Difference between revisions of "Saint John of Capistrano" - New World Encyclopedia

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[[Saint]] '''Giovanni da Capestrano''' (''in [[English language|English]]'', '''John Capistrano''' (June 24, 1386 – October 23, 1456), was an [[Italy|Italian]] [[friar]], theologian, and inquisitor.
+
[[Saint]] '''Giovanni da Capestrano''' known as '''John of Capistrano''' in English (June 24, 1386 – October 23, 1456), was an [[Italy|Italian]] [[friar]], theologian, and inquisitor. He was born at [[Capistrano]], near [[Naples]] in [[Italy]], in 1385. He studied and practiced both secular and canon law, but later was imprisoned during a war, during which time he renounced his marriage. He resolved while still in prison to serve [[God]], and after his release, he sold his property and entered a [[monastery]] where the [[Rule of Saint Francis]] was strictly observed.
  
He was born at [[Capistrano]], near [[Naples]] in [[Italy]], in 1385. He studied and practiced both secular and canon law, but later was imprisoned during a war, during which time he renounced his marriage. He resolved while still in prison to serve [[God]], and after his release, he sold his property and entered a monastery where the [[Rule of Saint Francis]] was observed in its purity.
+
For seven years, John practiced severe [[asceticism|austerities]], cared for the sick in the hospitals, and preached the word of God. He became a disciple of [[Saint Bernardino]] of [[Siena]], assisting him in public conferences and discussions. However, John was accused of having promulgated [[heterodox]] opinions and went to [[Rome]] to justify his teachings in the presence of the [[pope]] and a group of cardinals, where he defended himself well.
  
For seven years, John practiced great austerities, cared for the sick in the hospitals, and preached the word of God. He became a disciple of [[Saint Bernardine]] of [[Siena]], assisting him in public conferences and discussions. However, he was accused of having taught errors and went to [[Rome]] to justify his teachings in the presence of the [[Pope]] and a group of cardinals, where he defended himself well.
+
Afterwards, he preached all over Italy. Five popes in succession gave John commissions to represent them in important affairs, and he traveled to [[France]], [[Austria]], [[Poland]], and [[Germany]]. His negotiations were highly successful, but none of the popes raised him higher than the position of [[bishop]] reportedly due to his own resistance.
  
Afterwards, he preached all over Italy. Five Popes in succession gave John commissions to represent them in important affairs, and he traveled to [[France]], [[Austria]], [[Poland]], and [[Germany]]. Everywhere his negotiations were crowned with success, but none of the Popes succeeded in raising him to a higher [[episcopal]] position; their efforts met an absolute resistance in his humility.
+
John's proved to be of great assistance to the [[Holy See]] in war as well. When [[Mohammed II]] was threatening [[Vienna]] and Rome, [[Pope Callixtus III]] enrolled John Capistrano to help lead a [[crusade]] of 70,000 [[Christians]], which won a great victory at [[Belgrade]] in 1455.  
  
John's extraordinary qualities proved to be of great assistance to the [[Holy See]] in another circumstance. When [[Mohammed II]] was threatening [[Vienna]] and Rome, Saint John Capistrano, at the bidding of [[Pope Callixtus III]], enrolled him to help lead a [[crusade]] of 70,000 [[Christians]], which won a great victory at [[Belgrade]] in 1455.  
+
Saint John of Capistrano died the following year at the age of 71. He was canonized in 1690.
  
Saint John died the following year at the age of 71. He was canonized in 1690.
+
==Biography==
 +
Saint John was born in the village of [[Capestrano]], in the diocese of [[Sulmona]] in the [[Abruzzi]] region of central [[Italy]]. His father had come to Italy with the [[Angevin]] court of [[Louis I of Anjou]], King of [[Naples]]. John lived at first a wholly secular life, studied law at the [[Perugia|University of Perugia]] under the legal scholar [[Pietro de Ubaldis]], married, and became a successful magistrate. In 1412, [[Ladislas of Naples]] appointed him governor of Perugia, a tumultuous and resentful papal [[fief]] held by Ladislas as the pope's agent, in order to effectively establish public order. When war broke out between Perugia and [[Malatesta|Sigismondo Malatesta]] in 1416, John was sent as ambassador to broker a peace, but Malatesta threw him in prison.  
  
