The Decameron of Giovanni Boccaccio
that God will never pardon it me.' 'Go to, son,' rejoined the friar;
'what is this thou sayest? If all the sins that were ever wrought or
are yet to be wrought of all mankind, what while the world endureth,
were all in one man and he repented him thereof and were contrite
therefor, as I see thee, such is the mercy and loving-kindness of God
that, upon confession, He would freely pardon them to him. Wherefore
do thou tell it in all assurance.' Quoth Master Ciappelletto, still
weeping sore, 'Alack, father mine, mine is too great a sin, and I can
scarce believe that it will ever be forgiven me of God, except your
prayers strive for me.' Then said the friar, 'Tell it me in all
assurance, for I promise thee to pray God for thee.'
Master Ciappelletto, however, still wept and said nought; but, after
he had thus held the friar a great while in suspense, he heaved a deep
sigh and said, 'Father mine, since you promise me to pray God for me,
I will e'en tell it you. Know, then, that, when I was little, I once
cursed my mother.' So saying, he fell again to weeping sore. 'O my
son,' quoth the friar, 'seemeth this to thee so heinous a sin? Why,
men blaspheme God all day long and He freely pardoneth whoso repenteth
him of having blasphemed Him; and deemest thou not He will pardon thee
this? Weep not, but comfort thyself; for, certes, wert thou one of
those who set Him on the cross, He would pardon thee, in favour of
such contrition as I see in thee.' 'Alack, father mine, what say you?'
replied Ciappelletto. 'My kind mother, who bore me nine months in her
body, day and night, and carried me on her neck an hundred times and
more, I did passing ill to curse her and it was an exceeding great
sin; and except you pray God for me, it will not be forgiven me.'
The friar, then, seeing that Master Ciappelletto had no more to say,
gave him absolution and bestowed on him his benison, holding him a
very holy man and devoutly believing all that he had told him to be
true. And who would not have believed it, hearing a man at the point
of death speak thus? Then, after all this, he said to him, 'Master
Ciappelletto, with God's help you will speedily be whole; but, should
it come to pass that God call your blessed and well-disposed soul to
Himself, would it please you that your body be buried in our convent?'
'Ay, would it, sir,' replied Master Ciappelletto. 'Nay, I would fain
no be buried otherwhere, since you have promised to pray God for me;
more by token that I have ever had a special regard for your order.
Wherefore I pray you that whenas you return to your lodging, you must
cause bring me that most veritable body of Christ, which you
consecrate a-mornings upon the altar, for that, with your leave, I
purpose (all unworthy as I am) to take it and after, holy and extreme
unction, to the intent that, if I have lived as a sinner, I may at the
least die like a Christian.' The good friar replied that it pleased
him much and that he said well and promised to see it presently
brought him; and so was it done.
Meanwhile, the two brothers, misdoubting them sore lest Master
Ciappelletto should play them false, had posted themselves behind a
wainscot, that divided the chamber where he lay from another, and
listening, easily heard and apprehended that which he said to the
friar and had whiles so great a mind to laugh, hearing the things
which he confessed to having done, that they were like to burst and
said, one to other, 'What manner of man is this, whom neither old age
nor sickness nor fear of death, whereunto he seeth himself near, nor
yet of God, before whose judgment-seat he looketh to be ere long, have
availed to turn from his wickedness nor hinder him from choosing to
die as he hath lived?' However, seeing that he had so spoken that he
should be admitted to burial in a church, they recked nought of the
rest.
Master Ciappelletto presently took the sacrament and, growing rapidly
worse, received extreme unction, and a little after evensong of the
day he had made his fine confession, he died; whereupon the two
brothers, having, of his proper monies, taken order for his honourable
burial, sent to the convent to acquaint the friars therewith, bidding
them come thither that night to hold vigil, according to usance, and
fetch away the body in the morning, and meanwhile made ready all that
was needful thereunto.
The holy friar, who had shriven him, hearing that he had departed this
life, betook himself to the prior of the convent and, letting ring to
chapter, gave out to the brethren therein assembled that Master
Ciappelletto had been a holy man, according to that which he had
gathered from his confession, and persuaded them to receive his body
with the utmost reverence and devotion, in the hope that God should
show forth many miracles through him. To this the prior and brethren
credulously consented and that same evening, coming all whereas Master
Ciappelletto lay dead, they held high and solemn vigil over him and on
the morrow, clad all in albs and copes, book in hand and crosses
before them, they went, chanting the while, for his body and brought
it with the utmost pomp and solemnity to their church, followed by
well nigh all the people of the city, men and women.
As soon as they had set the body down in the church, the holy friar,
who had confessed him, mounted the pulpit and fell a-preaching
marvellous things of the dead man and of his life, his fasts, his
virginity, his simplicity and innocence and sanctity, recounting,
amongst other things, that which he had confessed to him as his
greatest sin and how he had hardly availed to persuade him that God
would forgive it him; thence passing on to reprove the folk who
hearkened, 'And you, accursed that you are,' quoth he, 'for every waif
of straw that stirreth between your feet, you blaspheme God and the
Virgin and all the host of heaven.' Moreover, he told them many other
things of his loyalty and purity of heart; brief, with his speech,
whereto entire faith was yielded of the people of the city, he so
established the dead man in the reverent consideration of all who were
present that, no sooner was the service at an end, than they all with
the utmost eagerness flocked to kiss his hands and feet and the
clothes were torn off his back, he holding himself blessed who might
avail to have never so little thereof; and needs must they leave him
thus all that day, so he might be seen and visited of all.
