—now became faint and feeble. + </p> + <p> + I could not arouse the Bishop. He was fast asleep. Then I was silent + myself. Suddenly I heard a far away whisper. It did not come from the + Episcopal palace, nor from the Cathedral close by, yet I was sure I heard + some one speaking. I listened again. I could now hear more clearly. "I am + coming, I am coming," was repeated in caressing accents. "I am coming, to + open the door, to awaken the Bishop, to usher in a more joyous day for + humanity. I will extinguish the fires of persecution, turn executioners + into teachers, disarm superstition, and make the whole world sane. In that + day Joan will triumph over her foes and make their churches her + mausoleum." It was the voice of Reason! But it took five hundred years for + that faint whisper to swell into a mighty chorus, swinging around the + globe. That prophecy has been fulfilled, the Bishop's door opened, and the + Church yielded to the clamor of civilization, and changed Joan's stake + into the shrine where I lit my candle in her honor, in the Church of the + Sacred Heart. She is no longer a heretic, she has become a saint. Her + tears have changed into pearls, her tomb into a cathedral, where she + sleeps in pomp on the bosom that once stung her to death. + </p> + <p> + But I was not in Rouen in fourteen hundred thirty-one; I was there five + hundred years too late. The day after I arrived in the city, I went to the + market place, but, instead of a procession with candles and torches, with + stakes and fagots, I found commerce, industry, labor, in full possession + of the great square. Prosperous looking men and women met and greeted one + another pleasantly; farmers were selling fruit and vegetables; the women, + flowers. Even the priests one came across smiled as they saw the happy + countenances of the people. What a change! Common sense has sweetened + human nature and flooded the mind with the light that destroys + superstition and makes all men brothers. The guide pointed out to me the + white marble slab marking the spot on which Joan of Arc met her death. + "Upon this place stood the stake of Joan of Arc. The ashes of the glorious + virgin were thrown into the Seine." This is the inscription on the slab + which was placed there by the municipality in eighteen hundred ninety-one. + </p> + <p> + Close to this same spot the citizens of Rouen have erected a fountain, in + the form of a monument, to the same heroic maiden. I stood and watched the + playful waters as they fell with a liquid plash into the marble basin + below. Presently, a woman came along with her pitcher. The stake at which + Joan of Arc was burned to death has become a fountain, to which the people + now come to slake their thirst. Walking up to the woman, I said, "What + fountain is this?" + </p> + <p> + "Ah, monsieur," she exclaimed, "behold the fountain of Joan of Arc." + </p> + <p> + "But she was a heretic," I remarked. I can never forget her smile. The sun + had arisen in her eyes. "We live in the twentieth century," she replied. + And, unconsciously, we both heaved a sigh of relief. I rubbed my eyes to + be sure we were not living in the middle ages, when Rationalism was still + a babe in swaddling clothes, and Theology was lord of all. This is the + twentieth century—for we are drinking at the fountain of Joan of Arc + instead of carrying fagots to her stake! One of the sunniest spots in my + memory will be my meeting with this peasant woman, with her pitcher, at + the fountain of Joan of Arc. + </p> + <p> + But my object in this lecture is to help clear some obscure questions in + connection with the trial, martyrdom and subsequent canonization of this + girl of nineteen. I wish to bring about a more intelligent appreciation of + the story of a young shepherdess, beginning from the day she left her home + in Domremy, to the fiery scaffold; and thence to a place among the saints + in the Catholic calendar. This is the only instance in Catholic history of + a person once destroyed as a heretic who has afterwards received the + highest honors within the gift of the Church. In fourteen hundred + thirty-one an infallible body of ecclesiastics pronounced this young woman + to be "a child of perdition, a sorceress, a seducer, a harlot and a + heretic." Five hundred years after, another infallible body of + ecclesiastics belonging to the same church pronounced the same "harlot" + and "heretic" to be "angelic" and "divine." One infallible pope allowed + her to be burned in fourteen hundred thirty-one; another infallible pope + denounced her murderers as detestable criminals—which shows how + fallible is infallibility. + </p> + <p> + A great many untruths are being circulated to help clear this + contradiction. The clergy are proclaiming from the housetops that it was + not the church that tried and condemned Joan of Arc to torture and death + in fourteen hundred thirty-one; on the contrary, it was the church, they + say, which has just vindicated her memory and beatified her with superb + ceremonies. History, however, gives a different version of the affair. + Before proceeding to describe the trial and condemnation of Joan of Arc, + let me state the attitude of the Rationalist toward Joan of Arc's claims + to inspiration. We can do justice to a woman of her description without + believing in miraculous predictions. Joan of Arc claimed to have seen + visions and to have heard voices, which assured her of her divine mission. + She was thirteen years of age, according to her testimony, when she felt + her first thrill. The visions were repeated. One day, at about noon, in + the summer time, and while working on her father's farm, close to the + whispering trees, she saw a radiance out of which came a voice which she + fancied was the voice of an angel or of a saint. It was not at all strange + that she should hear voices. All her education had prepared her for them. + She had been told how others had seen angels and heard voices. The + literature of the Church was full of the miraculous in those days. It was + the ambition of every believer to receive visits from the other world, and + to be told secrets. Joan, the little Domremy girl, shared these ambitions. + In her case the wish was father to the vision. She heard the voices and + saw the faces which her heart coveted. How do we explain her "voices" and + her "visions"? The question is a very simple one, unless we have a leaning + for theology. The voices that Joan heard were those that came from her own + heart. It was her own dreams she saw in the sunlight. + </p> + <p> + The young woman had mused over the acts of brigandage of the invading army + and their French allies; she had seen the smoke of the burning villages + and had heard the wail of her peasant neighbors. The distress of her + people had often melted her into tears and wrung many a sigh from her + lips. She imagined the whole country summoning her to the rescue. So + earnest was she that her thoughts assumed form and shape, and became + vocal. Thus, out of the substance of her own soul she fashioned the + visions which she beheld. She felt herself set apart to be the saviour of + France. The brilliance of that thought darkened every other object in life—home, + parents, money, marriage! + </p> + <p> + To those who will not be satisfied with this explanation, I beg to say + that if the voices were really supernatural, then they should be held + responsible for the cruel death to which they led or drove the young + woman. Why did her voices, if they were divine, desert her when she needed + their help most? Why did they not save her from prison and the stake? And + which of us would like to be guided to the chambers of the inquisition, + and the flames of the stake by "heavenly voices"? Moreover, if these + voices came from God, why did they not speak to the English king, or to + the Roman pope, in behalf of Joan, when she called on them for help? Why + did they not assume the responsibility for the acts for which she was + destroyed? Voices and visions which induce a young girl to go to the help + of a perishing country only to use her victories for the benefit of a + depraved and imbecile prince like Charles VII, and desert the young woman + herself to be "done" to death! Defend us against them! + </p> + <p> + Returning to the question of the responsibility of the Catholic Church for + the fate of Joan, there are these points to be touched upon. Being a + matter of history that on the last day of May, fourteen hundred + thirty-one, this young woman was publicly burned in the City of Rouen, in + the square of the cathedral, the question arises: Who put her to death? + Another important question is: Why was she put to death? And when we have + answered these questions we will be in a position to discuss the much more + important question of: Why Joan of Arc was recently translated into a + saint by the pope. + </p> + <p> + Twenty-five years after the burning of Joan, when the city of Rouen was + restored to the French king, and the English were finally driven across + the Channel, it was decided to review the evidence upon which the Maid had + been convicted and put to death. This was done; and with the result that + she was acquitted of all the charges of heresy, insubordination to the + Church, adultery, witchcraft, etc. What do you think was the motive of + this revision? The French king had begun to realize the disgrace to which + he had been exposed by the condemnation of the Maid as a witch. Being + exceedingly pious—piety and crime were united in him as in many + others of that day—he was tormented by the thought that the young + woman who had assisted him in his war against the English, and had been + the means of securing for him the crown of France, and had also officiated + at his coronation in the cathedral of Rheims, was condemned as an agent of + satan by the Church; which, if true, it would make him not only the target + for the ridicule and derision of the whole Christian world, but, also, an + illicit king of the French, who might refuse their allegiance to him + because he was made king by a witch and not by an apostle of God. It is no + wonder that a superstitious man like Charles VII, in a superstitious age, + trembled, not only for his crown, but, also, for his life. Therefore, in + order to make his succession legitimate it was necessary to prove that + Joan was not a witch, but a true messenger of God. For if Joan was a + witch, Charles VII was not king "by the grace of God," but by a trick of + the devil. In self-defense the king of France was not only compelled to + reopen the case against Joan, now that he was free from English dictation, + but he also indicated in advance to the ecclesiastics the conclusion they + would have to arrive at. The king could not have allowed, and he would not + have allowed, the ecclesiastical council, convened at his request, to + arrive at any other verdict than the one which would prove to France and + Christendom that he was made king at Rheims, not by a witch who was + excommunicated by the Church and flung into the fire, but by a real and + inspired apostle of God. + </p> + <p> + Of course, it is a matter of history that it was by the help of Joan that + Charles VII became King of France. + </p> + <p> + As already intimated, at the coronation ceremony Joan was not only + present, but she assisted the Archbishop when the latter placed the crown + upon the king's head. The inauguration was practically the work of Joan. + It was the fulfillment of a prediction she had repeatedly made, that she + would conquer the English and crown the French king in the City of Rheims. + If she was a witch the coronation was invalid. The ceremony of the + anointing of a king is one of the most solemn in the Catholic Church. The + condemnation of Joan as a witch had not only stripped this ceremony of its + sacredness, but it had also made it null and void, nay, more, a blasphemy. + How could a king, anointed by the help of a witch, be the king of a + Christian nation? To appreciate this argument we must remember how bigoted + the people were in the Middle Ages. In self-defense, therefore, Charles + VII was compelled to prove to the French, and to the whole world, that the + woman to whom he owed his elevation to the throne was not a heretic. + </p> + <p> + Let us recapitulate. The King of France ordered the Church to make out a + new certificate for Joan. The Church obeyed the French king, even as the + same Church twenty-five years earlier had obeyed the King of England and + condemned Joan to death. When the English were masters of France, the + Catholic Church pleased them by delivering up the conqueror of England to + be burned alive; when the English were driven out of the country and the + French were again in control this sentence was reversed and Joan was + proven to have been a dutiful child of the Church. Thus it will be seen + that the Church swung with the English when the English ruled the land, + and she swung with the French when the French had driven the English out + of the country. The Church was with England at one time, and she was with + France at another—but never with Joan. I am milder in my criticism + than the facts warrant. I am making strenuous efforts to speak with + immoderation of an "infallible institution." + </p> + <p> + But why was it to the interest of the English to have Joan declared a + witch? Their motives were as personal as those of the French king. The + English felt humiliated to think that a mere woman had whipped them, and + therefore they were determined to prove that she was more than a woman—an + agent of the devil. There was no secret about this. Their motive was very + plain. It was to their interest to show that Joan was the personification + of satan, and that consequently the English should not be blamed for + running away from her presence, because who could withstand the devil? The + English army did not go down before a girl, but before a sorceress. Even + as the King of France did not wish it said that he owed his victory over + the English to a witch, or that he was made king by an apostate, the + English did not wish it said that they were conquered by a saint, for that + would make God the enemy of the English. One king wanted Joan damned, and + the Church accommodated him by damning her; another wanted Joan beatified, + and the Church beatified her. + </p> + <p> + It is admitted that the English could not have burned Joan as a witch + without the consent of the Church. They could have burned her as a + prisoner, but that would not have answered their purpose—she must be + declared a witch in order to vindicate the amour propre of the English + people. It is the exclusive prerogative of the Church to decide questions + of orthodoxy or heresy. No king has the right to admit or exclude any one + from the communion of the Church. Whether or not Joan was a witch was a + theological question and could only be decided by the ecclesiastical + court. Neither could the King of France declare Joan of Arc innocent of + heresy without the consent of the Church. It follows then that the + principal actor in the trial, the condemnation and the death of the young + woman under the English, and her subsequent vindication and beatification, + was the Church of Rome, since without its consent the English could not + have made a heretic of her, nor the French a saviour and a saint. A + secular government may declare who shall be its military heroes, or who + shall be court-martialed and disgraced, but only the Church enjoys the + right to damn or to canonize. This point is so clinching that even the + most zealous papist must