==Biography==
+
During the captivity, he put aside his new young wife, with the claim that he had never consummated the marriage. He studied with the future St [[Bernardino of Siena]] and entered the [[Franciscan]] order at Perugia on October 4, 1416. His superiors, fearing this vocation to be a passing fancy, tested him severely, even sending him away twice; but he remained day and night at the door, suffering all trials without complaint. His heroic perseverance disarmed their fears and severity, and he was admitted to religious profession.
Saint John was born in the village of [[Capestrano]], in the diocese of [[Sulmona]] in the [[Abruzzi]] region of central [[Italy]]. His father had come to Italy with the [[Angevin]] court of [[Louis I of Anjou]], King of [[Naples]]. John lived at first a wholly secular life, studied law at the [[Perugia|University of Perugia]] under the legal scholar [[Pietro de Ubaldis]], married, and became a successful magistrate. In 1412, [[Ladislas of Naples]] appointed him governor of Perugia, a tumultuous and resentful papal fief held by Ladislas as the pope's [[champion]], in order to effectively establish public order. When war broke out between Perugia and [[Malatesta|Sigismondo Malatesta]] in 1416, John was sent as ambassador to broker a peace, but Malatesta threw him in prison.  
 
  
During the captivity, in despair he put aside his new young wife, with the claim that he had never consummated the marriage, and, studying with St [[Bernardino of Siena]], together with St [[Giacomo della Marca]], he entered the [[Franciscan]] order at Perugia on October 4, 1416.
+
At once he gave himself up to the most rigorous [[asceticism]], violently defending the ideal of strict observance and the narrowest reading of orthodoxy and the Franciscan rule. At first following Bernardino as he preached, from 1420 onwards, John himself spoke with great effect in many cities.  
The superiors, fearing this vocation to be a passing fancy, tested him severely, even sending him away twice; but he remained day and night at the door, suffering joyfully all trials. His heroic perseverance disarmed their fears and severity, and he was admitted to religious profession.
 
  
At once he gave himself up to the most rigorous asceticism, violently defending the ideal of strict observance and the narrowest reading of orthodoxy, following Bernardino as he preached, and from 1420 onwards, preaching himself with great effect in many cities.  
+
Unlike most Italian preachers of [[repentance]] in the [[fifteenth century]], John of Capestrano was most effective in the north, in [[Germany]], [[Bohemia]], [[Austria]], [[Hungary]], and [[Poland]]. The largest churches could not hold the crowds that came to hear him, so he preached in the [[piazza]]s: at [[Brescia]] he reportedly preached to a crowd of 126,000. When he was not preaching, he was  writing tracts against [[heresy]] of every kind. This facet of Giovanni's life is covered in great detail by his early biographers, [[Nicholas of Fara]], [[Christopher of Varese]], and [[Girolamo of Udine]]. While he was thus evangelizing, he was actively engaged in assisting Bernardino in the reforms of the [[Franciscan Order]], largely in the interests of more rigorous hierarchic discipline.
  