The following night he was honourably buried in a marble tomb in one
of the chapels of the church and on the morrow the folk began
incontinent to come and burn candles and offer up prayers and make
vows to him and hang images of wax[39] at his shrine, according to the
promise made. Nay, on such wise waxed the frame of his sanctity and
men's devotion to him that there was scarce any who, being in
adversity, would vow himself to another saint than him; and they
styled and yet style him Saint Ciappelletto and avouch that God
through him hath wrought many miracles and yet worketh, them every day
for whoso devoutly commendeth himself unto him.
[Footnote 39: _i.e._ ex voto.]
Thus, then, lived and died Master Cepperello[40] da Prato and became a
saint, as you have heard; nor would I deny it to be possible that he
is beatified in God's presence, for that, albeit his life was wicked
and perverse, he may at his last extremity have shown such contrition
that peradventure God had mercy on him and received him into His
kingdom; but, for that this is hidden from us, I reason according to
that which, is apparent and say that he should rather be in the hands
of the devil in perdition than in Paradise. And if so it be, we may
know from this how great is God's loving-kindness towards us, which,
having regard not to our error, but to the purity of our faith, whenas
we thus make an enemy (deeming him a friend) of His our intermediary,
giveth ear unto us, even as if we had recourse unto one truly holy, as
intercessor for His favour. Wherefore, to the end that by His grace we
may be preserved safe and sound in this present adversity and in this
so joyous company, let us, magnifying His name, in which we have begun
our diversion, and holding Him in reverence, commend ourselves to Him
in our necessities, well assured of being heard." And with this he was
silent.
[Footnote 40: It will be noted that this is Boccaccio's third variant
of his hero's name (the others being Ciapperello and Cepparello) and
the edition of 1527 furnishes us with a fourth and a fifth form _i.e._
Ciepparello and Ciepperello.]
THE SECOND STORY
[Day the First]
ABRAHAM THE JEW, AT THE INSTIGATION OF JEHANNOT DE CHEVIGNÉ,
GOETH TO THE COURT OF ROME AND SEEING THE DEPRAVITY OF THE
CLERGY, RETURNETH TO PARIS AND THERE BECOMETH A CHRISTIAN
Pamfilo's story was in part laughed at and altogether commended by the
ladies, and it being come to its end, after being diligently
hearkened, the queen bade Neifile, who sat next him, ensue the
ordinance of the commenced diversion by telling one[41] of her
fashion. Neifile, who was distinguished no less by courteous manners
than by beauty, answered blithely that she would well and began on
this wise: "Pamfilo hath shown us in his story that God's benignness
regardeth not our errors, when they proceed from that which is beyond
our ken; and I, in mine, purpose to show you how this same
benignness,--patiently suffering the defaults of those who, being
especially bounden both with words and deeds to bear true witness
thereof[42] yet practise the contrary,--exhibiteth unto us an
infallible proof of itself, to the intent that we may, with the more
constancy of mind, ensue that which we believe.
[Footnote 41: _i.e._ a story.]
[Footnote 42: _i.e._ of God's benignness.]
As I have heard tell, gracious ladies, there was once in Paris a great
merchant and a very loyal and upright man, whose name was Jehannot de
Chevigné and who was of great traffic in silks and stuffs. He had
particular friendship for a very rich Jew called Abraham, who was also
a merchant and a very honest and trusty man, and seeing the latter's
worth and loyalty, it began to irk him sore that the soul of so worthy
and discreet and good a man should go to perdition for default of
faith; wherefore he fell to beseeching him on friendly wise leave the
errors of the Jewish faith and turn to the Christian verity, which he
might see still wax and prosper, as being holy and good, whereas his
own faith, on the contrary, was manifestly on the wane and dwindling
to nought. The Jew made answer that he held no faith holy or good save
only the Jewish, that in this latter he was born and therein meant to
live and die, nor should aught ever make him remove therefrom.
Jehannot for all that desisted not from him, but some days after
returned to the attack with similar words, showing him, on rude enough
wise (for that merchants for the most part can no better), for what
reasons our religion is better than the Jewish; and albeit the Jew was
a past master in their law, nevertheless, whether it was the great
friendship he bore Jehannot that moved him or peradventure words
wrought it that the Holy Ghost put into the good simple man's mouth,
the latter's arguments began greatly to please him; but yet,
persisting in his own belief, he would not suffer himself to be
converted. Like as he abode obstinate, even so Jehannot never gave
over importuning him, till at last the Jew, overcome by such continual
insistence, said, 'Look you, Jehannot, thou wouldst have me become a
Christian and I am disposed to do it; insomuch, indeed, that I mean,
in the first place, to go to Rome and there see him who, thou sayest,
is God's Vicar upon earth and consider his manners and fashions and