admit that at one time, when all Europe was + Catholic—England as much so as France—and the pope was as + supreme in one country as in the other, a girl of nineteen, who had + rendered heroic services to her oppressed country, could not have been + declared a heretic and cast into the fire at the door of a cathedral, in + the presence of bishops, priests, a cardinal and a representative of the + holy Inquisition, without the knowledge and consent of the Holy Roman + Catholic Church. + </p> + <p> + An attempt has been made to throw the entire blame of the proceedings + against Joan of Arc upon the English. There is no doubt about the anxiety + of the English to punish the Maid who had robbed them of the spoils of + their victory over the French and brought dishonor upon their arms. But a + mere military punishment, as already intimated, would not have been + sufficient to satisfy the English—she had to be excommunicated from + Christendom as one possessed of the devil. That was the only way to save + the English of the disgrace of having been beaten by a woman, and the + records show that the Church, instead of reluctantly carrying out the + wishes of the English, was more than pleased to bring Joan to the stake. + Letters were written from the office of the Inquisition to the English + king, complaining against his lukewarmness in the matter of prosecuting + the young woman. The Catholic University of Paris, also, sent a special + communication to King Henry of England to remind him of his duty to help + the Church to put down heresy. The English were urged to hand Joan over to + the bishop and the Inquisition, that the ecclesiastics might proceed with + her trial without delay. And when finally Joan faced her judges, forty in + number, every one of them was an ecclesiastic, and out of the forty, + thirty-eight were Frenchmen. + </p> + <p> + Moreover, the Archbishop of Rheims, who was also Chancellor of France, + wrote a letter which is still in existence, in which he congratulated the + French upon the capture of Joan of Arc, whom he denounces as a heretic—"a + proud and rebellious child who refuses to submit to the Church." Being the + superior of the Bishop of Beauvais, who was in charge of the trial, the + Archbishop could have stopped the prosecution if he had the least sympathy + or pity for the Maid. But to try to save a heretic would be the worst kind + of heresy. That explains the utter desertion of Joan by all France—people, + priest and king. + </p> + <p> + In this connection a comparison should be made between the zeal of the + clergy to bring Joan to trial for heresy and the slowness and indifference + with which the Church proceeded to obey the summons of the King of France + twenty-five years after to reinstate her into the fellowship of Catholic + Christendom. The records show that it required considerable urging and + manoeuvring on the part of the French government to bring about a revision + of the ecclesiastical sentence against the Maid. As long as Nicholas V was + pope nothing was accomplished. The case was reopened under Pope Calixtus. + Not until it was realized that further delay in the matter would greatly + irritate, not only the French king, but also the populace, now freed from + English dominion and seeking to live down the evil reputation of having + harbored an apostate in their midst, did Rome stir itself in the matter. + It will be seen that it was not the pope nor the Church that took the + initiative in behalf of Joan of Arc. The Church only yielded to the + pressure from the State, that had now become powerful. Had the English + remained in control of France the Maid of Orleans would never have been + remembered by the Catholic Church, much less restored to honor and + immortality. + </p> + <p> + "We do not deny," answer the defenders of the Church, "that <i>some</i> + bishops and even cardinals persecuted Joan of Arc to death. But is it just + to hold the whole Church responsible for the crime of an insignificant + minority?" This is the main defense of the Catholics against the arguments + of the Rationalists and the facts of history. Be it noted that I am not + trying to abuse the Catholics; I am only sorry that they should be + unwilling, even at this date, to say, "We are sorry." To commit mistakes + is human. But why should the Church move heaven and earth to prove that it + has never committed a mistake? The attempt is also made to prove that the + ecclesiastics who are responsible for the death of Joan were wicked men + and have been repudiated by the Church. To this is added the further + defense that it was the gold of the English which corrupted these priests. + But such a defense, I regret to say, does not reflect credit upon the + intelligence or the honor of the Church of Rome. In this day of general + information it is impossible for anyone to wrap up the facts of history in + a napkin, as it were, and put them away where no one may have access to + them. The judges of Joan were all ordained ministers of the Church. The + presiding priest was a bishop—the bishop of Beauvais. He was + assisted by a cardinal, a vice-president of the Inquisition, and a number + of other ecclesiastics who were connected with the University of Paris. Is + it reasonable to suppose that the Inquisition and the Catholic University + of Paris, and all the clergy of England and France represented only a + discredited section of the Church? + </p> + <p> + It is the pride of the Catholics that their church has never been divided + or schismatic, and that it has been one and indivisible "always and + everywhere." How is this claim to be reconciled with the excuse that a + considerable portion of the Catholic Church in the fifteenth century + openly ignored the authority of the pope and did as they pleased without + incurring the displeasure of the Hierarchy for their insubordination? + Furthermore, if only a part of the church persecuted the young woman, what + did the rest of the church do to save her? We would like the names of the + priests who interceded in her behalf. It does not give me a bit of + pleasure to prove the Catholic Church responsible for this as for many + other burnings at the stake, but it gives me pleasure to be able to show + that any institution claiming infallibility, to defend that claim must + persecute. And why do I take pleasure in proving this to be inevitable? It + might open the eyes of the religious world to the danger of + supernaturalism. If the Christians no longer burn people they do not like, + it is not because their Bibles have been altered, but because they no + longer believe in them as they used to. It is good news to report that + supernaturalism is waning, for it means the progress of science and + sanity. + </p> + <p> + There is still another point to be touched upon: When all Europe heard of + the fate that had befallen a girl of nineteen through the machinations, + let us say, of a few naughty Catholic priests—what did Rome do to + these same priests who had so disgraced their "holy" profession, as well + as brought lasting shame upon civilization? Is not this a pertinent + question? Joan's trial lasted for four months. Not only France and + England, but all Christendom was interested in the outcome. During all + this time not only was there not a word of protest from Rome, but what is + more significant, shortly after the trial and condemnation of Joan, the + pope rewarded her accusers and persucutors with ecclesiastical promotion. + Again, I must hasten to explain that I am not interested in embarrassing + the Catholics; my point is to strike at <i>dogma</i>—which turns + hearts into stone, and makes of the intellect a juggler's instrument. Joan + was sacrificed, nay,—the honor of France, of Europe, of + civilization, of humanity—was flung into the fire with Joan, to save—what? + Dogma! + </p> + <p> + Not only did the church fail to punish a single one of the forty + ecclesiastics who tried Joan, not to mention hundreds of others who + cooperated with them to bring about her destruction, but, as intended, + gifts were conferred upon the principal actors in this awful drama. + Roussel, one of the ecclesiastics who figured prominently in the + proceedings, was given the archepiscopacy of the city of Rouen—the + very city in which a girl not yet twenty, and who had served France on the + battlefield, and brought victory to her flag, was beaten and burnt to + death. Pasquier, an ordinary priest when he was serving as one of the + judges, was made a bishop after the execution of Joan. Two others, Gilles + and Le Fevre, were also advanced to upper ranks in the church. Thomas + Courcelles, one of the most merciless judges of Joan—who voted in + favor of subjecting the prisoner to physical torture to compel her to + admit she was a witch—this priest with the unenviable reputation was + also promoted to a lucrative post in the famous church of Notre Dame, in + Paris. Finally, the man who engineered the trial, who presided over the + sessions, and to whom Joan said, "You are the cause of my misfortunes"—the + Bishop of Beauvais, the man whom all Catholics justly execrate today—even + he was rewarded by the "Holy Father"; he was given the episcopal seat of + Lisieux. Does it look as though the crime against Joan were the work of a + discredited minority in the Catholic Church? I repeat, it was dogma, it + was revelation, it was infallibility, it was supernaturalism, and not this + or that priest—that should be held guilty. + </p> + <p> + To meet these arguments the Catholic apologists call attention to the fact + that the church "has a horror of blood," and that it has never put anyone + to death for any cause whatever. But this is true only in a Pickwickian + sense. It is like the head saying to the hands, "I have never committed + the least violence against anyone." The hands, it is evident, commit the + acts, but whose hands are they? The hands only obey the head, and for the + head to blame the hands for carrying out its orders, realizing its + thoughts and wishes, would not even be amusing, much less convincing. It + is the judge, or the court, that takes the life of the culprit, for + instance, and not the executioner. The Catholic Church demands the death + of the heretic. Is this denied? Read Thomas Aquinas, the most honored + saint and theologian of Catholicism; read the decrees of the general + councils of the church and the encyclicals of St. Peter's successors, and + a thousand, thousand proofs will be found in them to substantiate the + statement. It is the Bible that commands the death of the heretic. No + church founded on the Bible can afford to be tolerant. The theory of + Christianity as well as of Mohammedanism is that the sword which the king + carries has been blessed and put in his hands that he may put down the + heretics. The civil authorities then, in bringing Joan of Arc to the fire + were carrying out the instructions of the forty ecclesiastical judges who + condemned her to death. Had these judges found her innocent, the state + could not have destroyed her life; it was the will of the priestly court + that she should die, and the secular authorities fulfilled its wish. + </p> + <p> + But was Joan a heretic? Strenuous efforts are made to show that she was + not. This point is a vital one. The church, in self-defense, is bound to + produce arguments to prove that Joan of Arc was an orthodox, obedient, and + submissive child of the church. If she was not orthodox, then the church + has sainted a heretic in the person of Joan of Arc. One of the questions + they asked her at the trial was whether she would be willing to submit the + question of her "visions" to the church; that is to say, would she consent + to the findings of an ecclesiastical court concerning herself and her + mission? To this the answer was that she held herself responsible only to + God. This was considered a rebellious answer, and it was—from the + church's point of view. According to Catholic theology the church is + divided into two branches,—the church militant, which is composed of + the pope, the priests and their flock; and the church triumphant, which is + presided over by God and the saints in glory. Joan said she was prepared + to submit to the church triumphant—the church on high, that is to + say, to God, but to nobody else. This also was a heresy. Her clerical + judges insisted that to be a good Catholic she must bow to the will of the + church on earth—the pope and his representatives. Her heresy then + was both real and serious. She appealed from the pope to God. She placed + her own conscience above the authority of the church. She believed in + private judgment, the exercise of which is forbidden by the church. In + refusing to let the pope act as the middleman between God and herself she + was threatening the very existence of the papacy. There is then no doubt + that both by her independent conduct and by her original answers Joan + attacked the very fundamentals of Catholicism. It follows, then, that the + pope a few years ago made a saint out of a heretic. + </p> + <p> + Although Joan was an uncultivated girl, able neither to read nor write, + she was gifted with good common sense. She saw at a glance that if she + were to submit to the church she would thereby be casting doubts upon the + genuineness of her "visions." She preferred to go to the stake rather than + do that. She was really between two fires: the priests threatened her + body; God in her conscience threatened her soul. She decided to obey the + voice within. The decision cost her her life. + </p> + <p> + Some of the questions put to her and the answers which Joan made are + really remarkable. They show the craft of her judges, on the one hand, and + the courage and common sense of the victim, on the other. + </p> + <p> + "Will you not submit to our holy father, the Pope?" they asked her. "Bring + me before the Pope, and I will answer," she replied. In other words, they + were trying to have her admit that she had no right to think for herself + or to exercise any independence at all. But she was too serious and + earnest a person to subscribe to any such doctrine. She had never + understood that to be a Catholic meant to be a bondswoman. "Take care," + she said, turning her fiery glance upon her inquisitors, "take care that + you do not put yourselves in the place of God." By such an answer, the + young woman, still in her teens, had shot the Catholic Church in the + heart. + </p> + <p> + The nature of the charges against Joan as formulated by her judges also + goes to prove that she was considered a heretic and condemned to death for + that offense. The eleventh charge against her reads: "She has adored her + saints without taking clerical advice." Charge twelfth reads: "She refuses + to submit her conduct and revelation to the church." When asked if she + would obey the church, her reply was, "God first being served." Luther + said no more than that—and the Catholic church was split in two. + Everything goes to show that the Domremy peasant girl was a private + thinker, that is to say, a heretic. Listen to this: "I will believe that + our Holy Father, the pope of Rome and the bishops and other churchmen are + for the guarding of the Christian faith and the punishment of heretics, <i>but + as for me and my facts, I will only submit to the church of heaven</i>." + To be sure that is insubordination; it is placing herself not only on an + equality with the pope, but even above him. Of course, Joan was not a + Rationalist—far from it—but she was an independent Catholic—that + is to say—not subject to the church—and that is heresy. Is it + any wonder that