Unlike most Italian preachers of [[repentance]] in the [[fifteenth century]], Giovanni da Capestrano was effective in the north, in [[Germany]], [[Bohemia]], [[Austria]], [[Hungary]], and [[Poland]]. The largest churches could not hold the crowds, so he preached in the [[piazza]]s: at [[Brescia]] he preached to a crowd of 126,000. When he was not preaching, he was writing tracts against [[heresy]] of every kind. This facet of Giovanni's life is covered in great detail by his early biographers, Nicholas of Fara, Christopher of Varese, and Girolamo of Udine. While he was thus evangelizing, he was actively engaged in assisting Bernardino in the reforms of the Franciscan Order, largely in the interests of more rigorous hierarchic discipline.
+
Like Bernardino, he greatly emphasized devotion to the [[Holy Name]] of [[Jesus]]. He and Bernadino were accused of heresy on this account. In 1429, John, together with other strict Franciscan friars, was called to Rome on the charge of [[heresy]]. John was chosen by his companions to defend them, and the friars were acquitted by the Commission of [[Cardinal (Catholicism)|Cardinals]].
  
Like Saint Bernardino of Siena, he greatly proselytized devotion to the [[Holy Name]] of Jesus, and, together with that saint, was accused of heresy on this account. In 1429, John, together with other Observant friars, was called to Rome on the charge of heresy, and he was chosen by his companions to defend them; the friars were acquitted by the Commission of [[Cardinal (Catholicism)|Cardinals]]. He was frequently deployed to embassies by Popes [[Pope Eugene IV|Eugene IV]] and [[Pope Nicholas V|Nicholas V]].
 
 
[[Image:San Juan Capistrano, O.F.M..jpg|thumb|250px|San Giovanni da Capistrano, [[O.F.M.]], patron saint of the [[Spain|Spanish]] mission outposts in [[Mission San Juan Capistrano|California]] and [[Mission San Juan Capistrano (Texas)|Texas]], [[U.S.A.]]]]  
 
[[Image:San Juan Capistrano, O.F.M..jpg|thumb|250px|San Giovanni da Capistrano, [[O.F.M.]], patron saint of the [[Spain|Spanish]] mission outposts in [[Mission San Juan Capistrano|California]] and [[Mission San Juan Capistrano (Texas)|Texas]], [[U.S.A.]]]]  
  
In 1439, he was sent as legate to [[Milan]] and [[Burgundy]], to oppose the claims of the [[Amadeus VIII of Savoy|Antipope Felix V]]; in 1446, he was on a mission to the King of France; and in 1451, he went at the request of the emperor as Apostolic [[nuncio]] to Austria. During the period of his nunciature, John visited all parts of the Empire, preaching and combatting the heresy of the [[Hussite]]s; he also visited Poland at the request of [[Casimir IV]].
+
After this, John was frequently deployed to embassies by Popes [[Pope Eugene IV|Eugene IV]] and [[Pope Nicholas V|Nicholas V]]. In 1439, he was sent as legate to [[Milan]] and [[Burgundy]] to oppose the claims of the [[Amadeus VIII of Savoy|Antipope Felix V]]; in 1446, he was on a mission to the King of France; and in 1451, he went at the request of the emperor as Apostolic [[nuncio]] to Austria. During this period, John visited all parts of the Empire, preaching and combating the heresy of the [[Hussite]]s; he also visited Poland at the request of [[Casimir IV]].
  
As legate, or inquisitor, he persecuted the last [[Fraticelli]] of [[Ferrara]] and the [[Jesuati]] of [[Venice]]; the [[Jew]]s of [[Sicily]], [[Moldavia]] and [[Poland]]; and, above all, the Hussites of [[Germany]], [[Hungary]], and [[Bohemia]]. His aim in the last case was to make conferences impossible between the representatives of [[Rome]] and the Bohemians, for every attempt at conciliation seemed to him to be conniving at heresy.   
+
As legate, or [[inquisitor]], he persecuted the last [[Fraticelli]] (heretical Fanciscans) of [[Ferrara]]; the [[Jesuati]] of [[Venice]]; the [[Jew]]s of [[Sicily]], [[Moldavia]] and [[Poland]]; and, above all, the Hussites of [[Germany]], [[Hungary]], and [[Bohemia]]. His aim in the last case was to make conferences impossible between the representatives of [[Rome]] and the Bohemians, for every attempt at conciliation seemed to him to be conniving at heresy.   
  
