Paradiso: Canto XXX -- The Mystic Rose
Dante's praise of Beatrice's beauty must reach its peak in this final heaven, for she has once again reached the sphere of her home, which completes her essence as "light of the intellect, which is love unending;/ love of the true good, which is wholly bliss; bliss beyond bliss, all other joys transcendng" (40-2). Until the bodies rise from their graves and the spiritual nature of humankind is reunited with its material, there is literally no greater perfection that Beatrice can achieve. Having seen how much she was transformed in the process of leading Dante from the garden, we have a clear understanding of how much she lost in descending so far and having to take on a form of being that could be tolerated by Dante's senses. In her continuous transformation, we have to also note that Dante's undergone a similar glorification as his body, which is still material, has become able to withstand the greatest bliss on the threshhold of God, on the banks of the celestial river that becomes the Mystic Rose.
Since Fr. Earl has brought up the point, and since it's quite relevant to my posting here, the end of the canto does seem out of joint with the fact that our godhead is drawing near. Beatrice's prophecy, the last denunciation in the Comedy, that Henry VII will enter the greatest sphere of heaven while Clement V will descend to the eighth circle of hell is a demonstration of the bicameral nature of earthly governance that is meant to be supported equally between an independent Church and an independent State. The good offices of the State, though, are thwarted by the malevolence of the Church leadership, by a bad pope who will push even Boniface VIII further into the simoniac font. The Aristotleian courage shown by Henry VII mirrors that described by St. Mark, who wrote that "this is how it is with the kingdom of God; it is as if a man were to scatter seed on the land and . . . when the grain is ripe, he wields the sickle at once, for the harvest has come” (Mark 4:26-29). Cut down before his harvest, the good King Henry is unable "to bring law and order/ before the time is ripe to set things straight" (137-8). The contrast that Beatrice is showing results from Dante's notice of an empty throne that is about to be filled by one who thought he was working in unison with the Church to bring about "peace on earth," and it is only natural that the explanation of his being thwarted in that purpose would be attended by some explanation of how.
S.
Since Fr. Earl has brought up the point, and since it's quite relevant to my posting here, the end of the canto does seem out of joint with the fact that our godhead is drawing near. Beatrice's prophecy, the last denunciation in the Comedy, that Henry VII will enter the greatest sphere of heaven while Clement V will descend to the eighth circle of hell is a demonstration of the bicameral nature of earthly governance that is meant to be supported equally between an independent Church and an independent State. The good offices of the State, though, are thwarted by the malevolence of the Church leadership, by a bad pope who will push even Boniface VIII further into the simoniac font. The Aristotleian courage shown by Henry VII mirrors that described by St. Mark, who wrote that "this is how it is with the kingdom of God; it is as if a man were to scatter seed on the land and . . . when the grain is ripe, he wields the sickle at once, for the harvest has come” (Mark 4:26-29). Cut down before his harvest, the good King Henry is unable "to bring law and order/ before the time is ripe to set things straight" (137-8). The contrast that Beatrice is showing results from Dante's notice of an empty throne that is about to be filled by one who thought he was working in unison with the Church to bring about "peace on earth," and it is only natural that the explanation of his being thwarted in that purpose would be attended by some explanation of how.
S.
posted by Sebastian Mahfood at 9:31 PM
12 Comments:
This Canto prompts me to return to my lingering (and admittedly amateur) criticism of Dante. Here he is in heaven entering the Empyrean, is bathed in divine light, has a vision of the saints, the river of grace, etc. and he concludes this Canto by re-condemning the popes to hell, this time Clement V and Boniface VIII. Get over it Dante! You are in heaven now. "Love does not rejoice in evil but rejoices in the good."
Yes, justice must be pursued on earth, and the heavenly Jerusalem reflected in the earthly city, and grave evils have been done to deny God's goodness to the world, etc., but I hope the blessed in heaven do not sit around and dwell on the sins of those in hell. They have much better things to do.
Have any of the scholarly critics observed this, or is this just my cynicism?
I agree with you Fr. Earl. Heaven is to be celebrated as a perfect communion of believers, as described by the banks of the river and the rubies etc. But here at the end we get Dante saying "too bad this jerk didn't make it." Seems a little out of place in terms of literature, but politically speaking is rather profound. Here the glory of God from which the angels never turn their gaze isn't quite good enough to get Dante away from throwing out a criticism here and there. Maybe this speaks too of Dante's imperfect state.
