Sermon on the Renovation of the Church (Psalms, sermon 3)

Our intention this morning is to repeat all that we have said and preached in Florence in these past years about the renovation of the Church, which will certainly come soon. We shall make this repetition so that those who have not heard it in the past may understand and know that the renovation is certainly to come, and soon; and that those who have heard it and hear it this morning may be confirmed; and that those who have not believed and do not believe may be converted; and that those who will not believe and remain more obstinate may at least be left confounded and pale at the reasons we shall bring forward… Come now, what do you mean by this, friar? The things you have foretold these four years past, where did you get them? It is not necessary for me to tell you, because your mind is not disposed to understand it. I have indeed told it to some intimate friend of mine, one or two at most. But I do want to tell you that you must believe that I am not mad, and that I do not act without foundation. In the past I too used to make fun of such things; but God permitted it in me so that I might have compassion on you when you did not believe it so readily. But truly you must believe, because of the things I have foretold and preached to you, you see a great part already fulfilled up to now. And I tell you that the rest too will be fulfilled, and not one iota of it will fail; and I am more certain of it than you are that two and two make four, and more certain than I am that I am touching the wood of this pulpit, because that light is more certain than the sense of touch.

But I want you to know well that this light does not, for all that, make me righteous: Balaam prophesied; he was nonetheless a sinner and a wicked man, although he had this light of prophecy. But I tell you, Florence, that this light has been given to me for you, and not for me, because this light does not make a man pleasing to God. And I want you to know that I began to see these things more than fifteen years ago, perhaps twenty; but I began to speak of them ten years ago. And first, at Brescia, when I preached there, I began to say something; then God permitted me to come to Florence, which is the navel of Italy, so that you might make it known to all the other cities of Italy. But you, Florence, have heard with your own ears not me, but God; whereas the others in Italy have always heard it from what others said; and therefore you will have no excuse at all, Florence, if you are not converted. Believe me, Florence, it is not I but God who says these things. You can understand this because you have heard how many people who were on the bad road have returned to penance; and believe that a poor little friar could not have produced this effect if God had not worked in him. Believe, then, Florence, and be converted, and do not think that your scourge has passed, for I see the sword turning back. A stone by its nature moves downward, and does not know it. The swallow makes its nest of earth, and does not know why; but it does this by natural instinct, and they do not know the cause why they act so.

But man is led by free will. In a similar way there have been some who, in their simplicity, have foretold many things and did not know the cause why. And there have been some others who have foretold many things not out of simplicity, but knew the cause and reason why. So in whichever of these two ways you wish to say that a thing can be foretold, I have foretold it to you: that all Italy is to be turned upside down, and Rome, and afterwards the Church is to be renewed. But you do not believe! Yet you ought to believe, for God has told it to you rather than I. Now let us begin with the reasons I have given you these several years past, which demonstrate and prove the renovation of the Church. Some reasons are probable, which can be contradicted; some are demonstrative, which cannot be contradicted, because they are founded in Holy Scripture; and those I shall tell you are all demonstrative, all founded in Holy Scripture. The first is because of the pollution of the prelates. When you see a good head, say that the body is well; when the head is bad, woe to that body! Therefore, when God permits ambition, lust and other vices to be in the head of the government, believe that the scourge of God is near. So, when you see that God permits the heads of the Church to plunge into crimes and simonies, say that the scourge of the people is near. I do not say that it is in the heads of the Church; but I say: when you see it. The second is because of the taking away of the good and the righteous.

Whenever God takes away the saints and the good, say that the scourge is near… See how many men are found today who can be called righteous and good! And therefore say that the scourge is near, and that the wrath and the sword of God are stirred. The third, because of the exclusion of the righteous. When you see that some lord or head of government does not want the good and righteous near him, but drives them away because he does not want to be told the truth, say that the scourge of God is near. The fourth, because of the desire of the righteous. When you see that all men of good life desire and call for the scourge, believe that it is to come soon. Look today whether it seems to you that everyone is calling for the scourge! And believe me, Florence, your punishment would already have come, had it not been for the entreaties and prayers of the good. Believe me, you would today be a garden! The fifth, because of the obstinacy of sinners. When sinners are obstinate and will not be converted to God, and do not esteem or value those who call them to the good way, but always go from bad to worse and are obstinate in their vices, say that God is angry. And therefore, Florence, await the scourge; for you know how long you have been told to be converted, and you have always been obstinate. And you, Rome, you too have been told, and still you remain in obstinacy; and therefore await the wrath of God. The sixth, because of the multitude of sins. For the pride of David the pestilence was sent.

