Modo de predicar y Modus concionandi. Estudio doctrinal y edición crítica by Pío Sagüés Azcona, O.F.M. (review)

Abstract

Book Reviews¦%£> St. Francis in Italian Painting. By George Kaftal. (London: George Allen and Unwin Ltd., Ruskin House.) TWs volume is a part of a series of publications the avowed purpose of which is "to place the cWef ethical and religious masterpieces of the world, both Christian and non-Christian, within easy reach of the intelligent reader who is not an expert— the undergraduate, the ex-service man, the adult student, the intelligent public generally ." It consists of two parts: An introduction which undertakes to give a short description of St. Francis' life and personality, a somewhat sketchy retrospect of medieval Italian art connected with the Saint and his legend, and, finally, an abridged survey of early Italian literature concerned with Ws biography; the second part consists of 39 reproductions of works of art representing St. Francis and stories from his life, each of them accompanied by a quotation from one of the literary sources. Some mistake happened in "scene" 4, where the editors inserted the wrong picture, a reproduction of the first instead of the second fresco of the series in the Upper Church of Assisi as obviously intended by the author. To this a bibliography and a topographical list of the most important cycles of scenes from the life of St. Francis in early Italian painting are added, both of which do not pretend to be in any way complete or comprehensive. The choice of the illustrations aims "to illustrate the wealth and importance of the Franciscan cycles in Italian painting from the thirteenth to the fifteenth century." Attempting this the editors bring a group of illustrations from only one artistic monument of the thirteenth century, the well-known Berlinghieri altarpiece from Pescia; a larger group standing for the fourteenth century shows examples from Giotto's fresco series in Sta. Croce and from the series of Assisi; a few examples from the fifteenth century were chosen from the series by Gozzoli, GWrlandaio, and Sassetta. As the great cycles by Giotto and his school in Santa Croce and Assisi are, or at least should be, generally and intimately known not only by "experts" but by every educated person, inasmuch as reproductions of all these frescoes are easily available in numerous well-known publications, and since there are also many serious and conscientiously written works dealing with the phenomenon of St. Francis in practically every European language; and since, furthermore, at least one of the literary sources, the Fioretti, belongs to the treasures of world literature, educated people will profit little from a booklet like this. For one or the other person belonging rather to the "undergraduates" of school and life it might provide a glimpse into another and nobler orbit than his busy world of material success and failure. Harrv B. Gutman New Yor\, N. Y. Modo de predicar y Modus concionandi. Estudio doctrinal y edición crítica. By Pío Sagüés Azcona, O.F.M. (Madrid: Instituto Miguel de Cervantes, 1951. 2 Vols. Pp. xxxvi, 294; i, 480. 85 pesetas.) In her account of the dedication of St. Teresa's second foundation at Salamanca, Venerable Ana de Jesus describes Fray Diego de Estella—preacher on the occasion at the request of the great Carmelite Reformer—as "one of the most famous preachers we have." As she reports, since he was preaching, the greater part of the city attended . Philip II also paid tribute to Fray Diego's greatness as a sacred orator by appointing him predicador de corte, and this at a time when such men as St. Thomas 236Book Reviews of Villanova, Juan de Avila, St. Francis Borgia, Luis de León, St. John of the Cross and Luis de Grenada were preaching from the pulpits of Spain. Modern critics too have been generous in their praise of Padre Estella as a preacher and have highly recommended the Modus concionandi, his little book on the art of preaching. Professor Peers describes this work as "one of the most important works on sacred oratory published during the Golden Age in Spain." Menéndez y Pelayo likewise gives it his commendation. Nevertheless, Diego de Estella is usually thought of as a literary figure or as an ascetical...