On a completely different note, I was reminded at the beginning of the canto, when dante says that a greater poet than he may be able to describe what he beholds, of the movie "Contact" with Jodie Foster. At one point in the movie she is on a journey through a galactic highway and is speechless in describing it. "They should have sent a poet" she says. Little did I know that some writer for that movie was a Dante buff.
To answer more directly Fr. Earl's question about other commentators, there are likely those out there who argue the same point (though I haven't come across any denunciations of Dante's denunciations), that Dante's so fixed on the political situation at home that he carries this burden with him even to the throne of God. Note the times, though, saw Jacques de Molay, the last Grand Master of the Knights Templar, doing the same thing when, in 1314, he was burned at the stake and cried out from his funeral pyre a curse on both Philip IV of France and Pope Clement V to meet him before the year's end in judgement at the throne of God. If we don't have some kind of judgement, then, even at the throne of God, then the last judgment won't have much power behind it. And with Christ, you might say, "It is not yet my time . . . " while, nonetheless, transforming the water into wine.
I found something interesting on New Advent.org's site that explains Dante's affection for Henry VII: "In November, 1308, Henry of Luxemburg was elected emperor as Henry VII. In him Dante saw a possible healer of the wounds of Italy, a renovator of Christendom, a new "Lamb of God" (the expression is the poet's) who would take away the sins of the world. This drew him back again into the tempestuous sea of politics and the life of action. It was probably in 1309, in anticipation of the emperor's coming to Italy, that Dante wrote his famous work on the monarchy, "De Monarchiâ", in three books. Fearing lest he "should one day be convicted of the charge of the buried talent", and desirous of "keeping vigil for the good of the world", he proceeds successively to show that such a single supreme temporal monarchy as the empire is necessary for the well-being of the world, that the Roman people acquired universal sovereign sway by Divine right, and that the authority of the emperor is not dependent upon the pope, but descends upon him directly from the fountain of universal authority which is God. Man is ordained for two ends: blessedness of this life, which consists in the exercise of his natural powers and is figured in the terrestrial paradise; blessedness of life eternal, which consists in the fruition of the Divine aspect in the celestial paradise to which man's natural powers cannot ascend without the aid of the Divine light. To these two ends man must come by diverse means." This last denunciation, then, is a final nod to the great political treatise, De Monarchia, and more on this can be found at the link I gave above.
S.
Indeed, Fr. Martin 2b, the poet's gift is that he speaks in metaphor, which is the only tongue that bridges God and man. It is for this reason that poetry is the highest form of language though music is the highest form of poetry.
S.
I can't presume to know what Dante was thinking when he put this little denunciation here in this canto where he is on the verge of the direct presence of God. There are several factors, however, that could have influenced this writing. First, Dante, is human and he is trying to make sense of corruption that he sees in the Church, which he loves and respects. Kind of reminds me of the abuse scandal of the past several years. Also, the just should spend all their time in heaven glorifying God and His greatness. It would seem that even the just condemnation of the sinner would be a cause for rejoicing and adoration.
Is this humility Dante shows in his writing ability, or is this his poetic way of describing the beauty of Beatrice? He gives the best explanation of her beauty by explaining that her beauty cannot be well-explained by even a genius poet such as himself. This full disclosure of her beauty enters him into a mystery. By definition, mystery is something about which our understanding can never be exhausted. He has already exhausted his knowledge of describing divine love, yet there is still more that, in his mortal state, is undescribable.
Since we've discussed Beatrice's being taking some 'abuse' by descending below her heavenly station...and Dante's physical strengthening through the journey...what will happen to our pilgrim when he returns to Earth? With the strengthening he received through his trials and travels remain with him, or will it remain as only a mental reminder of what to expect as a consequence of his earthly actions?
-Ed
All will be revealed, Romani Sum, to he whose heart is oriented toward the ultimate good. What you'll find, of course, is an image of Dante sitting at his desk pen in hand filled with the desire to describe it all but once again limited in his ability to do so.
The same is true for Beatrice, bheck -- after a point, it becomes impossible for him to describe her (divine revelation) without resorting to that language that Cacciaguida first used on him before adjusting to Dante's own capacities in thought and speech. Since that language wouldn't do us any good, either, he finds it difficult to articulate it, even in metaphor.
S.
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