‘Devote some time every day,’ continued Valdez, ‘to meditation on the world, on yourself, on God, and on Jesus Christ, without binding yourself to it in a superstitious manner; do it in liberty of spirit, selecting any of your rooms that may seem most convenient, perhaps even as you lie awake in bed. Two images should be continually before your eyes: that of Christian perfection and that of your own imperfection. These books will cause you to make greater progress in a day than any others would in ten years. Even the Holy Scriptures, if you do not read them with that humility which I point out to you, might become poison to your soul.’[[918]]
‘Listen to preaching with a humble mind,’ continued Valdez.—‘But,’ said Giulia, ‘if the preacher is one of those who, instead of preaching Christ, give utterance to vain and foolish things, drawn from philosophy or some empty theology—one of those who tell us dreams and fables—would you have me follow him?’—‘In that case, do what seems best. The worst moments of all the year are to me those which I waste in listening to preachers such as you have described; and hence it rarely happens to me.’[[919]]
The day was coming to an end when Valdez rose: the duchess was like a person who has discovered the road to happiness, and fears to go astray in the new path. Valdez desired to leave, but she detained him: ‘Only two words more before you go,’ she said; ‘what use must I make of Christian liberty?’—‘The true Christian,’ replied the Spanish gentleman, ‘is free from the tyranny of sin and death; he is the absolute master of his affections; but at the same time he is the servant of all.... Farewell, madam, from this very moment pray follow my advice, and to-morrow I will ask how you have found yourself after it.’ He withdrew.[[920]]
It was during these solemn hours, when Valdez traced out for her the order of salvation, that the daughter of the Gonzagas sat in spirit at her Saviour’s feet, and gave herself to him with all her soul. It is possible that in the instructions given by this pious layman we may here and there discover some slight shades not strictly evangelical, tinged either with a mystic or a Roman color; and possibly the Holy Scriptures do not occupy a place sufficiently prominent; yet the two great Christian facts—the work of Christ on the cross, and that which He accomplishes in the heart—were clearly laid down by the Spanish gentleman, and that was the essential thing.
The religious awakening then going on in the Duchess of Trajetto and in many others at Naples, happened at a difficult moment. Some days before, Charles V., excited by the priests who were growing alarmed at a movement which they could not understand, had published an edict forbidding all intercourse with those infected with or only suspected of Lutheranism. When the emperor left Naples shortly after (22 March, 1536), the viceroy, driven onwards by the same influence, and ascribing to Occhino’s eloquence a religious agitation which was so novel in the Parthenopean city, interdicted the preaching of that great orator; but his eloquence and energy, backed by his numerous friends and the protests of those who so liked to hear him, prevailed. He was able to continue the course of his sermons, and did not end them until Easter (April 16). The Duchess of Trajetto, without leaving the church, endeavored more and more to walk in that new path which Valdez had shown her; the latter zealously directed her, and not long after dedicated to her a translation of the Psalms from the Hebrew, with a practical explanation. Somewhat later he published Commentaries on the Epistles of Paul to the Romans and to the Corinthians.[[921]]
Pietro Carnesecchi.