See whether Rome is full of pride, lust, avarice and simony! See whether the wicked are always multiplying in her! And therefore say that the scourge is near, and that the renovation of the Church is near. The seventh is because of the casting off of the first things, namely charity and faith. In the time of the primitive Church people lived only in complete faith and complete charity. See how much of it there is in the world today! You, Florence, insist on attending to your ambition, and everyone to exalting himself. Believe that you have no remedy except penance, because the scourge of God is near. The eighth is because of the denial of the things to be believed. Look: does it not seem to you today that no one believes or has faith any more, and that everyone says, “What will come afterwards?” The ninth is because of the loss of divine worship. Go and see what is done in the churches of God and with what devotion people stand there; it seems, and it is so today, that divine worship is lost. You will say: “Oh, there are so many religious and so many prelates, more than there ever were!” Would that there were fewer of them! O tonsure, O tonsure, “because of you this storm has arisen”; you are the cause of all this evil! And nowadays everyone thinks himself blessed who has a priest in his house; and I tell you that the time will come when it will be said: “Blessed is the house that has no shaven crown.” The tenth is because of universal opinion. You see that everyone seems to preach and await the scourge and the tribulations; and to everyone it seems a just thing that the punishment of so much iniquity should come. The abbot Joachim and many others preach and announce that this scourge is to come at this time.

These are the reasons for which I have preached to you the renovation of the Church. Now let us speak of the figures that show it. There was a king who had an only-begotten son. He found a woman who was poor and ragged and covered in mud. The king, moved to compassion, took her and brought her into his house, and took her as his lawful wife, and had by her two daughters, whom he gave as wives to his only-begotten son. This wife of the king, after some time, began to take lovers and to do much evil with his citizens and chamberlains. The king learned of it; he took her and drove her away, sending her back into poverty and the mud, as she had been before. Then one of these daughters of his began to sin in the same way as her mother had done, and even much worse; for which the king, angered, sent her away and drove her from himself and from his son, and commanded that no bread be given her. The other daughter, not warned by the sin and the punishment of her mother and her sister, began to sin and to do much worse than her mother and her sister had done, very much more. Tell me: what does she deserve? Certainly she deserves much more punishment than her mother and sister. Now I want to explain this parable to you. This king is God, who took that poor woman as his bride, that is, the Synagogue of the Jews as his Church; which sinned; and you know how God drove her from himself and sent her back into the mud where she had been before, that is, put her into her former servitude, misery and blindness.

The two daughters are the Church of the East, of the Greeks, and the Roman Church, given as brides to God and to his only-begotten Son, Christ Jesus crucified, in which we are to serve as soldiers. The Church of the East sinned in its heresies; and therefore God has driven her from himself and from his Son Christ Jesus, and has commanded that no bread be given her, for no preachers go there any more, nor anyone to give her the food of the soul and spiritual food, nor to enlighten her. This other Church is the Roman, full of simony and wickedness, which has sinned more than the first and the second. What do you think she deserves? Do you not think that God will want to punish her? Certainly you think so, and even more harshly than the mother and the sister, for they would justly complain to God, saying: “If we have sinned, you have made us bear the penance; but this other, who has sinned more than we, why do you not punish her?” And therefore hold that the Church will be renewed, and soon. Having told the parables, we shall speak of the renovation of the Church as far as we have seen it, as regards knowledge, and foretold it. And so that you may understand better, know that there are two kinds of knowledge: the first is when we know, by some outward sign, what that sign signifies inwardly; the second knowledge is by imagination. As to the first, when Pope Innocent died, something was done for which you laughed at me, since I had said that the Church was to be renewed, and you believed by that sign that I was in great error and that what I had foretold could not come; and I, by that outward sign, saw that the renovation of the Church must certainly be accomplished, and I built on what you said, which was against me.

