Cities of God: The Religion of the Italian Communes 1125-1325

(Darren Dugan) #1

TheCityWorships 271 


of Don Bonaventura, priest of San Salvatore in Ferrara. Bonaventura vowed


that he had, on numerous occasions, heard Armanno’s confessions and that


he gave him Communion on Christmas and Easter during each of his three


years at San Salvatore.^221 Fra Bonaventura, prior of the collegiate church of


San Nicolo`, agreed that these confessions and Communions proved Arman-


no’s orthodoxy. He declared that Armanno also confessed at San Nicolo`


during Lent, Advent, and on the feast of Saint Lucy. Just before his death,


Armanno made his confession in a ‘‘suitable’’ part of the church. ‘‘When he


had confessed to him, the same Armanno seemed contrite in his confession,


and he immediately asked that I give him the Body of Christ. But I re-


sponded that I could not give him the Body of Christ without permission of


his own priest but that, when I got permission, I would give it to him. He


went away and did not return, for on the following Monday he marvelously


completed his last day.’’^222 That was a Catholic man and a good member of


his community.



  1. ‘‘Acta contra Armanum [Punzilupum],’’ 87 – 88.

  2. Ibid., 88 : ‘‘Facta vero confessione per eum ipse idem Armanus vere contritus et confessus ut
    videbatur instanter petiit a me corpus Christi, sed ego respondi ei quod non darem sibi corpus Christi
    nisi super hoc haberem licentiam a presbitero suo parochiali, sed ea recepta tradderem illud eidem, qui
    recessit, nec post reddiit, quia die lune sequenti mirifice diem clausit extremum.’’

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