her sentence read: "Therefore we pronounce you a rotten + limb, and as such to be lopped off from the church." And the reason this + sentence gave satisfaction to the Catholics all over the world was because + such initiative and self-respect as Joan had manifested, if tolerated, + would bring about the collapse of the infallible authority of the church. + The University of Paris wrote to the pope, to the king of England and the + bishops, lauding the priests who had purged the church of this dangerous + girl with her "I think so," or "I believe so,"—with the emphasis on + the "I." In this same letter the Bishop of Beauvais, the evil genius of + Joan, to whom she said, when she saw the stake awaiting her, "Bishop, I + die through you!" is commended for "his great gravity and holy way of + proceeding, which ought to be most satisfactory to all." + </p> + <p> + It took five hundred years for the Catholic Church to discover that the + young woman burnt as a heretic was really a saint. But the church did not + make this discovery until modern thought, benign and brave, had taken the + outcast girl under its protection. The French nation had already made a + national heroine of her, when the Vatican decided to enroll her name among + the hallowed ones in its calendar. The beatification of Joan was brought + about ostensibly by the report that certain sufferers from cancer, and + other incurable maladies, had been completely cured by praying to Joan of + Arc for help. The Maid had become a miracle worker, and hence worthy to + receive a medal, as it were, from the pope. Joan is now a new income as + well as a saint. + </p> + <p> + Joan owes her Vindication to the Rationalists of France. The man in recent + years whose books, position and influence did more than anything else to + bring about a new attitude toward Joan of Arc, was Marcelin Berthelot, who + now sleeps in the Pantheon as one of the glories of his country. A few + years ago, I received an invitation to visit him at Bellevue near Paris. + To give you an idea of the great man who did so much to rejuvenate Europe + and throw its whole weight on the side of justice to the Martyr—woman + of France. I shall reproduce in this connection what I said about him + after my interview with him: + </p> + <p> + "Who are the Rationalists?" is one of the questions frequently asked. + Well, they are the intellectual leaders of the world, as what I learned + about Berthelot clearly shows. He was the man upon whom two European + sovereigns had conferred the highest decorations in their power for + services rendered to human progress,—whom his own countrymen had + honored by making him a senator for life; who twice had been appointed + minister of foreign affairs; who had been elected an honorary member of + all the scientific associations of the world; upon whom the Royal + Scientific Society of London has bestowed its most coveted honors; who is + the perpetual secretary of the Academy of Science of Paris; a member of + the Academy Française, and, therefore, one of the immortals; and whose + volumes, inventions, discoveries and contributions have placed modern + civilization under inexpressible obligations to him. With all these + dignities and titles, richly deserved, M. Berthelot is as gracious in his + manners, as unassuming, as childlike and modest, as one could desire. He + displays all the charms of the real man of worth—the man of genius. + </p> + <p> + Though in his seventy-sixth year, the sage and diplomat still possessed + the vigor of a man of fifty, pursuing his studies and interesting himself + in the politics of his time, with the ardor and fervor of youth. The + accumulation of his years and his indefatigable labors had by no means + impaired the faculties of his mind, being still regarded by his countrymen + as one of the most fertile brains and sanest intellects of modern Europe. + </p> + <p> + Two years previously all France, one might say, had met in Paris to + celebrate at the Sorbonne the completion of Berthelot's fifty years of + intellectual labor. It was on this occasion that the foreign potentates + sent their delegates and decorations to him. Every civilized country was + represented at the festivities by its foremost men of letters and + diplomats, while all the senators of France, the president of the + republic, the members of his cabinet, and all the heads of the colleges + were assembled to applaud the <i>master</i> whose half a century of study + and service had so greatly augmented the horizon of man and increased the + light of the world. + </p> + <p> + When this distinguished scientist was admitted into the French Academy, + Jules Lemaitre, in his address of welcome, declared that Berthelot was the + real creator of the modern industrial era, which had multiplied the + resources of man a hundredfold. He called Berthelot the discoverer of + modern chemistry, which has in so short a time transformed the face of the + earth, and which holds the secret of the solution of the social and + economic problems of the day. "'Chemistry" declares Berthelot, "'is a new + gospel, which brings tidings of great power to mankind.'" "It will put an + end to the cruel struggle of classes, and make of warlike politics, now + one of the scourges of nations, a lost art. It will do this by placing + within the reach of all an inexhaustible wealth of food and raiment, + thereby curing man forever of the disease of discontent." + </p> + <p> + "There are only two things worth living for," said M. Berthelot, in an + address at the Palais de Trocadero before six thousand Frenchmen—"the + love of truth and the love of one's fellows." + </p> + <p> + That <i>love of truth</i> opened for Joan the doors of the Catholic + Church, shut against her five hundred years ago and it opened to Berthelot + the doors of the Pantheon—the Temple of the Immortals! + </p> + <p> + A final word. I have as much compassion and sympathy for the Catholics as + I have for the martyred girl—indeed more, since they need more. Joan + has been vindicated by the broader and more benign thought of this! age. + The same serene and sweet power will transform the Catholic Church and + make it one of the most progressive forces of our America. I have + delivered this lecture to hasten that lovely day! + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0002" id="linkimage-0002"> </a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:65%;"> + <img src="images/0042.jpg" alt="0042 " width="100%" /><br /> + </div> + <div style="height: 6em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + + + + + + + +<pre> + + + + + +End of Project Gutenberg's The Story of Joan of Arc, by M. M. Mangasarian + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE STORY OF JOAN OF ARC *** + +***** This file should be named 45479-h.htm or 45479-h.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/4/5/4/7/45479/ + +Produced by David Widger from page images generously +provided by the Internet Archive + + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, +set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to +copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to +protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project +Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you +charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you +do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the +rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose +such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and +research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do +practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is +subject to the trademark license, especially commercial +redistribution. + + + +*** START: FULL LICENSE *** + +THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE +PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK + +To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free +distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work +(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project +Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project +Gutenberg-tm License available with this file or online at + www.gutenberg.org/license. + + +Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic works + +1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to +and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property +(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all +the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy +all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession. +If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the +terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or +entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. + +1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be +used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who +agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few +things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works +even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See +paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement +and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. See paragraph 1.E below. + +1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation" +or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the +collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an +individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are +located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from +copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative +works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg +are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project +Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by +freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of +this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with +the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by +keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project +Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others. + +1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern +what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in +a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check +the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement +before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or +creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project +Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning +the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United +States. + +1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: + +1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate +access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently +whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the +phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project +Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, +copied or distributed: + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + +1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived +from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is +posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied +and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees +or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work +with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the +work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 +through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the +Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or +1.E.9. + +1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted +with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution +must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional +terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked +to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the +permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work. + +1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this +work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. + +1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this +electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without +prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with +active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project +Gutenberg-tm License. + +1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, +compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any +word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or +distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than +"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version +posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org), +you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a +copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon +request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other +form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. + +1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, +performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works +unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. + +1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing +access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided +that + +- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from + the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method + you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is + owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he + has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the + Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments + must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you + prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax + returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and + sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the + address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to + the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation." + +- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies + you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he + does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm + License. You must require such a user to return or + destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium + and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of + Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any + money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the + electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days + of receipt of the work. + +- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free + distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set +forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from +both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael +Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the +Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. + +1.F. + +1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable +effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread +public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm +collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain +"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or +corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual +property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a +computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by +your equipment. + +1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right +of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project +Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all +liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal +fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT +LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE +PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE +TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE +LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR +INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH +DAMAGE. + +1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a +defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can +receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a +written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you +received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with +your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with +the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a +refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity +providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to +receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy +is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further +opportunities to fix the problem. + +1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth +in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO OTHER +WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO +WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. + +1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied +warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. +If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the +law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be +interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by +the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any +provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. + +1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the +trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone +providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance +with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, +promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works, +harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, +that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do +or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm +work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any +Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause. + + +Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm + +Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of +electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers +including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists +because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from +people in all walks of life. + +Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the +assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's +goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will +remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure +and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations. +To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation +and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 +and the Foundation information page at www.gutenberg.org + + +Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive +Foundation + +The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit +501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the +state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal +Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification +number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent +permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. + +The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S. +Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered +throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at 809 +North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email +contact links and up to date contact information can be found at the +Foundation's web site and official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact + +For additional contact information: + Dr. Gregory B. Newby + Chief Executive and Director + gbnewby@pglaf.org + +Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation + +Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide +spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of +increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be +freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest +array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations +($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt +status with the IRS. + +The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating +charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United +States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a +considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up +with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations +where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To +SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any +particular state visit www.gutenberg.org/donate + +While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we +have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition +against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who +approach us with offers to donate. + +International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make +any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from +outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. + +Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation +methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other +ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. +To donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate + + +Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. + +Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm +concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared +with anyone. For forty years, he produced and distributed Project +Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. + +Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed +editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S. +unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily +keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. + +Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: + + www.gutenberg.org + +This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, +including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary +Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to +subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. + + + +</pre> + + </body> +</html> diff --git a/old/45479-h/images/0003.jpg b/old/45479-h/images/0003.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..ab20b18 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/45479-h/images/0003.jpg diff --git a/old/45479-h/images/0042.jpg b/old/45479-h/images/0042.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..a1dd60f --- /dev/null +++ b/old/45479-h/images/0042.jpg diff --git a/old/45479-h/images/cover.jpg b/old/45479-h/images/cover.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..ab20b18 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/45479-h/images/cover.jpg diff --git a/old/45479.txt b/old/45479.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..77bd21d --- /dev/null +++ b/old/45479.txt @@ -0,0 +1,1317 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Story of Joan of Arc, by M. M. Mangasarian + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: The Story of Joan of Arc + The Witch--Saint + +Author: M. M. Mangasarian + +Release Date: April 24, 2014 [EBook #45479] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE STORY OF JOAN OF ARC *** + + + + +Produced by David Widger from page images generously +provided by the Internet Archive + + + + + + + + + +THE STORY OF JOAN OF ARC THE WITCH--SAINT + +By M. M. Mangasarian + +Lecturer Of The Independent Religious Society + +From "The Rationalist," October, 1913 + + +[Illustration: 0003] + + +PAST NUMBERS OF THE RATIONALIST. + +No. 1. St. Francis, the Second Christ. + +No. 2. Marcus Aurelius. + +No. 3. Ships that Sink in the Night; or, God and the Titanic. + +No. 4. What has Christ Done for the World? + +No. 5. Lyman Abbott on Immortality. + +No 6. Voltaire in Hades. + +No. 7. The Gospel of Sport--What Shall I Do to Be Saved? Play! + +No. 8. A Poet's Philosophy of Happiness--Omar Khayyam. + +No. 9. A Rationalist in Home. (A Lecture in Three Parts.) Part 1 + +No. 10. A Rationalist in Rome. (A Lecture in Three Parts.) Part 2 + +No. 11. A Rationalist in Rome. (A Lecture in Three Parts,) Part 3 + +No. 12. Jew and Christian According to Shakespeare. + +No. 13 and 14. Christian Science and Common Sense. + +No. 15. A Message From Abroad. + +No. 16. The First Modern Man. + +No. 17. The Monk and The Woman in The Garden of Allah. + +No. 18. The High Cost of Living and the Higher Cost of Superstition + +No. 19. The Debate between Three Clergymen and a Rationalist. + +No. 20. Rationalism and Crime. + +No. 21. Women and Crime. + +No. 22. Was Jesus a Socialist? + +No. 23. The Catholic Church and the Socialist Party. + +No. 24. What is the Trouble with the World? + +The above 24 lectures will be sent to any address upon receipt of $2 + + +Volume 2 + +No. 1. Who Made the Gods? + +No. 2. Marriage and Divorce, According to Rationalism. + +No. 3. The American Girl. + +No. 4. The Catholic Church in Politics. + +No. 5. Christian and Turk. + +No. 6. The Gospel According to Bernard Shaw. + +No. 7 and 8. Morality Without God. + +No. 9. A Letter to My Flock. + +No. 10. A Missionary's Convert. + +No. 11. The Ex-Priest in Paris. + +The Rationalist + +Is published by the Independent Religious Society semi-monthly. Each +number is to consist of a lecture by M. M. Mangasarian. Price of +subscription, per annum, $2.00. Orders should be sent to +The Independent Religious Society, 922 Lakeside Place, Chicago + + + + +JOAN OF ARC + +This lecture on Joan of Arc, delivered some time ago, provoked a great +deal of criticism in Chicago. The people who protested against it and +wanted to punish its author were, naturally enough, the Roman Catholics. +What interests me in Joan of Arc is not the fact that the story of her +martyrdom and subsequent canonization could be used as a weapon +against the Church of Rome, but because the story in itself is so very +compelling. It is quite true that the story also illustrates how far +from infallible the Catholic Church has been in its dealings with the +Maid of Orleans--first, burning her at the stake as a witch, and, five +hundred years later, beatifying her as a saint. The statement in my +lecture which caused the greatest displeasure was to the effect that the +same church which had burnt Joan of Arc as a witch in fourteen hundred +thirty-one had sainted her in nineteen hundred and nine. The Catholics +deny that they were at all responsible for the terrible death of +the deliverer of France. This lecture will throw some light on that +question. + +As related in a former lecture, it was at her shrine, in the Church of +the Sacred Heart, in Paris, last summer, that I promised myself the +task of presenting to the American people the truth about Joan of Arc. +I shall speak very plainly in this lecture, but, I am sure, without +any trace of bitterness in my heart toward anyone. I shall speak with +feeling, of course, for it is impossible not to be moved to the depths +by the events which brought a girl of nineteen to the stake--but my +passion is free from anger or prejudice. I can weep for this young woman +without gnashing my teeth on her fanatical persecutors. I am sure I can +tell the truth without lying about the Catholic Church. + +But I do not wish to be sentimental, either. I have not forgiven the +unrepentant destroyers of the innocent. To convert a heretic into +a saint by trying to prove that she was not a heretic at all is not +repentance; it is sophistry. To deny that Joan suffered death at the +hands of, and by the authority of, the Vicar of Christ on earth is not +a sign of regret for the past, but a defiance of history. When +the Catholics shall admit that, through ignorance, and urged on by +circumstances they could not control, they committed the act which they +have since atoned for by offering her a heavenly crown--when, I say, the +Catholics shall shed over her body tears as genuine as those which black +Othello shed over the woman he had smothered--then we will forgive them. + +But the Catholic Church will have to choose between securing our +forgiveness and retaining her infallibility. If she should repent of a +single act ever committed by her officially, she would lose her claim +to infallibility--for how can the infallible err? If, on the other hand, +she should hold to her infallibility, how can she be sorry for anything +she has ever done? If I had any influence with the Catholics I would +advise them to sacrifice infallibility for the respect of humanity. +It is much more divine to say, "I am sorry," than to say, "I am +infallible." But the Catholic Church will not take my advice. + +The shrine of Joan in the Paris church is almost as eloquent as her +stake in Rouen. I have seen them both--that is to say, I have seen the +spot on which she was consumed, marked by a white slab; and I have seen +the marble figure of Joan, as a girl, in the attitude of prayer, now +in the Church of the Sacred Heart in Paris. As I stood at her shrine in +this great white church it seemed to me that, even though Joan of Arc +has, at last been made a saint, there was still a prejudice against her +on the part of the people, as well as of the priests. This is only an +impression, and I hope I am mistaken. But let me present the evidence +on which I base my misgivings: In the first place, Joan is not given +the preference in the shrine set apart for her. St. Michael, whoever he +might be, occupies the whole front of the altar, and only on the windows +and the side walls do we find any mention of Joan and the events of her +heroic career. There is also, at one end of the enclosure, as intimated +before, a small marble figure of Joan on her knees. Why does St. Michael +usurp the place of honor over the altar? Who is he? What has he done for +France? In the second place, there was not a single lighted candle at +her shrine. St. Mary's altar, a little distance off, was ablaze. St. +Joseph's, too, was honored by lighted candles. But no one was on her +knees and no flame twinkled before the sainted Joan of Arc. They say +that it is almost impossible to outlive the charge of heresy. In former +times, quite frequently, even heretics who repented of their heresies +were put to death, nevertheless. To have ever been accused, even, or +suspected of heresy, is an unpardonable crime. Joan was suspected, at +least, of rebellion against Rome, and it seemed to me, as I reflected +upon what I observed in the church, that the Catholics had canonized +this village maid reluctantly, and only under pressure, and after five +hundred years of dillydallying. + +But before I left the Church of the Sacred Heart there was a lighted +candle upon her altar. I lighted it. Approaching one of the candle +tables, of which there are half a dozen in the building, I purchased a +long, tapering candle, white as the lily, and I touched it with fire--I +kindled it and set it in one of the sockets to burn before the kneeling +Joan. I left my flaming candle in the Church of the Sacred Heart! I, +a non-Catholic, offered my fire to Joan, not because she had been +canonized--for I never wait for the consent or the approval of the Pope +before paying homage to anybody--but because her sweet, sad story is one +of the most moving of modern times, and her vindication one of the most +stupendous conquests of modern thought. + +The Church of the Sacred Heart is one of the most beautiful in Paris. It +is built on the highest point in the city and commands a wonderful +view. As I have told you before, I have two friends who dwell on this +summit--really, a superb location. It is approached by a long flight of +stairs, or by a cog-wheel train. Before it, and all around it, sweeps +the Paris of to-day, as did the Paris of Clovis and Charlemagne, nearly +fifteen hundred years ago; the Paris of Julian, Emperor of Rome, older +still; the Catholic Paris, when kings and parlements bowed low to kiss +the great toe of the Italian Christ, or his vicar; the Paris of the +Medici--red and bloody; the Paris of the Huguenots, of Henry of Navarre, +of Conde and Colligny--sad, desolate, and in the throes of a new faith; +and the Paris of the philosophers, whose smile softened its barbarities, +lit up its darkness, and made it a city of light--_La ville Lumiere!