Unfortunately, John's oratory was not only used to inspire religious faith, but to incite mobs to conduct the mass murders of [[Jew]]s in different cities in [[Germany]]. For example, 41 Jews were burned in the city of [[Breslau]], while 36 Jews were burned in the [[Berlin]] marketplace. In addition, the entire Jewish community of [[Liegnitz]] was burned to death because of John's incitement of mobs.
+
Unfortunately, John's oratory was not only used to inspire religious faith, but also to incite mobs to conduct the mass murders of [[Jew]]s in several cities in [[Germany]]. For example, 41 Jews were burned in the city of [[Breslau]], while 36 Jews were burned in the [[Berlin]] marketplace. In addition, the entire Jewish community of [[Liegnitz]] was burned to death because of John's incitement of mobs.
  
 
Finally, after the [[Fall of Constantinople]], when [[Mohammed II]] was threatening Vienna and Rome, [[Pope Calixtus III]] sent him at the age of 70 to preach and lead a [[Crusade]] against the invading [[Ottoman Empire|Turks]]. At the Diet of [[Frankfurt]] in 1454, John succeeded in gathering troops together.
 
Finally, after the [[Fall of Constantinople]], when [[Mohammed II]] was threatening Vienna and Rome, [[Pope Calixtus III]] sent him at the age of 70 to preach and lead a [[Crusade]] against the invading [[Ottoman Empire|Turks]]. At the Diet of [[Frankfurt]] in 1454, John succeeded in gathering troops together.
  
In the summer of 1455, with Capistrano leading a contingent, helped [[John Hunyadi]] to raise the [[siege of Belgrade]], which was being blockaded by [[Mahommed II]]. Marching at the head of the crusaders, John entered Belgrade at the head of the army. This General of the Friars Minor won a remarkable victory, when 40,000 of the enemies of the Christians perished, but virtually none among the latter. Saint himself died of [[bubonic plague]] at Illok, [[Hungary]] the following year at the age of 71. He is regarded as a martyr, for enemies of the faith twice succeeded in giving him poison, which was ineffectual; he died only from the disease he had suffered in the defense of the city of Belgrade. “An infinity of miracles” followed his death. He was canonized in 1690.
+
In the summer of 1455, with Capistrano leading a contingent, helped [[John Hunyadi]] to raise the [[siege of Belgrade]], which was being blockaded by [[Mahommed II]]. Marching at the head of the crusaders, John entered Belgrade at the head of the army. This General of the Friars Minor won a remarkable victory, when 40,000 Muslims reportedly perished, but virtually none among the latter. The saint himself died of [[bubonic plague]] at Illok, [[Hungary]] the following year at the age of 71.
  
==Quotes==
+
He is regarded as a martyr, for enemies of the faith twice succeeded in giving him poison, which was ineffectual. “An infinity of miracles” followed his death. He was canonized in 1690.
:"Those who are called to the table of the Lord must glow with the brightness that comes from the good example of a praiseworthy and blameless life. They must completely remove from their lives the filth and uncleanness of vice. Their upright lives must make them like the salt of the earth for themselves and for the rest of mankind. The brightness of their wisdom must make them like the light of the world that brings light to others. They must learn from their eminent teacher, Jesus Christ, what he declared not only to his apostles and disciples, but also to all the priests and clerics who were to succeed them, when he said, `You are the salt of the earth.' But what is salt goes flat? How can you restore its flavor? Then it is good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
 
  
:"Jesus also said: `You are the light of the world.' Now a light does not illumine itself, but instead it diffuses its rays and shines all around upon everything that comes into its view. So it must be with the glowing lives of upright and holy clerics. By the brightness of their holiness they must bring light and serenity to all who gaze upon them. They have been placed here to care for others. Their own lives should be an example to others, showing how they must live in the house of the Lord."
 
