#jesuits

Francisco de ZURBARAN, Saint Francis in Ecstasy, 1640, oil on canvas, 152x99cm, National Gallery, London

There is a great simplicity in the composition of this work, with an essentially geometric play of forms. Saint Francis focuses on the idea of ​​death by holding a skull against him. The powerful chiaroscuro of the composition clearly illustrates the influence of Caravaggio on the artist's work and leads to plunging the saint's face into darkness: it is difficult to identify Saint Francis. The composition demonstrate the importance placed on the description of the rough textures of the sackcloth robe, which evokes the austerity of his existence.

Les Iroquois ont commencé à tourmenter les Français dès qu’ils prirent connaissance de leur implantation à Ville-Marie (Montréal). C’est finalement le 9 juin 1643 qu’eut lieu le premier raid.

«...une bande de quarante (Iroquois) fit son coup à Mont-real et aux environs. Ils estoient en embuscade à demy lieuë au dessus de l’habitation du Montreal dans l’Isle mesme, à cent pas de la Riviere; (...) de là ils guettoient les Hurons sur la Riviere, et les François (...) pour en surprendre quelques-uns à l’escart, autour de l’habitation. (...) dix (Iroquois se jettent) sur cinq François qui travailloient à une charpente, (...) ils en assommerent trois, à qui ils escorchent le teste et enlevent les chevelures, et emmenent les deux autres captifs, puis vont rejoindre à leur compagnons, et tous ensemblent se rendent à leur fort...»

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The radical commensality and anti-family tradition of the early Jesus movement lost its cutting edge towards the end of the post-persecution period of the Roman Empire. 

As it developed in the Egyptian desert, early Christian monasticism was an eschatological, anti-family, ascetical movement. Through their austere, ascetic practices and prayers, the early anchorites attempted to regain the gifts of paradise that were lost due to the primal sin of Adam and Eve. They attempted to live the foretaste of Christian salvation.

Monasticism...continued the anti-family and anti-marriage elements of the early Jesus movement. Christian monasticism provided an alternative Christian construction of sexuality to marriage. ...

In such homosocial Christian communities then, as it is the case now, there were a fair number of people who were attracted to the same sex and who discovered meaningful relationships with members of their same sex in their quest for holiness and contemplative union with God. Some expressed their love or loves to other members of the same sex. Otherwise, there would be no history of the prohibitions for same-sex contacts, attachments or particular friendships.

In examining early monastic rules and Christian penitential texts, it is necessary to apply the principle 'where there is smoke there is fire'. Or in this particular case, where there are prohibitions against homoerotic behaviors, there is same-sex activities, erotic friendships, and folks falling in love with one or more members of their communities. 

For example, St Augustine cautioned a group of monastic women to love one another, but not in a carnal fashion, St Basil warned fellow monks of the dangers of handsome, young monks.

It is frequently the case with young men that even when rigorous self restraint is exercised, the glowing complexion of youth still blossoms forth and becomes a source of desire to those around them. If, therefore, anyone is youthful and physically beautiful, let him keep his attractiveness hidden until his appearance reaches a suitable state.

Basil warns monks to keep their distance and to avert their eyes from beautiful monks. Any male monastic or religious, if honest, will narrate how they wanted to spend time with someone they fell in love with, attracted to that beautiful person or persons in community, or work at developing intimate bonds with several members of their community. ...

St Basil and other monastic writers understood well the attraction to the same sex as a natural inclination yet an inclination to be restrained. The second Council of Tours in 567 prohibited monks and priests from sleeping more than one to a bed while the Benedictine Rule advocated all monks sleep in the same room with the abbot's bed in the center. St Benedict also mandated that a light be kept burning at night in the dormitory. 

The Benedictine rule, along with later monastic rules and charters, instituted regulations to prevent sexual relations between monks. In a more recent time, the custom book of the Jesuit novitiate, proscribed 'particular friendships', a religious euphemism for emotional entanglements and not peculiar to Jesuits only. 

There was a famous slogan: Numquam duo, semper tres. ('Never two, always three'). This was not a justification for threesomes but a proscription against dyadic samesex relationships. Love between the brothers had to extend to any particular individual and include the others of the community.

I was guilty of many particular friendships during my Jesuit novitiate and later studies, but there were many of us falling in love with one another in the Society of Jesus. 

Sex activist and teacher Joe Kramer called his experience within the Jesuits a 'homosexual heaven'; it provided inspiration for his notion of a beloved community of men who would celebrate open erotic rituals to celebrate a communal polyamory. This makes sense when you add the love ethic of Christianity.

Mario Guiducci – Scientist of the Day

Mario Guiducci, an Italian scholar and a member of Galileo’s circle, was born in Florence on Mar. 18, 1583.