A History of the Inquisition of the Middle Ages; volume ILea, Henry Charles
History
A History of the Inquisition of the Middle Ages; volume I
Lea, Henry Charles
Inquisition -- History
The brief remaining years of Dominic's life witnessed the rapid
garnering of the harvest sowed in the period of humble but zealous
obscurity. In 1214 Pierre Cella, a rich citizen of Toulouse, moved by
his earnestness, resolved to join him in his mission-work, and gave for
the purpose a stately house near the Château Narbonnais, which for more
than a hundred years remained the home of the Inquisition. A few other
zealous souls gathered around him, and the little fraternity commenced
to live like monks. Foulques, the fanatic Bishop of Toulouse, assigned
to them a sixth of the tithes, to provide them with books and other
necessaries, that they might not lack the means of training themselves
and others for the work of preaching, which was the main object of the
community. By this time Durán de Huesca's attempt had proved a failure,
and Dominic, who must have been familiar with it, doubtless saw the
causes of its ill-success and the means to avoid them. Yet it is
noteworthy that in the inception of the plan there was no thought of
employing force. The heretics of Languedoc lay defenceless at the feet
of de Montfort, an easy prey to the spoiler, but Dominic's project only
looked to their peaceful conversion and to performing the duties of
instruction and exhortation of which the Church had been so wholly
neglectful.[221]
All eyes were now bent on the Lateran Council which was to decide the
fate of the land. Foulques of Toulouse on his voyage thither took with
him Dominic to obtain from the pope his approval of the new community.
Tradition relates that Innocent hesitated; his experience with Durán de
Huesca had not taught him to expect much from the irregular action of
enthusiasts; the council had forbidden the formation of new orders of
monkhood, and had commanded that zeal for the future should satisfy
itself with those already established. Yet Innocent's doubts were
removed by a dream in which he saw the Lateran Basilica tottering and
ready to fall, and a man in whom he recognized the humble Dominic
supporting it on his shoulders. Thus divinely warned that the crumbling
church edifice was to be restored by the man whose zeal he had despised,
he approved the project on condition that Dominic and his brethren
should adopt the Rule of some established order.[222]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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