  
:''—from the treatise'' Mirror of the Clergy ''by Saint John of Capistrano''
 
  
 
==Legacy==
 
==Legacy==

Revision as of 20:58, 16 December 2007


San Giovanni da Capistrano
Capistrankanzel Vienna.JPG

Pulpit of John Capistrano at the Stephansdom in Vienna
Born June 24 1386(1386-06-24) in Capestrano
Died October 23 1456 (aged 70) in Ilok, modern Croatia[1]
Venerated in Roman Catholicism
Canonized 1690 or 1724
Feast 28 March
Patronage Jurists

Saint Giovanni da Capestrano known as John of Capistrano in English (June 24, 1386 – October 23, 1456), was an Italian friar, theologian, and inquisitor. He was born at Capistrano, near Naples in Italy, in 1385. He studied and practiced both secular and canon law, but later was imprisoned during a war, during which time he renounced his marriage. He resolved while still in prison to serve God, and after his release, he sold his property and entered a monastery where the Rule of Saint Francis was strictly observed.

For seven years, John practiced severe austerities, cared for the sick in the hospitals, and preached the word of God. He became a disciple of Saint Bernardino of Siena, assisting him in public conferences and discussions. However, John was accused of having promulgated heterodox opinions and went to Rome to justify his teachings in the presence of the pope and a group of cardinals, where he defended himself well.

Afterwards, he preached all over Italy. Five popes in succession gave John commissions to represent them in important affairs, and he traveled to France, Austria, Poland, and Germany. His negotiations were highly successful, but none of the popes raised him higher than the position of bishop reportedly due to his own resistance.

John's proved to be of great assistance to the Holy See in war as well. When Mohammed II was threatening Vienna and Rome, Pope Callixtus III enrolled John Capistrano to help lead a crusade of 70,000 Christians, which won a great victory at Belgrade in 1455.

Saint John of Capistrano died the following year at the age of 71. He was canonized in 1690.

Biography

Saint John was born in the village of Capestrano, in the diocese of Sulmona in the Abruzzi region of central Italy. His father had come to Italy with the Angevin court of Louis I of Anjou, King of Naples. John lived at first a wholly secular life, studied law at the University of Perugia under the legal scholar Pietro de Ubaldis, married, and became a successful magistrate. In 1412, Ladislas of Naples appointed him governor of Perugia, a tumultuous and resentful papal fief held by Ladislas as the pope's agent, in order to effectively establish public order. When war broke out between Perugia and Sigismondo Malatesta in 1416, John was sent as ambassador to broker a peace, but Malatesta threw him in prison.

During the captivity, he put aside his new young wife, with the claim that he had never consummated the marriage. He studied with the future St Bernardino of Siena and entered the Franciscan order at Perugia on October 4, 1416. His superiors, fearing this vocation to be a passing fancy, tested him severely, even sending him away twice; but he remained day and night at the door, suffering all trials without complaint. His heroic perseverance disarmed their fears and severity, and he was admitted to religious profession.

At once he gave himself up to the most rigorous asceticism, violently defending the ideal of strict observance and the narrowest reading of orthodoxy and the Franciscan rule. At first following Bernardino as he preached, from 1420 onwards, John himself spoke with great effect in many cities.

Unlike most Italian preachers of repentance in the fifteenth century, John of Capestrano was most effective in the north, in Germany, Bohemia, Austria, Hungary, and Poland. The largest churches could not hold the crowds that came to hear him, so he preached in the piazzas: at Brescia he reportedly preached to a crowd of 126,000. When he was not preaching, he was writing tracts against heresy of every kind. This facet of Giovanni's life is covered in great detail by his early biographers, Nicholas of Fara, Christopher of Varese, and Girolamo of Udine. While he was thus evangelizing, he was actively engaged in assisting Bernardino in the reforms of the Franciscan Order, largely in the interests of more rigorous hierarchic discipline.