As to the second, which is by imagination, I saw in imagination a black cross over Babylon, Rome, on which cross was written “The wrath of the Lord”; and upon it rained swords, knives, lances and every kind of weapon, and hail and stones, with storm and wondrous and very great lightning, in very dark and gloomy weather. And I saw another cross, of gold, which reached from heaven to earth over Jerusalem, on which was written “The mercy of God”; and there the weather was serene, very clear and bright. Hence, because of this vision, I tell you that the Church of God is to be renewed, and soon, because God is angry; and afterwards the unbelievers are to be converted, and it will be soon. Another imagination: I saw a sword over Italy, quivering; and I saw angels coming, who had the red cross in one hand, and many white stoles, and in the other hand they had the chalice, full to the brim with sweet and good wine, but at the bottom were dregs as bitter as gall. These angels gave this red cross to everyone to kiss, and likewise held out the white stoles. There were some who took these stoles; some who wanted them; some others who not only did not want them but even urged the others not to take any. After this, these angels held out the chalice to each one, and those who had willingly taken the stoles willingly drank of the wine, which at the top was sweet, and tasted it. To the others they gave the most bitter dregs, and they did not want to drink of it, but shunned it. At once I saw that sword which was quivering over Italy turn its point downward and, with very great storm and scourge, strike among them, and it scourged them all.

But those who had taken the white stoles felt less of this scourge and drank the sweet wine; the others drank the most bitter dregs by force, and in that scourge they begged the others to give them the stole; but they would not give it to them, saying that it was not the time. I will explain this vision to you. The sword that quivered (I will tell you plainly, Florence) is this sword of the King of France, which is showing itself to all Italy. The angels with the red cross and the white stoles and the chalice are the preachers who announce this scourge to you, and give you the red cross to kiss, that is, the passion of martyrdom and of enduring such a scourge as is to be in the renovation of the Church. The stole signifies cleansing one's conscience and clearing it of every vice; white, with purity. The chalice, full of good wine at the top, signifies the passion, which every man must drink of. But those who have taken the stoles and cleansed their consciences will drink the sweet wine, that is, they will feel little of such a scourge, which is signified by the sweet wine at the top of the chalice; that is, they will be the first to be scourged; but it will be sweet, because they will bear it willingly and patiently, and if they die they will go to eternal life. The others will drink the most bitter dregs by force, because it will seem bitter to them, as it certainly will be. And this sword has not yet turned its point downward, but is showing itself through all Italy, because God still waits for you to repent. Be converted, Florence, for there is no other remedy but penance!

Put on the white stole while you have time, and wait no longer, for afterwards you will have no room for penance. Now we shall speak of this renovation as regards the part of the intellect; and this is in two ways. Before, I spoke about this renovation with formal words and with words that were not formal. The formal words I have told you, know that I did not draw them from Scripture, nor find them anywhere, nor compose them myself out of my own fancy, and I did not have them from any man under heaven, but from God. I cannot tell you more plainly. Understand me, Florence: God says these words: “Rejoice and exult, you righteous; but prepare your souls for temptation by reading, meditation and prayer, and you will be delivered from the second death. And you, wicked servants, who are in filth, be filthy still; let your belly be filled with wine, let your loins be dissolved in lust, and let your hands be polluted with the blood of the poor. For this is your portion and this your lot. But know that your bodies and your souls are in my hand, and after a short time your bodies will be crushed with scourges, and your souls I will hand over to everlasting fire.” The other formal words are these: “Hear, all you inhabitants of the earth; thus says the Lord: I the Lord speak in my holy zeal. Behold, days will come, and I will unsheathe my sword over you. Turn, therefore, to me before my fury is fulfilled; then, when anguish comes upon you, you will seek peace and there will be none.” As for the words that are not formal, remember when I told you, three years ago now, that a wind would come in the likeness of that figure of Elijah, and that this wind would shake the mountains.

This wind has come, and it was the rumour that spread last year through Italy, and was spoken of this King of France. And everywhere this rumour flew like the wind and shook the mountains, that is, the princes of Italy, and has kept them shaken all this year, believing and not believing that this King would come. And behold, he has come! You used to say: “He will not come. He has no horses. It is winter.” And I laughed at you, for I knew how this thing was to go. And behold, he has come! And God has made summer of winter, as I told you then. Remember that I also told you that God would go beyond the mountains, and would take him by the bridle and lead him here in spite of and against the opinion of everyone. And behold, he has come! Remember also that I told you that great fortresses and great walls would be worth nothing. See whether it has all come true! Tell me, Florence, where are your fortresses? And your strongholds, what have they availed you? Remember also that I told you that your wisdom and your prudence would be of no use to you, and that you would take everything backwards, that is, the wrong way round; and that you would not know what to do, nor what to grasp, like a man drunk and out of his senses. And now it has come, and it has come true! And you never would believe me, and still you do not believe! I say to you, obstinate one: you will not believe the rest either, because God will not want to give you so much grace that you believe, because your obstinacy does not deserve it.