In this charming circle at Chiaja, and among the habitual guests of Valdez, Vittoria Colonna, and Giulia Gonzaga, was a patrician of Florence, as distinguished by his person as by the important offices he had filled: he was Pietro Carnesecchi.[[922]] Although for a long time placed as near as possible to the pontifical throne, he found a strange and indefinable charm in the conversations of Valdez, attended with pleasure the sermons of Occhino, drew light from the lamp of Peter Martyr, formed a close friendship with Galeazzo Caraccioli, and was touched by that mixture of grace, intelligence, humility, faith, and good works then to be found in some of the most distinguished women of Italy. As soon as Charles V. arrived at Naples, he desired Carnesecchi to come and see him. The noble Florentine was surprised at the order, but the emperor’s motive was this. Carnesecchi, a native of the city of the Medicis,[[923]] was early distinguished by his knowledge of polite literature, by his talent in the art of writing, and particularly by that penetrating mind which can discern the secret springs of events and see clear in the obscurest matters. From his early youth he had felt a desire for great things,[[924]] and had placed himself in connection with the most eminent men, with the view of running a more useful career. His fine countenance struck observers all the more because with nobility of features he combined modesty, purity, sobriety, and admirable mildness tempered by imposing gravity. By these qualities he gained the favor of the Medicis, and when Julius became pope, under the name of Clement VII., Carnesecchi received a message appointing him secretary to the new pontiff. Having at that time no evangelical convictions, he thought that the invitation would open a noble career before him; he therefore accepted it, and soon found himself in possession of great influence. Clement, who had so much to do with politics, with Charles V., Francis I., and Henry VIII., committed the direction of the Church to Carnesecchi, and it was generally said that ‘the pontificate was at that time filled by Pietro Carnesecchi rather than by Clement.’[[925]] The pope several times offered him a cardinal’s hat, which he always refused. This is surprising, for he was naturally ambitious; but after he had seen the papacy closely, he probably feared to ally himself too intimately with it; possibly, also, the first beams of evangelical light were dawning upon his soul.
Carnesecchi And Charles V.
The death of Clement VII. broke the golden chains which were beginning to oppress Carnesecchi. He quitted Rome, and, attracted by the mild light which was shining over the hills of Chiaja, he went to Naples with the desire of remaining for a time in the society of those men of God who were so much talked about in Italy.[[926]] The treasures of truth and life which he found there surpassed his expectations. But suddenly the command of Charles V. disturbed him in the midst of the Christian joy by which his soul was filled. What did the puissant emperor want with him? Did he design to open once more that career of politics and glory which he, Carnesecchi, had renounced forever? Was there some political scheme brewing, or did Charles V. desire to become a disciple of the Gospel? Carnesecchi could not make it out, but he went to the palace all the same. The emperor had a very different object: knowing full well that the Florentine had been initiated into all the thoughts of Clement VII., he desired to learn what schemes that pope had formed with Francis I. at Marseilles.[[927]] In that interview Carnesecchi did not forfeit the confidence which Clement had reposed in him; he did not violate the fidelity he had sworn,[[928]] but answered the emperor with a nobleness and respect which quite won the esteem of that prince. Francis I., however, when he heard of this conference at Naples, was exasperated; it seemed to him that the kindness he had shown Carnesecchi during the famous interview at Marseilles should have led him to refuse his rival’s invitation, and he confiscated the revenues of an abbey which Carnesecchi possessed in France. The Medicis, however, and even Catherine, having known this excellent man well, never withdrew their esteem from him, although he was everywhere decried as a heretic.
However great was the honor of a conference with Charles V., Carnesecchi much preferred those he had with Valdez, Peter Martyr, and Occhino. These pious men were not content with vain babbling: they read the Holy Scriptures together, enlightened each other on their meaning, and carefully compared one passage with another.[[929]] Carnesecchi had that love of truth and that boldness of thought which make rapid progress in the knowledge of Christ. A gleam of light shone into his heart. He did not oscillate for years in doubt between light and darkness; he was one of those noble spirits who attain their end at a bound. Ere long, the influential secretary of Clement VII., by turns the object of the attentions of the two greatest monarchs in Europe, sat humbly at the foot of the cross. He believed in those truths which he afterwards confessed before the college of cardinals, and on account of which he was put to death by the pope. Looking unto Christ, he could say: ‘Certainly justification proceeds from faith alone in the work and love of a crucified Saviour. We can have the assurance of salvation, because it was purchased for us by the Son of God at so great a price. We must submit to no authority except the Word of God, which has been handed down to us in Holy Scripture.’[[930]] These doctrines formed from that hour the happiness of his eminent spirit, and filled with sweetness the intercourse he enjoyed at Naples with Valdez and Peter Martyr.