Like Bernardino, he greatly emphasized devotion to the Holy Name of Jesus. He and Bernadino were accused of heresy on this account. In 1429, John, together with other strict Franciscan friars, was called to Rome on the charge of heresy. John was chosen by his companions to defend them, and the friars were acquitted by the Commission of Cardinals.

File:San Juan Capistrano, O.F.M..jpg
San Giovanni da Capistrano, O.F.M., patron saint of the Spanish mission outposts in California and Texas, U.S.A.

After this, John was frequently deployed to embassies by Popes Eugene IV and Nicholas V. In 1439, he was sent as legate to Milan and Burgundy to oppose the claims of the Antipope Felix V; in 1446, he was on a mission to the King of France; and in 1451, he went at the request of the emperor as Apostolic nuncio to Austria. During this period, John visited all parts of the Empire, preaching and combating the heresy of the Hussites; he also visited Poland at the request of Casimir IV.

As legate, or inquisitor, he persecuted the last Fraticelli (heretical Fanciscans) of Ferrara; the Jesuati of Venice; the Jews of Sicily, Moldavia and Poland; and, above all, the Hussites of Germany, Hungary, and Bohemia. His aim in the last case was to make conferences impossible between the representatives of Rome and the Bohemians, for every attempt at conciliation seemed to him to be conniving at heresy.

Unfortunately, John's oratory was not only used to inspire religious faith, but also to incite mobs to conduct the mass murders of Jews in several cities in Germany. For example, 41 Jews were burned in the city of Breslau, while 36 Jews were burned in the Berlin marketplace. In addition, the entire Jewish community of Liegnitz was burned to death because of John's incitement of mobs.

Finally, after the Fall of Constantinople, when Mohammed II was threatening Vienna and Rome, Pope Calixtus III sent him at the age of 70 to preach and lead a Crusade against the invading Turks. At the Diet of Frankfurt in 1454, John succeeded in gathering troops together.

In the summer of 1455, with Capistrano leading a contingent, helped John Hunyadi to raise the siege of Belgrade, which was being blockaded by Mahommed II. Marching at the head of the crusaders, John entered Belgrade at the head of the army. This General of the Friars Minor won a remarkable victory, when 40,000 Muslims reportedly perished, but virtually none among the latter. The saint himself died of bubonic plague at Illok, Hungary the following year at the age of 71.

He is regarded as a martyr, for enemies of the faith twice succeeded in giving him poison, which was ineffectual. “An infinity of miracles” followed his death. He was canonized in 1690.


Legacy

Saint John of Capistrano, in spite of this restless life, found time to uphold both in his writings and his speeches the most advanced theories upon the papal supremacy as opposed to those of the church councils. He left behind 19 volumes of his writings and more than 700 letters.

After the conquest of Constantinople, the Turks attacked the fortress at Belgrade, with the victory of the Christians, due in large part, to the zeal and prayers of Saint John. The Feast of the Transfiguration was instituted to commemorate the event.

In 1690, Saint John was canonized. His feast day is October 23.

Saint John won lasting tribute in popular culture in Leon Rene’s famous song, "When the Swallows Come Back to Capistrano," which romanticizes the return of the little birds to the old Spanish mission, San Juan Capistrano, named for St. John of Capistrano.

Notes

References
ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

  • Attwater, Donald, & Cumming, John. A New Dictionary of Saints, Liturgical Press, 1994. ISBN 978-0814623244
  • Frazier, Alison Knowles. Possible Lives: Authors and Saints in Renaissance Italy, Columbia University Press, 2005. ISBN 978-0231129763
  • Thurston, Herbert J., & Attwater, Donald. Butler's Lives of the Saints, Christian Classics, 1976. ISBN 978-0870610455
  • Tylenda, Joseph N. Saints and Feasts of the Liturgical Year, Georgetown University Press, 2003. ISBN 978-0878403998

External links

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