Girolamo Savonarola was born in Ferrara, Italy in 1452. In his youth he applied himself to the arduous study of the Bible, as well as to the writings St. Thomas Aquinas and Aristotle. He initially studied at the University of Ferrara, and it appears he earned an advanced Arts degree. Repelled by the corruption of the world around him, he withdrew into solitude, prayer and meditation. In 1475, he entered a Dominican monastery at Bologna, and lived there quietly for six years.
In 1481 he was transferred to Santo Marco, the Dominican house in Florence, where his popularity as a preacher grew ever stronger. He spoke simply, directly and passionately as he attacked the vice and worldliness of the city. He prophesied doom to all tyrants, drawing his sermons from the Book of Revelation. In warning of the coming judgment, Savonarola predicted the imminent deaths of the pope, and Lorenzo de Medici, the civil ruler of Florence.
Within months, Lorenzo de Medici lay dying and he called for Savonarola to give him absolution. When asked to restore the republican liberties to the people of Florence, Lorenzo refused. Savonarola left without absolving him and the ruler died soon after.
A short time later, Pope Innocent VIII also died and the infamous Cardinal Borgia was elected Pope Alexander VI. So far, the prophecies of Savonarola had been fulfilled.
Savonarola continued to preach in Old Testament style:
"The sword of the Lord will descend on the Earth swiftly and soon!" Savonarola
The French King, Charles VIII, invaded Italy in 1494. The Medici rulers fled. Savonarola was able to negotiate with Charles to stop him from sacking the city. The grateful populace placed themselves under the guidance of the monk.
A new constitution was promulgated in 1495. God was to be the Governor of the city, and the Gospel the basis of law. There was to be no vice, frivolity, or gambling. Luxury items, obscene books, art objects, cosmetics and trinkets were burned in a huge bonfire. Everyone wore plain, somber clothing. The poor were cared for and justice was strictly administered. In the city, the singing of hymns supplanted the music of profane sounds.
Savonarola made some bitter enemies with his reforms. The Medici followers and Pope Alexander VI were anxious to be rid of the troublesome monk. The pope was angered by the criticism against his scandalous pontificate, and also by Savonarola's alliance with France. The Florentines grew tired of his rigid reforms.
The pope ordered Savonarola to refrain from preaching. The monk disobeyed the order. He was excommunicated in 1497. Savonarola remained rebellious and continued to say Mass. In 1498, the civil government, threatened by a papal interdict, (general excommunication of the entire city) asked him to stop preaching and he complied.
The fickle Florentine crowd turned on Savonarola. A mob attacked the monastery at Santo Marco. Peace was restored only when the monk himself begged all the men to lay down their arms. Savonarola was arrested, tortured until he confessed to many crimes. He was convicted of heresy. He was burned at the stake in 1498.
"O Lord, a thousand times have you wiped out my iniquity. I do not rely on my own justification, but on thy mercy." Savonarola
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