Remember that sometimes, three or four years ago, when I preached to you, I had so much breath and so much fervour and so much vehemence in speaking that people feared a vein in my chest would burst. You did not know why, my son; I could not do otherwise. Remember Lazarus Sunday, three years ago now, when the lightning fell on the dome, what I told you that morning: that I had not been able to rest at all that night, that I had wanted during the night to take up that Gospel of Lazarus to preach on it, and it had never been possible for me to fit it into my mind. You know that then this word came out of my mouth: “Behold the sword of the Lord over the earth, swiftly and soon.” And then I preached to you that morning and told you that the wrath of God was stirred and that the sword was soon ready; and so I tell you again. You ought indeed to believe. Remember also that it is three years since I began to expound Genesis. I did not know then for what cause, but I did it all to renew the old things a little. And when we came to the flood, it was not possible to go further, so abundant was the matter. Then I had to go and preach elsewhere. Then, last Lent, I began where I had left off at the flood, and began to build the Ark; and though I thought to finish it at once, the matter grew so abundant that I could never finish it that Lent. And when I took it up again just now, before events were ready for me to finish it, I still could not, because I had to go to Pisa for you to the King of France, and there remained two sermons to finish it and close it.

No sooner was it finished, remember, than the flood came, and that was the day when this city was to be turned upside down by the French. I want to infer this: that this has been a work and a divine mystery, and not something arranged or prepared by me. And therefore surely you ought to believe, Florence, and not want to be so hardened in your unbelief. Remember also that I told you in the past that I had been the father toward you, and God had been the mother, because I had rebuked you sharply and harshly, and cried with a loud voice that you should be converted, as a father does who diligently rebukes his son; and that I now wanted to be the mother, and that God wanted to be the father. Just as the mother, when she sees her son go wrong, threatens him and scolds and says she will tell his father when he comes and have him punished; and then, when the father has come, she does not accuse him, but says: “If you ever fall into this fault again, I will have your father punish you”; so I, though I rebuke you now, do not rebuke you with the vehemence and harshness I used in the past, because I see the father, that is, God, who has come to punish. And therefore I tell you and beg you with a humble and low voice: my children, do penance! Remember also, Florence, that I have told you that I have given you the apple, as a mother does when she gives the apple to her son when he cries, to quiet him; and then, when he still cries and she cannot quiet him, she takes that apple from him and gives it to another of her sons.

So I shall say to you, Florence: God has given you the apple, that is, he has chosen you for his own. If you will not do penance and be converted to God, he will take the apple from you and give it to others; this will be as true as that I am up here! And therefore, Florence, do these four things I have told you, and I promise you that you will be richer than ever, more glorious than ever, more powerful than ever. But no one believes today that angels have dealings with men and converse with them, or that God speaks to any man. And I tell you that likeness is the cause of love, that is, likeness is the cause of friendship. And therefore the nearer we draw to God and the angels by faith and charity, the more we are friends of God and of his angels; and they speak and converse with us. I do not tell you by this, nor have I ever told you, that God speaks to me. I tell you neither yes nor no. You are so far from the faith that you do not believe. You would much sooner believe some demon who spoke with men and told future things. You are senseless and outside the faith. Tell me whether you believe that Christ became incarnate of the Virgin Mary and was crucified, which is harder to believe than this. You ought then also to believe this, which is easier, namely that Christ speaks to men. Moreover, if you are a Christian, you must believe that the Church is to be renewed. Daniel says that Antichrist must come, and that he is to persecute the Christians there in Jerusalem; therefore there must be Christians there; therefore those who are there must be baptized and become Christians.

