Savonarola in Venice...

There is no historical evidence that Fr. Girolamo Savonarola (21 September 1452 to 23 May 1498) ever came to Venice. This past week I re-decorated my office and some of the clutter had to go and among it was my statue (almost life-size) of the Dominican priest which I constructed about a year ago. Savonarola is one of my heroes. I felt that outside our building, in Campo S. Pantalon, would be a suitable site to re-erect Fr. Giralamo. So at 6:35 yesterday morning, the deed was accomplished. I placed him atop a Venetian waste bin (see the photos). It was my gift to the city. When the streetsweepers (spazzini) arrived at 7AM, they were quite amazed and had a confab to discuss what to do. What they did was to (unceremoniously) remove him from his pedestal (boo!) and leave him to await the garbage boat.

Savonarola was the spiritual and political leader of Florence after Lorrenzo Medici died (1494). He is famous for his writings, his sermons (which Michaelangelo consumed while he was working on the Sistine Chapel) and his colossal dispute with the Borgia Pope, Alexander VI. Savonarola was pious, charismatic, a great orator, and a leader. Some would say he is infamous for his bonfires of the vanities upon which he invited citizens of Florence to toss their "obscene" artwork and books during the Carnival period. It is greatly unfair, however, to call him a "book-burner" as Florentines voluntarily surrendered their obscenities to the fire. There were only two bonfires, one each in 1497 and 1498. To hear people talk you would think there was a bonfire every night and that Savonarola's minions invaded houses looking for copies of Peyton Place.

In The Burning of the Vanities, historian Desmond Seward sums up Savonarola's life:

"If short lived, his achievements were extraordinary. Realising the Church was heading for disaster and finding himself leader in Florence, he tried to avert it by turning the city into  beacon of renewal through making men and women to live as Christians. The constitution he introduced (in Florence), however clumsy, was arguably the most representative in the period between antiquity and the American Revolution. Even if his clairvoyance failed him at the end, to a large extent most of his predictions came true...

In the last analysis, Savonarola had much in common with Francis of Assisi, although no two humans could have been more different. Like Francis, he was simply putting Christianity into practice, but while Francis appealed to the heart, the Dominican spoke to the intellect. In many ways Savonarola stood for Catholicism at its best, just as Borgia embodied Catholicism at its worst."

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While I am speaking of honorary statues, Laurie and I fabricated a life-size Dr. Samuel Johnson while I was living in London in 1998. When completed we had an unveiling in my garden and invited special friends including dignitaries. We invited the local MP, Norman Lamont, Chancellor of the Exchequer, but he was a no show. But the rest of us enjoyed Poonsh (as the Doctor would pronounce it) and a good handful of Johnson readings. Dr Johnson usually spent time indoors and he sat at the dining table. Often Laurie, Dr. J and I could be seen from the street enjoying our repast and engaging in witty table-talk (most of it Johnson's or Laurie's).

Here's the pic. Laurie likes this quote of his: "No man but a blockhead ever wrote except for money." Laurie took the picture. 

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And in case you thought my rants in past blogs against British idiocy and political correctness were at an end, think again:This was a news item last week in England-

"Patriotic squaddie Craig Briggs has been barred from joining the police — because he’s got 'ENGLAND' tattooed on his arm.  

The Iraq veteran, 22, had wanted to be a cop since childhood and was advised to join the Army to get experience first. But when he applied to the cops he was told: “Unfortunately, some people feel intimidated by the word England.”  Craig, who has just completed 4½ years with the 3rd Battalion, Yorkshire Regiment, said: “I am shocked and disgusted. I don’t understand how it can cause offence. It is our country, after all.”

Craig applied to join Greater Manchester Police shortly before returning to civilian status this month. When he admitted he had a tattoo, he was asked to send a photo of the inch-high Gothic letters spelling ENGLAND on the underside of his right forearm. He was later told he had been rejected by the recruitment department. It wrote: “Home Office policy precludes applications with tattoos on lower arm, hand, face or neck that are prominent, which may cause offence and/or invite provocation from the public or colleagues.”

Craig said that the Manchester force’s senior recruitment consultant told him: “A family who aren’t of English origin who see "England" on your arm could feel you might discriminate against them.  We live in a diverse society and try to ensure we give everybody equality.”

Craig said, “I’ve been told I could get the tattoo altered so it doesn’t spell England any more".

The Sun