_ +There, on that splendid elevation, live my two young friends. They are +both at the age of nineteen. One of them a lad, the other a maid. The +girl is housed; the boy is exposed. Joan of Arc lives in the church--the +cathedral is her home. The Chevalier de La Barre stands on the edge of +the hill, with sun and shower falling upon his head. The Catholic Church +burnt them both at the stake--the boy and the girl; the one because +he did not tip his hat to the priest at a street procession, the other +because she believed in herself! But modern thought has vindicated +both of these outcasts. Joan now dwells in a white church, perfumed and +lighted; and the Chevalier crowns the brow of the hill with his youthful +figure and appealing gesture. The chain which tied these children to the +stake in a dark age has flowered! Is not that wonderful? I believe in +the forces, the ideas, the movement--the thought that can cause a chain +to flower! + +I am not going to speak this morning of the Chevalier de La Barre, to +commemorate whose memory the nationalists of France have erected this +monument, close to the Church of the Sacred Heart. He will be my theme +on another occasion. In this lecture I shall confine myself to the story +of Joan of Arc. And a strange story it is! A young girl of seventeen +marches at the head of a dilapidated and demoralized army, and leads it +on to victory against the best fighters of the world, the English, who, +in the fifteenth century, were trying to annex France to England; she +is captured by traitors, sold to the enemy for ten thousand pounds; and +then she is handed over to the church to be tried for heresy. She is +tried, convicted, and sentenced to be burned alive. This sentence, the +most revolting on record, is carried out in all its literalness, and in +broad daylight, and under the shadow of the Christian cross, and at +the very doors of a great cathedral. All this transpired in the city of +Rouen, on the thirtieth day of May, fourteen hundred thirty-one. + +In order that I may enter into the spirit of the thrilling events of +which Rouen was the stage, I repaired to that city, and reverently +visited the scenes of the trial and the martyrdom of this latest saint +of the Catholic world. Words cannot convey to you the emotions which, +like a storm, burst upon me suddenly as the conductor on my train called +out, "Rouen!" It was then about a half hour to midnight, and, jumping +into a carriage, I was quickly driven to my hotel. What thoughts, and +how they crowded in upon me, as soon as I laid my head upon my pillow. +My brain was too active to permit of sleep. I imagined I was living in +_the year fourteen hundred thirty-one_, and that I had just reached this +city on the eve of the martyrdom of Joan. "To-morrow," I whispered +to myself, "Joan of Arc will be led to the stake." Again and again I +repeated to my pillow this shuddering intelligence. "What," I exclaimed +to myself, "a young woman who saved France by her courage is going to +be committed to the flames in this very city _tomorrow!_" I could not +believe it possible. I could not believe that there was folly enough, +or hatred enough, or stupidity enough, in the world for so desperate a +deed. But, alas, it was true. With my eyes closed, I fancied I saw +the throngs marching through the streets--consisting of peasants, of +merchants, of priests, of princes--to see a girl of nineteen burned in +the fire, and in all that throng there was not one who had either a kind +word or thought for her--her who had given them a country to live in. +Abandoned, hated and spat upon, she was left to suffer the cruelest +punishment that human _inhumanity_ could devise, or the most perverse +imagination invent. A girl of nineteen burned alive! "Oh, God!" The +words escaped my lips in spite of me. Then I turned about and called +upon _Humanity_. But in the fifteenth century God and Humanity were both +hard of hearing. Then I called upon _Science_ and _Reason_. But these +were not yet born. "There is no help then," I whispered to myself, and +my heart swelled within me with indignation, and I became desperate, +realizing my helplessness. + +With my head upon my pillow during that first night I spent in Rouen, +I tried to penetrate into the motives for the persecution of Joan. This +brave girl was feared because she was superior to her age. She provoked +the jealousy of her inferiors. Her independence and originality alarmed +both the Church and the State. Her ability to take the initiative, and +her courage to disagree with her spiritual teachers was a menace to the +authority of the priest with the keys, and the king with the sword. The +English would not admit that a mere girl, a Domremy peasant, tending +her father's cows, could have the genius to whip them--the most powerful +warriors of Europe. The Catholic Church, on the other hand, would not +forgive Joan for distinguishing herself without their help. For a woman +to eclipse the Holy Church and humiliate a powerful State, was a crime +punishable by death. + +In less than two years' time Joan had saved France, after the prayers of +the Church and the armies of the nation had failed ignominiously. In the +opinion of the world of that day there was only one power, the devil's, +that could outwit the Church. It was not denied that Joan had driven +the victorious armies of the enemy out of France, and made a conquered +people free again; but it was argued that she had achieved this triumph, +not by the help of God, but by the instrumentality of the devil. In +those days, anything, however praiseworthy, if accomplished without the +permission and cooperation of the Church, was the work of the devil. +Joan had consulted her own heart, instead of the village confessor. +That was her heresy. Joan had seen visions and heard voices on her +own account. That is the independence which, if encouraged, or even +recognized, would overthrow the Catholic Church. No one is allowed to +receive revelations at first hand. Even God is not permitted to speak +except through his vicar on earth. In short, Joan was a _protestant_, +inasmuch as she not only had direct relations with heaven, but she +refused to allow the Church to be the judge as to whether her voices +were from God or from Satan. During all the agony of her long trial, +every effort was made to induce her to allow the Church to be the judge +of the nature of her visions. Joan refused the test. There was no doubt +about her heresy. She believed herself capable of judging. That was her +unpardonable sin. + +Still imagining myself in Rouen, in the year fourteen hundred +thirty-one, I said to myself, "I must arise early in the morning and go +to the old market place to catch a glimpse of the wonderful woman when +she leaves the tower for the stake." As the picture of what I would see +on the following day arose before my closed eyes, I trembled. "I will +not let them burn her," I cried passionately. But, alas, what could one +man do against king, pope, and the mob! And I tossed in my bed like one +in a cage who is conscious of his helplessness against iron bars. + +Suddenly, a thought struck me, as the lightning strikes a tree. "This +is fourteen hundred thirty-one," I repeated to myself. "I must get up at +once and repair to the palace of the Bishop of Beauvais, the priest who +holds in the hollow of his hand the fate of the bravest maid in history. +If I could only have a half hour with him," I said, "to pour into his +ears my protest, my pleadings, my scorn, my prayers; or, if I could tell +him of the time when Joan will have a shrine in a Catholic Church!--he +might relent and hearken unto reason?" With these thoughts in my mind +I jumped out of my bed, I lit the candle, I put on my clothes. Then, in +haste, I walked out into the night, seeking my way in the streets of the +strange city now deserted. By the help of the moon and the stars of +that night in May, _fourteen hundred thirty-one_, I traced my way to the +imposing Cathedral of St. Ouen, standing like a towering shadow in +the cold light of the night, and close to which lived the Bishop of +Beauvais. + +I knocked upon the Bishop's door. "Open, open," I cried, as in the dead +of night I kept pounding upon the door. "I wish to come in," I cried. "I +wish to save the Church from an indelible stain, I wish to protect the +honor of humanity." "Open, open," I cried, again and again, and in the +stillness of the night the noise of my blows reached far and wide. +Louder and louder still I cried to the Bishop to open the door. "I wish +to rescue France and England from committing an act of infamy; I wish +to save history from an unspeakable shame. Let me in, Bishop! I come +to protect you against the execration of posterity, against eternal +damnation! Open, open the door!" I shouted. I kept pounding upon the +door, long and loud, on the eve of that foul day in fourteen hundred +thirty-one. I grew impatient with waiting for the door to open, and my +voice, which a moment before swept up and down the whole gamut of hope +and despair--pleading, shouting, sobbing--now became faint and feeble. + +I could not arouse the Bishop. He was fast asleep. Then I was silent +myself. Suddenly I heard a far away whisper. It did not come from the +Episcopal palace, nor from the Cathedral close by, yet I was sure +I heard some one speaking. I listened again. I could now hear more +clearly. "I am coming, I am coming," was repeated in caressing accents. +"I am coming, to open the door, to awaken the Bishop, to usher in a more +joyous day for humanity. I will extinguish the fires of persecution, +turn executioners into teachers, disarm superstition, and make the whole +world sane. In that day Joan will triumph over her foes and make their +churches her mausoleum." It was the voice of Reason! But it took five +hundred years for that faint whisper to swell into a mighty chorus, +swinging around the globe. That prophecy has been fulfilled, the +Bishop's door opened, and the Church yielded to the clamor of +civilization, and changed Joan's stake into the shrine where I lit my +candle in her honor, in the Church of the Sacred Heart. She is no longer +a heretic, she has become a saint. Her tears have changed into pearls, +her tomb into a cathedral, where she sleeps in pomp on the bosom that +once stung her to death. + +But I was not in Rouen in fourteen hundred thirty-one; I was there five +hundred years too late. The day after I arrived in the city, I went to +the market place, but, instead of a procession with candles and torches, +with stakes and fagots, I found commerce, industry, labor, in full +possession of the great square. Prosperous looking men and women met +and greeted one another pleasantly; farmers were selling fruit and +vegetables; the women, flowers. Even the priests one came across smiled +as they saw the happy countenances of the people. What a change! Common +sense has sweetened human nature and flooded the mind with the light +that destroys superstition and makes all men brothers. The guide pointed +out to me the white marble slab marking the spot on which Joan of Arc +met her death. "Upon this place stood the stake of Joan of Arc. The +ashes of the glorious virgin were thrown into the Seine." This is the +inscription on the slab which was placed there by the municipality in +eighteen hundred ninety-one. + +Close to this same spot the citizens of Rouen have erected a fountain, +in the form of a monument, to the same heroic maiden. I stood and +watched the playful waters as they fell with a liquid plash into the +marble basin below. Presently, a woman came along with her pitcher. The +stake at which Joan of Arc was burned to death has become a fountain, +to which the people now come to slake their thirst. Walking up to the +woman, I said, "What fountain is this?" + +"Ah, monsieur," she exclaimed, "behold the fountain of Joan of Arc." + +"But she was a heretic," I remarked. I can never forget her smile. The +sun had arisen in her eyes. "We live in the twentieth century," she +replied. And, unconsciously, we both heaved a sigh of relief. I +rubbed my eyes to be sure we were not living in the middle ages, when +Rationalism was still a babe in swaddling clothes, and Theology was +lord of all. This is the twentieth century--for we are drinking at the +fountain of Joan of Arc instead of carrying fagots to her stake! One +of the sunniest spots in my memory will be my meeting with this peasant +woman, with her pitcher, at the fountain of Joan of Arc. + +But my object in this lecture is to help clear some obscure questions in +connection with the trial, martyrdom and subsequent canonization of this +girl of nineteen. I wish to bring about a more intelligent appreciation +of the story of a young shepherdess, beginning from the day she left her +home in Domremy, to the fiery scaffold; and thence to a place among the +saints in the Catholic calendar. This is the only instance in Catholic +history of a person once destroyed as a heretic who has afterwards +received the highest honors within the gift of the Church. In fourteen +hundred thirty-one an infallible body of ecclesiastics pronounced this +young woman to be "a child of perdition, a sorceress, a seducer, a +harlot and a heretic." Five hundred years after, another infallible +body of ecclesiastics belonging to the same church pronounced the same +"harlot" and "heretic" to be "angelic" and "divine." One infallible +pope allowed her to be burned in fourteen hundred thirty-one; another +infallible pope denounced her murderers as detestable criminals--which +shows how fallible is infallibility. + +A great many untruths are being circulated to help clear this +contradiction. The clergy are proclaiming from the housetops that it was +not the church that tried and condemned Joan of Arc to torture and death +in fourteen hundred thirty-one; on the contrary, it was the church, they +say, which has just vindicated her memory and beatified her with superb +ceremonies. History, however, gives a different version of the affair. +Before proceeding to describe the trial and condemnation of Joan of Arc, +let me state the attitude of the Rationalist toward Joan of Arc's claims +to inspiration. We can do justice to a woman of her description without +believing in miraculous predictions. Joan of Arc claimed to have seen +visions and to have heard voices, which assured her of her divine +mission. She was thirteen years of age, according to her testimony, when +she felt her first thrill. The visions were repeated. One day, at about +noon, in the summer time, and while working on her father's farm, close +to the whispering trees, she saw