But to bring this about requires other men than there are today. The Church must therefore be renewed, so that such men may be made and may go there to convert the unbelievers to Christianity. Go and read the doctors on that Gospel of Matthew where it says: “This gospel will be preached in the whole world, and then the end will come.” Believe me, Florence; you ought indeed to believe me, because of what I have told you, you have never seen one iota fail up to now, nor will you see anything fail in the future. I foretold, several years beforehand, the death of Lorenzo de' Medici and the death of Pope Innocent; likewise the event that has just happened here in Florence, the change of regime; likewise I said that on the day the King of France would be at Pisa, the regime here would be renewed. I did not say these things up here publicly; but I said them to people who are here at this sermon, and I have witnesses here in Florence. I know that this morning I am a fool, “and that I say all these things in foolishness.” But I want you to know that this light does not make me righteous; but if I am humble and have charity, I shall be righteous. And this light has not been given to me for myself, nor for my merit; but for you, Florence, it has been given me. And therefore, Florence, this morning I have told you these things so openly, this morning, inspired by God to tell them to you thus, so that you may know everything and have no excuse afterwards when the scourge comes, and cannot say: “I did not know!”

I cannot tell you more plainly; and I know that this morning I shall be held a fool, for many have come to take note of my words against me. If you say that I am mad, I shall have patience. I have spoken to you thus because God has willed that I speak to you thus. Since I began this Apocalypse for you, we have had a great deal of opposition: part of it you know, part God knows, part his angels. We must fight against the lukewarm, and against a double wisdom, that is, against the wisdom of the New and Old Testament; against a double knowledge, against philosophy and the sacred Scriptures; and against a double malice, that is, against the evil that the lukewarm do today, who know that they do evil and want to do it. It was not so in the time of Christ, because then there was only the Old Testament; and if they erred, they believed they were doing good. And therefore I tell you that if Christ came back down here today, he would be crucified again. I tell you that I have disclosed almost nothing, because I tell you that if I disclosed everything, I would not last six days. Believe me, I have already been in danger of death several times. I have told you: “The sword of the Lord swiftly and soon over the earth.” Believe me, the knife of God will come, and soon. And do not make fun of this “soon”; and do not say that it is a “soon” of the Apocalypse, which takes hundreds of years to come. Believe me, it will be soon. Believing does you no harm; on the contrary, it helps you, for it makes you return to penance and makes you walk in the way of God.

And not believing can harm you and does not help you. Therefore believe, for the time is near; exactly when cannot be said, because God does not want it, so that his elect may always remain in fear and in faith and charity, and always remain in the love of God. And therefore I have not told you the fixed time, so that you may always do penance and always please God. For, for example, if one were to say to men, “The tribulation is to come ten years from now,” everyone would say, “I can still put off being converted for a while”; and it would be almost like giving them leave to do evil in the meantime, which would be unfitting. And therefore God does not want the fixed time to be preached. But I do tell you that now is the time for penance. Do not make fun of this “soon” that I tell you. If you do not do what I have said, woe to Florence! woe to the people! woe to the small! woe to the great! Lastly, I conclude that I have been a fool this morning. You will say so, and I knew before I came up here that you would say so. God willed it thus; and therefore I tell you, and hold this as the final conclusion: God has prepared a great dinner for all Italy, but all the dishes are bitter, and he has served only the salad, which has been a little bitter lettuce. Understand me well, Florence: all the other dishes are still to come, and they are all bitter, and there are many dishes, because it is a great dinner. So I conclude, and keep it in mind, that Italy is now just at the beginning of her tribulations.

O Italy, O princes of Italy, O prelates of the Church, the wrath of God is upon you, and you have no remedy unless you are converted, “and I will begin at my sanctuary!” O Italy, O Florence, “because of your sins adversities come upon you!” O nobles, O powerful, O common people, “the hand of the Lord is upon you, and neither wisdom, nor power, nor flight will resist it!” And I shall not be alone, for you do not know how things are ordered! O princes of Italy, flee from the land of the north; do penance while the sword is not out of its sheath and while it is not bloodied! Flee from Rome! O Florence! Flee from Florence; that is, flee by penance for sin, and flee the wicked! The conclusion is this: I have told you all these things with divine and human reasons, tempering my tongue with modesty. I have begged you; I cannot command you, because I am not your lord, but your father. You decide, Florence. I pray God to enlighten you, “to whom be glory and dominion for infinite ages of ages. Amen.”