Page 33 (1/2)

(At this, a few hed)

“Guido cloaks himself in Franciscan robes and preemptive absolution, but he’s a fraud Francis would have known this If anything, Guido shah Francis could have condemned Guido’s sin, he remains silent He can’t save Guido He has to watch as the deliness of the de and Guido’s false Franciscanism appear even worse when contrasted with Francis’s quiet, pious presence His silence and lack of action give the lie to the demon’s explanation that Francis is there to steal And his silence forces us to reexamine Guido’s tale

“Would Francis have been so passive in trying to rescue a soul that was condemned unjustly? Of course not But since Guido hasn’t repented of his sin, all Francis can offer him is his silent compassion and, possibly, his prayers”

Julia paused and intentionally looked in Christa’s direction

“Francis could have argued with the de a false account of his appearance He could have protested that the de to preserve his good name, Francis is quiet so that the evil can be heard for exactly what it is”

Julia shifted her gaze to the other conferencegoers, noting nurin

“Guido would have us believe that St Francis was either gullible enough to believe that Guido belonged in Heaven or arrogant enough to believe that he could second-guess God Guido would have us believe that Francis confronted a deh to best the deive the lie to those possibilities In rave of Guido da Montefeltro to mourn hi, Francis h it is a severe mercy” At this, Julia’s eyes met her husband’s

“Francis was not a thief He was not deceptive or fraudulent, and he made no atte, Guido captured the essence of Francis’s nature by describing hi, perhaps, that so a picture of virtue But e reflect on the stories Francis’s followers told about his life and works, we see that that’s exactly what Guido does, even though he attempts to overshadow the picture with his skillful use of rhetoric

“In conclusion, I think that the two historical interpretations of this passage are mistaken Francis appeared at the death of Guido, but not to steal his soul

“Francis’s appearance contrasts true Franciscanism with the false Franciscanis, Dante uses Guido as a foil to praise the piety of St Francis by providing a stark contrast between the two men Thank you”

Julia nodded at the audience as they offered her a respectable level of applause She noticed several of the acade to one another before her eyes found the faces of Professors Picton, Marinelli, and Emerson

Gabriel winked, and her face broke into a relieved s to the audience

There was a moment that in Julia’s mind seemed to last forever, in which no one spoke She found Christa’s face and watched her conflicted expression, and believed that she had escaped unscathed

Then, as if in slow ed and hardened She scrambled to her feet