a radiance out of which came a voice +which she fancied was the voice of an angel or of a saint. It was not at +all strange that she should hear voices. All her education had prepared +her for them. She had been told how others had seen angels and heard +voices. The literature of the Church was full of the miraculous in those +days. It was the ambition of every believer to receive visits from the +other world, and to be told secrets. Joan, the little Domremy girl, +shared these ambitions. In her case the wish was father to the vision. +She heard the voices and saw the faces which her heart coveted. How do +we explain her "voices" and her "visions"? The question is a very simple +one, unless we have a leaning for theology. The voices that Joan heard +were those that came from her own heart. It was her own dreams she saw +in the sunlight. + +The young woman had mused over the acts of brigandage of the invading +army and their French allies; she had seen the smoke of the burning +villages and had heard the wail of her peasant neighbors. The distress +of her people had often melted her into tears and wrung many a sigh from +her lips. She imagined the whole country summoning her to the rescue. +So earnest was she that her thoughts assumed form and shape, and became +vocal. Thus, out of the substance of her own soul she fashioned the +visions which she beheld. She felt herself set apart to be the saviour +of France. The brilliance of that thought darkened every other object in +life--home, parents, money, marriage! + +To those who will not be satisfied with this explanation, I beg to say +that if the voices were really supernatural, then they should be held +responsible for the cruel death to which they led or drove the young +woman. Why did her voices, if they were divine, desert her when she +needed their help most? Why did they not save her from prison and the +stake? And which of us would like to be guided to the chambers of the +inquisition, and the flames of the stake by "heavenly voices"? Moreover, +if these voices came from God, why did they not speak to the English +king, or to the Roman pope, in behalf of Joan, when she called on them +for help? Why did they not assume the responsibility for the acts for +which she was destroyed? Voices and visions which induce a young girl to +go to the help of a perishing country only to use her victories for the +benefit of a depraved and imbecile prince like Charles VII, and desert +the young woman herself to be "done" to death! Defend us against them! + +Returning to the question of the responsibility of the Catholic Church +for the fate of Joan, there are these points to be touched upon. Being +a matter of history that on the last day of May, fourteen hundred +thirty-one, this young woman was publicly burned in the City of Rouen, +in the square of the cathedral, the question arises: Who put her to +death? Another important question is: Why was she put to death? And when +we have answered these questions we will be in a position to discuss the +much more important question of: Why Joan of Arc was recently translated +into a saint by the pope. + +Twenty-five years after the burning of Joan, when the city of Rouen was +restored to the French king, and the English were finally driven across +the Channel, it was decided to review the evidence upon which the Maid +had been convicted and put to death. This was done; and with the result +that she was acquitted of all the charges of heresy, insubordination to +the Church, adultery, witchcraft, etc. What do you think was the motive +of this revision? The French king had begun to realize the disgrace to +which he had been exposed by the condemnation of the Maid as a witch. +Being exceedingly pious--piety and crime were united in him as in many +others of that day--he was tormented by the thought that the young woman +who had assisted him in his war against the English, and had been the +means of securing for him the crown of France, and had also officiated +at his coronation in the cathedral of Rheims, was condemned as an agent +of satan by the Church; which, if true, it would make him not only the +target for the ridicule and derision of the whole Christian world, but, +also, an illicit king of the French, who might refuse their allegiance +to him because he was made king by a witch and not by an apostle of +God. It is no wonder that a superstitious man like Charles VII, in a +superstitious age, trembled, not only for his crown, but, also, for +his life. Therefore, in order to make his succession legitimate it was +necessary to prove that Joan was not a witch, but a true messenger of +God. For if Joan was a witch, Charles VII was not king "by the grace of +God," but by a trick of the devil. In self-defense the king of France +was not only compelled to reopen the case against Joan, now that he was +free from English dictation, but he also indicated in advance to the +ecclesiastics the conclusion they would have to arrive at. The +king could not have allowed, and he would not have allowed, the +ecclesiastical council, convened at his request, to arrive at any other +verdict than the one which would prove to France and Christendom that +he was made king at Rheims, not by a witch who was excommunicated by the +Church and flung into the fire, but by a real and inspired apostle of +God. + +Of course, it is a matter of history that it was by the help of Joan +that Charles VII became King of France. + +As already intimated, at the coronation ceremony Joan was not only +present, but she assisted the Archbishop when the latter placed the +crown upon the king's head. The inauguration was practically the work +of Joan. It was the fulfillment of a prediction she had repeatedly made, +that she would conquer the English and crown the French king in the City +of Rheims. If she was a witch the coronation was invalid. The ceremony +of the anointing of a king is one of the most solemn in the Catholic +Church. The condemnation of Joan as a witch had not only stripped this +ceremony of its sacredness, but it had also made it null and void, nay, +more, a blasphemy. How could a king, anointed by the help of a witch, +be the king of a Christian nation? To appreciate this argument we +must remember how bigoted the people were in the Middle Ages. In +self-defense, therefore, Charles VII was compelled to prove to the +French, and to the whole world, that the woman to whom he owed his +elevation to the throne was not a heretic. + +Let us recapitulate. The King of France ordered the Church to make out a +new certificate for Joan. The Church obeyed the French king, even as the +same Church twenty-five years earlier had obeyed the King of England and +condemned Joan to death. When the English were masters of France, the +Catholic Church pleased them by delivering up the conqueror of England +to be burned alive; when the English were driven out of the country and +the French were again in control this sentence was reversed and Joan was +proven to have been a dutiful child of the Church. Thus it will be seen +that the Church swung with the English when the English ruled the land, +and she swung with the French when the French had driven the English +out of the country. The Church was with England at one time, and she was +with France at another--but never with Joan. I am milder in my criticism +than the facts warrant. I am making strenuous efforts to speak with +immoderation of an "infallible institution." + +But why was it to the interest of the English to have Joan declared a +witch? Their motives were as personal as those of the French king. The +English felt humiliated to think that a mere woman had whipped them, +and therefore they were determined to prove that she was more than a +woman--an agent of the devil. There was no secret about this. Their +motive was very plain. It was to their interest to show that Joan was +the personification of satan, and that consequently the English should +not be blamed for running away from her presence, because who could +withstand the devil? The English army did not go down before a girl, but +before a sorceress. Even as the King of France did not wish it said that +he owed his victory over the English to a witch, or that he was made +king by an apostate, the English did not wish it said that they were +conquered by a saint, for that would make God the enemy of the English. +One king wanted Joan damned, and the Church accommodated him by damning +her; another wanted Joan beatified, and the Church beatified her. + +It is admitted that the English could not have burned Joan as a witch +without the consent of the Church. They could have burned her as a +prisoner, but that would not have answered their purpose--she must be +declared a witch in order to vindicate the amour propre of the English +people. It is the exclusive prerogative of the Church to decide +questions of orthodoxy or heresy. No king has the right to admit or +exclude any one from the communion of the Church. Whether or not Joan +was a witch was a theological question and could only be decided by the +ecclesiastical court. Neither could the King of France declare Joan of +Arc innocent of heresy without the consent of the Church. It follows +then that the principal actor in the trial, the condemnation and +the death of the young woman under the English, and her subsequent +vindication and beatification, was the Church of Rome, since without its +consent the English could not have made a heretic of her, nor the French +a saviour and a saint. A secular government may declare who shall be its +military heroes, or who shall be court-martialed and disgraced, but only +the Church enjoys the right to damn or to canonize. This point is so +clinching that even the most zealous papist must admit that at one time, +when all Europe was Catholic--England as much so as France--and the pope +was as supreme in one country as in the other, a girl of nineteen, who +had rendered heroic services to her oppressed country, could not +have been declared a heretic and cast into the fire at the door of +a cathedral, in the presence of bishops, priests, a cardinal and a +representative of the holy Inquisition, without the knowledge and +consent of the Holy Roman Catholic Church. + +An attempt has been made to throw the entire blame of the proceedings +against Joan of Arc upon the English. There is no doubt about the +anxiety of the English to punish the Maid who had robbed them of the +spoils of their victory over the French and brought dishonor upon their +arms. But a mere military punishment, as already intimated, would +not have been sufficient to satisfy the English--she had to be +excommunicated from Christendom as one possessed of the devil. That was +the only way to save the English of the disgrace of having been beaten +by a woman, and the records show that the Church, instead of reluctantly +carrying out the wishes of the English, was more than pleased to +bring Joan to the stake. Letters were written from the office of the +Inquisition to the English king, complaining against his lukewarmness +in the matter of prosecuting the young woman. The Catholic University +of Paris, also, sent a special communication to King Henry of England +to remind him of his duty to help the Church to put down heresy. The +English were urged to hand Joan over to the bishop and the Inquisition, +that the ecclesiastics might proceed with her trial without delay. And +when finally Joan faced her judges, forty in number, every one of them +was an ecclesiastic, and out of the forty, thirty-eight were Frenchmen. + +Moreover, the Archbishop of Rheims, who was also Chancellor of France, +wrote a letter which is still in existence, in which he congratulated +the French upon the capture of Joan of Arc, whom he denounces as a +heretic--"a proud and rebellious child who refuses to submit to the +Church." Being the superior of the Bishop of Beauvais, who was in charge +of the trial, the Archbishop could have stopped the prosecution if +he had the least sympathy or pity for the Maid. But to try to save +a heretic would be the worst kind of heresy. That explains the utter +desertion of Joan by all France--people, priest and king. + +In this connection a comparison should be made between the zeal of +the clergy to bring Joan to trial for heresy and the slowness and +indifference with which the Church proceeded to obey the summons of +the King of France twenty-five years after to reinstate her into the +fellowship of Catholic Christendom. The records show that it required +considerable urging and manoeuvring on the part of the French government +to bring about a revision of the ecclesiastical sentence against the +Maid. As long as Nicholas V was pope nothing was accomplished. The case +was reopened under Pope Calixtus. Not until it was realized that further +delay in the matter would greatly irritate, not only the French king, +but also the populace, now freed from English dominion and seeking to +live down the evil reputation of having harbored an apostate in their +midst, did Rome stir itself in the matter. It will be seen that it was +not the pope nor the Church that took the initiative in behalf of Joan +of Arc. The Church only yielded to the pressure from the State, that had +now become powerful. Had the English remained in control of France the +Maid of Orleans would never have been remembered by the Catholic Church, +much less restored to honor and immortality. + +"We do not deny," answer the defenders of the Church, "that _some_ +bishops and even cardinals persecuted Joan of Arc to death. But is +it just to hold the whole Church responsible for the crime of an +insignificant minority?" This is the main defense of the Catholics +against the arguments of the Rationalists and the facts of history. Be +it noted that I am not trying to abuse the Catholics; I am only sorry +that they should be unwilling, even at this date, to say, "We are +sorry." To commit mistakes is human. But why should the Church move +heaven and earth to prove that it has never committed a mistake? The +attempt is also made to prove that the ecclesiastics who are responsible +for the death of Joan were wicked men and have been repudiated by the +Church. To this is added the further defense that it was the gold of the +English which corrupted these priests. But such a defense, I regret to +say, does not reflect credit upon the intelligence or the honor of the +Church of Rome. In this day of general information it is impossible for +anyone to wrap up the facts of history in a napkin, as it were, and put +them away where no one may have access to them. The judges of Joan +were all ordained ministers of the Church. The presiding priest was +a bishop--the bishop of Beauvais. He was assisted by a cardinal, a +vice-president of the Inquisition, and a number of other ecclesiastics +who were connected with the University of Paris. Is it reasonable to +suppose that the Inquisition and the Catholic University of Paris, and +all the clergy of England and France represented only a discredited +section of the Church? + +It is the pride of the Catholics that their church has never been +divided or schismatic, and that it has been one and indivisible "always +and everywhere." How is this claim to be reconciled with the excuse that +a considerable portion of the Catholic Church in the fifteenth century +openly ignored the authority of the pope and did as they pleased without +incurring the displeasure of the Hierarchy for their insubordination? +Furthermore, if only a part of the church persecuted the young woman, +what did the rest of the church do to save her? We would like the names +of the priests who interceded in her behalf. It does not give me a bit +of pleasure to prove the Catholic Church responsible for this as for +many other burnings at the stake, but it gives me pleasure to be able to +show that any institution claiming infallibility, to defend that +claim must persecute. And why do I take pleasure in proving this to be +inevitable? It might open the eyes of the religious world to the danger +of supernaturalism. If the Christians no longer burn people they do not +like, it is not because their Bibles have been altered, but because they +no longer believe in them as they used to. It is good news to report +that supernaturalism is waning, for it means the progress of science and +sanity. + +There is still another point to be touched upon: When all Europe +heard of the fate that had befallen a girl of nineteen through the +machinations, let us say, of a few naughty Catholic priests--what +did Rome do to these same priests who had so disgraced their "holy" +profession, as well as brought lasting shame upon civilization? Is not +this a pertinent question? Joan's trial lasted for four months. Not only +France and England, but all Christendom was interested in the outcome. +During all this time not only was there not a word of protest from Rome, +but what is more significant, shortly after the trial and condemnation +of Joan, the pope rewarded her accusers and persucutors with +ecclesiastical promotion. Again, I must hasten to explain that I am +not interested in embarrassing the Catholics; my point is to strike at +_dogma_--which turns hearts into stone, and makes of the intellect a +juggler's instrument. Joan was sacrificed, nay,--the honor of France, of +Europe, of civilization, of humanity--was flung into the fire with Joan, +to save--what? Dogma! + +Not only did the church fail to punish a single one of the forty +ecclesiastics who tried Joan, not to mention hundreds of others who +cooperated with them to bring about her destruction, but, as intended, +gifts were conferred upon the principal actors in this awful drama. +Roussel, one of the ecclesiastics who figured prominently in the +proceedings, was given the archepiscopacy of the city of Rouen--the very +city in which a girl not yet twenty, and who had served France on the +battlefield, and brought victory to her flag, was beaten and burnt to +death. Pasquier, an ordinary priest when he was serving as one of the +judges, was made a bishop after the execution of Joan. Two others, +Gilles and Le Fevre, were also advanced to upper ranks in the church. +Thomas Courcelles, one of the most merciless judges of Joan--who voted +in favor of subjecting the prisoner to physical torture to compel her +to admit she was a witch--this priest with the unenviable reputation was +also promoted to a lucrative post in the famous church of Notre Dame, in +Paris. Finally, the man who engineered the trial, who presided over +the sessions, and to whom Joan said, "You are the cause of my +misfortunes"--the Bishop of Beauvais, the man whom all Catholics justly +execrate today--even he was rewarded by the "Holy Father"; he was given +the episcopal seat of Lisieux. Does it look as though the crime against +Joan were the work of a discredited minority in the Catholic Church? I +repeat, it was dogma, it was revelation, it was infallibility, it +was supernaturalism, and not this or that priest--that should be held +guilty. + +To meet these arguments the Catholic apologists call attention to the +fact that the church "has a horror of blood," and that it has never +put anyone to death for any cause whatever. But this is true only in +a Pickwickian sense. It is like the head saying to the hands, "I have +never committed the least violence against anyone." The hands, it is +evident, commit the acts, but whose hands are they? The hands only +obey the head, and for the head to blame the hands for carrying out its +orders, realizing its thoughts and wishes, would not even be amusing, +much less convincing. It is the judge, or the court, that takes the +life of the culprit, for instance, and not the executioner. The Catholic +Church demands the death of the heretic. Is this denied? Read Thomas +Aquinas, the most honored saint and theologian of Catholicism; read the +decrees of the general councils of the church and the encyclicals of +St. Peter's successors, and a thousand, thousand proofs will be found +in them to substantiate the statement. It is the Bible that commands the +death of the heretic. No church founded on the Bible can afford to be +tolerant. The theory of Christianity as well as of Mohammedanism is that +the sword which the king carries has been blessed and put in his hands +that he may put down the heretics. The civil authorities then, in +bringing Joan of Arc to the fire were carrying out the instructions of +the forty ecclesiastical judges who condemned her to death. Had these +judges found her innocent, the state could not have destroyed her life; +it was the will of the priestly court that she should die, and the +secular authorities fulfilled its wish. + +But was Joan a heretic? Strenuous efforts are made to show that she was +not. This point is a vital one. The church, in self-defense, is bound to +produce arguments to prove that Joan of Arc was an orthodox, obedient, +and submissive child of the church. If she was not orthodox, then the +church has sainted a heretic in the person of Joan of Arc. One of the +questions they asked her at the trial was whether she would be willing +to submit the question of her "visions" to the church; that is to say, +would she consent to the findings of an ecclesiastical court concerning +herself and her mission? To this the answer was that she held herself +responsible only to God. This was considered a rebellious answer, and it +was--from the church's point of view. According to Catholic theology +the church is divided into two branches,--the church militant, which +is composed of the pope, the priests and their flock; and the church +triumphant, which is presided over by God and the saints in glory. Joan +said she was prepared to submit to the church triumphant--the church +on high, that is to say, to God, but to nobody else. This also was a +heresy. Her clerical judges insisted that to be a good Catholic she +must bow to the will of the church on earth--the pope and his +representatives. Her heresy then was both real and serious. She appealed +from the pope to God. She placed her own conscience above the authority +of the church. She believed in private judgment, the exercise of which +is forbidden by the church. In refusing to let the pope act as the +middleman between God and herself she was threatening the very existence +of the papacy. There is then no doubt that both by her independent +conduct and by her original answers Joan attacked the very fundamentals +of Catholicism. It follows, then, that the pope a few years ago made a +saint out of a heretic. + +Although Joan was an uncultivated girl, able neither to read nor write, +she was gifted with good common sense. She saw at a glance that if she +were to submit to the church she would thereby be casting doubts upon +the genuineness of her "visions." She preferred to go to the stake +rather than do that. She was really between two fires: the priests +threatened her body; God in her conscience threatened her soul. She +decided to obey the voice within. The decision cost her her life. + +Some of the questions put to her and the answers which Joan made are +really remarkable. They show the craft of her judges, on the one hand, +and the courage and common sense of the victim, on the other. + +"Will you not submit to our holy father, the Pope?" they asked her. +"Bring me before the Pope, and I will answer," she replied. In other +words, they were trying to have her admit that she had no right to think +for herself or to exercise any independence at all. But she was too +serious and earnest a person to subscribe to any such doctrine. She had +never understood that to be a Catholic meant to be a bondswoman. "Take +care," she said, turning her fiery glance upon her inquisitors, "take +care that you do not put yourselves in the place of God." By such an +answer, the young woman, still in her teens, had shot the Catholic +Church in the heart. + +The nature of the charges against Joan as formulated by her judges also +goes to prove that she was considered a heretic and condemned to death +for that offense. The eleventh charge against her reads: "She has adored +her saints without taking clerical advice." Charge twelfth reads: "She +refuses to submit her conduct and revelation to the church." When asked +if she would obey the church, her reply was, "God first being served." +Luther said no more than that--and the Catholic church was split in +two. Everything goes to show that the Domremy peasant girl was a private +thinker, that is to say, a heretic. Listen to this: "I will believe that +our Holy Father, the pope of Rome and the bishops and other churchmen +are for the guarding of the Christian faith and the punishment of +heretics, _but as for me and my facts, I will only submit to the church +of heaven_." To be sure that is insubordination; it is placing herself +not only on an equality with the pope, but even above him. Of course, +Joan was not a Rationalist--far from it--but she was an independent +Catholic--that is to say--not subject to the church--and that is heresy. +Is it any wonder that her sentence read: "Therefore we pronounce you +a rotten limb, and as such to be lopped off from the church." And the +reason this sentence gave satisfaction to the Catholics all over +the world was because such initiative and self-respect as Joan had +manifested, if tolerated, would bring about the collapse of the +infallible authority of the church. The University of Paris wrote to the +pope, to the king of England and the bishops, lauding the priests who +had purged the church of this dangerous girl with her "I think so," or +"I believe so,"--with the emphasis on the "I." In this same letter the +Bishop of Beauvais, the evil genius of Joan, to whom she said, when she +saw the stake awaiting her, "Bishop, I die through you!" is commended +for "his great gravity and holy way of proceeding, which ought to be +most satisfactory to all." + +It took five hundred years for the Catholic Church to discover that the +young woman burnt as a heretic was really a saint. But the church did +not make this discovery until modern thought, benign and brave, had +taken the outcast girl under its protection. The French nation had +already made a national heroine of her, when the Vatican decided +to enroll her name among the hallowed ones in its calendar. The +beatification of Joan was brought about ostensibly by the report that +certain sufferers from cancer, and other incurable maladies, had been +completely cured by praying to Joan of Arc for help. The Maid had become +a miracle worker, and hence worthy to receive a medal, as it were, from +the pope. Joan is now a new income as well as a saint. + +Joan owes her Vindication to the Rationalists of France. The man in +recent years whose books, position and influence did more than anything +else to bring about a new attitude toward Joan of Arc, was Marcelin +Berthelot, who now sleeps in the Pantheon as one of the glories of +his country. A few years ago, I received an invitation to visit him at +Bellevue near Paris. To give you an idea of the great man who did so +much to rejuvenate Europe and throw its whole weight on the side of +justice to the Martyr--woman of France. I shall reproduce in this +connection what I said about him after my interview with him: + +"Who are the Rationalists?" is one of the questions frequently asked. +Well, they are the intellectual leaders of the world, as what I learned +about Berthelot clearly shows. He was the man upon whom two European +sovereigns had conferred the highest decorations in their power for +services rendered to human progress,--whom his own countrymen had +honored by making him a senator for life; who twice had been appointed +minister of foreign affairs; who had been elected an honorary member +of all the scientific associations of the world; upon whom the Royal +Scientific Society of London has bestowed its most coveted honors; who +is the perpetual secretary of the Academy of Science of Paris; a member +of the Academy Francaise, and, therefore, one of the immortals; and +whose volumes, inventions, discoveries and contributions have placed +modern civilization under inexpressible obligations to him. With all +these dignities and titles, richly deserved, M. Berthelot is as gracious +in his manners, as unassuming, as childlike and modest, as one could +desire. He displays all the charms of the real man of worth--the man of +genius. + +Though in his seventy-sixth year, the sage and diplomat still possessed +the vigor of a man of fifty, pursuing his studies and interesting +himself in the politics of his time, with the ardor and fervor of youth. +The accumulation of his years and his indefatigable labors had by no +means impaired the faculties of his mind, being still regarded by his +countrymen as one of the most fertile brains and sanest intellects of +modern Europe. + +Two years previously all France, one might say, had met in Paris to +celebrate at the Sorbonne the completion of Berthelot's fifty years of +intellectual labor. It was on this occasion that the foreign potentates +sent their delegates and decorations to him. Every civilized country +was represented at the festivities by its foremost men of letters +and diplomats, while all the senators of France, the president of the +republic, the members of his cabinet, and all the heads of the colleges +were assembled to applaud the _master_ whose half a century of study and +service had so greatly augmented the horizon of man and increased the +light of the world. + +When this distinguished scientist was admitted into the French Academy, +Jules Lemaitre, in his address of welcome, declared that Berthelot was +the real creator of the modern industrial era, which had multiplied the +resources of man a hundredfold. He called Berthelot the discoverer of +modern chemistry, which has in so short a time transformed the face of +the earth, and which holds the secret of the solution of the social and +economic problems of the day. "'Chemistry" declares Berthelot, "'is a +new gospel, which brings tidings of great power to mankind.'" "It +will put an end to the cruel struggle of classes, and make of warlike +politics, now one of the scourges of nations, a lost art. It will do +this by placing within the reach of all an inexhaustible wealth of food +and raiment, thereby curing man forever of the disease of discontent." + +"There are only two things worth living for," said M. Berthelot, in an +address at the Palais de Trocadero before six thousand Frenchmen--"the +love of truth and the love of one's fellows." + +That _love of truth_ opened for Joan the doors of the Catholic Church, +shut against her five hundred years ago and it opened to Berthelot the +doors of the Pantheon--the Temple of the Immortals! + +A final word. I have as much compassion and sympathy for the Catholics +as I have for the martyred girl--indeed more, since they need more. Joan +has been vindicated by the broader and more benign thought of this! age. +The same serene and sweet power will transform the Catholic Church +and make it one of the most progressive forces of our America. I have +delivered this lecture to hasten that lovely day! + +[Illustration: 0042] + + + + + + + +End of Project Gutenberg's The Story of Joan of Arc, by M. M. Mangasarian + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE STORY OF JOAN OF ARC *** + +***** This file should be named 45479.txt or 45479.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/4/5/4/7/45479/ + +Produced by David Widger from page images generously +provided by the Internet Archive + + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, +set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to +copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to +protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project +Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you +charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you +do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the +rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose +such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and +research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do +practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is +subject to the trademark license, especially commercial +redistribution. + + + +*** START: FULL LICENSE *** + +THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE +PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK + +To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free +distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work +(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project +Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project +Gutenberg-tm License available with this file or online at + www.gutenberg.org/license. + + +Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic works + +1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to +and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property +(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all +the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy +all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession. +If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the +terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or +entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. + +1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be +used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who +agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few +things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works +even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See +paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement +and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. See paragraph 1.E below. + +1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation" +or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the +collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an +individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are +located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from +copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative +works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg +are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project +Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by +freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of +this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with +the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by +keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project +Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others. + +1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern +what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in +a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check +the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement +before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or +creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project +Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning +the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United +States. + +1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: + +1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate +access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently +whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the +phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project +Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, +copied or distributed: + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + +1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived +from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is +posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied +and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees +or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work +with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the +work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 +through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the +Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or +1.E.9. + +1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted +with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution +must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional +terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked +to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the +permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work. + +1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this +work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. + +1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this +electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without +prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with +active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project +Gutenberg-tm License. + +1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, +compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any +word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or +distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than +"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version +posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org), +you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a +copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon +request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other +form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. + +1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, +performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works +unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. + +1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing +access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided +that + +- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from + the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method + you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is + owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he + has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the + Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments + must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you + prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax + returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and + sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the + address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to + the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation." + +- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies + you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he + does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm + License. You must require such a user to return or + destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium + and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of + Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any + money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the + electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days + of receipt of the work. + +- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free + distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set +forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from +both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael +Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the +Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. + +1.F. + +1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable +effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread +public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm +collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain +"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or +corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual +property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a +computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by +your equipment. + +1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right +of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project +Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all +liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal +fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT +LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE +PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE +TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE +LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR +INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH +DAMAGE. + +1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a +defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can +receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a +written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you +received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with +your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with +the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a +refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity +providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to +receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy +is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further +opportunities to fix the problem. + +1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth +in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO OTHER +WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO +WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. + +1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied +warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. +If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the +law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be +interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by +the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any +provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. + +1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the +trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone +providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance +with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, +promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works, +harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, +that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do +or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm +work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any +Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause. + + +Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm + +Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of +electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers +including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists +because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from +people in all walks of life. + +Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the +assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's +goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will +remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure +and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations. +To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation +and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 +and the Foundation information page at www.gutenberg.org + + +Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive +Foundation + +The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit +501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the +state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal +Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification +number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent +permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. + +The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S. +Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered +throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at 809 +North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email +contact links and up to date contact information can be found at the +Foundation's web site and official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact + +For additional contact information: + Dr. Gregory B. Newby + Chief Executive and Director + gbnewby@pglaf.org + +Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation + +Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide +spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of +increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be +freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest +array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations +($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt +status with the IRS. + +The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating +charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United +States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a +considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up +with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations +where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To +SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any +particular state visit www.gutenberg.org/donate + +While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we +have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition +against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who +approach us with offers to donate. + +International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make +any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from +outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. + +Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation +methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other +ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. +To donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate + + +Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. + +Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm +concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared +with anyone. For forty years, he produced and distributed Project +Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. + +Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed +editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S. +unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily +keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. + +Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: + + www.gutenberg.org + +This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, +including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary +Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to +subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. + diff --git a/old/45479.zip b/old/45479.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..cb7f9c0 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/45479.zip |
